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In conclusion, the Atelier Mysterious Trilogy Deluxe Pack has a ton of value and content to play through for newcomers to these games. If you played these three titles on PlayStation 4 already then I’m not sure the little bit of new content and quality-of-life improvements are a big enough reason to rush out and play them right away again. For brand-new players looking for more Atelier to sink their teeth into though this is an easy recommend as you get three very interesting stories full of likeable characters, over a hundred hours of gameplay content, and lots of alchemy to mess around with.
Judgment was a great Yakuza spin-off title two years ago and that remains true in 2021 with the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series release. While the detective gameplay isn’t as good as it could be it doesn’t detract too much from an otherwise great game. RGG Studio delivers another memorable story full of fun and interesting characters as well as a really detailed world full of fun activities to partake in. It also looks and runs much better than it did before making this the definitive version to play. Whether you’re a fan of the Yakuza franchise or jumping into this world for the very first time, Judgment shouldn’t be missed.
The Outer Worlds: Murder on Eridanos is yet another perfect excuse to dive back into this wonderful RPG world. You get to upgrade your characters further, find out more about the amazingly well-written cast and scenarios and live out your fantasies of becoming a space detective.
Delicious! Pretty Girls Mahjong Solitaire is pretty much exactly what it’s called as you get the Mahjong Solitaire game with some anime waifu characters to look at along the way. It’s a game for those who love fan service or who just want to chill out and match some tiles.
Stitchy in Tooki Trouble is the perfect indie tribute to genre classics like Donkey Kong Country. It may not have the longest runtime, but it more than makes up for that with its charm and easy-to-pick-up gameplay.
Paradise Lost takes place in a compelling setting and has a lot of beautiful locations to explore. But sadly it never feels like more than a sightseeing tour at a painfully slow pace with a story you’ve probably seen before.
El Hijo – A Wild West Tale is a charming little spaghetti western stealth game that gamers of all ages can enjoy. It might not be hard enough for more seasoned gamers but the level design and puzzles do get more challenging as you make your way through. I also just really like the theme of a young boy trying to find his mom and being able to help other children along the way. If you’re looking for a new stealth game to spend a few hours with that asks you to use things other than violence to sneak around then El Hijo is worth checking out.
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV is a great finale to what has been a memorable four game journey. It’s got so many great moments throughout and many of the characters we’ve grown to love get to shine. It could’ve done with a bit better pacing though as I felt like I was just doing busy work quite a bit of the time. The Switch version doesn’t look or perform as well as the PlayStation version that released last year but what you lose in visuals you make up for in being able to pick up and play portably. It also is disappointing that Switch only owners can’t experience the full four game story on the platform currently with only the third and fourth entries being available. I can’t say much else other than if you’ve been invested in this story so far, you’ll be very happy with the payoff and if you haven’t yet jumped into it yet then you’re missing out on one of the best JRPG franchises out there.
DARQ is a masterclass indiegame with brilliant level design and perfect audio. The brevity of the experience is only amplified by the uniquely grim aesthetic and the mindbending levels that make you hunger for more.
While it isn’t perfect Beach Buggy Racing 2: Island Adventure is a fun, smooth kart racer that is jam packed with content. The asking price is more than fair as the Adventure mode alone will provide many hours of enjoyment while things like the custom rules will provide many more.
Hunting Simulator 2 on PlayStation 5 is an enjoyable time out in the wilderness so long as you haven’t been here before. While the graphics, performance, and load times are improved a lot those things alone don’t justify paying full price again if you owned this game before. Had the team included the DLC or offered some kind of upgrade path then I could recommend it. New buyers who are fans of more realistic experiences will find a lot to like here with some beautiful areas to explore, a variety of game to hunt down, and many weapons to hunt them with. Head out on the hunt if this sounds like your type of thing.
Kaze and the Wild Masks is a must-play game for any 2D platformer fan and especially those who loved Donkey Kong Country. The controls are smooth and responsive and the difficulty gradually builds and never felt unfair. Every level looks great and sounds great and it made replaying them to hunt down any gems I missed much more enjoyable. I can’t speak highly of it enough and when we get to the end of 2021 it deserves to be in the discussion for best platformer of the year.
Samurai Shodown’s jump onto the Xbox Series doesn’t bring much new to the battle outside of a faster frame rate. The jump to 120 frames per second is noticeable though and something I hope to see more fighting games on console offer in the future. Samurai Shodown is still going strong a couple years after its original release with more content still on the way for the gorgeous Japanese fighter. If you’ve yet to jump in and have a compatible display for the faster frames now is the best time to pick up your blade.
Cyanide & Happiness: Freakpocalypse is a solid point-and-click adventure game full of adult humor. Fans of the source material or things like South Park will likely enjoy it the most as this style of humor isn’t for everyone. When the other parts of this story come out I do hope they make it a bit more challenging and come up with more content that doesn’t feel so much like fetch quests as those two things are what bothered me the most about this first iteration. Outside of that I enjoyed my time with Coop and look forward to what comes next.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla spins an epic tale of Viking legends and Eivor’s conquering of England. The world is gorgeous and chock-full of content, with a smaller map than Odyssey but feeling a lot denser and giving more weight to the side-quests than ever before. Know what you’re getting into when you set your mind to beating this game; you’ll be in it for the long run and you’re guaranteed to have a blast the entire time. Sköl!
While Black Legend may not be the prettiest game to look at and there are still quite a few bugs around, the sinister atmosphere, local folklore and deep tactical gameplay made up for a lot. If you’re a fan of turn-based RPGs, you’ll probably have a great time.
Adios spins an interesting tale about saying your goodbyes, but it’s hampered by a ton of technical issues that pull the player away from any possible immersion. It’s a careful recommended play, despite its current low score, provided that the bugs get fixed down the line.
What Comes After is a short narrative experience that doesn’t ask much from the player but has a lot to offer in return. Its playtime may not run long, but the effect it had on me lingered for far longer.
Monster Energy Supercross 4 continues Milestones work at crafting finely tuned bike racing games but the jump to the PlayStation 5 isn’t as big visually as I would’ve liked. The better load times and adaptive trigger support were greatly appreciated and the biggest things that separates this from the PlayStation 4 version. The game is still pretty unforgiving for newbies so prepare to fail a lot if this ends up being your first time with this franchise. Fans of the franchise will find quite a lot to enjoy with some refinements to the physics, new skill tree system and career events, along with the track editor and Compound.
Sir Lovelot doesn’t do much of anything new for a platformer but it’s an enjoyable time for the few hours that it will last you. The levels are just challenging enough to not be boring and completing the optional objectives is something you can do to get a bit more out of it. Sir Lovelot’s quest for love would be a bit more enjoyable though if the team took out the water parts and deviated from the formula just a bit more.