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To sum things up, I would say that this remaster was extremely well done with the attention to detail and the overall love paid off to the Tomb Raider franchise and its fans in order to produce this as its masterpiece. It’s a welcome improvement that both new and old players can find something to enjoy, and what returning players can come back to in order to fall in love with the series once again.
Overall, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League featured some of the best third-person shooting gameplay in recent years. But paired with a lackluster story and draining live service elements, it failed to hit any of the marks expected by such a high-profile IP and developer.
Casper Croes and company deliver a great throwback with Alisa through its campy story, low-polygon presentation, exceptionally eerie original score, and retro gameplay. However, its greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. That’s because the gameplay jankiness is still present for accuracy reasons, alongside several smaller challenges, including disorienting fixed camera angles, iffy auto-aim implementation, and a reliance on accepting a campy story.
Relink impresses with its fun, addictive, accessible, and diverse character combat, tightly paced story, lovable characters, and beautiful presentation. Several aspects detract from this experience, including the surface-level complexity of the hub, side mission, and exploration system, the simplicity of the Mastery Points system, and some technical challenges like the lack of online quest cross-play between PC and consoles, frustrating lock-on targeting camera, and the PS5 Performance graphics mode resolution.
Tekken 8 is a continuation of one of the most beloved fighting game series ever made and one that embraces modern technology to ensure its worldwide player base can enjoy its exhilarating gameplay to the fullest. While the game’s netcode isn’t as rock solid as recent titles like Street Fighter 6 and Guilty Gear Strive, it is a vast improvement to its predecessor and more than good enough most of the time. Tekken’s story, while short, combines its gameplay and narrative in ways its competition has not, making its story a unique experience worth playing in a genre that increasingly places the game mode as an afterthought.
Palworld, even in its early access state, has far exceeded the expectations I had set for the game. The exploration can feel challenging but fair, and the rewarding feeling you get from leveling up your base or catching a Pal with an extremely low catch rate is amazing. Even with the fairly easy late-game Pal grabbing existing and multiplayer experience not being perfect, I can confidently say that Palworld is definitely shaping up to be something special.
While The Cub is a short game, it’s a great one that delivers an interesting story and engaging gameplay that’s well worth the time and the price. Its ability to keep a light tone while dealing with dark subjects is impressive, but it never breaks the mold set by similar games like Limbo, sticking close to the formula.
Hidden Through Time 2 is not your typical game. It is often easy to dismiss the unconventional as unworthy of attention. I’m happy to say that this nifty hidden object puzzler grabbed hold of me with its quirky and charming presentation and made me stay for its accessible and addictive gameplay loop. This sequel improves upon its predecessor in every possible way. While the very light campaign story, small optimization issues, and the lack of DualSense implementation detract from the overall presentation, it is not enough to affect my enjoyment of the game.
Another Code: Recollection is a fun experience with a great sense of progression. You really feel like you are investigating the past. The characters you learn about actually had lives and cared for one another. Despite some camera problems and some characters feeling bland, by the end of the experience, you’ll be so invested that you’ll actually feel for and care about them.
While playing Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, I was constantly disappointed. Whether it be the game story, combat, or visuals, it felt like every step forward in a positive direction was followed soon after by two steps back. The game’s positive aspects are still good, and I’m sure diehard fans of the film will enjoy the realistic recreation of Pandora’s wilderness.
At the end of the day, it’s hard not to recommend a free DLC. God of War Ragnarok: Valhalla is an excellent companion piece to go along with the main game. Its highlights are the narrative and gameplay elements that focus on Kratos as a character and how he copes with his new place in the world.
In many ways, Bear and Breakfast reminded me that taking it slow in a game is absolutely fine and even encouraged for exploration and world building. Nonetheless, it has some limitations, including the lack of quality-of-life features, the absence of an item sale system, curtailed player choices, and the lack of DualSense features.
Choo-Choo Charles is the antithesis of a game that wears its silly nature on its sleeve, it hinges on the wacky premise of running from a spider-train to draw people in, but fails to deliver on anything to keep people thanks in large part due to its lackluster story, forgettable characters, shoddy design, and buggy experience.
Spider-Man 2 is great fun — a very concise package of technically exceptional set pieces webbed together by compelling characters dealing with friendship, loss, and trauma. The story, however, is unevenly paced with a short and quick tail-end, leaving players asking for more.