Jeff Young

September 30, 2026

xbox, Video Game Reviews, playstation, pc, nintendo

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor - Game of the Year Edition

Jeff Young

September 30, 2026

xbox, Video Game Reviews, playstation, pc, nintendo

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor - Game of the Year Edition

While the story was never something I was really invested with here, the free flowing combat and the Nemesis system carry this game to incredible heights. While I still believe that Shadow of War is the better game, at least with its online components, it's hard not to be impressed by this game all over again. And, with the portability of the Switch 2, you can now save Mordor on the go.

Analog Stick Gaming is a Open Critic Partner.

Featured

Hellraiser: Revival

Hellraiser: Revival is a single-player first-person survival horror game that feels like a combination of Condemned: Criminal Origins, Silent Hill, PT, and Resident Evil; most notably its 7th and 8th entries, all mixed into one game. That's not to say it feels like an imitation of those games, or leans on them to do the heavy lifting, but it does set the expectations of what you're getting here.

Forever Ago

Forever Ago tells a deeply human story about grief, love and the memories we carry with us, without becoming overly sentimental or constantly reminding you what emotions you are supposed to feel. At a particularly stressful point in my own life, it gave me something unexpectedly comforting, and that is an experience I am unlikely to forget anytime soon.

Order of the Sinking Star

Order of the Sinking Star isn't completely perfect, with some puzzles starting to feel repetitive when you've spent too long working through the same mechanics. However, being able to freely jump between regions does an excellent job of reducing that frustration, while the constant evolution and combination of its mechanics keeps introducing new ways to think about problems you thought you already understood.

Star Wars: Galactic Racer

Ultimately, Star Wars: Galactic Racer surprised me. I expected an enjoyable Star Wars racing game, but what I got was something with far more depth, progression, and staying power than I anticipated.

Middle Earth: Shadow of War - Definitive Edition

While it is great fun to dominate enemy after enemy and begin your rise to power, there just isn't enough variety to keep the game from falling into a repetitive gameplay loop. While the removal of the store all those years ago certainly improved the outlook many had on the game, the removal of some of the game's best online systems feels like a bad call, especially given the community that was built around them.

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor - Game of the Year Edition

RuneScape: Dragonwilds

Dragonwilds is a slow and steady grind that while can be rewarding, still feels a bit rough around the edges, making me wonder if more time in Early Access could have refine certain parts of the whole experience. Still, if you've been itching for a survival game that isn't built around more realistic visuals, or you are fan of RuneScape, Dragonwilds does offer a compelling and fairly faithful conversion to the survival genre, just make sure you play with friends, and watch out for those blasted hunters.

Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve

After not playing an Ace Combat game since Ace Combat 4, I went into Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve with no idea what to expect. What I found was a spectacular return to the series, with thrilling aerial combat, a surprisingly engaging story, stunning presentation, and rock-solid PC performance.

The Blood of Dawnwalker

From several of the minds behind The Witcher 3, comes The Blood of Dawnwalker, an action RPG set in a region under the control of a court of vampires. And, as Coen is transformed into one during an attack on his village, his revenge will only be complete once they are dead, and his family returned.

Graveyard Keeper 2

In life there is an inevitable and natural conclusion to all. In the story of Graveyard Keeper, and now Graveyard Keeper 2, however, the end of a life just might be the beginning of another. The dark and morbidly humorous tale of GK2 comes to us at the beginning of fall and just in time to welcome the fast approaching spooky season.

Blades and Battles

Throughout history, or at least via 12th Century French literature, it's hard to imagine Sir Lancelot dive kicking a humanoid lizard, or Arthur pulling off a juggle combo against floating skulls. Still, Blades and Battles relishes in that absurdity and leans into it through the rough hour it provides, I only wish it had more going on.

Well Dweller

With impeccable platforming and engaging combat and mobility, Well Dweller is joyous to control. Few Metroidvania games feel this good, with a map so big that you're constantly finding new challenges, secrets, and wildly impressive boss battles. Well Dweller is an absolute delight from start to finish.

EA Sports FC 27

FC 27 does enough to justify its existence and offers several encouraging ideas for the series' future. It is enjoyable, polished, and capable of producing some excellent matches, especially once its more manual approach begins to click.

Hot Wheels: Infinite Rush

Hot Wheels: Infinite Rush is an impressive representation of the classic cars existing in the big wide worlds we all imagined in our youth, complete with the variety of playsets and iconic vehicles that make it all come together. Is it perfect? Hardly, but it's the step in the right direction for the brand that I would love to see refined.

The Walking Dead: Streets of Survival

Streets of Survival has a foundation for a great series, but the lack of some quality of life features in its combat, and a lack of co-op make this hard to recommend, given the genre has so many other options that are simply better games. The Walking Dead is perfect for videogames, but few games have really hit that high mark

Port of Jumanah

The easy and quick nature of what Port of Jumanah offers does allow it to feel different than most rogue-lite's, so I do give it props there. The visual style is certainly borrowed, but plays into the charm and comedic writing Red Dunes Games and Agate were shooting for. The Oxygen mechanic keeps you on your toes, and the mechanics and temporary shell boosts can make for some interesting runs.

Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault

While some may be disappointed at some of the changes to core systems, or further leaning into its rogue-lite elements, Moonlighter 2 feels just so good, and that isn't just toward its combat, but its shopkeeper aspect too. Systems may feel streamlined, and many are, but these changes are intentional and do a lot to make each run slick and easy to jump into.

Trails in the Sky: 2nd Chapter

Second Chapter did everything it needed to do, and more. While the game doesn't refine or add new combat mechanics, the story and character moments that take place in this follow-up are some of the best of the series. The Legend of Heroes series often puts its story and characters ahead of its gameplay, and given how memorable its characters are, this has always been the right call to make.

Bus Simulator 27

Bus Simulator 27 is in new hands with developer Simteract, but given their history, they felt like the perfect fit for the series. While they certainly have produced a solid entry here, certain systems and menus leave a bit to be desired. While it certainly is a deeper game than Bus Bound, I simply found Bus Simulator 27 to not always deliver where I wanted from it the most; the driving.

Panzer Knights: Commander's Edition

Panzer Knights feels incredibly lacking, and not just in its basic visuals, as the colorful nature of its environments and the bantering of its anime girls does have some appeal, but it feels shallow and lacking any depth.

Nioh 3: Hell Rising (DLC)

Nioh 3: Hell Rising is more Nioh 3, and if that is good enough for you, then you'll likely be set for enjoying this 8-10 hour expansion that provides a whole new location to explore, and a very versatile new weapon.

NBA 2K27

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

Serious Sam is back, well.. sort of. As 5 dimensional displaced Sam’s unite to stop Mental, his reign over the multiverse grows. Dive into random environments, tackle his lieutenants, and stick it to mental one more time in this action-packed 5 player co-op rogue-lite.

Onimusha: Way of the Sword

Onimusha: Way of the Sword is some damn good fun, providing an action packed adventure I thoroughly enjoyed. Musashi's journey may obviously detour from his real life exploits, but the bond of strength he has with Ganryu makes for a compelling rivalry that sets this game apart from its peers

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.