Destiny: The Taken King successfully adds refreshing content to a game that has been growing stale over the past few months. Not only that, but just about every aspect of the game has been revitalized with the expansion and the 2.0 update. Depending on your view on grinding for gear after completing everything else, you should be able to get upwards of 30+ hours (per character) to complete all of the newly included quests before you reach that moment.
The Surge is without a doubt one of the best Souls-like titles to be released. Deck 13 has certainly proven that they have listened to the feedback from their previous game, and has crafted an epic sci-fi action RPG. While boss encounters are vastly unique, the journey to their location is the highlight in The Surge. Even so, The Surge still puts up quite a challenge, but rewards players that equip gear and implants that match their play style.
Dying Light The Following is a first-person masterpiece, expanding the already great gameplay from the original, combining it with the joy of driving a buggy. Optional races are available throughout the map, if you feel the need to compete against your friends. The parkour elements have not been entirely forgotten, but it is evident that the focus in The Following is driving the buggy. Four-player online co-op is still the best way to experience The Following, and it is one of the best cooperative experiences this generation.
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom is everything that you'll want in an official sequel to the Monster World franchise. Regardless of the late game frustrations and spike in difficulty, it is one of the best modern day platformers I have ever played.
Assault Android Cactus is a charming and addicting twin-stick shooter with personality. Each of the nine characters is unique enough to warrant playing through levels multiple times to chase the high-scores. The additional modes, including daily challenges, provides plenty of content after completing the campaign and the inclusion of the EX options adds variety to the experience.
With only three pinball machines available in the base game, you’ll want to purchase additional tables on the PlayStation Store. The Season One expansion adds CastleStorm, Wild West Rampage, Paranormal, BioLab, and Earth Defense. Like the original three, none of these tables are new. Each of these tables provides a satisfying challenge. Wild West, for example, has a wide open middle section to the pinball cabinet, harking back to the days of open country and towns tucked away in the middle of nowhere. BioLab, on the other hand, is full of twisting tubes, and pathways for you to use to your advantage, covering most of the play area with various types of bumpers.
Dishonored 2 is a better game than its predecessor in every form, building upon its award-winning formula, regardless if you stick to the shadows or spill the blood of your enemies. It’s a rewarding and satisfying experience, although the game culminates the same more or yes regardless of your choices. The game’s epilogue will paint an optimistic or disastrous picture of the future based on your choices, but the game’s narrative doesn’t hold up as well as the actual gameplay.
KOF 14 stays true to the KOF formula, but the move from hand-drawn sprites to 3D character models won’t appease everyone. There is the occasional stiff looking animation, but the gameplay and pacing is currently unmatched in any other fighting game series. With a plethora of single-player and multiplayer (both offline and online) KOF 14 is the most content complete fighting game on the market.
The Turing Test will be compared to other games of similar structure, such as Portal, just by the nature of using a contraption to solving room puzzles. Although the narrative is one of the game’s main focus, and you need to be sure to complete the game to experience the entire story, the puzzles are sublime. Plentiful and varying, each set of new puzzles adds new and engagement elements to solving the puzzles, such as moving platforms, harnessing the power of magnetism, and using different types of energy spheres. On the downside, the Xbox One version of the game does have slight hitches and longer loads than I would have liked before each puzzle. I should note that while not all puzzles have a long load before them, enough did to warrant a footnote in the review.
Thumper is a thriving rhythm game that includes an incredible VR mode. That's not to say the game isn't worth it if you have no interest in virtual reality, but indie developer Drool takes the game to new heights when you find yourself enveloped in the game's 3D space. Even being mediocre when it goes to playing on the leaderboards, I keep going back to Thumper every night for just one more run.
Rez Infinite is a must-have game for anyone with a PSVR, but even if you don’t it is still the best way to experience a beloved classic title. The unique gameplay found in Rez Infinite is enhanced by the incredible art style, which is something that you don’t see in recently released games.
Yakuza 0 is clearly an early frontrunner for one of the best games of the year. Even after spending 80 hours with the game, I've found myself surprised by side-missions and all of the optional forms of gameplay. Heck, I’ve probably wasted thousands of yen on the UFO catcher, millions playing poker and blackjack, and tens of millions on purchasing new real estate locations and betting on fights. The overarching story is deeply satisfying, and the side missions are a bonus.
Thumper is a thriving rhythm game that includes an incredible VR mode. That's not to say the game isn't worth it if you have no interest in virtual reality, but indie developer Drool takes the game to new heights when you find yourself enveloped in the game's 3D space. Even being mediocre when it goes to playing on the leaderboards, I keep going back to Thumper every night for just one more run.
Tethered is a magical strategy game, with cute characters, and enjoyable gameplay mechanics. It’s been quite some time since I had fun with a God-like strategy game, and Tethered is one of the best PlayStation VR games currently available. It’s a shame there isn’t any way to continue a level after meeting the goal requirements, but each of the thirteen islands is quite lengthy.
HoloBall is an action oriented sports game, determined to get players up off their seat and moving around against a highly competitive AI. While the premise is simple, the game is pure bliss. HoloBall features highly addicting gameplay, and I keep finding myself coming back for more. Your AI opponent even trash talks you during matches, and I found myself gesturing with my paddle after scoring a goal.
Superhot VR is one of the most unique shooters on the market and is without a doubt a must-have VR experience. The PlayStation VR build does have its issues with tracking when compared to the Rift or Vive experiences, but it is still one of the best options on the platform. Once you finish the game's story mode, which lasts less than five hours, you'll unlock bonus levels that are some of the best moments in the game. I never got the hang of tossing items at enemies, but thankfully the shooting mechanics are top-notch.
Destiny 2 is an absolute marvel, outperforming its predecessor in every aspect. The strong cinematic narrative focus is both refreshing and much needed. Destiny 2 respects its fan base time with the way content is structured in each location. The game's sweeping score is simply astonishing, ramping up during key moments, but helps elevate the game's strong atmosphere even just exploring the forests of the European Dead Zone or the oceanic surface of Titan. The game's first raid is both remarkable and uniquely designed, putting less focus on boss encounters, and instead highlights the strong gameplay mechanics and puzzles from the game's designers. Some may be turned off by the consumable nature of mods and shaders but considering by the time you finish the narrative and hit level 20; you'll be overflowing with more shaders than you'll ever use.
Puyo Puyo Tetris is quite an experience, blending two of the most popular puzzle games into a single entity. The game's story is full of charming characters, and the entire visual style of the game is bright and colorful. It is one of the better local multiplayer experience on the Nintendo Switch right now, and if you are looking for a unique challenge, try playing against some of the best players in the world.
There is no other way to say it, but RiME has certainly surprised me, in its ambitious narrative approach, enjoyable environmental puzzles and stunning visual/audio combination. The journey lasted much longer than I was expecting, roughly six to eight hours depending on your playstyle. Seeking out the collectibles is the main reason to explore the game multiple times.
Although Nex Machina lacks online multiplayer, the game's euphoric use of bright neon colors and impressive use of voxels is only surpassed by the tight gameplay mechanics. At its heart, Nex Machina is a modern day arcade shooter, with plenty of secrets and the addicting element that will have you challenging for a higher position on the leaderboards well into the wee hours of the night.