Gaming Age
HomepageGaming Age's Reviews
I’m not sure that Avowed needs to feel weighty and meaningful to be fun. In fact, I’d say that it’s better because it’s not trying to make itself into a grand statement. Avowed is, as I noted above, exactly what you’d imagine a fantasy epic to be – and it’s all the better for it.
Other than the camera still being quite whack, it’s a genuine must-play, especially if you’ve never had the chance before now.
Ys X: Nordics is a fine return to form for the series. Time will tell whether the already-announced sequel (expanded version?) is a worthwhile upgrade, but why wait until then? We know this version is good as it stands, and that’s more than enough to make it worth your time.
It’s undeniably a great game when it works, and everything that made it our GOTY a few years ago still stands. I’m sure the PC version will get there eventually, and when that happens it’ll be a must-play for anyone who loves big, open-world superhero games…but for now, you’re better off holding off, and giving the game a little more time to iron out the kinks.
Crown Wars: The Black Prince is a competent tactical RPG that fits squarely within the confines of its chosen genre, so if you want more X-COM-likes in your life, and don’t mind feeling like you’d get the same experience playing any number of other, similar games, you could do worse than checking it out.
As much as I feel I’m beating up DKC Returns HD, I do love the game, I just happen to love and appreciate Tropical Freeze more. Hopefully this means more platforming DKC titles are on the horizon when Nintendo launches the Switch 2, but until then I’m glad a larger audience of fans can still play DKC Returns.
It’s basically a generic action game with Star Wars slapped on top, featuring some fairly easy platforming and plenty of hacking and slashing your way through forgettable enemies.
Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered is probably a must-play if you were obsessed with it 25 years ago, but probably missable if you didn’t play it the first time around. It’s got some interesting ideas and it delivers on some of them, but overall, you’ll probably need nostalgia goggles to get the most out of it.
There’s plenty to like about Botworld Odyssey. It’s made the jump from mobile gaming to PC without feeling like it had to sacrifice much, and it offers players a nice twist on the creature-collecting genre in the process.
I came away from Metro Awakening VR feeling more like I had played a “Metro-lite” game than anything else, but that is ultimately just fine. It stands alone in the series as the only VR title, so by default, it brings a level of immersion in this world that none of the other titles could ever reach. While certainly not even close to my favorite game in the series, Metro Awakening proves yet again that VR is a growing medium that should and will receive more attention and support as time goes on.
Featuring a new story, new mechanics, and more, I had quite the fun time with Dynasty Warriors: Origins. Koei Tecmo truly has taken the next big step in Warriors gameplay and fun to the next level.
If you are a hardcore Attack on Titan fan and simply want to immerse yourself in a passable facsimile of the world and kill some poorly rendered Titans, this is the game for you. If you are a passionate VR player who wants to experience everything the Quest store has to offer, you are another excellent candidate for this game. Short of those two things, though, I see very little reason to invest your time or money into Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable.
If you’ve been wanting to see more real-life Williams tables represented in Pinball FX, this is another really great pack of games that’s well worth checking out. If you’ve never played Banzai Run or Earthshaker! before, then you’re certainly in for a treat.
Even if you’re a diehard fan of TMNT in its current incarnation, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed is a stuttering mess that doesn’t deserve your money.
While I wouldn’t say that It’s Only Money fills the void left by Saints Row’s departure entirely, it definitely does a very good job of trying. Its production values may be a lot lower (and more on that in a bit), but the game captures the same sense of customizable anarchy that made Saints Row great at its best.
It works as it should, which is always a plus (even if it’s a little baffling at times), and I have no doubt that if you sank a half-dozen hours or so into the game back in 2002, you should find that the game is probably the same now as it was then. I think that if you don’t have that sense of nostalgia you’ll probably find the game a little lacking, but as PS2 remasters go, you could probably do a lot worse.
It’s not quite enough to make up for the lack of a Party Pack this year, especially given how lousy the Jackbox Naughty Pack was, but if it had been included on a Party Pack it would undoubtedly be a standout game, no matter what else had been included. The Jackbox Survey Scramble is a very enjoyable addition to Jackbox’s impressive stable of party games.
I found Arkham Shadow to be a great game. This one flaw caused frustrations at the beginning, but once I was aware that this is what happens, I found it a lot easier to continue through my playthrough. There’s a lot of fun to be had in Arkham Shadow, so I wouldn’t let this ruin the experience. It’s a great game and as I said before, it’s a great translation of the Arkham games into VR. I think it’s worth playing and if you don’t already have a Quest, a lot of the Quest 3 bundles include Arkham Shadow on purchase. VR is a growing market, so jump in and give Arkham Shadow a shot. You won’t regret it.
Fairly or unfairly, Chernobylite lives in the shadow of Metro and S.T.A.L.K.E.R., and there’s not much in this Complete Edition port that helps it get out from under the legacies of those series.
All in all, I recommend Alien: Rogue Incursion, but… not if you’re a newbie to VR or are prone to motion sickness. Play a few other games first to get worked up to this one, and then you can enjoy it with the rest of us. You won’t regret picking the game up if you’re an Alien fan.