ZTGD

The three modes complement each other well. The Battle Royale mode is fantastic. Multiplayer feels great for veteran players. Zombies is neat if not a bit mundane before it ends. Still, there is a lot here, and for those wanting that online CoD experience will find plenty bang for their buck. I miss the campaign, but they have definitely made up for it for those interested in killing other players online.

In the end, players will get a pretty fun beat ‘em up that is both serious and zany at the same time. The combat, while repetitive, is always satisfying and the wonderful moments of brilliance shine brighter than the dullest of fetch quests. Fans of Fist of the North Star will have a blast here, while fans of beat ‘em ups and the Yakuza series will enjoy the familiar feel of the entire package. Give this one a shot if you’re looking for some bloody good action with a goofy twist.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is a game that is worth its price tag and so much more. It will take gamers months to finish all it has to offer. Pick up the season pass and likely have dozens of more hours to play. It is a massive game and something that feels like a swan song before another two-year hiatus for the series. I feel like they threw too much into the mix this time though.

Overall this is a great pack of three classic tables. Any fan of pinball of any skill level should add this to their collection, even if they already own the Pinball Arcade renditions. The challenge modes bring new life into these tables and the Single Player enhanced versions of tables allows for whole new ways to get big scores (and knock pinball fan, Ubisoft and Palette Swap Ninja’s own Dan Amrich, down a few notches on some leader boards).

It may also be worth holding on a little while and picking it up in an inevitable future sale. Alternatively, if these do not sound like your cup of tea it may be worth taking a look at the Yakuza 0/Kiwami games as these seem to be the natural advancement of Shenmue, with many considering them to be representative of what would have been if Shenmue had been able to continue as a franchise.

Overall Forza Horizon 4 is the greatest game I feel just kind of meh about. I mean there is absolutely nothing wrong with so many aspects of this title. It is polished, fun, smooth, and gorgeous. I think I am just growing tired of its structure. Still it feels like this title may see more updates than any previous entry. It has dozens of hours of content already packed into it. It is visually stunning and a blast to play with friends. It is hard not to love what Horizon 4 does.

This game isn’t bad, it’s annoying. With moments of really solid gameplay peeking through maybe pick this one up on sale but otherwise there are better games doing similar things out there. Pick up Unravel 2 instead.

Shinobi Striker could have had some decent material if the combat and camera wasn’t so clunky. The issue is that because of this mixed with the overly dull mission structure and chaotic multiplayer makes for just a bad experience overall. If only there was some redeeming quality to it, I would suggest it to maybe hardcore Naruto fans, but aside from the visuals looking pretty good, that’s all I can say.

For those who may have wandered away from Destiny 2, the choice on Forsaken may come down to whether or not friends are jumping in. For newcomers, the Destiny 2 Legendary Collection is $60 and includes the base game and all expansions to this point, which is a ton of content for an enjoyable if flawed shooter.

NHL 19 is a solid game and one that packs plenty of ways to enjoy its core mechanics. Not having played a hockey game seriously in almost two decades it feels like a really good place to step in. There is a lot to unpack here, and I had fun with more than one of the modes. It also has a great training mode for those like me who want to dig deeper into the ins and outs of the sport. EA may not tout this game as much as their other sports games, but they should. This is yet another quality pillar in the EA Sports library.