Though it has a few unsettling, adrenaline-pumping moments, Here They Lie fails to deliver believable psychological horror. It definitely tries — it’s filled with the requisite creepy, gargling monster sounds and reality-bending that can contribute tension to scares — but it doesn’t blend its horror elements well enough to be consistently terrifying. Relying so heavily on overwrought surrealism and a few haunted house-style jumps to create tension rather than fostering any true discomfort (besides nausea) leaves it feeling flat.
Days Gone has its exciting moments, but it fails to say anything interesting or meaningful about its story and characters.
Destiny 2's first DLC expansion, Curse of Osiris, adds lots of filler and little substance.
One Piece: Romance Dawn is an attempt to fit a vast amount of story into a concise RPG, but the result is flimsy and underdeveloped. The turn-based battle is fun in a very average way, and the rest of the experience tempted me to put down my 3DS and just watch the One Piece anime instead. It’s not a complete disaster by any means, but it doesn’t make a lot of sense to play a condensed version when the source material is readily available.
Despite some cute details and a good idea here and there, Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash is inconsistent at best and often just boring. Most levels are a little too slow, and a 10-or-so-hour game felt far longer — in a bad way. I liked seeing Chibi-Robo's adorable little victory dances and finding hidden collectibles, but even its best moments were few and far between. It was just enough to pass some time.
Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival is charming, but it's ultimately a snooze fest.
Sayonara Wild Hearts has moments of brilliance, but too often, movement and timing issues disrupt its enchanting aesthetic.
BioWare's Anthem has good ideas, but most of those ideas don't end up working well together.
Little Dragons Cafe's charming world and cafe management are enjoyable, but it's held back by significant pacing issues.
Destiny 2: Warmind is geared toward high-level players, but it offers little in the way of motivation while you grind levels to get to the endgame.
Super Lucky's Tale isn't a direct port of its VR predecessor, but it's no less simplistic.
Episode 3 of Telltale's Guardians of the Galaxy series has well-developed relationships and conflict but suffers from similar problems as its predecessors.
However you manage it, it's as rewarding to survive as it is frustrating to fail. But when those rewards start to feel further and further apart, it can be difficult to keep coming back for another climb.
Yooka-Laylee delivers on nostalgia but is held back by outdated gameplay and underwhelming levels.
Halo Wars 2 is an RTS game for Halo fans with stripped-down strategy elements and limited lasting appeal.
There’s some charm to Lucky’s Tale’s simplicity. It’s not exciting, but it’s finely polished. Old-fashioned 3D platforming is still fun, especially some of the boss battles, which require more precise jumping and dodging than any of the more slowly paced levels. It’s just not remarkable, especially as a showcase for VR.
After two episodes, The Walking Dead: Michonne successfully developed its main character at the expense of the rest of its cast. In Episode 3, the trade-off doesn’t feel quite worth it — it’s so concerned with drawing explicit connections and tying every thread together that it isn’t that satisfying as an ending. A critical reveal redeems it somewhat, but once the episode begins to over explain that, too, the impact sadly fades.
Instead of enjoying both fighting and dialogue, it became a weird kind of chore to play through battles just to progress the story.
Cyberpunk 2077 has standout side quests and strong main characters, though its buggy, superficial world and lack of purpose bring it down.
Cold War's dynamic campaign stands out against bland multiplayer, while Zombies is a good co-op time with a few outstanding issues.