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Blackwood is a brilliant throwback to Oblivion, but it feels like a starting point for a grander tale. Players going into Blackwood expecting a full-fat expansion experience will feel slightly letdown. Its dedication to 2006s Cyrodill shines through with the spaced out content making the overall zone feel a little empty. Still, the content itself is a job well done, ticking all the boxes to keep players entertained, but new features like Blackwood's companions work best when revisiting older zones.
Guilty Gear -Strive- excels in all the areas you'd expect it to – the music is sick, the characters look crazy, the fighting is fun, and May players deserve nothing. It's an old dog that's been taught new tricks, and all of those tricks are rad as hell. At the same time, it feels like it can be so much more. The story mode is clunky and the Online Mode can use some work, but I'm sure as post-launch support ramps up we'll see stellar improvements to both those fronts.
Whether you are taking on the game's numerous challenges, or carving your way across the concrete in endless mode, Skate City is the perfect way to kick, push and shove your way through a digital world.
Rust Console Edition manages to transcribe the wildly popular PC experience, but a few key missing features mean it falls short of what it should be. It could be great in time, but right now it feels like a disappointing misstep in comparison to the fleshed out PC version.
The Ninja Gaiden Master Collection is a solid collection of three games that are enjoyable, but are also showing their age. If you're coming here for a challenge, then you'll likely be very happy with what you find, but times have changed a lot since these games released. As long as you're fine with that, then you should pick up the mantle of the Hayabusa Clan and start chopping off arms.
I liked a lot about Miitopia. The Mii cast and the social interactions were the highlight, but I also enjoyed the fun story and the variety of player classes on offer. If you're looking for a deep and tactical JRPG with an excellent story you might want to look elsewhere, but if you're looking for a fun and simple JRPG with a great sense of humour, you should certainly check out Miitopia.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is the PlayStation 5 showcase you have been waiting for. Instantaneous travel to worlds thanks to the SSD, thumping 3D audio, ray tracing through the gorgeous levels, and clever use of the DualSense bring the many locations to life. Paired with classic Ratchet & Clank gameplay, this game is a riotous feast of explosions, platforming, and fast paced action.
Edge of Eternity is definitely a welcome addition to the JRPG pantheon, and while it clearly doesn't have the budget of the genre giants, it is full of heart and character. I certainly enjoyed my time exploring Heryon, despite a few niggles and a crafting system that adds little. If you go into this with an open mind and have an affection for the genre, then you'll find much to like.
Wonder Boy: Asha in Monster World is an exceedingly bland experience. This remake trades heavily on the 90s nostalgia factor, but fails to consider that, with the original only released outside of Japan in 2012, few will have played Monster World 4 in order to have any feelings of nostalgia about it. Sadly, all those playing the game for the first time will find little to get excited about.
An undeniable passion project with incredible world design, addictive gunplay, and a great soundtrack, let down by jank, weak storytelling, and half-baked systems. I could see this getting rave reviews if it had been released in Early Access, though. Give it six months. It's got the makings of a corpse-grinder cult classic.
The Magnificent Trufflepigs is a small-scale affair, both in terms of technical scope and dramatic themes, when compared to its award-winning inspirations. It's not especially memorable but it has just enough warmth and wit to get you through a spare Sunday afternoon.
Capcom Arcade Stadium is a perfume soaked and kiss covered love letter to the arcade. Capcom really has set the benchmark for how iconic publishers should preserve their work for future generations. The pitch-perfect emulation is notable, but it's the courage to make the necessary changes to classic games and ensure accessibility for all that is truly genius. Sure, having to buy everything in packs is a pain but you're bound to uncover a few unexpected gems in the process. Now, how about that Rival Schools: United by Fate, eh Capcom?
The ship combat and looting might carry King of Seas' piratical adventure for some, just beware that there's grinding through a bunch of stretched out story missions to get to the heart of the game. It's a game to break out when you're feeling extra piratey, but it has enough flaws that you should weigh them up before getting your cutlass out.
Any game so good that you can't resist doing just one more battle in is a game well worth paying attention to, and Tainted Grail definitely manages that.
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers is a genuine joy to play and a fun spinoff from the main series. EDF is a silly series even with its dark undertones, but World Brothers is a lot more light-hearted, and could well lead to a lot of new players looking forward to Earth Defense Force 6.
It's wonderful to have the classic Famicom Detective Club games remade with modern artwork and with full Western localisations, but the flow of these visual novel detective stories is distinctly lacking and infuriatingly obtuse at times. Still, we can hope this is a sign that Nintendo is considering a truly modern revival of the Detective Club series in future.
A beautiful love letter to Japanese games and culture with a simple but heartfelt narrative from start to finish that's both comforting and life-affirming.
I'm fairly sure that Beautiful Desolation is a decent game. This is a vast world clearly built with passion and with a keen attention to detail. Unfortunately, this console conversion is no way at all to experience The Brotherhood's latest. Awful pathfinding, so many invisible walls that if they were visible they could be seen from space, and clunky, unresponsive controls turn the fetch quest-heavy gameplay into a meandering slog.
Rise of the Slime ticks all the boxes of a bad game. Not only is it a roguelike that crashes regularly to ruin your run, but the game has little explanation of basic mechanics, too much variety in the deckbuilding for consistency, little meaningful longevity, and a poorly considered port to Switch. If you're desperate to play it, get the PC release, but do yourself a favour and save your cash for your next run at a deckbuilder.
BioWare has done a fantastic job of bringing the Mass Effect trilogyup to meet the standards of 2021. While it's still a bit rough in some areas, and there's quirks to how they've retrofitted some elements into the oldest of the three (which is still inferior in gameplay feel), this is the definitive version of the landmark trilogy you remember.