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Football Manager 2024 gives you more control over a football club's operations than ever before. You'll talk to players individually, plan game strategies, and snap up talent while retaining your own. Every club is different and it's up to you to figure out the best path forward. There are a lot of systems to learn which can be intimidating if you aren't familiar with club management. You also won't see the outcome of your decisions until a good amount of time has passed. But nothing beats the feeling of everything coming together when your team holds the championship cup.
Survivor: Castaway Island takes one of the most popular TV shows in history and turns it into a boring, repetitive video game with very little in the way of redeeming qualities. Trying to strategise with tribe members sucks, challenges are lame, the production values are subpar and the game even goes as far as to make changes from the TV show that make the experience even worse. I've kept hoping and praying that one day somebody would capture the feeling of Survivor in a video game. Today is not that day.
My Time at Sandrock is a cosy yet action-packed farming simulator that has you not only building up a dying town, but uncovering a conspiracy that threatens the quaint lives of the inhabitants. With every new update, the game has been getting stronger and stronger. And while admittedly there are some shortcomings with accessibility and glitches, My Time at Sandrock still manages to be a title fans of the farming sim will absolutely love.
Thirsty Suitors is a wicked combination of a warm hug and a shot of tequila. It absolutely nails its colourful, over-the-top style in every aspect, keeping you thirsting to jump into your next dramatic turn-based confrontation or unlock a new ridiculous Summon. At the same time, it explores complex family dynamics through a beautifully simple cooking mechanic, and provides thoughtful reflections on cultural expectations, relationships, and the diversity of the queer experience. Despite some mechanical unsteadiness in its skateboarding segments, Thirsty Suitors is an explosive, chaotic, and utterly delightful experience from beginning to end.
Alan Wake 2 is devilishly compelling from its weird opening all the way through to its astonishing conclusion. A completely bonkers horror tale with intertwining narratives, a masterful mix of multimedia and some entirely unique storytelling moments combine here to make for a thrilling escape into a dark, twisted world that I feared being in and at the same time never wanted to leave. Remedy has creatively let loose and created a true benchmark of quality in the horror genre. We can only hope that our next frightening visit to The Dark Place comes along much sooner.
Star Ocean: The Second Story R serves as a reminder from Square Enix that this is an RPG property not to be ignored. On offer is one of the most enjoyable of its genre I've played in some time with a heartfelt story, colourful cast, and a wonderful fusion of both fantasy and science fiction goodness. The quality doesn't end there, though. Deep leveling and specialistion systems make for meaningful refining of your party, becoming more self-sufficient the further along you get. This complements some battle encounters that are deeper than many other RPGs on the market, always keeping you on your toes. One or two quality-of-life additions that could've been better implemented aren't a worry for long when you also consider how gorgeous the world of Expel really is, with its characters popping off your screen. A killer title to convert newcomers and satiate longtime fans, this remake is one for all and all for one. Star Ocean forever.
Jusant is wonderful and never fails to impress. It's at its best when it's offering you the quiet, contemplative moments, teasing passed on civilisations with its very apt environmental storytelling. Offering climbing gameplay that is more focused on fluidity and responsiveness than gruelling or trivial makes for a smoother and more enjoyable experience, bolstering the cinematic and picturesque world painted. Basking in the glow of the sunlight, reaching a peak and in turn being greeted with beautiful pieces of music that feel almost like they're cheering you on… they entirely more than make up for the brief moments the game overshares in its otherwise mystique nature. At the end of it all, Jusant is worth the climb, remaining all peaks and no valleys.
With or without friends, WarioWare: Move it! will have you smiling at every turn. Featuring hundreds of new and quirky micro-games, Move it! gets you on your feet and moving once more by striking silly poses with the Joy-Cons, which feels (mostly) natural and accurate. It's not the kind of game you can play for hours, but it will be one to return to any time you need a pick-me-up. Its sense of humor and goofy mechanics will stay fresh for years to come. Finally, this is the successor to Smooth Moves we've been waiting for.
Sonic Superstars is packed with classic sonic charm, gorgeous visuals, and fun, fast-paced levels that we love from all 2D Sonic games. But the two big ticket selling points, the chaos emerald abilities and battle mode, are sadly its weakest links. The story mode is still largely enjoyable, and some better implementations of the new abilities but make a sequel to this game legitimately great. If you're a fan of classic Sonic, you'll likely still enjoy this title.
Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is a fun, nostalgic hit of fast-paced racing goodness that offers players a number of ways to have a good time. However, if you look a little closer, you can see that some of the game's paint is peeling due to the janky nature of its gameplay elements and its over-reliance on player speed rather than quality tracks. Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is full of charm but fans of racing games may feel that this isn't enough for them to stick around and get turbocharged with Hot Wheels cars.
Hellboy Web of Wyrd isn't the worst video game adapted from comics I've played, but it certainly could've been better. Lance Reddick delivers a wonderful performance in what is one of his final roles. Similarly, the Hellboy universe is as tantalising in its grim dark fantasy as ever before. It too has some fun brawler combat with upgrades that will make or break your run. This should be a roguelike foray made in harmony with one of the punchiest and most unique adaptation spins we've ever seen. Instead, Web of Wyrd is never in pursuit of anything all that meaningful. Narrative threads aren't all that engaging. The Mike Mignola art-style charm only lingers, ruined by the repetitive level design and jaunts through the same narrow hallways and combat scenarios. Never invigorating itself, Web of Wyrd is another in a long line of IPs adapted into video games that is, at most, a damn shame.
Ghostrunner II slices through a neon-soaked cyberpunk world, offering blistering parkour and ninja combat. It may stumble mid-combo with changes to gameplay causing disruption to movement flow, as well as performance issues and ambitious yet awkward motorbike sequences. Yet, it remains a fun, if imperfect, action-packed journey, great for speedrunning.
Cities: Skylines II is a city-building experience of epic proportions, filled with complexity and creativity. Its immense ambition in city design is complemented by an intricate web of services and an intelligent population. It may stumble under the weight of technical performance and a few bugs but the series still continues to redefine urban strategy in games. Colossal Order have truly delivered a living, breathing, dynamic city management game.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder is yet another magnificent showing from Nintendo. To take a concept that's so well understood but still find new ways to impress is no easy feat. Yet Mario Wonder excels in this field thanks to incredibly dynamic gameplay, headlined by the imaginative amazement of the Wonder Flower. It's hard not to fall in love with this new release, a game that's packed to the brim with charm and zest.
All in all, Wizard with a Gun offers players a thrilling foray into a magical version of the Wild Wild West. While there's a lot to wrap your head around initially and the game does come with a steep learning curve, once you understand all the different crafting system, it's a sheer joy to play, no matter whether you're playing solo or with a friend. The fact that the game features procedurally generated maps adds greatly to the replay value of the stylish and satisfying experience that is Wizard with a Gun.
Endless Dungeon adds a few layers of strategy to the roguelike genre and it works well. Going in with a team and having turrets for support forces you to pool your advantages together to win. With different team combinations and turret placements, you can spend hours finding the perfect playstyle. There is a steep learning curve compared to other roguelikes and some glitches are present. Fortunately, none of that drags the experience down and you still have a solid roguelike that keeps you on your toes.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is an incredibly strong follow-up that really sets the standard when it comes to superhero games. Its story is heartfelt and delivered by a genuinely likable cast of characters, and when it comes to traversal and combat, you won't find a slicker experience out there. There's still simply no better feeling than web-swinging through New York City. With an open world full of fun distractions and a level of polish by Insomniac Games that is unrivalled, Marvel's Spider-Man 2 really will make your senses tingle in the best way possible.
Make no mistake, Forza Motorsport is a couch racer designed for a gamepad so people looking for a simulation experience need not apply. Overall, Turn 10 has got the job done, delivering a title that looks fantastic and is an enjoyable play. Unfortunately, Forza Motorsport lets itself down in a few areas, mainly the career mode which is very basic as well as (arguably) a focus on road cars which makes it feel more like a track day rather than a serious racer. Forza Motorsport is pretty good, it's just not yet at the level of its competitors, nor is it as fun as Forza Horizon which puts it in a very difficult position. It's just not different enough; even the menus are the same and so are the majority of the cars on offer. The online experience was a highlight, and will probably be the key part of the game that will keep me coming back for more.
Lords of the Fallen may be better than its predecessor in many regards, but it isn't quite worthy of standing among the genre giants yet. However, this isn't from a lack of trying. Excellent and varied biomes are on offer that are truly striking and immersive to be beheld to. There are quality improvements to make the experience smoother. Still, balancing for builds, boss fights… the whole gambit is a little all over the place so far. Consider this with some of the bugs currently experienced in-game and it's not quite smooth sailing yet. Hopefully, before long Lords can be patched into a state where it stands solidly amongst the genre giants.
Detective Pikachu Returns offers an interesting look into the world of Pokémon. While the actual crime-solving lacks depth, and dialogue cutscenes feature a bit of repetition, fans of the original 3DS game will surely find something to love in Detective Pikachu Returns. There are some witty scenes, and at times the game isn't afraid to poke fun at real-world aspects, like the Detective Pikachu movie. In addition to this, the simple deducting feature makes the game a good fit for younger players, or for parents wanting to play together with their kids.