Ultimately, NBA 2K27 doesn’t completely reinvent the series, but I honestly don’t think it needed to. Visual Concepts has instead concentrated on improving the actual basketball itself, and that was exactly what I wanted from this year’s game.
Lady Death: Demonicron
Lady Death is a character I've always wanted to see make her videogame debut, but Demonicron is just a sliver of the potential it could have been. The combat is fairly decent, but does lack some impact, especially as enemies rarely test you with knowing the entire arsenal to best them. With Brian Pulido being part of this to pen the story, I was really expecting more to come from this.
NHL 27
NHL 27 brings a solid presentation package to this year’s game as all 32 arena’s have been rebuilt, and new playbooks will change how teams take to the ice. With improvements to Be a Pro, Ultimate Team, and more under the hood, NHL 27 may not feel entirely new, but its improvements are clear as day.
Serious Sam: Shatterverse
Onimusha: Way of the Sword
Lou's Lagoon
In Lou’s Lagoon, you play as the nephew/neice to Lou, the owner of Lou's delivery service, who has asked you to come to the Limbo Archipelago to help fix things up after the storm first hits said archipelago. Once you get there you can tell that this is not going to be an easy task, as multiple islands in the archipelago are in need of your help.
Hell Let Loose: Vietnam
Hell Let Loose: Vietnam takes the series' signature, high-stakes tactical gameplay and successfully translates it into the dense, chaotic jungles of Vietnam. Its optimization is a sore spot currently, but the changes the team has made from the beta to launch show that they are working on making this the best version of the game it can be.
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy is astounding, but does suffer a bit when it comes to the game’s lacking boss encounters, and some moments where the game wears out its welcome in the last few hours. Still, Asobo is a remarkable flexible studio that clearly knows how to produce real emotion out of its characters and stories in ways that defy the genre.
The Lord of the Rings: War in the North Legacy Edition
War in the North: Legacy Edition is what it is, a modern port of the classic game. Its bells and whistles are few and far between, but the core game as it was is here and is a blast to play in co-op. Combat, progression, and the ability to swap between each character makes this one of the better LOTR games ever crafted.
Pro Jank Footy
The Sinking City 2
Mortal Shell II
Pet Survivors
Pet Survivors, developed by Vergiu Games and published by Eastasiasoft, joins an incredibly over-saturated market in the survivors genre. However, its simplicity and reliance on pets does give it an edge when leaning into the younger player. I just wish it had a bit more going on when it came to its combat.
Wild Blue Skies
While there is a ton of enjoyment to have here, you're generally enjoying it due to what's been lifted from Star Fox, and not from the game itself. If Wild Blue Skies wants to make any sort of impact with a follow-up, then it needs to barrel-roll into something unique, or risk living in Star Fox’s shadow.
Farlands
Beast of Reincarnation
Game Freak has spent decades being almost entirely associated with Pokémon, but Beast of Reincarnation represents something considerably more ambitious. This post-apocalyptic action RPG takes inspiration from games such as NieR: Automata and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, combining fast-paced combat, open-ended exploration, crafting, progression systems, and a canine companion who quickly becomes one of the strongest parts of the entire experience.
Beastro
When you think of fantasy adventures you think of heroes wielding swords, using magic and fighting off creatures and numerous elements of evil. However, we never really think of the ones behind the scenes who help keep the fighters in good health, allowing them to be able to do what they do on a daily basis. That idea, is where Beastro differs from the rest.
