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I say this without reservations: Resident Evil 4 remake improves upon a masterpiece in ways that will make it hard to go back to the original. It might very well be the most perfect horror-action game I’ve ever played.
I went into Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 expecting it to be one of my favorite games this year and still walked away impressed by what the developer was able to pull off. Both story and gameplay have taken large steps forward, and I’m fully convinced that there is no studio that could make Spider-Man games better than Insomniac Games. It’s a massive win for the Insomniac, for PlayStation Studios, and for longtime fans of Spider-Man.
At its core Super Mario Bros. Wonder is a fun and fantastic escape from reality that will leave players smiling for years to come.
Larian Studios has tapped into the Weave and conjured up a near-impossible miracle, bringing the creativity of Dungeons & Dragons to life in Baldur’s Gate 3. Players are given real agency to pursue the narrative in a way that suits them and to dive into combat and experiment with a dizzying number of options. Baldur’s Gate 3 is a truly phenomenal game that has managed to sweep up the imaginations and dreams of players and developers alike. Baldur’s Gate 3 may just go down as one of the greatest games of all time.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has lived up to the high expectations created by the success of Breath of the Wild with its exquisitely intertwined gameplay systems, outstanding music, and a legendary story culminating in a magnificent denouement. It's not every day that such a special video game like this comes around. Truly the stuff of legend.
The Internet is brimming with tons of new F-Zero fan content born out of the game's release with musicians covering and remixing sweet tunes, artists drawing their favorite characters and vehicles, and even speedrunners streaming and making videos. While the seeds of an F-Zero revival have been sowed by F-Zero 99, diehard fans know that this may just be the beginning of a new era for our beloved racing game franchise.
Between the Heat System, Special Style controls, a healthy roster and more, Tekken 8 has set the stage for a glorious new era of the fighting franchise.
Despite this not being the traditional type of story we associate with Kiryu, Infinite Wealth is a fitting send-off to a legend of gaming. In the words of Kiryu, "Even if I'm not as strong as I once was, I'm still me. And I'm starting to think that's not so bad."
Astro Bot is a charming and cheeky nod to a lot of PlayStation history and a powerful demonstration of PS5 hardware, but more than anything, it's just a ridiculously good game.
Over the past five years or so, Konami has become a standard-bearer in preserving and presenting video game history. There have been bumps along the road of course, but Castlevania Dominus Collection is not just a set of ROMs grouped together that benefits from comprising all-time greats.
My run through the game during this review period lasted a bit over 30 hours, but the game will take longer for the completionists out there. Each player will tell a different story with how they play, solve puzzles, the order in which they clear dungeons, and so much more that I can't talk about at risk of spoiling the story. Needless to say, long-time Zelda players will be smiling from ear to ear when they roll credits. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is full of wonderful surprises, engaging gameplay, and tons of stuff to do in the biggest top-down iteration of Hyrule yet.
Quote not yet avaMetaphor: ReFantazio is, in the simplest of terms, a Persona game in a fantasy setting. While it would have been exciting to see a few more risks taken to separate itself from that beloved franchise, I can’t deny how thoroughly enjoyable this game is.
Wanderstop is like Spiritfarer for burnout sufferers and overachievers. The central focus is meaningful and expertly executed in its own right. However, it's the attention to detail in every other area that makes Wanderstop feel special, to the point where anything, even just planting flowers, enriches everything else. Ivy Road just gets it.
Like the late "Rowdy" Roddy Piper used to say, when I thought I had the answers, Hades 2 changed the question. Heck, I might still discover something mind-blowing even after this review is posted. I look forward to seeing it. There's always something new to find in the House of Hades, a house that's eternal and yet never gets old.
Whether you mastered gravity years ago or are venturing to Mario's outer space for the first time, you're in for a treat.
The result is the most unique and entertaining skateboarding video game ever created, with a perfect balance of challenging gameplay depth, replay value, and a fun story that sticks the landing. Put simply, Skate Story is delicious. 10/10 moons, would go to Hell again.
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Mina the Hollower is a charming and challenging adventure that never ceased to delight and surprise in music, art, and gameplay.
Axiom Verge starts off as an homage to classic 8-bit games like Metroid, but grows into a fantastic game in its own right.