Matt Karoglou
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And that's to say nothing of the ability to skip Borderlands 4's campaign, which is an interesting proposition. While it's great to be able to hop straight into the endgame with a new Vault Hunter, Borderlands 4's campaign is so good that it almost feels like you're missing out on doing so. Still, for anyone who plays through a Borderlands game to get to the endgame loop and focus on a particular build, Borderlands 4 has you covered in ways that will make revisiting a past game harder. Borderlands 4 is ultimately "more Borderlands", but it understands that assignment so well that it ends up being the best the series has felt in over a decade.
Players familiar with the original 2D Ninja Gaiden games and other similar titles will come into Ragebound and feel right at home, but the subtle ways that the game levels the playing field for those new to action-platformers (or even those who've never beaten the NES trilogy without the use of save states or other helpful shortcuts) make Ragebound a game that emphasizes frantic action, ultra-satisfying combat, and fluid movement above all else. That it's presented as one of the most gorgeous-looking and sounding pixel art games in recent memory is the bow that ties the package together, and a new gold standard for other similarly-minded action games with an old-school aesthetic.
Still, Ready or Not is a very unique kind of shooter that we simply don't see enough of anymore. We used to be flush with options for slower-paced tactical shooters, but those days are far behind us. Anyone who spent a considerable amount of time in Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six or the aforementioned SWAT franchises will feel right at home in Ready or Not, and the ability to play in both solo and multiplayer with a surprisingly competent AI means that players can hop in and hone their skills on their own before joining up with a squad for the co-op mode where the game truly shines.
That's not to say that Lost in Random: The Eternal Die's story is bad, or even inconsequential, because it isn't. But it also isn't a real reason that players will find themselves wanting to return to The Eternal Die or push through a tough boss. The real draw of Lost in Random: The Eternal Die is its gameplay, and to the game's credit, it's strong enough on its own to generate that "just one more run" feeling that the best action roguelikes do.
Most telling about Nightreign is that those sentiments were not immediate but earned. At first, Nightreign feels almost antithetical to the methodical approach of FromSoftware's other titles. Nightreign is blindingly fast - offense is prioritized above all else, players have little control over how they "build" their characters thanks to pre-made selectable heroes, and the whole package almost comes off as a more fleshed-out boss rush mod made with the approval and resources of FromSoftware. But the more you dig into Nightreign and get acclimated to its unique gameplay loop and undeniably-FromSoftware take on the action roguelike subgenre, the more obvious it becomes how passionate its creators were about delivering something fresh and familiar. Ultimately, Elden Ring Nightreign feels like FromSoftware "cracking the code" on how to turn a Soulsborne game into a compelling blend of action RPG, boss rush, and extraction shooter, and it nails that unique mix so successfully that its few frustrating design decisions can be completely overlooked thanks to how incredibly fun and addictive it is.
Still, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is one of the more impressive entries in Capcom's growing series of compilation titles precisely because it unearths and preserves an eclectic selection of titles that often get overshadowed by larger series like Street Fighter or Darkstalkers. Each of the included titles' arcade modes is still incredibly fun while they last, and bringing underrated classics like Power Stone to a modern audience brings hope that Capcom might revive the series someday. Casual fans will quickly run out of reasons to regularly return to each of the included games unless they decide to dabble in online multiplayer, but as another entry in the Capcom Fighting Collection series, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is just as essential as its two predecessors and a must-have for fans of Dreamcast-era fighting games.
Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi's collaboration on The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is a winning mix befitting both creators' legacies.
Better yet, Assassin's Creed Shadows is not in competition with the aforementioned like-minded games, but instead serves as a companion, covering an entirely new era of Japanese history that we haven't seen a modern action RPG tackle and letting the player rub elbows with influential historical figures from the Sengoku Period such as Oda Nobunaga, Hattori Hanzo, and Tokugawa Ieyasu. It features two of the most well-rounded and three-dimensional protagonists in the entire Assassin's Creed series, each of whom has real stakes that connect them to both the historical plot set in feudal Japan and the larger Assassin's Creed timeline chronicling the ongoing struggle between the Brotherhood and the Templars. Simply put, Assassin's Creed Shadows is the best Assassin's Creed game in years, and even though its open-world gameplay can feel somewhat too familiar at times, it never stops being fun and always respects the player's most valuable resource — time.
Ultimately, Trails Through Daybreak 2 ends up being a bit polarizing in terms of its place in the series and as a middle chapter in the ongoing Calvard arc, but its gameplay is so satisfying — including one of the best combat systems in the genre — that it's not a stretch to say that JRPG fans can't afford to miss out on what the game offers, regardless of their familiarity with the Legend of Heroes series and the broader Trails game timeline. While it doesn't reinvent the wheel for the series' mechanics, Trails Through Daybreak 2's combat, progression systems, customization, and breadth of content are what longtime JRPG fans dream of.
Throughout 90 hours with Trails Through Daybreak 2, it was hard to shake the feeling that it was a game that would resonate strongly with JRPG fans, regardless of whether they had played previous games in the Legend of Heroes series or had followed the other Trails games from the sidelines.