Polygon's Reviews
Harry moves through the game, cut from the same cloth as a manuscript peasant. He has that resigned look of the perpetually damned. Nothing can surprise him, and this creates a fatalistic humor in his labors.
Nintendo's uncanny ability to offer experiences that are so strange while feeling so good has rarely been put to better use.
Some die-hard fans may fear this isn't really God of War. I suppose they're right. It's even better.
R.B.I. Baseball 18 tries to be a fun arcade-style sports video game with some big features expected of so-called sim titles. And it winds up struggling with both goals.
What's left if you have the stomach to ignore the story? A very enjoyable game with an immense number of things to do, a beautifully recreated portion of the United States, and a collection of missions with wildly varying tones and structure. It's a finely tuned open-world game stapled onto a story that's insultingly bad.
Irritations don't entirely diminish the charm and ambition of the entire endeavor.
Sailing across the open ocean becomes less of a thrilling embodiment of cooperation and more of a chore.
A Way Out has many faults, but a lack of heart isn't one of them. Seeing that heart translated into a cooperative play experience makes the journey worthwhile.
Ni no Kuni 2 aims for a lot of different targets: world-spanning story, management sim, recruitment game and solid combat experience. Against all odds, it manages to hit them all in a way that very few games in its genre can manage.
Even though the puzzles are simple and the interactions basic, I don't think this little piece of fun would work in the same way were it a static cartoon. Chuchel is a true universe, one that comes alive in bursts. This could not be done quite so well on TV or in a movie.
Even with my criticisms of the admittedly optional and inconsequential aspects of the game, Yakuza 6 succeeds because its core story is so compelling.
All Surviving Mars' interlocking systems make for an arresting time-sink that merges logic, forethought, psychology and experimentation. If you're the sort of person who enjoys losing yourself in high stakes strategy, building and planning, Surviving Mars is worth a look.
Even if it's on the brief and simple side, Star Allies demonstrates the polish and personality you've come to expect from the series. It's a kid-friendly romp through the franchise's most memorable moments, and the asymmetric gameplay and lively spirit of Kirby's latest journey make it a great way to introduce a new generation of fans to the series.
Moss is not so much a game as it is an experience. Polyarc sets an immensely high bar for storytelling in VR, exuding careful and deliberate artistry in every aspect — sound design, lighting, camera, visuals — to create a world worthy of straining your back to see the area in 360 degrees. In every sense, I felt like I was inside one of those beautiful, gilded storybooks. The only thing missing was the smell of the forest and old paper.
There's a weird, enjoyable story in Metal Gear Survive for players who make it past the game's grueling opening hours, and there are flashes of a great survival game. But with a threadbare connection to the 30-year history of Metal Gear and a comparatively shallow game made in the shadow of The Phantom Pain, it's hard to recommend enduring the whole thing.
Where the Water Tastes Like Wine celebrates storytelling but loses the plot
Fe is a magical, expansive and multi-hued world that creates a sense of marvel. Like a real-life walk in the woods, it is a thing of elemental beauty that demands to be inhaled and admired.
It's no secret: This remake disappoints
At three hours long, A Case of Distrust held my attention all the way, but that's not to say it's without imperfections. The main character, I think, lacks the energy of her associates. She's rightly angry about how she was treated as a woman on the force, but her feminism falls somewhere between overly earnest and glib. Despite a strong backstory, she lacks emotional force and presence.
This expansion is a recognition that the magic of this series is in giving players lots of choices — sometimes difficult choices — as we all strive to stamp our own personalities on what is, effectively, a simulation of personal political leadership.