The Sinking City is the latest detective adventure from Frogware Games, a studio mostly known for its string of Sherlock Holmes titles, a series of games I am very much a fan of. While The Sinking City has been glossed over by many due to its “Eurojank” appearance, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by just how engaging and addictive the game can be at times.

While Nitro Fueled is a decently crafted remake of the classic original, It just didn’t offer that same sense of enjoyment that I so fondly remember. While I still enjoyed my time with this gorgeous remake, it just didn’t capitalize on the nostalgia i had for the original.

Xbox Game Pass has allowed several titles that I normally wouldn’t have given a second look to consume my time among the vast selection of games that release each month on several platforms. It’s by far my favorite service on the Xbox Platform, and has just recently allowed me to enjoy a wonderful little game called Void Bastards, a title that just commands attention.

When Chaosbane was initially revealed, I was thrilled at what I saw. Being a huge fan of isometric hack and slash games such as Diablo, Vikings: Wolves of Midgard, and Path of Exile, as well as from various other games across multiple decades and platforms, it seemed like another solid entry into the genre. Sadly, that just isn’t the case as Warhammer: Chaosbane is as generic as they come

While the adrenaline pumping combat is certainly a selling point to this colorful and energized sequel, it is one of the only aspects of the game that impresses on any significant level. For as much fun as you can have in Rage 2, it still sadly comes off as a vast disappointment.

Fade to Silence initially has interesting ideas in a world that should be interesting, but the story just doesn’t captivate or take advantage of that setting. It also doesn’t help that taking back infected areas is as simple as holding down X to cleanse the area. Sure, you’ll fight a few creatures and dodge a few incoming attacks, but overall, the way in which you save the land is quite simply boring.

While Mortal Kombat may owe much of its awareness due to the controversies that came from the fact you could punch someone’s head off or rip out their spine, back in a time when video game violence was nowhere near as gory as it’s become, the series has always looked to reinvent itself with almost every iteration. That sense of rebirth is why the series has remained so fresh, so unique, and so beloved.

While World War Z follows the same route Earthfall took by following incredibly close to Valve’s tried and true design, it does so in a way that captures the essence of what made Left 4 Dead so addictive in the first place. This might be the closest we ever see to Left 4 Dead 3.

Among its cartoony visuals and charming setting, you’ll embark upon a journey to make the most of your new life in the small town of Portia. Surrounded by long abandoned skyscrapers and ancient relic’s, you’ll meet new friends, expand your ever growing workshop, take on an adventure or two, and become the number one builder across the land.

While the title has some interesting ideas and moments of intense combat, its wide open world can leave a lot to be desired, despite how absolutely gorgeous it can look. For a game that follows the trend of environmental story telling, it just doesn’t tell an interesting or captivating narrative among the evacuated Swedish setting filled with an army of robotic creatures that are intent on putting you down.

What Division 2 gets right, more so than its predecessor, is that it has included significantly more varied content to tackle once you’ve pushed through the story, delivering what I feel is the best endgame content that any Live Service game has had during its launch.

Devil May Cry 5 releases some 11 years after its 4th entry, a game that doesn’t necessarily feel that old, yet when compared to the visual fidelity of what Capcom has been able to do here with this latest sequel, and its impressive RE Engine, makes it look almost ancient by comparison.

The Dead or Alive series has always been a fighting franchise more known for its female combatants than its fighting mechanics or various aspects of its core design. The series is now in its 6th main entry, while various spin-offs have seen the franchise dig deep into its sexualization and treated its fanbase to its cast putting aside their differences for a few rounds of bikini-clad volleyball and some pool-side antics.

With the pedigree of a studio like Bioware at the wheel, many were looking to Anthem for incredible storytelling and complex and deep RPG systems that would place the title alongside the studio’s best. While it’s clear that Anthem did not perform to the expectations of some, it’s still a title that has enormous potential, and a game that I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with, regardless of a crash or two, or six, or twelve..

If more of the same Crackdown experience is what you’re after, then this latest and long-awaited sequel will whet the appetite of those who have grounded their expectations into not expecting any real innovation from the series. For those who expected at least some growth to the series, well…

Metro Exodus is a game that I can understand that there will be people who are not going to enjoy it. It’s a series that has a very unique feel and pacing and I can see why some people may find the series boring. Metro Exodus ticks all the right boxes for me as a Metro title while also evolving the core concepts the series is based on.

Apex Legends is a Free-to-Play Battle Royale game from Respawn Entertainment that was essentially announced and released on the same day and was also noted as being a spin-off of the Titanfall series. Taking place some 30 years after the events of the stunning Titanfall 2. Apex Legends also happens to be the best Battle Royale game on the market, bar none.

For fans of the series, especially those that have consumed each of the near dozen Kingdom Hearts games, Kingdom Hearts 3 is a celebration of the series, a culmination of nearly every plot thread the series has left untold. For newcomers, it can often be confusing in knowing who is who and the overall narrative at play, often having to sit through story recap videos or having your friends get you up to speed, or at least, attempt to.

With a heavy emphasis on intense gore and moody atmosphere, the remake of Resident Evil 2 is more horrifying than its ever been. While there is much of the original’s DNA here to satisfy those who grew up playing the now 21-year-old classic, Capcom has made some significant changes to make it feel like a completely new experience

Tales of Vesperia once started life as an Xbox 360 exclusive way back in 2008. It eventually saw an expanded port to the PlayStation 3. This version featured additional content but never saw a release outside of Japan. Now, a decade later, that expanded version has been released worldwide as Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition.