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Although its gameplay is merely servicable, South of Midnight's dark yet compelling narrative is the shining light, elevated by excellent sound design, enchanting characters and a spectacular art style. It's proof that the industry still has the creative juice when allowed to be squeezed.
Promise Mascot Agency excels in precisely the areas you'd expect from the folks behind Paradise Killer – it's a phenomenal aesthetic piece and a genuinely gripping, off-kilter crime drama. The management gameplay at its core proves to be a bit surface level, sometimes even intrusive, but there's an undercurrent of beautiful weirdness here that makes even the iffiest contracts worth signing.
Two Point Museum is the culmination of years of learnings along with a ton of care and polish, beating out Two Point Studios' previous efforts in just about every conceivable way. The stellar campaign holds more variety than expected, the systems are as approachable as they are moreish, and it plays beautifully on a controller.
The journey taken across Koira's musically emotive world is exactly what my soul needed in these dark times, and it's one you'll likely enjoy in equal measure too.
The additions and improvements made in WWE 2K25 more than justify the series' annual cadence, but new mode The Island shows us a potentially grim future of monetisation and pay-to-win practices.
The underdog in Monolith Soft's Xenoblade Chronicles series has never looked or played better, giving new life to a game that could have been destined to rot in the ill-fated WiiU's library. By boldly refitting its systems and gently touching up the already-beautiful art, along with adding some welcome chunks of all-new content, this Definitive Edition of Xenoblade Chronicles X is essential playing for fans new and old.
Ubisoft's big, bold swing with Assassin's Creed Shadows mostly connects, proving that it was right to hold off on the Hail Mary Feudal Japan setting until it had honed the series' RPG trappings. Shadows' attempts at new ideas don't all land the same, but it excels in the areas that matter most in these games with a gorgeous, rich and well-researched world to explore, compelling stealth gameplay and a story full of intrigue and fresh takes on historical figures.
Wanderstop is a well-intentioned take on the personal weight of societal burnout and the issues typically found in the cozy genre but struggles to find much ground beyond its initial premise as surface-level commentary and frustrating, awkward gameplay spoils the brew.
Carmen Sandiego is a welcome addition to a franchise that continues to educate in all the right ways. For better or worse it doesn't mix the formula up too much, but any young one should find much to like. Just be sure to stick with a portable platform to enjoy it best.
Building off the strong foundation that is It Takes Two, Split Fiction is a consistently charming and entertaining co-op adventure that doesn't take a single second to rest between its frankly insane number of unique and well-designed gameplay mechanics.
Monster Hunter Wilds manages to deliver on every expectation one would have for a new Monster Hunter game, before dropping the throttle and blasting through every expectation you didn't even know you had. With gameplay shake ups, weapon tweaks and a brilliant range of monsters strewn across a score of incredible landscapes, Wilds is a different beast that establishes itself as well worth the hunt.
Starward Vector is a confident, brilliantly written sequel that builds on its predecessor's deft ability to weave thematic and story threads through direct-feed role playing. Gameplay tweaks and the new Contracts system turn what could've been an overly familiar double dip into a follow-up that stands confidently on its own.
Yakuza Pirates in Hawaii is as irreverent and over-the-top as the title might imply, putting its leading man to good use to tell a piratical tale that does just enough to stand on its own. Ship combat never quite reaches the highs it aspires to, and the series still has some growing to do, but it's hard not to be charmed by this mix of classical Like a Dragon and sea-faring action.
In returning to its narrative adventure roots, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage feels like a retreat for Don't Nod. Draped in nostalgia for both the 90s and Life is Strange, Bloom & Rage struggles to find itself among uneven pacing, tonal inconsistencies, and an uninteresting cast of characters. Despite some neat visual tricks with its VHS overlays, there's little on this first tape worth a rental.
Avowed moves Obsidian Entertainment even further toward the action side of Action-RPG with a satisfying combat system and vibrant world stapled to an unengaging narrative and surface level roleplaying systems. Despite its initially promising setup, Avowed never rises above a binge and forget experience.
Terry's bite-sized, open world adventure is absurdly hilarious and hilariously absurd in equal measure, providing a few, thrilling hours of goofy fun with some of the best video game comedy in recent memory. If you missed this on PC last year, now's your chance on PS5 and Switch.
Afterlove EP pulls from a deep emotional well to weave threads of grief, love, hope, resentment, forgiveness, identity and more through a mostly-good mix of choice-driven visual novel and rhythm game. It has some issues with flow, and the rhythm stuff isn't amazing, but stick with it and you'll fall in love with this little slice of Jakarta.
Ninja Gaiden II Black is an impressive remaster in terms of sheer visual fidelity, but the gameplay and design haven't aged quite so gracefully. It's an important relic of the past, but just that.
Sid Meier's Civilization VII introduces some much-needed shake-ups to the formula with welcome changes. However, at times, it feels like something is missing. For fans of the long-running series, there's plenty to get excited about, and it's as addictive as ever. It's also probably one of the more approachable entries for newcomers. Overall, plenty to love now, and hopefully, some changes to make certain aspects more lovable in the future.
This is more Kingdom Come: Deliverance, just a bit bigger and better. Warhorse's second tour into medieval Bohemia should be on your 2025 travel itinerary if you can survive it.