CNET's Reviews
Resident Evil Requiem is the perfect blend of the two sides of survival horror that Resident Evil established. There's the genuinely scary survival horror, where you have to manage your items, and then the badass action side, where you can vent your aggression built up from being scared.
While Fever does feel filled out in a way that makes me think of Mario Tennis Aces with an expansion pack, it's only tennis. Even if it is great, strange, Nintendo tennis. After about five hours of playing, I started to feel like I'd tennised myself out.
Dragon Quest 7: Reimagined is easily recommended for JRPG fans, though everyone else may want to approach with caution. The drawn-out storyline keeps you playing but doesn't quite convince you of the game's greatness, which could be a turnoff for gamers who aren't happy grinding their way through side stories.
When it comes down to it, Code Vein 2 improves on the original game for a better experience, but the original was lacking to begin with. Fans of Soulslikes will be satisfied with a quality title, though it will be frustrating at times.
Highguard is a multiplayer shooter that teeters on the edge of chaos but blends elements of different games into a carefully refined dish of palate-pleasing novelty.
Like other games in the series, Octopath Traveler 0 can easily take players 100 hours to complete, especially if they delve deep into the town-building aspect. While I wish there were more interesting heroes to embody, once players get past the generic plot premise and delve into the meaty combat, there is no question that this game is a worthy entry into the franchise and a pick for those looking for a new JRPG to spend all their time with.
With Metroid Prime 4, it took me some time to get back into it. But now it's all I think about playing. My recommendation is to just go in for the experience. Go in knowing nothing, and maybe even skip everything in this review, or any other review. Mystery is Metroid's calling card. Your big adventure on the Switch is here.
You want a game that's fast? That pinballs you around and gets to incomprehensible speeds? Go go go go go go. That's Kirby Air Riders. It's Mario Kart on 70 shots of espresso.
Black Ops 7 is one big dopamine-drip hamster wheel, wherein the purpose of playing is not to have fun, but to drive numbers ever higher. More so now than ever before, Black Ops 7 inundates the player with experience points, weapon levels and camouflage skins, a constant barrage of flashy new bits and bytes that keep you hooked on fluff.
I want more exploration, more puzzles, more curiosity. This game's not about that. But it does show me how good a true next-gen Zelda could be on the Switch 2, whenever Nintendo decides to make that happen.
ARC Raiders nails the fundamentals of extraction shooters with its tight gunplay, exciting loot and map designs rife with ambush locations. Its special blend of player-versus-player-versus-freakishly-intelligent-robot gameplay will enrapture extraction-shooter fans and newcomers alike.
The Outer Worlds 2 is one of my favorite RPGs released this year, and it's so close to greatness. It has practically everything I wanted in a game (enough that I could have considered it even better than Mass Effect), but Obsidian just missed the mark with its tone. Who knows, maybe the company will figure it out with the third game in the series.
Ninja Gaiden 4 will not be up for Game of the Year, or likely even considered one of the best games in the series, but that doesn't matter. This is a game for anyone who just wants to feel like a badass ninja carving up enemies in the blink of an eye, because sometimes that's all you want.
Across the board, Bloodlines 2 is just a disappointment. It should be oozing with style and gothic vibes that make you want to paint your fingernails black and put on some My Chemical Romance. Instead, it's just the same thing over and over again that feels uninspired and unchallenging.
Battlefield 6 gives the series' fans the big battle experiences they've been wanting, though it doesn't offer too many unique advantages in small-team firefight modes over rival military shooters.
Overall, if you're looking for an option for date night, family game night or even during your reality-show watch party chit-chat, Lego Party is a great choice for all that will keep you on your toes but not at each other's throats.
Sucker Punch had the difficult task of improving on a game some might consider perfect. Not only did they complete the task, but made it look effortless with Ghost of Yotei. The game has all the same great elements that made the original so enjoyable, yet improved on practically every aspect with hardly any flaws.
On the "Zelda Games on Switch Must Buy List," I'm putting Echoes right below Tears of the Kingdom right now. But I'd bump it up to first on the list for anyone who's got a younger kid who's ready to dive into a big adventure on a smaller scale.
To say I'm disappointed with Silent Hill f is an understatement, but I'm also not surprised. You could give this game a totally different name, and it would be just a passable survival horror game.
Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is a remarkable 2D action game. For $30, it provides substance and fun, and Lizardcube escalates difficulty just enough to make finishing a level satisfying. If you're rebooting a 2D action franchise to appeal to fans of its older games, Art of Vengeance is a perfect example of how to do it.