Attack of the Fanboy

There’s a lot of content in Spitlings, but the core concept doesn’t do enough to carry the experience for more than a few hours. As always with games like these, the more players the merrier, but even with a full team of four, you’ll probably end up switching to another party game before long. Still, Spitlings’ arcade action is great for an evening of fun.

Relicta offers some fine puzzle solving gameplay for those who are dying for more of it. If you loved every minute of Portal, The Witness, Obduction, or other sorts of puzzle adventures then Relicta does have something for you. But it’s not as well polished as those titles, and doesn’t offer as much creativity in puzzle solving, or variety in the puzzles themselves. The world around this does though, and presents a decent story to delve into.

Fans of the franchise that have been longing for a full scale game based on the property should be somewhat satisfied by Fairy Tail, although a lot of it is heavily inspired by Gust’s flagship franchise.

While it may not return to the heights of The Thousand-Year Door, Paper Mario: The Origami King is by far the best entry in the series in over a decade and gives us hope for the future of the series for the first time in awhile.

Carrion turns the horror genre on its head by letting you be the monster this time in a Metroidvania style game, which serves as the perfect type game to pick up and play between many of the other larger scale releases that have released this year.

Rocket Arena is a fine hero-shooter with a novel twist on the formula, and I absolutely dig its “World of Tomorrow” aethestic, but unless it drops the box price and goes free-to-play the competition will knock it out of the arena; that’s just the nature of today’s market. If it does then play Rocket Arena, but until then you may be best served spending your money elsewhere.

Ghost of Tsushima is a masterclass on how to make an open world feel palatable and focused while still offering the rewarding progression necessary to make it all come together. A mixture of traditional swordfighting combat and stealth sequences meld well with the beautiful, organically unfolding island of Tsushima and come together to form one of the best open world action games of the year.

Death Stranding is only made better in the transition to PC. Its world feels more vibrant and alive thanks to 4K and 60fps gameplay. Beyond that it’s mostly the same experience as you got on PS4, which was already quite impressive. The game has also taken on new relevence given real world events, so playing it now has a very different feel than last year.

People have been waiting for years to finally get what could be considered a really good Sword Art Online game, but the fourth time is certainly not the charm for developer Aquria with probably the most disappointing attempt yet due to the overall squandered potential in Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris.

If you wanted more of the same then Superhot: Mind Control Delete’s idiosyncrasies will probably frustrate you more than entertain, but if you look beyond them you’ll find a wickedly addicting game beneath. Mind Control Delete may rely too heavily on rolling the dice to extend its playtime, but fans willing to put their qualms aside will discover yet another fine entry in the series. Give up control, and accept it for what it is.

Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town is a must-play for both fans of the franchise, and gamers in love with farming oriented life-sims. It doesn’t opt to break new ground, but instead play to its strengths, leaning on what made the experience great 17 years ago.

Alphadia Genesis is an old-school story-driven RPG through and through so if that's your cup of tea then you'll thoroughly enjoy what it has to offer. Plus, its charming cast of characters are sure to delight from start to finish.

With all the added Pokemon that were previously missing and the fact it’s just more Sword and Shield to enjoy, The Isle of Armor is definitely worth getting, but it’s best not to have the highest of expectations going in regardless due to the major flaws that hold it back from being great.

While many players may have not used their PlayStation VR in awhile, Marvel’s Iron Man VR is without a doubt the game to get people to dust it off and play again. Far more than a tech demo, Marvel’s Iron Man VR actually makes you feel like you are flying around and firing repulsor blasts in one of the most immersive VR experiences to date.

Finally making its way out of Japan for the first time, Mr. Driller DrillLand is still the best entry in this niche puzzle franchise and fits right at home on the Nintendo Switch.

Even with a new developer in charge, Brigandine: The Legend of Runersia builds upon the previous game with a lengthy campaign that has a ton of replayability, though players may feel pretty overwhelmed at first due to the complex gameplay.

Rehydrated chooses to maintain all of the original’s flaws, resulting in a very faithful remake that will surely elicit nostalgic memories if you’ve spent a lot of time with the original Battle for Bikini Bottom, but it will do absolutely nothing for everyone else. This is a run-of-the-mill collectathon that a large group of people just so happen to have fond memories of.

Phantasy Star Online 2 is an old game, but one that wears its age surprisingly well. The graphics betray the eight year lull between the original Japanese release and today, but in doubling-down on all things anime the game still looks and sounds great. The true star of the show is the outstanding combat, which stands should to shoulder with some of the best action games out there.

All of this for a decent price without a single micro-transaction in sight. Command & Conquer Remastered isn’t just the best way to replay these classic RTS’, it’s one of the best and most consumer-friendly remasters ever made. Welcome back, Commander.

Although it had some good ideas at the start, Those Who Remain feels like the most cookie cutter horror game possible that barely manages to present anything fresh enough to keep you interested across the six hour playtime.

The save system is extremely liberating, allowing for experimentation to an unparalleled degree without fear of consequences. Desperados III is definitely worth seeing through to the end, whether it be for the fun western tale it tells or the deep tactical stealth gameplay it offers.

The Last of Us Part II is a truly worthy sequel to one of the greatest games ever made. Naughty Dog isn’t playing it safe in any area of the experience, with a bold and challenging story layered atop perfectly crafted stealth-action gameplay. Some players may not like where the story or its characters go, but for those that are ready for it, it will have you feeling joy, sorrow, grief, and anger to degrees few games have before.

There are very few games as perfectly suited for the Nintendo Switch as Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics, offering players an impressive lineup of games to play in a variety of different ways that makes it a must own party game for the Nintendo Switch.

The Outer Worlds for the Nintendo Switch is an admirable, yet mediocre port of an otherwise great game – end of story. It runs well enough to justify its existence, but at the current asking price you’re better off playing Obsidian’s latest elsewhere.

Coming eight years after the original finally released in the US, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition truly lives up to its new name as the ultimate version of the game thanks to updated visuals, quality of life enhancements, and even a brand new must play epilogue.