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Sunday Gold is an intriguing mix of genres that really does a good job at capturing the intensity of a criminal crew going on a high-stakes heist. Sadly, its breakneck pace is often slowed down by too many puzzles that require tedious pixel-hunting to progress. Nonetheless, it’s well worth persevering for the stylishly presented story and exciting capers. If your cup of tea is cyberpunk cockneys havin’ a right laugh uncovering labyrinthine conspiracies and making a few bob in the process, then you’d best have it, my son.
Soulstice is a fantastic time and successfully emulates the glory days of the character-driven action genre, whilst also implementing some neat ideas of its own that make it stand out from the competition. Visually, it may not stack up to the best the genre has to offer, but when you are in the thick of the action, looking like a total badass thanks to the easy-to-learn, difficult-to-master combat system, you’ll be having so much fun that it becomes very easy to overlook Soulstice’s flaws.
Biomutant on the PS5 is a greatly enhanced experience that, whilst unable to fix some of the more fundamental issues baked into its core, is a much better-realized version of the developers’ vision. Running on significantly more powerful hardware than that on which it was originally released, Biomutant’s exploration and combat shine brighter than ever. If you were put off by the technical limitations that held Biomutant back, this version is very easy to recommend, and even easier to sink hours upon hours into.
Honestly, Curse Crackers: For Whom The Belle Toils really took me by surprise. Not only is it jam-packed with content, including an Arcade mode, but the base experience is a ton of fun, with just the right amount of challenge. If you enjoy retro-inspired games or just like platforming, this is the game for you.
Wayward Strand is less an active experience and more like sinking into a comfortable, worn couch. At first, you find the seat to be relaxing, but as time goes on you find yourself sunken into its cozy depths, all desire to move from your resting place evaporated. The floating hospital becomes its own character, just like the colorful cast that resides within; soon, your goal to see the game through becomes less important than learning all you can about the airborne convalescent home. If you’re looking for a game that places more importance on the journey instead of the destination, Wayward Strand welcomes you aboard.
Most players will finish Tinykin in only a matter of hours. It’s a small game that provides a bit of fun before you move on to something else. There are certainly elements of it taken from other games in the genre, but it brings them together in a way that is new and shows a great deal of imagination, and it really doesn’t do much wrong. So if you’re craving a 3D platformer that doesn’t just feel like all the other ones you’ve played before, you should absolutely check out Tinykin.
Anyone who enjoys the Yakuza series should check out Judgment. While it doesn’t stand apart from the main series as much as I might have liked, with its most significant weaknesses being the places it tried to go its own way, the core gameplay from its parent series is as good as ever, and it features perhaps the best story in the entire saga.
While I’d love to see the team at Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio nail the detective side of things in a potential sequel, Lost Judgment is still a fantastic example of what its series can be. And with the addition of school stories, it does stand out from the Yakuza series more than its predecessor, even if not in the way I would have expected going in. With fantastic combat, great cities to explore, seemingly never-ending mini-games and side content, and a story that took my breath away, players should absolutely get lost in this one. While a few issues remain, Lost Judgment improves on its predecessor in almost every way and is a must-play for fans of the Yakuza series.
White Day: A Labyrinth Named School is a somewhat uneven package, arguably held back by how dated the jump scares and obtuse nature of the puzzles feel. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth experiencing, though – if you value an uncomfortable, oppressive atmosphere in your survival horror, along with a haunting and compelling story, then White Day: A Labyrinth Named School is definitely worthy of your time.
Restless Soul looks great and can be genuinely funny, at least in small doses. Its various parts aren’t badly designed, they just don’t fit together well, and its insistence on never letting up on the humor prevents any chance of it connecting with players on anything but a surface level. If this style of humor is up your alley, you could have a fun, if forgettable, weekend with it, but everyone else should stay away.
Steelrising is yet another feather in Spiders’ cap that clearly shows how far the developer has come. Not content with putting out a steady stream of sprawling Western RPGs, the plucky French studio has made a largely seamless transition to the souls-like genre. Hitbox frustrations aside, Steelrising’s challenging combat and deep world-building feel like the work of a team who have been churning out souls-likes for years, rather than a studio stepping into uncharted territory, and they’ve successfully created a world that I hope we see a lot more of in the coming years.
Gerda: A Flame in Winter is a masterful work of art in both the gaming and storytelling spheres; both aspects enhanced by the other, their impact reduced should they be somehow disconnected from each other. Every moment I spent with it was simultaneously energizing and exhausting, as I was emotionally drained on Gerda’s behalf after each level but couldn’t stop myself from continuing the story, desperate to know what happened next. If you’ve ever wondered what you would do as a civilian in WWII, Gerda: A Flame in Winter gives you the ability to see through the Danish resistance’s eyes.
I’m very ambivalent about Tower of Fantasy, but despite seeing quite a few flaws, I also see a lot of potential here. The attempts to riff on Genshin Impact and Honkai Impact 3rd wind up leaving some of the things it attempts to emulate feeling inferior to where it’s drawing inspiration from. That said, what it tries to do differently is help make a functional, stable platform from which Tower of Fantasy could truly start to grow from, and make something entirely fresh and unique from its competition. The exploration features, the Relic system, and even the weapon types are willing to come together and make something fun and unique, but it’s held back by a mostly lackluster world, bad story writing, annoying upgrade systems, and currency overload. I’d say go in strictly on Free-to-Play ideals, temper your expectations and focus on the things it does differently, and you’ll probably find something to like.
I’m in awe of Ooblets; it managed to take several distinct and highly developed mechanics and make sure each one was deeply complex instead of a cheap afterthought. The farming portion satisfies, the card-based, turn-based dance battles are addicting, and the task management system keeps players busy, busy, busy. It’s unfortunate that progress still feels like it’s moving at a snail’s pace, but at least there are cute lil ooblets to show for it. If all you want to do is dance (and farm, and forage, and cook, and shop, and…), then Ooblets challenges you to take control of your formerly toot life and make it an awesome one.
Overall, Video Game Fables is a solid RPG experience, and is even more impressive when you consider that it was made by just one person. It’s quirky, it’s cute, it’s addicting, and it never takes itself seriously. Even if you’re burnt out on turn-based RPGs, I think there’s still a lot to enjoy here. While not a perfect game, it’s an undeniably enjoyable and delightful one.
I’m not sure I’ve ever related more to a character in a video game than I do to Kay. Our experiences aren’t identical, but her pain is mine, or at least it’s close enough that I can feel it. Norco isn’t able to fully give her the healing she’ll always want but never fully achieve, but its understanding of pain, loss, and the need to keep moving are a remarkable achievement which helped me process some of my own feelings as well. Any fan of adventure games should absolutely check it out.
Cursed to Golf is a brilliant little golf game. Its smart design encourages creativity, and its roguelike elements, while harsh, aren’t brutal enough to derail the experience. It’s astonishing how well the individual parts from different genres mix into a cohesive whole—or should I say “hole”? More than anything, though, it’s just fun. That’s all there is to it: it’s just a fun game that deserves your attention.
Even days after seeing the credits roll, I can’t quit IMMORTALITY. I want to understand more, dig deeper, and find more clips. There’s so much to see here and so many mysteries hidden inside this game, seemingly just one moment of intuition away. I enjoyed Sam Barlow’s past work, particularly Her Story, but I was unprepared for the depth of feeling I found within IMMORTALITY. What he and his team have created is nothing short of a masterpiece.
Arcade Paradise is a fantastic management sim for those who love the genre. It may be asking a lot of players to prioritize other people’s laundry over games upfront, but the payoff is a literal heaven for those who have always wished to build their own arcade and play every game within it for free. If you enjoy a good management sim and love the idea of hopping from game to game to game as a major mechanic, Arcade Paradise is worth its weight in quarters.
The developers of We Are OFK don’t even pretend to care about making a traditional video game. It’s clear that instead, the entire goal here was to tell a story, and that’s incredibly well done. Not perfectly so. I don’t love where We Are OFK leaves one of their characters in particular, and the ending feels rushed. After spending hours with these four characters, setting up conflict, it feels like a lot of things get pushed aside to get to where the game needs them to end up, almost like the development team ran out of time. With deep character writing, fantastic voice acting, and killer visuals, though, I’d recommend We Are OFK to anyone who is okay with this being a story first, a vehicle for releasing music second, and barely a game at all.