IGN's Reviews
It may take place at the bottom of the ocean on a distant alien planet, but Harold Halibut’s story is an entirely human one, both in terms of its carefully handmade environments and its strong emphasis on empathy towards its eccentric cast of characters. While I wish that there was a little more interactivity to be found throughout its subaquatic setting, and Harold’s shuffling run could have been boosted to a sprint to reduce the time spent repeatedly schlepping from one end of its levels to the other, I nonetheless remained captivated by his whimsical quest to unite his community and explore the spectacular surroundings of his sunken home. Consistently funny and full of surprises, Harold Halibut is a wholesome, handcrafted adventure with plenty of heart.
A disappointing RPG with interesting but poorly executed ideas, Broken Roads lives up to its name in all the wrong ways.
This slick and shrewd supernatural sniping game is packed with satisfying spatial problems to solve (and shoot), but it's not significantly satisfying after the first time around.
Clever clues entwine with Botany Manor’s charming old English setting to make for a lighthearted first-person puzzler worth tending to.
Astra: Knights of Veda’s detailed world and challenging combat show promise, but its overly aggressive grind and sluggish progression dampen the charm.
A short but sweet slice of propulsive platforming action, Pepper Grinder is all driller and no filler.
An earnest exploration of a family in turmoil, Open Roads has sharp teeth but ultimately lacks bite.
An incredibly unique mix of FPS, RTS, and tower defense ideas, Outpost: Infinity Siege is absurdly complicated but a whole lot of fun.
Aggravating hack-and-slash combat and surprisingly sparse jokes make South Park: Snow Day! dull, toothless, and a big step in the wrong direction for South Park games.
Millennia focuses too much on the ways it wants to mix up the Civilization formula without building the base of a strong Civ-like first.
Princess Peach: Showtime! is a simple, cheery romp with a variety of neat styles and a fun theater-inspired setting.
Rise of the Ronin marries a cool setting, Team Ninja’s mastery of tough-but-fair combat, and smart RPG design, even when map clutter and junk loot can get in its way.
More of a redo than a sequel, Dragon's Dogma 2 is a strange and wonderful action-RPG that bolsters the original’s strengths without addressing its weaknesses.
MLB The Show 24 continues to push the genre forward – not every choice is a homerun, but it has enough hits for another all-star appearance.
It’s not without its memorable moments, but Alone in the Dark fails to escape the shadows of the other contemporary survival horror titans that it helped spawn.
Cute and chill, homesteading in your giant mech on Lightyear Frontier’s alien world is already some good and simple fun, even if it currently stops a bit short.
Tribes 3: Rivals is a rocket-powered sequel that packs some serious horsepower, but its current Early Access options run out of fuel quite quickly.
Backpack Battles’ satisfying inventory organizing mechanics make for an autobattler with a strong foundation, but its barebones Early Access launch leaves a lot of its potential waiting on the table.
Outcast: A New Beginning is an effective restart for this all-but-forgotten series. It's certainly rough around the edges, but outside of Just Cause you probably won't have more fun with movement in an open-world game than you will here.
Contra: Operation Galuga is an amusing run-and-gun that met my 2D shooting expectations, but rarely exceeded them.