GamesBeat's Reviews
I went into Hyrule Warriors with zero expectations and came out satisfied — this is a cool game with treats for Zelda fans, strategy fans, and hack-and-slash fans alike.
If you're looking for really precise platforming, this probably isn't the game for you. But if you're looking for a narrative adventure with some light puzzle-solving and a lot of eye candy, then you should join Anne on her journey through the Forgotten Realm.
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire puts the gods, warts and all, at the forefront of the story, and at this point, it shines when it focuses on your interactions with these powerful-but-flawed beings.
Tropical Freeze includes virtually everything the series has done right. It's fun to play, has a ton of levels, and wows the eyes and ears with great aesthetics.
Labo revives that feeling of "dang, that's nifty" by allowing you to build your own peripherals, showing you how they're programmed, and letting you tweak and customize just about every element.
This new God of War takes a lot of risks. It trades blind rage and revenge for a story about a troubled father/son relationship. It ditches fast, combo-based violence for something more methodical. It's a departure from everything that once was God of War. But almost all of these risks pay off. God of War is an exhilarating, beautiful action game that turns one of PlayStation's biggest icons into a character you can care about.
Far Cry 5 is mechanically sound and varied. You'll find something that entertains you, and Ubisoft has nailed all of the underlying elements of character and world progression. At the same time, it squanders some decent writing because it can't decide what kind of game it is.
By the end of the series, I'll say that Batman: The Enemy Within has tentatively won me over. That's purely on the strength of the relationship between Batman and The Joker. The rest of the cast is a little wobbly, and I find it hard to care about them at all.
You may feel split between the lack of complete agency and the recognition that you are being told a story.
Yakuza 6 has an ambitious narrative, alternating between lighthearted and dramatic. Unfortunately, it doesn't give its characters enough love and care to truly pull off the pathos. But its sense of humor is impeccable. Its protagonist is lovable. And Sega has created a world with plenty to do.
Star Allies is a serviceable side-scroller, but Kirby's Switch debut should be more exciting this this snoozer.
I love the idea of Where the Water Tastes Like Wine. It has a lot of personality, and several days after I finished it, I was still humming some of the songs to myself. However, it's impeded by a few gameplay quirks, like how tedious it is to move around.
Moss is my favorite VR experience so far.
If you can get past some of its flaws, you'll be in for an experience that's full of wonder with fantastic visuals and an amazing soundtrack. Which I keep looking for online, by the way. But my search queries just keep returning discussions about Fire Emblem.
Even though the story is thin and the puzzles are a bit too simple, it's a game with a lot of heart.
Civilization is at its best when it enables you to tell your own stories. But at release, Civ VI didn't do such a good job at that. Rise and Fall fixes this in many ways, giving your better ways to expand your civilization without resorting to combat. It adds a quest-like element with a significant penalty or reward, and most of its news leaders add variety to the game.
It took me around 36 hours and 13 runs to beat the game. And when I finally beat it, I felt so good. Now I'll have to get started all over again.
Fortune-499 is a charming package. It's got witchcraft, mid-20s malaise, and puns and witty monsters galore. Though I wanted a little more from the story, what I did get, I really enjoyed. The combat system could have easily become monotonous, but it remained fresh and quirky with the addition of new cards and mechanics.
We're lucky to live in a world with Shadow of the Colossus. I hope that more people get the chance to play it now and it goes on to inspire a generation of indie developers. But, more than anything, I'm just happy to play it again.
Monster Hunter: World is one of the more rewarding action role-playing games I've played in recent years.