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Where the original console release of Assetto Corsa Competizione had some huge caveats hanging over it, the game's release on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S brings it up to spec, effectively matching the PC version. It still has some weaknesses in presentation and structure for new players in particular, but once you get into the groove, it's one of the best sim racers you can buy right now.
GRID Legends builds on the foundations of the 2019 reboot, improving the driving experience in certain areas, adding a big new story mode, and throwing more variables and variety into the mix. There's enjoyable, pulpy action racing to be had here, but some of the fundamental weaknesses from the last game remain, and as the racing game community increasingly looks toward sim racing, it feels like this franchise is in need of another reinvention.
Atelier Sophie 2: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Dream is an absolute gift. Sophie is just as charming and inspiring as ever, and even though the story tacks on more dimensional time-travel drama than I would've cared for, it's just as touching and cozy of an experience as the first Atelier Sophie. Gathering, crafting, and battling are all plenty of fun too, and flooded with enough layers of mechanics that it's easy to pick an area you want to focus on and purely master that one element of the game. By looking to the past, this surprise sequel has delivered a promising vision of the future of the Atelier series.
Martha is Dead wants to send a big important message, but the way it's delivered is terrifyingly bad, not only in it's writing but also in the shoddy gameplay.
Elden Ring is the game Souls fans have been waiting for. From the open world design, to riding into battle on Torrent's back, and the dark narrative woven through the world, this is a clear Game of the Year frontrunner that will have us all ensnared for a long time to come.
FAR: Changing Tides is a mysterious, intriguing game. It builds off the inventive mechanics of managing a ship, the adventure you face taking on a vaguely unsettling tone at times. It's also fairly short – I finished it in about five hours – but that means it also doesn't try and stretch out its ideas until it outstays its welcome. This is an original and artistic game that deserves a little appreciation.
As things stand, Kingdom of the Dead is a great proof of concept that is still an enjoyable retro FPS but doesn't quite live up to the aesthetics. I'm keen to see what the developer produces next though as they clearly have a real flair for design and a love of old school FPS games.
Infernax is a great retro-styled title that adds in enough ideas of its own to stand up to modern standards. The gory combat and interesting level design maintain interest throughout, and there is lots of potential for replayability through the different moral paths to unlock. If retro gaming is your thing, then Infernax is a great game to add to your collection.
King of Fighters XV marks an excellent return for the series, modernising it at nearly every turn. While we await a story that'll finally do justice to the characterful roster, it stakes a claim to SNK's past with an eye firmly on the future.
Horizon Forbidden West improves upon Zero Dawn in almost every aspect. The story is particularly well written and ebbs and flows from air punching highs to dark, horrific lows. Like later Jurassic Park movies it suffers from the fact that we've already seen massive robotic dinosaurs on our TVs, the wow factor is reduced, and that the puzzles, crafting, and RPG elements could have been lifted from any number of games. Even so, it's still a spectacular robo-beast smack down and thoroughly enjoyable to play.
Dynasty Warriors Empires has always been for the die-hard fans. Those who enjoy the hack n' slash combat and love adding their own tactical twist. Those wanting to direct custom campaigns and create their own musou legend. Even if DW9 left a sour taste, there's some solace to be found here within its repurposed carcass, though redemption may still be lost.
If Total War Warhammer 3 is the beginning of the end for Creative Assembly's fantasy series, then it's going out on a high note. The game takes several steps forward in how the campaign works, how it builds toward climactic battles and then how those battles take place, and there's plenty of quality of life improvements for the Total War series as a whole.
Retro Bowl is pure gaming joy, wrapped with a nostalgic little bow. It's also the best American Football game in years.
If I could grade Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duels in Magic Terms, I’d give it a Sideboard B. If you love Yu-Gi-Oh, this is probably the pinnacle of the game’s experience, with modern flourishes and easy access to a huge repository of cards. However, if you’re not a hardcore fan and just fancy dipping your toes in the water, this game is probably not for you — by all means give it a chance, but don’t be surprised if you find its complexities impossible to overcome.
Royal Court is a pricey expansion, but it helps Crusader Kings 3 take another step toward representing that Game of Thones-ian medieval ruler fantasy. Alongside that the cultural hybridisation and divergence also mean it’s building out the foundations of the actual grand strategy in intriguing ways for the game’s future.
Looking back on the three parts of the Far Cry 6 season pass, it feels like something of a missed opportunity. While the roguelite genre really suited delving into Vaas’ mind, trotting out the exact same format for both Pagan Min and Joseph Seed feels rote, stretching the idea out as a means to an end. It would have taken much greater effort and time for Ubisoft to do so, but mixing up the genres, the structure and approach that each DLC took would have been much more impactful. Still, fans of Far Cry will likely get a kick out of the expanded exploration of each character’s tale.
Sifu is a game that I wanted to love. I had high hopes for it being one of my game of the year contenders, but it left me feeling intensely deflated instead. It's a game that confuses the precise mechanical difficulty of Sekiro with a forced difficulty brought on by simply giving bosses armour. I find myself irrationally angry with Sifu. Sifu is a game that had exceptional potential, but squandered it on the wrong lessons.
Behind the chilled out vibes of OlliOlli World's new art style, happy-go-lucky characters and eccentric customisation, this game takes Roll7's flow-state side-scrolling skating to new heights. It's a tad more welcoming for newcomers, but even OlliOlli 2 veterans will have plenty of new tricks to learn and master through its increasingly wild and challenging levels.
Dying Light 2 expands and refines a formula Techland has been peddling since its breakout success with Dead Island. This sequel learns a lot from modern open world video games, its massive, zombie-infested sandbox rarely feeling empty, especially as you breeze through city blocks with a Mirror's Edge-like finesse. However, Dying Light 2 inherits the same problems - a dull story, tiresome combat, and character progression that's a tad too sluggish.
All in all I've found myself disappointed with Century: Age of Ashes. There is a fairly solid central PvP F2P game here but nothing to make it stand out aside from the presentation. The modes are basic and repetitive and levelling up takes so long it seems set to encourage spending real money on cosmetic upgrades. On the surface this looked like the game my teenage self dreamed of, but like most teenage dreams, this mainly results in sore wrists and a feeling of shame and disappointment.