Latest Reviews
Vanillaware games have always looked great, but 13 Sentinels is the first time the studio has put a bulk of its focus on storytelling. And it pays off. This revival of classic sci-fi ideas hits all the right notes and goes deep without overstaying its welcome, even at over 20...
Despite its genuinely breathtaking scenery and interesting castaway premise, Windbound is ultimately a let down. Neither compelling as a survival simulation nor captivating as a story-based experience, Windbound is fundamentally all at sea and should be given a wide berth.
Roaming the streets of Resident Evil Village is like visiting a disturbing and deadly Disneyland, where every attraction is a house of horrors. I got just as big a thrill out of revelling in its frenzied violence as I did retracing my steps through the gradually revealed recesses of its...
WRC 9
Splitting through a forest at ten-tenths, the sun above piercing through the foliage and the gravel below assaulting your undercarriage, WRC 9 is some of the finest rally racing you can find. Career mode missteps and AI concerns notwithstanding, WRC 9’s incredible stage design and satisfying handling model do make...
Pac-Man 99 is another smart multiplayer twist on a classic with fast-paced gameplay that requires on-the-fly strategy pivots and increasingly quick thinking as the field of competitors thins out. But once you lock into a winning style, there's nothing more to see. Even something as simple as changing up the...
Wasteland 3 doesn't add much to the tactical RPG formula, but its impressive freedom of choice, its dark and rough humor, and its satisfying combat make it one of the more memorable entries in the genre to date. Its large world is packed with upwards of 60 hours of content...
For the majority of its runtime, Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is a puzzle game with unique ideas implemented in uninspiring ways. Its story and tone hold the levels together in a solid but unspectacular way that neither let down its source material nor build interestingly on it. Once it all starts...
Spiritfarer is a gorgeous mix of an action-platformer and an Animal Crossing-style town manager that stands out as one of the most unique and enjoyable games I’ve played all year. Its lengthy campaign is full of charming characters with somber, touching stories, even when the tasks between them can occasionally...
Monster Train is a ticket to dozens – if not hundreds – of hours of challenging and surprising roguelike deckbuilding runs, thanks in large part to its mechanically diverse set of decks and the way they interact with each other when combined in different ways. This spin on the idea...
Spelunky 2
I wasn’t sure what I wanted out of a sequel to Spelunky, given how high of a pedestal I keep the original game on – how do you improve upon a game like that? But Mossmouth took its time and managed to deliver a masterpiece that improves upon its predecessor...
The sheer amount of stuff there is to do in Factorio is breathtaking and a bit frightening. Even with over 40 hours on my most-played save, some of the higher-end factories I've seen others build look like absolute witchcraft – it’s the kind of game that can become a second...
Hades
Hades is a one-of-a-kind rogue-lite that sets the bar for creatively combining wildly different genres together and using their strengths to complement each other in unexpected ways. Its blend of satisfying, twitch-based action with countless modifiers to build replayability, dating simulator-esque character interactions, and turning failure into a thing...
