Daily Dot's Reviews
Ultimately the appeal of Yo-Kai Watch will depend heavily on you as a gamer. If you're interested in a light JRPG with a twist on standard turn-based mechanics, you will find Yo-Kai Watch to be a delight. If you're looking for something deeper, you might want to stick with Pokémon.
If skill challenge is your motivation, Guitar Hero Live will demand much more of you by default. If you're looking for a party game consider the regulars on your guest list and their level of frustration tolerance.
Guardians is a disappointingly uneven experience
Like the modern-day protagonists of the series who adventure through accumulated memories and experiences of their ancestors, Syndicate greatly benefits from the design and development experiences from all the Assassin's Creed games that have come before it.
I had expected Tales from the Borderlands to be just a side story, something inconsequential in the grand scheme of the Borderlands franchise, but there are events within Tales from the Borderlands that will have substantive effects on the Borderlands universe should they bleed over into any further games set on Pandora.
Maiden of Black Water is decidedly an example of a game where genre experience and fandom has everything to do with its appeal. Games like this are fan service at this point, and Maiden of Black Water strikes all the correct notes.
Other than this potential flaw, I can't think of any shortcomings (though it should be repeated that this is my first Yoshi game, so any repetitiveness from previous installations isn't accounted for). Yoshi's Wooly World is a challenging yet accessible platformer that weaves a venerable Nintendo icon into a fresh aesthetic.
If you're a Transformers fan who grew up with the original 1980s universe, Devastation is gold. Everyone else should take this game under advisement.
The new, ocean-based mechanics breathe some fresh life into Beyond Earth, but perhaps not as much as the new diplomacy and affinity systems introduced by Rising Tide.
[I]f you're deciding whether or not to buy Rock Band for the very first time, I wish I could convey just how much I wish the instruments had been this high-quality and the song library this deep when I first started playing Rock Band eight years ago.
If you're willing to do the social networking and accept the time commitment that Destiny requires to reach its endgame content, you'll be treated to the first massively multiplayer online game built around the core of first-person shooter gameplay, a unique entry in the world of video games, and a growing universe where you and your fellow Guardians are all that stand between the Light, humanity's last hope, and the Darkness that threatens to wipe us out forever.
The idea of Super Mario Maker continuing into the future is wonderful, because this is a game that can bridge generations. When I was a kid, my dad and I had no idea how Nintendo created a Super Mario Bros. game. Now, I can sit down with the next generation of my extended family and not only show them what Super Mario Bros. is through Super Mario Maker, but also peel back the curtain and figure out together how video games work.
The story feels as confused about its direction as Until Dawn feels confused about its identity.
In The Phantom Pain, Hideo Kojima and Kojima Productions have pulled off the rarest kind of balancing act, delivering a story that will satisfy many franchise fans while also being the most beginner-accessible Metal Gear game to date.
Toy Soldiers: War Chest is a delightful take on tower defense
Splatoon proves Nintendo has the chops for online shooters
The folks over at Slightly Mad Studios should be proud of what they have accomplished. Project CARS may not quite live up to the hype, but considering it has outdone its competition in some critical areas, it should be applauded. It may not be a perfect sim racer, but it's pretty damn near close, and for those willing to put in the time, can be incredibly rewarding.
NetherRealm wisely (and unsurprisingly) responded to Mortal Kombat's critical and sales reception with Mortal Kombat X, a fighting game that has just enough new features that it's hardly a more-of-the-same sequel.
Paperbound does a lot of things well, but mechanically it's a bit too shallow when compared to the more hardcore arena fighters out there. The concept is cool, and has a unique enough twist, but it is a game that will work best in more casual environments.
I was excited to get back to Yharnam, despite all the lives I would soon lose, let alone all the Blood Echoes I would waste. And I was also sad upon the realization that I haven't felt this kind of impatience and excitement in a game in a long time, not since my initial playthrough of The Last of Us. That was two years ago.