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SUMMERHOUSE works best as a small creative toy you pick up for short building sessions. It has charm and enough freedom to create some lovely little scenes, but the lack of guidance and awkward Switch 2 controls really hold it back. It can be relaxing, especially at its lower price, but there are better alternatives in the genre.
In many ways, Tales of Arise feels perfect for Nintendo’s hybrid. The structure naturally lends itself to portable play, the performance holds up remarkably well, and the complete package offers absurd value for JRPG fans who somehow missed it the first time around. More importantly, this isn’t one of those compromised handheld ports that constantly remind you what you’re missing elsewhere. The soul of Tales of Arise remains completely intact on Switch 2. The emotional story still land. Combat still feels fantastic. The world still begs to be explored. That’s what matters most. For newcomers, this is an easy recommendation. For returning fans, the portability alone might justify a second journey through Dahna.
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is not the traditional Yoshi platformer some players might expect, but that’s also what makes it interesting. Its cosy exploration, strange creatures, and hidden layers make it a charming adventure that rewards curiosity more than skill.
Still, depth alone doesn’t completely save the experience, which clocks out after a good five or six hours of story-driven gameplay. Why? Because ultimately, Bubsy 4D remains trapped between reinvention and nostalgia. It wants to modernize Bubsy while simultaneously preserving everything people remember about him, including many of the frustrating parts. The game constantly brushes against greatness without ever fully committing to it. You can see glimpses of an incredible platformer buried underneath the noise, but those glimpses never fully stabilize into something consistently excellent. And maybe that’s the most fitting outcome possible for Bubsy. Because, against all odds, Bubsy 4D actually succeeds in making Bubsy relevant again. Not purely as a meme, but as a legitimately entertaining, occasionally brilliant platformer revival with genuine mechanical ambition behind it. That alone feels borderline impossible. Unfortunately, even breathing new life into the franchise couldn’t fully save Bubsy from the same issues that have haunted him for decades. The uneven pacing, the frustrating design decisions, the technical roughness, and the overreliance on repetitive collect-a-thon structure keep dragging the experience back down whenever it threatens to truly evolve. Bubsy 4D is fascinating. It’s weird, it’s ambitious, and it’s messy. Sometimes it’s even genuinely great. But in the end, it still feels like Bubsy, and maybe that’s exactly the problem.
Possessor(s) is a beautiful metroidvania with a compelling story and world design. However, it doesn’t introduce any particularly game-changing features. The combat is perfected, but it’s what we’ve come to expect as the standard for Metroidvanias, with familiar weapons and abilities in clever reskins. I was left wanting more and expecting to see a gameplay hook that would set it apart from other games in the genre, but this never materialised. It’s a game that I would recommend to people who are curious about Metroidvanias and are looking for a place to start. After playing it, you will understand the genre’s language. Because if there is something especially strong in Possessor(s), it’s the foundations.
Thick as Thieves annoyed me more than I wanted it to, because the good parts are easy to see. The atmosphere is strong, some escapes really do get tense, and the idea of learning a location piece by piece fits the thief fantasy well. But the game keeps getting in its own way. Too many objectives are vague, too many systems are left half-explained, and solo runs start to feel like you are wasting time rather than pulling off a clever heist. Co-op might help with that, but it was not available in the review build, so I can only judge what I played. And as a solo stealth game, Thick as Thieves has promise, but not enough direction or variety to make that promise pay off.
LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight brings the spirit of the Arkham games into the LEGO universe in a way that clicks. Gotham is a joy to explore, the combat feels great, and the humor keeps the darker Batman lore light without losing its charm. The lack of online co-op is a shame, but this is easily one of the strongest LEGO games in years.
Wardrum ultimately succeeds because it understands both halves of its identity equally well. It isn’t a strategy game awkwardly stapled onto rhythm mechanics, nor is it a rhythm game pretending to have tactical depth. It fully commits to being both at once, and that gives the experience a freshness that’s genuinely hard to find right now. Even in a crowded indie landscape overflowing with roguelites, Wardrum manages to carve out something distinctly its own. And it’s not always approachable, and the difficulty curve will absolutely frustrate some players. There are moments where runs collapse spectacularly because your rhythm faltered for only a few seconds, and the game can occasionally feel overwhelming when several mechanics collide simultaneously. Yet those frustrations are overshadowed by the incredible satisfaction that comes from finally mastering a difficult encounter, perfectly syncing your warband’s abilities, and watching an impossible fight unravel exactly as planned. For fans of tactical RPGs, rhythm games, or simply inventive indie projects willing to take risks, Wardrum is one of the most interesting releases of the year. It takes familiar ideas, smashes them together, and somehow creates something that feels genuinely original.
Overall, Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is a faithful and visually improved return to a cult classic that shines because of its storytelling and atmosphere rather than its gameplay. It is a remaster made for fans first, not a reinvention for a new generation.
Forza Horizon 6 makes Japan feel like the perfect playground for the series. The racing is still as satisfying as ever, the map is beautiful, and I often found myself ignoring objectives just to keep driving. It’s familiar in structure, but once you’re on the road, that barely matters.
While excelling in some parts with lots of customization and unlockables and great sound design, the game’s UI and in-menu storytelling reveal its mobile origin. You’ll spend quite some time racing, breeding perfect foals, and upgrading your homestead. But you’ll spend an equal amount in tedious stylised menus. If you’re really into equestrian games and able to look over its shortcomings, you’ll be able to see this as a cosy game with lots of upgrades and unlocks if you’re willing to spend the time.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was already an excellent adventure game, and this Nintendo Switch 2 version does it justice. Handheld mode comes with a few expected compromises, but MachineGames has delivered a remarkably polished port that makes Indy’s latest adventure feel right at home on Nintendo’s hybrid console.
Directive 8020 is a major step forward for The Dark Pictures Anthology. The story is engaging, the production values are excellent, and the added gameplay mechanics make this the most interactive entry in the series so far. The stealth sections can become a bit repetitive, but they never get in the way of what is still a tense and highly entertaining sci-fi horror survival adventure.
Mixtape is one of the most personal and emotionally resonant games I’ve played in years. Its experimental structure and collection of strange mini-games won’t work for everyone, but for me, every part of it clicked. The music, visual style, and coming-of-age story come together in a way that feels incredibly intimate and honest. It made me laugh, reflect on my own youth, and at times left me surprisingly emotional. Even though the story is rooted in a very specific time and place, the feelings behind it are universal. Mixtape won’t appeal to everyone, but if it connects with you, it will stay with you long after the final song fades out.
Kiln has a clever core idea and some real Double Fine magic behind it, but right now it feels a bit too limited. The pottery mechanics are great, the multiplayer can be fun, but the game could really use more content and variety to keep things interesting long-term.
In the end, Duck Side of the Moon is one of those experiences that thrives on its identity. It knows exactly what it wants to be, a slightly odd but thoughtful collectathon with a duck in space, and it delivers on that vision without overcomplicating things. The combination of exploration, puzzle-solving, and understated storytelling creates a cohesive experience that’s easy to get lost in. There are moments where the pacing could feel a bit uneven, and the point-of-no-return system won’t be for everyone. But these are relatively minor bumps in an otherwise smooth journey. The game balances humor and sincerity successfully. It’s a rather complicated mix, but one that Duck Side of the Moon handles with surprising ease. So yes, it turns out ducks do belong in space as fully-fledged protagonists of their own strange, compelling adventures. Duck Side of the Moon may not change what a collectathon can be, but it absolutely reminds you why the genre works in the first place; this is one quacktastic space adventure.
Adorable Adventures is indeed very adorable, but could have been a bit more adventurous with its mechanics. It has a very clever core mechanic, but it could have used a bit more variation to really stand out. Even so, it’s still a fun little adventure, especially for younger players.
Invincible VS is more than just an arcade fighting game. It’s a tribute to the original material. The characters have been given great animation, and even feature (most of) the original voice actors. While some are missing from the roster, the replacement voice actors do a remarkable job. The combat and most modes are what you would expect from an arcade fighter, but the story mode is a great addition that puts all the characters in the spotlight. It is somewhat short, though. It’s more like an episode of a show instead of an entire campaign. A good fighting game needs a strong community to succeed, so the coming months will show if Invincible VS will be a hit. But if what I played is anything to go by, I think most players who come to this release because they love the show, will stick around because they will also fall in love with this game.
So to conclude! OPUS: Prism Peak is not a game that tries to win you over right from the start. It takes its time to develop, and you’ll need some patience. In return, it offers something that feels personal, sometimes uncomfortably so. It’s a game about looking back, about the things we carry with us, and the ways we choose to frame them. That doesn’t mean it’s without flaws. The lack of clear direction can occasionally break immersion rather than enhance it, leaving you momentarily disconnected from the experience. There are stretches where the pacing dips, where the balance between exploration and progression feels slightly off. But those moments don’t define the game. In a landscape where games often feel the need to constantly guide, inform, and validate (or throw you off the deep end over and over again), something is refreshing about a title that’s willing to step back and let you find your own way. Even if that means getting a little lost along the journey, because that’s what being on a journey is all about, no?
The Spell Brigade offers an interesting twist on the survivor-like genre. The more intricate map design combined with the quest system adds more strategy to runs, but the slow unlocking of these systems and the lack of enemy variety make the game sometimes feel repetitive. The safe choice to not deviate too much from genre staples also adds to this feeling. Multiplayer is fun, but the lack of synergy between players makes it feel like you are just playing next to each other instead of working together. The game can be used as a social experience when you and your friends love to play survivor-like games, but don’t expect any big changes to an already existing formula.