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Every aspect of Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is impressive and left me feeling satisfied that this game was given the lucky treatment to be put on a new platform. This remake meaningfully builds on the foundations of the original while bringing it in line with the rest of Square Enix's pantheon, while never losing sight of what made it shine in the first place. While it might not resonate with everybody, those who want to adventure beyond the standard turn-based fare will certainly not make a mistake with this game. There's an undeniable ambition here that is totally uncompromised and laid bare for all to see, and that's wonderful.
A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead throws several unique variables at you, making you balance progression through built-in limitations and staying alive. The gameplay loop can get repetitive, and enemy routes prove quite predictable. At the same time, the concept of staying alive resonates through both gameplay and narrative, making this very human story a worthwhile purchase through and through.
There is a lot to enjoy about The Bridge Curse 2 The Extrication from its well written story and characters to the unique monster designs. Its just a shame those monster designs lead to a lot of boring run and hide sequences. Those who enjoyed the first game or even the movies of the same titles will surly find a lot of love here.
Sonic X Shadow Generations is a high-speed thrills package that combines the best of 2D and 3D Sonic, with superb level design and great boss battles. The addition of Shadow's campaign is a great bonus, and despite some issues with stages proving a little unforgiving and delivering cheap deaths, the overall package is a must-have for Sonic fans.
Blumhouse Games is off to a great start with Fear the Spotlight. A creepy PS1-era horror game with a great story, incredible atmosphere, and puzzles that will make you remember those fun times back in the day.
Drastic improvements made to the core gameplay of Predator: Hunting Grounds vastly enhances the overall experience, making for a much more polished and better game than the one I played back in 2020. Predator: Hunting Grounds deserves a second chance.
Though Killing Time: Resurrected can't really hang with other boomer shooters in 2024, let alone more contemporary fare from a fundamentals perspective, I'm still happy that Nightdive Studios has cemented its heroic status by remastering it to an extremely high standard anyway and its love for the source material is abundantly clear. In spite of its clunky and flawed fundamentals, Killing Time is indicative of a shooter that wasn't afraid to try new things in 1995 and if there's one thing that remains true even now, it's that more FPS efforts could certainly learn to take a risk or two.
An exceedingly well crafted title that wears its influences proudly on its sleeve, Abathor delivers in all departments. Clever thoughtful design, beautifully detailed pixelart and a killer retro soundtrack that is the cherry on top.
While Ys X: Nordics might not light the world on fire by itself - and certainly has some core issues that could do with refining - I found that most of these issues slid into the back of my mind as I kept on playing. The story of Adol, Karja and the Griegr is enough to keep the game moving forward and the character moments that flesh it out were good. Ys X manages to demosntrate the key strengths of the franchise but unfortunate balance and shaky new mechanics hold it back from being a homerun.
Neva is a stunning game with incredible art and visuals that showcase a Nomada Studio team that's much more refined since it's last game, "Gris." The much-improved gameplay experience on offer in Neva paired with a deeply emotional story that's expressed in the art, the score, and the wonderfully detailed animations hit deep within you, charging you towards the credits until you're weeping while watching them roll. It's more simplistic puzzle-platforming and combat design do leave something to be desired, and a pacing deficiency dampens the mood, but those issues don't stop it from being a must-play game and one of the best indie's in 2024.
EA Sports NHL 25 fails to deliver on the promises it sets in the new features that EA swears are improvements. It's another example of an entry into an annualized sports game series that doesn't feel like it's doing anything differently from the last year, but at least in this case last year's (and by default this years) game is fun to play.
Silent Hill 2 Remake is bleak, grotesque and utterly compelling in its retelling of a horror masterpiece, with superb visuals and performances, and an immersive narrative that is just as hard hitting as it was over 20 years ago. A couple of missteps here and there do not deter from Bloober Team's masterful remake of what is, for my money, the greatest horror game ever conceived.
There's no denying that Throne and Liberty is a visual treat and certainly one of the best looking MMORPGs to come along in some time. Furthermore, though its massive world event battles impress, as does its innovative take on shapeshifting traversal, Throne and Liberty's flair-free combat, banal quest design and cluttered UI all weigh down a genre effort that deserves better.
Showing a tonne of promise, Selfloss just fails to hit the landing in many places. With a lack of polish in some key areas, this one will leave you questioning what might have been.
In more ways that one, Five Nights at Freddy's: Into the Pit is a first for the series. A new direction and a return to the classic horror roots that began the series serves as a reminder that these games can actually be a tense experience if they want to be. Doing away with the fluff that has shifted the focus, I enjoyed my time exploring these dense environments, when I could do so without interruption. Despite the clear passion and direction here, the experience of playing the game was far clunkier than it should have been, with some downright tragic bugs plaguing the experience during the review process. While I can see a great survival horror experience under the hood, I have to take into the account the issues that I had with the game. I really hope the team can address these in the coming days.
FC25 is an improvement on the previous entry, moving in a positive direction. Ultimate Team continues to be egregious, but Rush is refreshing and fun. Refocusing its gameplay to a more deliberate and slower paced brand of football, that takes tactics into account, makes for a more enjoyable game. With some minor updates, its potential can be fulfilled. FC25 has found its form, and is the best an EA footie title has been in years.
Some decent changes help elevate NBA 2K25 from last year's release, such as a more consolidated experience in The City as well as even more gameplay animations to enhance the gameplay experience. Learn 2K even helps you get back into the swing of things. However, menu input lag, incessant microtransactions, and clunky standard movement show how much room this franchise has to grow, even after all this time.
Beyond Galaxyland tells a fantastic tale full of colorful characters in a vast world full of surprise and wonder. It's a shame that its combat system is locked to an ability system that seems to hinder you more than help. Though its world is grand, the game's lighting gets in the way, making dark areas impossible to see and the light regions blinding the eye.
There is a lot to love about Bloomtown: A Different Story. Thanks to the game's fantastic writing and characters, I quickly fell in love with the town and its residents. Its soundtrack is brilliant, and the pixel art style really catches your eye. It's just a shame that some parts of its questing and combat hinder it from truly rising to greatness.
Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE Plus is an absolute blast. Each mystery kept me on the edge of my seat as I franticly tried to solve the case with my team of colorful, though sometimes insane, fellow detectives. There is a lot to love about Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE Plus, and fans of mysteries and the Danganronpa franchise will fall in love with it.