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For the first time in the series, WRC 10 feels fully featured. It’s brimming with modes and ways to play, sure to make a fan out of anyone and give you more than enough replayability into next year. It’s a shame then that some of the bugs and issues from prior years have persisted into this year’s entry. There’s nothing egregious with the issues, but it’s rather surprising they haven’t been stamped out. The 50th Anniversary Mode is sure to be a favorite, and the highly-requested livery editor will satisfy long-time fans. This game captures the thrill of taking hairpin turns at high speeds like a pro, and drifting through snow with elegance. WRC 10 is authentic to the sport, something that’s not to be overlooked.
This is Cyan’s Myst opus. It’s a massive rework that is so impressive to experience all over again. It’s near-perfect, and simply must be played. This manages to be both how I remember it, yet a wholly refreshing experience, that captures the spirit of the 1993 original in new and exciting ways. There’s something for veterans and newcomers to enjoy, with longevity to spare, thanks to the new randomizer mode. With this, Myst remains the best puzzle and adventure game ever.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite is a lot of fun whether solo, or with friends. It feels rather disjointed not having any cutscenes or meaningful threads for any of the campaigns. The crashes, bugs, and audio flatness get in the way of its overall enjoyment and longevity. Cold Iron Studios have post-launch content lined up, and so there’s promise of these issues being fixed and there being more to do in the near future. Aliens: Fireteam Elite lacks the connective tissue and spectacle that the films are known for, yet manages to provide entertainment for mindless, late-night sessions with friends.
Death’s Door has some fun lore and a fantastic main character; I mean, I love birds, and what’s not to love about a little bird with a sword? The combat is tight, and battles with enemies and bosses never feel unfair. If anything, each failure felt like it was my fault, something I could fix in a future run or my playstyle overall. Everything comes together so well in Death’s Door; it’s just so enjoyable to play. It has become a top ten contender for my games of the year list so far.
Axiom Verge 2 is a thoroughly enjoyable game that hits most of its notes perfectly, and is easy to recommend. Where Axiom Verge 1 was a clear love letter to Metroid, Axiom Verge 2 establishes more of its own identity, both in how it fleshes out the shared universe of the series, and the ways it blends elements of its predecessors and its inspirations together to create something really unique. Like the first game, it feels both familiar and entirely new. The sense of mystery and wonder, combined with excellent mechanical execution, will keep you going on a breakneck pace from start to finish.
Neon Giant has some minor performance issues to iron out with RTX and DX12. The developers have made a game that’s as complex as you want, but doesn’t overcomplicate anything. Every system has a purpose, and is a weapon of opportunity for you to overcome obstacles. I love when the game isn’t having me fight everything in sight, and allowing me to take in the world. No game has made me want DLC or more content than The Ascent has. Simply put, The Ascent is a brilliant game, that absolutely lives up to the hype.
I was hoping for more, but I can’t say I’m disappointed with what I got. SkyDrift Infinity doesn’t try to do anything more than it claims to be. It’s a fun-for-all ages game that will take several hours to see all the content, and many more hours in order to do everything that there is to offer. SkyDrift Infinity is wonderfully engaging and enjoyable spectacle, just not an essential purchase.
I enjoyed what Tate Multimedia did with Steel Rats in a motorcycle platformer, but the Urban Trials series has really landed for me in Urban Trial Tricky Deluxe Edition. From pursuing every challenge, to the high score hunting, and besting every time, there’s something for everyone and a means to achieve it. Whether you’ve got fifteen minutes or a couple of hours, the game fits in either direction to satisfy and make progress. Urban Trial Tricky Deluxe Edition is great for any age, and a casual experience to get started with expert nuance in the later levels that really defines the experience.
I want to love Stonefly. It has all of the right pieces to make something great. When those pieces come together, though, the fit isn’t quite right, and the resulting whole has its share of holes. This is a game that’s big on concept and playfulness, but translating those qualities into something that you interact with as a player fails to cleanly make the jump. Most specifically, the game play isn’t quite there; the mechanics are all fine, but the balance is off in some crucial ways that disrupt the experience and cause the game to get in the way of itself. Stonefly is at its best when its showing off its beautiful artwork and telling its story, and the parts in between where you fight lots of bugs and gather too many resources feel in opposition to that side of the experience rather than in service of it. I still enjoyed a lot of my time with Stonefly, but this feels like an experience that would have benefited from being shorter, and more focused on exploration and its narrative.
For an annual release, Codemasters manages to top themselves year over year, and this time is no different. After being bought by EA, I can only see positives by this relationship, and shows a promising future for the F1 series. The story of Braking Point is an absolute highlight, the return of fan-favorite Two Player Career mode is a delight, career mode is as fun as ever, and makes for a wonderful package. With raytracing, DLSS, and other next-generation features, F1 2021 feels truly fresh and exciting, like it hasn’t been before.
Boomerang X is wonderfully executed and offers a great ramp up with each successive level, it’s a shame then that it’s over all too soon. New Game + acts like a totally optional but rewarding victory lap, adding another layer of difficulty which helps satisfy the desire to play more of it. The combat offers a very specific toolset to dispatch your foes with, and the movement demands you to always be on the move, in the air or on the ground in order avoid early deaths. This is a game about split-second decisions involving tactics just as much as skill. Boomerang X is a ballet of bustle as you slay the ancient beasts, sending them into oblivion.
Other than the noted changes, Mass Effect is exactly how I remember it, great story beats, incredible voice acting, fun and engaging combat scenarios, and characters that you just want to hang out with. The Mass Effect: Legendary Edition is absolutely fantastic and overall an absurd amount of content for one bundle to contain. All three games have aged well, save for a few cringy lines of dialogue and player decisions. For new players, this is the way to experience ME. For old ME Vets, it’s an incredible look back. If there were one thing I would have liked to have seen included in this collection, it would have been some history extras. Behind the scenes, a documentary, VO outtakes, etc… Something, anything, Bioware would have had leftover to give us fans a little treat to celebrate the Mass Effect legacy. The Legendary Edition is worth every penny they ask for and you can’t go wrong with this purchase.
When you swing with that weapon with purpose, and it connects, it’s a joy so few games can give. Every fight is a nail biter and you’re having so much fun that you don’t care whether you win or lose. Not only do those on console get to enjoy what Chivalry 2 is all about this time, but there’s crossplay so that everyone on PC and console can play together. Everything about the game is cinematic and grand, and never disappoints. Chivalry 2 is a sequel that exceeds expectations and has been worth the wait.
FEZ is the perfect confluence of beautiful visuals, deeply satisfying gameplay, a richly designed world, tightly interconnected systems, an astounding soundtrack, and fantastic pacing. Seldom are games this well composed, and it feels mostly as fresh today as it did the day it came out. This is the definition of a classic; it endures time and shows the mastery of its work as it ages. It will always be one of my favorites, and I can think of no more fitting a place to experience FEZ, be it for the first time or the tenth.
While I lauded the original Contracts for its promise and revitalization for the series, turned out to be short-lived. This is a good game, marred by outdated stealth design, a continued lack of manual saving, and frustrations solved by other games many times over. This is a game that’s meant to be replayed, and should despite some drawbacks and flaws CI Games has yet to address. It’s true that Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 is a better game than its predecessor in every way, still providing thrills through a deep and rewarding sniping system enhanced by some impressive gore and ranges only real snipers have experienced, until now.
Now that it's free from the shackles of Stadia exclusivity, Wave Break can now be enjoyed by those on Switch and PC. The game has its foibles, and it's not as smooth as Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, but it's a good time. Funktronic Labs needs to add a 'quick restart' feature, pronto. The combination of guns and skateboating amid the bright aesthetics makes for great fun. There's good reason why I can't stop playing and trying to perfect each level. If you can't beat the heat this Summer, then soak up the sun in Wave Break.
I hesitate to call Open Country a bad game, but it has many limitations baked into its core, and it shows. From the lack of graphics options, abundance of typos, terrible voice acting, and questionable mission objectives; it falls short of so many other games that simply do it better. Even for a $15 game, it’s not competitive in the survival genre. Open Country has some great ideas that end up being overly ambitious and woefully underdeveloped.
If not for the loss of the original source code, I think we might’ve seen all variants of the NINJA GAIDEN games in here. Not only for comparing and contrasting them, but to celebrate Team Ninja’s ability to take feedback and impart that in their re-releases, while also including everyone’s favorite included. Having all three of Team Ninja’s games together on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S for the first time is such a delight. NINJA GAIDEN: Master Collection is a wonderful collection of the finest action adventure games, while still being difficult and provide the level of challenge you want, feeling just like the day it came out.
There are times where Siege Survival: Gloria Victis is clunky with its interface or systems, though it’s not enough to be a deterrent. It’s a game that lacks some polish, and could be cleaned up in patches. A lot of this game draws comparisons to This War of Mine, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, it just lacks the heart that game had. Siege Survival: Gloria Victis is lean on content and low on replayability, and without more scenarios available, makes it hard to recommend fully.
Judgment is an easy game to recommend, especially with the sequel coming out in September, and I’ve had as much fun with it as any other mainline Yakuza title. Plus, it’s hard to argue with getting a full-fat, high quality Yakuza narrative experience in a $40 price point. This is a really promising start for a new franchise, and it’s only going to get better from here. Seeing RGG Studio stretching itself and finding new ways to apply and change the formula it’s already found so much success with is an exciting and welcome shift. Whether you’re racing drones, playing a Mario Party inspired VR board game for cash, tracking down cheating spouses, chasing a local parkour crime gang through the streets, or solving a really thorny murder mystery, you’re going to find yourself having a blast.