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Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy delivers a compelling prequel that meaningfully expands the series’ lore by weaving Greek mythology into the Prima Macula’s origins through young Sophia’s perspective. Polished combat, refined environmental puzzles, and dual-timeline storytelling create a more action-oriented yet still tense experience like its predecessors. Stunning environments and strong performance round out what feels like Asobo’s most confident and complete Plague Tale entry to date.
Mortal Shell 2 is a full reinvention of the middling original, turning it into a refined and distinctive Soulslike centered on the use of its unique Shell mechanic with abilities that mix freely with a respectable weapon roster. World design sees a major leap forward, offering expansive, interconnected areas that reward exploration far more cleanly than the first game’s confusing layout.
Beast of Reincarnation is what Game Freak can do when let loose from its traditional Pokémon shackles. It combines a good story and interesting setting with some excellent combat and a campaign to get your teeth into. But at launch, at least, there are some performance issues that need to be addressed.
At the end of the day, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is everything I’ve ever loved about the series, now dressed to the Blackbeard nines and bursting with new features to keep gamers busy for days. Sure, I’ve been overwhelmed by the treasure trove of things to do, but not once have I played without a grin plastered across my face.
In Lord of Hatred, Blizzard has found a more confident path forward, delivering a more cohesive endgame, handing more build crafting tools to players than ever.
Forza Horizon 6 is the series at its most confident, most refined, and most fun.
Prepare for another glorious time-sink game from the creators of Vampire Survivors. Vampire Crawlers combines the addictive retro vibes of poncles first title with a turn based deckbuilder.
Pragmata is a genuinely moving look at what it means to be human. The story of Diana’s curiosity and growth sits alongside combat that carves out its own space in a genre full of games that all start to blur together. The hacking system can get messy in the thick of a big fight, but it’s different enough from everything else out there that I’m willing to forgive the moments where it loses its footing.
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The Outer Worlds 2 doesn't reinvent the wheel, but delivers a more refined version of a formula that worked. Better exploration and combat buoy a tight role-playing experience that feels crunchy and isn't afraid of cutting off branches depending on player skills. The overarching story is a bit more self-serious than its predecessor, but the numerous side quests still lean comedic. A few bugs aside, it's not a game to miss.
Ninja Gaiden 4 hardly re-writes the rules on what these kinds of games should look like, but fans who have been awaiting the return of the franchise may prefer this first re-entry takes things back to basics to some degree. Built in partnership between Koei, Microsoft, Team Ninja, and Platinum Games, Ninja Gaiden 4 has emerged a surprisingly coherent and confident product. Stunning and stylish hack n' slash gameplay could've been backed up with more compelling characters and story beats, but for those who simply want to carve a bloody path through endless enemies — Ninja Gaiden 4 is up there with the best of them.
Double Fine has done it again with Keeper, one of my highest rated video games of the year. Keeper will keep you guessing the entire time and in the best way possible, with outstanding visuals and an engrossing story that keeps you engaged without ever uttering a word.
I went into Silent Hill F armed with decades of Silent Hill nostalgia and a general negative view of Konami. I'd say I almost wanted to hate this game, being honest. But I found it simply impossible to do so. Every step I took through Ebisugaoka led me down an authentic Silent Hill rabbit hole filled with horrors, fresh and familiar alike—stunning artwork, immaculate music, and disturbing twists that left me aghast for hours after the fact. Silent Hill F is by no means perfect, but it's a strong return to form for the franchise, and hopefully a sign of things to come. NeoBard nailed it.
Supergiant Games' first-ever sequel lives up to expectations in spades, delivering a masterful experience that blends frenetic gameplay with introspective storytelling. The random nature of many events can be irritating at times, but those frustrations are drowned out by the sheer scale and joy of the overall experience.
Borderlands 4 is the ultimate Vault Hunter playground, the gold standard for the series moving forward. Sure, performance can stifle the experience, and I’d kill for a Naughty Dog caliber story, but this game has me rabid for the grind, chasing bigger DPS numbers, perfecting min-max builds, and hyper-grinding.
Cronos: The New Dawn's satisfying combat, evocative environments, stellar sound work, polished performance, and inexplicably ambitious story showcase Bloober at its absolute best, solidifying their place as one of the industry's most exciting independent studios in the world. September 2025 is absolutely stacked, but horror fans absolutely must not sleep on this game.
Elden Ring Nightreign is a bold co-op roguelike offshoot from FromSoftware that creatively and satisfyingly brings Soulsborne gameplay to a new genre of RPG — even if issues with map and enemy variety hold it back from true greatness.
As it turns out, that's more than enough. DOOM: The Dark Ages is pure fun, even if it's a bit silly at times, and I'm seriously looking forward to what the team at id Software cooks up for the promised campaign DLC. Hitting a demon with a flail or watching as a dragon rips apart a Titan doesn't get old.
Skin Deep cleverly utilizes dozens upon dozens of different gameplay systems and interactions to build a fun, immersive sim that feels great to play. The art and visuals are suited to the comical tone, and there's always more secrets to find. Crashing and instability is a problem, though, especially toward the end of the story.