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Expelled may not be as original as its predecessor, and the cast of characters isn’t quite as colorful for my money, but this is an extremely worthy follow-up with an excellent setting and a more fulfilling mystery. This is a school that’s full of secrets, and dedicated players will find numerous jaw-dropping moments hidden in its darkest corners.
While its gameplay is sometimes a bit too involved relative to its themes and narrative, Wanderstop is a wonderful experience that overcomes that flaw through its touching cast, fantastic writing, and engaging mechanics that are all set within an incredibly inviting and cozy world. Wanderstop is a shining example of how powerful video games are when utilized to address real-world problems, and if Wanderstop aims to encourage people to look inward and ask its players to shift their perspectives on life, then that mission has been fully accomplished in a heartwarming fashion.
The First Berserker: Khazan is a brutal, beautiful delight. Its elegant parry system, demonic boss battles, and flexible yet approachable take on character development have come together to create a package that may pull directly from many sources in the genre but ultimately delivers a standout experience that easily stands amongst the stiffest competition the genre has to offer. Its early hours may suffer from linearity, and its parry-heavy combat system may not sit well with everyone, but if you’re up for the challenge and willing to adapt to how The First Berserker: Khazan requires you to play, then you’re in for an absolute treat.
Despite an intense and often unforgiving difficulty and unclear emulation, I still had a good time playing through the blast from the past that is Rendering Ranger: R² [Rewind]. It’s clear to me that Manfred Trenz is a very talented and creative developer, though perhaps one who isn’t very focused on balance in his adventures. Still, if you’re a fan of video game history and don’t mind getting your butt kicked repeatedly, you might want to check this out today.
Atomfall’s commitment to player freedom is baked into its design, and it works really well. I’d love to see the team at Rebellion, or other developers, for that matter, iterate on its structure and build more games designed around this level of freedom. Even most open-world games aren’t even close. Atomfall itself, though, is a tougher recommendation. It isn’t that it does anything terribly wrong, it’s just that little about it other than the structure stands out. Once you get used to the flow of things, there’s not much else I can point at and say this is why you should play Atomfall instead of any number of other survival games. Still, it’s always nice to see a developer try something outside of what has become the accepted right way to do things, and for the most part, Atomfall succeeds on that front.
The wait was well worth it for Assassin’s Creed Shadows. The fans have been asking for an AC game set in Japan, and Ubisoft has finally delivered, with a dual-protagonist experience that offers crisp combat mechanics, a bombastic musical score, and a beautiful visual presentation. Assassin’s Creed is so back!
My complaints about the difficulty aside, Rift of the NecroDancer is a hell of a good time. This is a colorful, charming, and unpredictable story that’s a lot of fun to experience. Not to be outdone, there’s a ton of content here, from 20+ main songs to DLC tunes, Steam Workshop music, and more. While I wish the game had been a bit more precise about the difficulty selections, I think any fan of rhythm games will find something to enjoy in the latest from Brace Yourself Games.
As RPGs, Suikoden is still excellent even today, and Suikoden II remains my favorite game of all time. Revisiting them for the first time in nearly a decade has solidified that opinion. These games have been hard to access in recent years, and I’m thrilled to see them made readily available to a whole new generation of players. As a remaster, Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars is relatively bare bones, and a few of the choices the developers made are baffling, but most of the changes they did make are still welcome. This is the best way to play two fantastic games, including my personal pick for the best game ever.
I feel like I keep coming back to the idea, though, that things might matter in Tape 2. Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Tape 1 isn’t bad, but it’s very slow to get going and feels almost entirely like character-building. After completing it, I still don’t fully understand what this game is going to be. Even if the full game was out now this would be a slow burn that could use to pick up the pace, but when all you have is the burn it becomes very hard to justify playing the game. That doesn’t mean I didn’t have a good enough time. I did, and I can see a world where Tape 2 pays off this character development with a second half that really makes the most of it. Without knowing what’s to come, though, I might recommend waiting to see what comes next.
With its incredible roster, awesome selection of game modes both new and old, and huge improvements made across the likes of Showcase and MyRise modes, WWE 2K25 is, at its core, a Wrestlemania main-event-worthy addition to the series. The in-ring action is so good that when I’m playing, I want to do nothing apart from keep playing, and in that sense, this feels like the absolute pinnacle of wrestling video games. What a shame that it’s all held back by greed, then, and I hope that players send a message to 2K and voice their concerns, as The Island, being the first prominent new mode the series has received in years, has me seriously concerned for the future of the franchise. For now, though, it’s easy enough to ignore, given the quality on display throughout the rest of the package, and wrestling geeks like me can rest easy knowing we have a quality product to get us through the next 12 months.
Ultimately, I’m still a fan of MainFrames, and I think Assoupi and The Arcade Crew have given us a unique and charismatic puzzle platformer experience. Whether or not you can see past the inconsistent and occasionally very high difficulty to enjoying the full experience is the real question.
With how uneven the core games are in Tomb Raider Remastered IV – VI, it would be incredibly easy to dismiss this and tell you to avoid purchasing, but it’s a lot more nuanced than that. The Last Revelation is a genuinely great game that is only made better by the improvements this package builds in, and Chronicles is a solid continuation of a formula that suffers from being a little too similar to what went before. Even The Angel of Darkness, though without much merit as a video game, serves as a fascinating insight into the eventual downfall of classic Tomb Raider. How appealing that is will depend on how much attachment you have to the series, or video game preservation as a whole and while I would advise casual Tomb Raider fans to avoid, there’s a lot to love here for anyone who does want to explore classic Lara and video game history in a lovingly put together package.
Monster Hunter Wilds is a solid entry in one of Capcom’s best-selling franchises. The new features, such as Focus mode and the seamless open world, are welcome additions to gameplay. However, the removal of previous mechanics and modes, the lack of new weapons, and poor technical issues are inevitably disappointing. Two steps forward, one step back.
I still wish the story of Avowed had connected with me because if it had, there’s a good chance I’d be looking at one of my favorite games of 2025. Even without that, however, Avowed is an excellent RPG that I had a fantastic time with and would recommend to any fan of the genre. It’s the sort of foundation that could lead to a far superior sequel if the team behind it can keep everything that works and improve on the few things that could use some work.
Split Fiction isn’t a perfect experience. There are a few gameplay stretches that don’t feel as polished as the rest of the game, and I wish the company that provides the backdrop for the entire story had been given the care its protagonists were. These are minor issues in a game this beautifully done, though. Split Fiction is one of the most audacious games I’ve ever played, constantly reinventing itself in ways that somehow work when they simply shouldn’t. There were numerous moments that stunned me into wondering how this game just kept getting away with design decisions that seemed like a disaster waiting to happen but instead led to some of the most memorable stages I’ve ever played. Finding someone to play with may be a challenge for some, but if you can remotely do so, you won’t regret it.
My minor quibbles aside, Everhood 2 is still a wonderful indie adventure that I’d recommend to pretty much anyone. It’s a unique and often hilarious adventure that will make you think, in a retro visual style that’s detailed and full of color. While I feel the story was better told the first time around, this is still a must-have game for gamers on PC or Switch.
Players who are already happy with the PS4 version of Virtua Fighter 5 will find very little that’s exciting, but that doesn’t change that this is still one of the best fighting games you can buy even nineteen years after it was first released. Rollback netcode absolutely makes this the best version of it for anyone who isn’t desperate for a single-player experience.
That said, even with the many issues I encountered in the Switch version of the game, I still found it very compelling, and there’s plenty of reason to replay it to see different outcomes. Here’s hoping the next adventure from Party From Introverts has the same strong writing but much stronger quality control.
I mentioned at the start of this review that the improvements found in PGA Tour 2K25 are mostly found in the margins. They’re more evolutionary than revolutionary. There are enough of those changes, though, that this release represents a giant step forward for this series and modern golf video games. It may be my favorite golf game ever made and is a must-play for anyone who enjoys the genre.
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is a swashbuckling adventure that longtime fans and newcomers alike can treasure. The spotlight on fan-favorite Goro Majima is sure to be a treat, even though the game can feel padded out at times. I’m a sucker for the Yakuza series, and even after numerous spin-offs, RGG Studio still has plenty of surprises up their sleeve.