There’s a case to be made for that kind of racer. It’s fun, and the art style on offer takes you back to a time when this was all a racer could do. It’s plug-and-play at its best, and the lack of a learning curve is probably among its most welcoming features. There isn’t even a minimap to let you know what’s coming. Instead, you’re going to have to rely on your co-driver’s inputs, anticipating turns based on what they’re telling you, and shaking off crashes that would total your ride in the real world, bolstered by their reassuring words that you’re doing a half-decent job despite the impact.

The cel-shaded graphics support that kind of insanity, working well to present #DRIVE Rally as a title that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The graffiti-like menus and UI, the minimalistic HUD, and the lack of complex textures are all factors that let you focus on what matters the most in this one: the road and your ability to maintain your dominance over it. That isn’t to say that this is an ugly-looking game, far from it. But it also isn’t going to win any prizes on the visual front. They’re there to service the illusion of roads that are designed to test your reflexes more than your driving chops, and that’s the end of it.

The races themselves are not too challenging to be inaccessible, but they’re decidedly biased towards you, the player. Generous time frames let you dominate local leaderboards, progressing through championship stages with impunity to unlock a bunch of new cars and wads of cash in the process. If rally driving were as simple as the races I’ve taken on in this one, I’d be quite a rich man by now. Alas, this one isn’t a reflection of the sport, and it doesn’t need to be.

"If you finish a race in one of the game’s many regions as part of a Championship, you’ve seen more or less everything that the region has to offer, barring a few surprises."

What it needs to be is fun, and it manages to do that reasonably well. At least for the first hour or so of playing it. Your co-drivers vary from region to region, and are a fun bunch up until you exhaust all of their available lines. They then become a symbol of the repetitiveness that creeps into every aspect of the experience. If you finish a race in one of the game’s many regions as part of a Championship, you’ve seen more or less everything that the region has to offer, barring a few surprises. I’m not going to forget barely avoiding a collision with a speeding train as I zoomed past a crossing anytime soon. But those surprises are too few and far between to make things interesting once the novelty wears off.

There’s a bit of humor in the mix, with your co-drivers often dropping quips about the situation. One of them even tells you that you’re driving with the consistency of a solid brick, for crying out loud. That one made me hit pause to chuckle to myself before I dove back into a race that felt like I’d done it a thousand times before, although it was only my third event in that particular region. I would have loved to see more variety in each region between races, but that simply isn’t a part of this one.

Of course, the Free Roam and Quick Race modes are there to break up the monotony, but they suffer from precisely the same problem. The former tasks you with finding all the letters of a specific word in a map that ditches fixed race tracks for a sort of racing sandbox, but it wasn’t enough to keep me invested in it long enough to spell out the word ‘pretzel’. Quick races are fun, but they’re also just more of the same thing that’s already on offer in Championships.

"The default controls were a tad too sensitive for my liking, and things don’t really get better from there despite a bit of tweaking."

The Party mode is something that I can see being a fun way to pass an evening if you’ve got a few buddies to pass your controller to. You decide on a track, and each of you picks a car from all the ones you’ve managed to unlock up until that point. You could also choose to spend some of your in-game cash on unlocking new rides if you really like one that isn’t available to you. Each of you then takes a turn racing through the selected track, trying to achieve a time that the others can’t beat. It could be a nice way to enjoy your downtime and spend a lazy evening with something fun to do, but serious competitors are going to find more to enjoy in other titles.

The default controls were a tad too sensitive for my liking, and things don’t really get better from there despite a bit of tweaking. You’re going to be relying on your handbrake a lot in this one, and the lack of a rewind feature is quite frustrating when you face an inevitable crash that adds seconds to an otherwise perfect run through a tricky track. The game ran fairly well on a base PS5, although there was a lot of pop-in that proved very distracting, and I did encounter a single crash during my time with this one.

The audio isn’t much to write home about either. It’s serviceable enough to get the job done, but don’t expect to hear accurately reproduced engine sounds here. The soundtrack did stand out, though, and is probably my favorite part about #DRIVE Rally. I did find my co-drivers voices to be muffled when routing the audio through my TV’s soundbar, but using a good pair of headphones addressed that concern fairly well.

"If you’re in the market for an arcade racer that’s aimed at more casual players, this one might be up your alley."

With all that’s been said, you’ve probably guessed that #DRIVE Rally isn’t something I can recommend if you’re a racing enthusiast. But if you’re in the market for an arcade racer that’s aimed at more casual players, this one might be up your alley. It’s a great option for young players and is probably going to keep them entertained for more than a few hours. Its asking price justifies what’s on offer, and picking it up on sale should make it even more attractive as an option.

However, it’s not something I can see many players returning to once they’re done with it, unless they’re specifically looking for something to pass a few hours with. Its repetitive nature takes away from the fun you could have if it had more variety in each region, and the gameplay loop doesn’t do too much to switch things up, even when you try racing in other regions. This one works best as a fun distraction, and is probably something you’d revisit when you wait on a more exciting title to download in the background, but that’s about it.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

Instead of leaning on fantastical mechanics – the gravity-defying firepower of Rocket League’s vehicles, or the absurd irreverence in Pro Jank Footy’s deck of cards – online multiplayer only NBA: The Run promises to capture and sustain your attention through razor-sharp controls and fluid animation. The question is: does it actually deliver on that promise?

Starting with those controls, they’re incredibly responsive, lending a deliberate feel to every action. Be it a skip pass, between-the-legs dribble, or awestriking alley-oop, whether you’re driving to the net or exercising ball-handling wizardry, NBA: The Run’s immediacy puts you in complete control. However, there is, at first, a visual disconnect between your inputs and certain animations. The motion of picking up a loose ball, for instance, doesn’t share the same precision, with your athlete seemingly able to grab the ball as soon as it’s within proximity. Likewise, leaps often see your athlete’s trajectory shift and correct mid-air.

Now, whilst The Run’s animation elasticity can be jarring on first impression, it’s important to frame this design correctly. What Play By Play is shooting for here is intentional, preserving flow by prioritising frictionless momentum over simulation accuracy. So, where passes, jumps, and dunks might not always be executed from the “correct” spots, the animation’s looseness will fix it for you automatically – and it’s a quirk that ensures the game is easy to play.

"Starting with those controls, they’re incredibly responsive, lending a deliberate feel to every action."

And NBA: The Run’s arcade identity is further enforced by brisk, two-to-three minute matches, with a tournament loop usually taking no more than fifteen minutes to reach its conclusion. Alongside constant transitional play, and short countdown timers minimising half-court offence, the idea is for you to enjoy countless quick sessions rather than commit to marathon playtimes. It’s a design intent that’s closer to Fortnite – where you don’t need to be accomplished to join in – than other, more systemically dense sports sims which can feel intimidating to play online.

And, if Play By Play are hoping to reap modern multiplayer experiences for their casual accessibility, they’re looking much further back for The Run’s character-driven influences. Specifically, vintage arcade titles like 1987’s Tecmo Bowl and 1988’s Ice Hockey, where the athletes in those games each had different sizes, strengths, speeds, and traits.

Adopting this framework, in NBA: The Run each athlete is moulded around an archetype. Steph Curry is lethal from range, for instance, while Victor Wembanyama is a defensive tower block and Giannis Antetokounmpo can power drive at will. While distinctions aren’t always as strongly differentiated as these three examples, it’s still important to synergise the particular strengths and weaknesses of your three-man squad. This isn’t, however, so you can chase a preferred playstyle. No, randomly selected rulesets modify the dynamic of each game – three-point alley-oops, unlimited stamina, one-point per basket, and so on – means a lineup that covers all bases is going to function better across a broad spectrum of variables instead of, say, a team composed exclusively of perimeter-shooting specialists.

Whilst these rulesets inject an enjoyable sense of variety, encouraging you to engage with the entirety of the game’s mechanics rather than hone in on sharpshooting or net driving, they can exaggerate imbalance in character archetypes. For example, rules which emphasise shooting from outside the paint become exhibitions in blocking Steph Curry-types, and if you don’t have a Wenbanyama equivalent in your squad you’re practically cooked.

"In NBA: The Run each athlete is moulded around an archetype."

Still, these randomised rules are fun, providing, predominantly, a satisfying offensive flow. Supported by vibrant visual feedback like screen shake and swift crossovers that are executable by a simple flick of the right thumbstick, attacking the net is expressive and readable. Defence, meanwhile, doesn’t feel quite as good to play. Swiping is imprecise, guarding lacks intuitiveness, and there’s a reliance on AI when the player in your command is out of position as the system doesn’t swap to the most opportune defender anywhere-near quick enough.

The intended equal footing between offence and defence, then, doesn’t fully land. The inability to manually switch players seems like a genuine design flaw, limiting your agency in how you go about disrupting an attack.

And the problems with defending are stacked by a handful of readability issues too. During especially swift transitions (which happen a lot), the camera doesn’t always track the ball, and when all six athletes are occupying the key you can quickly lose sight of the player in your control amidst all the visual clutter. Switching the opposing team to grayscale colours only partially fixes the problem. Certain arenas, such as the concrete backdrop of The Philippines’ Tenement Court, make distinguishing players from one another a struggle, and this is despite the coloured ring at your athlete’s feet.

While the chaos is an intentional design choice, on-court readability suffers too much. In chasing constant motion, NBA: The Run occasionally loses clarity of play.

Elsewhere, the game modes available at launch are slim, although Play By Play intends to iterate and expand post-launch. Solo Mode has you take charge of all three athletes, facing off against another solo-human-controlled team, whereas in Squads Mode you’ll control a single athlete throughout each game, with control handed over to two other humans to complete your team. While matchmaking can be slower in this mode, and it takes a pinch more discipline to function as one third of a unit, it does eventually become more engaging than Solo Mode.

"While the chaos is an intentional design choice, on-court readability suffers too much."

There’s an unspoken sense of camaraderie that carries over between tournaments, not least because your three-man team remains intact whether you win or lose. This consistency means that, over time, you’ll mould your performance around your teammates’ particular styles, and vice versa. If you win a tournament, there’s a sense of satisfaction in knowing you’ve done it together. But, this feeling isn’t tangible; it’s more presumed. See, while Play By Play positions The Run as a social experience, there’s a distinct lack of communication tools between you and your teammates. Without in-game voice chat, or even selectable, pre-determined callouts – like the kind found in three-versus-three football game Rebound – then The Run’s social ambition is undermined. The game fosters teamwork, for sure, but it doesn’t fully support it yet.

That’s not to say the game doesn’t emphasise a meaningful user experience. Indeed, with progression tied to performance, with no monetisation at launch, NBA: The Run wants you to earn your status and feel rewarded while doing it. That said, levelling up speed and in-game currency accumulation is heavily skewed towards winning. With cosmetic prices being slightly high relative to earn rate the game risks feeling grindy if you’re stuck on a losing streak.

Yet, through exceptionally responsive controls, momentum-driven matches, and a playloop designed for short, meaningful sessions, NBA: The Run nails a strong arcade identity. Despite defensive inconsistencies, readability issues, and limited modes at launch. Play By Play has crafted a solid foundation which they’ll undoubtedly build upon.

Whilst this isn’t a basketball sim, NBA: The Run still feels authentically like basketball, and you don’t need to be a seasoned baller to know that capturing the spirit of the game matters more than recreating it.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

Like its predecessor, FOLLOW wastes no time in reintroducing us to Anne, who’s now a young adult with a little more maturity than she had when we first met her. She’s come to terms with the trauma she faced from her bullies at school and is a tad more confident and assertive as a result. It’s a welcome change that establishes continuity with the first game while taking the story in a sinister new direction.

You see, Anne may have buried the self-esteem issues from her high school bullies, or perhaps even healed through it. But the first game carried many hints about how her life at home was no walk in the park either. FOLLOW dives right into that side of her personality with very interesting results. This time around, it’s Anne’s mother who is the big bad, and I can tell you she cuts quite the scary figure thanks to some truly chilling design choices from Serafini Productions.

She lurks in the darkest corners of Anne’s mind, waiting to be let out the moment you uncover an important memory or piece of information pertaining to how she raised her daughter. The manner in which she’s characterized is sure to resonate with any of you who’ve faced similar situations in your own lives, and it’s easy to see how her actions have left lasting scars on Anne’s personality that she might never fully heal from.

Anne’s mother is the catalyst for the entire experience, with each level coming with a distinct theme and color to underline how her mind has interpreted her feelings toward her. She constantly declares that she’s tired of the ordeal she faces, which is presumably all in her head, but escape is never really presented as an option, even as you go further into the story. Instead, you only go from one memory to the next, with each one having its own puzzles to solve in order to proceed.

Of course, the giant monster from the first game, which I’m now convinced is a representation of Anne’s own lack of self-esteem, makes a comeback, often popping up when you least expect it to give you enough of a fright to justify taking a break. The jump scares and atmospheric horror from the first game also make a return, and like Anne, the game itself feels more confident than Serafini’s first outing with her.

"A personal highlight of all that was Little Annie, a truly unsettling doll that represents Anne’s youthful innocence and vigor, which looks so darn creepy, I was reminded of why I often avoid horror stories involving dolls in the first place."

With a story and design that’s so compelling, it’s a pity, then, that the levels themselves are nothing to write home about despite how well they’re presented visually. Most of my time with the game involved navigating each one, uncovering important information or items that would then unlock new paths and new puzzles for me to solve. I’m all for a game jealously guarding its secrets and forcing me to think out of the box, but I do believe FOLLOW could have done better to present a stronger path to progression than the one on offer.

You’re given little to no information about what you need to do to get past a locked door, and the little nuggets of knowledge you get feel disconnected from the actual solution in many instances. It’s a very strong effort, no arguments there, but I couldn’t help but think that I was spending way too long running around the same level until I managed to spot an interactable object that would open up a new path.

A personal highlight of all that was Little Annie, a truly unsettling doll that represents Anne’s youthful innocence and vigor, which looks so darn creepy, I was reminded of why I often avoid horror stories involving dolls in the first place. Her adorable voice and the childish sense of wonder she brings to the exposition she offers are a superb contrast that makes her a very welcome addition to the experience. She’s also the biggest indicator that something important is nearby, which makes her quite helpful when you’re trying to navigate the convoluted puzzles in each level.

Another thing I liked was that Anne was far more agile than in her previous outing, which made getting around a lot easier. I miss the chase sequences that the first game had, despite how clunky the controls could feel. Those are now relegated to side-scrolling sequences that bookmark the end of a chapter, with little Anne desperately trying to avoid the representation of her older version’s insecurities. You could skip these sequences entirely, though, if you find them tedious. That’s a possibility because of the way obstacles are a constant presence, and navigating them with a very short window for error can get annoying.

"The soundtrack balances silence and the sinister build-up to a scary moment so well, you’re bound to feel the tension when you’re navigating an area that’s designed to have you on edge."

The audio design continues to shine, just as it did in the first game. The soundtrack balances silence and the sinister build-up to a scary moment so well, you’re bound to feel the tension when you’re navigating an area that’s designed to have you on edge. There are helpful cues to tell you when you’ve unlocked something new on a level, and the voice acting does a very good job of bringing subtle, unspoken emotions to the forefront. That’s very important in a game that tackles the nuances of a parent-child relationship that hasn’t gone the way either party intended for it to go.

On the performance front, I found no issues on my base PS5 aside from minor frame drops that don’t really break the immersion. This one’s a polished effort from the developers, and it definitely outshines the first game in that area. The visuals are also noteworthy thanks to how they integrate each level’s themes and use light so much better than what was on offer in UNFOLLOW. They’re probably the best example I can find to demonstrate how the new game is a more confident, nuanced take on the issues it tries to present than the first one, which was already quite good to begin with.

So, with all that’s been said, would I recommend FOLLOW to you? If psychedelic horror is your jam, this one’s not going to disappoint. If you like games that give you chills and thrills in equal measures, you’re probably going to like it, although you might find the lack of combat or real danger in any form a tad boring. However, if you’re like me and enjoy stories that are nuanced and geared towards a slow burn, this one’s going to be right up your alley.

FOLLOW is a solid game, and continues the franchise’s traditions of insightful examinations of trauma through the eyes of a victim. It takes creative liberties that might seem like flights of fancy on the surface, but are very insightful takes on how the human mind processes negative emotions, and the dangers of leaving such thoughts to fester without seeking the help one needs to repair the damage. There’s a bit of Anne in all of us, and BrokenLore: FOLLOW does a great job as a game that makes you look inward and wonder about what the darkest corners of your own mind look like.

And that’s its biggest achievement.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that I could now dive into the adventure, complete with a makeover from Alkimia that aimed to let it take the spotlight amongst a bevy of great RPGs in the current generation of gaming platforms. It’s been a mixed bag, with the joy of unbridled, unguided discovery being marred by technical issues that have no business being in a game that’s clearly aimed at a modern, very discerning audience.

I always pick the good news first, and that’s what we’re going to do with this one. From the very beginning of your time with the Nameless Hero, you’re more or less left to your own devices as you try to survive King Rhogar’s prison/mining colony, the magical barrier that keeps you there acting as a grim reminder of the circumstances that have unfolded since the mage’s botched attempt to create their own version of an electrified fence.

The game wastes no time in setting the stakes, tasking you with delivering a letter to a mage within the Old Camp, one of three major factions within The Colony. You get a small introduction to what life is like within its confines from a helpful member of the camp before you get to begin exploring a world that’s as brutal as they come.

I’m not kidding when I tell you that this one’s as hard as any of the games I’ve played over the years, and that’s counting a bunch of Soulslikes that have had me at my wit’s end with some enemies and bosses that they’ve thrown my way. Most hostiles in this one can take you down in one or two hits, while you don’t even get a starting weapon to take them on with.

An NPC you meet along the way did tell me that I was going to need weapons and armor before I was ready to explore the world, but they were less than helpful when I asked them where I could find them. That’s kind of a pattern in this one, and the lack of the usual markers and helpful indicators that point you in the right direction was a very refreshing change of pace.

"Quests are designed in a way that gives you multiple possible approaches, if you can sniff them all out."

This is old-school game design, and it’s a very enjoyable part of the experience on offer. Of course, I must concede that it could be a detail that puts you off the experience depending on your individual preferences, but I personally love games that allow me to put in the hard work to reap the rewards.

Quests are designed in a way that gives you multiple possible approaches, if you can sniff them all out. And each option comes with trade-offs that you’re going to have to live with. For instance, an NPC whose approval I desperately needed to get past the guards at a gate told me to deal with a member of the New Camp who had been running a bit of a scam. I dealt with the man in question by leading him out of the Old Camp under the pretence of wanting to sign up with his faction, only to turn on him when a group of scavengers attacked us. Problem solved.

I returned to camp, stopping to meet a weapons vendor along the way. He wasn’t too happy with what I’d done as I put an end to his supply chain. He assured me that he wasn’t going to vote in my favor if he was asked if I was going to be a good fit for the Old Camp. Details like that make this world feel alive, and it’s what has made Gothic memorable to me.

However, I’m also going to remember it for a lot of frustrations and heartbreaks. I’m not going to forget how I lost nearly three hours of progress thanks to the lack of an autosave system coupled with frequent crashes, a combination that soon had me manually saving my game at every turn. That’s an omission that I believe is a missed opportunity, and a way to truly let the game combine its welcome old-school vision with a bit of modern convenience.

However, the problems don’t stop there. I appreciate the effort to recreate the game’s visuals, and there’s certainly a lot to like about the new lighting system and upgraded textures. However, the lack of a performance mode is something I find very hard to ignore, especially in the face of a combat system that relies quite heavily on reading enemy animations and responding to them within windows that are far too narrow even on the easiest difficulty option there is.

"The XP thresholds you need to unlock levels are quite high when you think about how difficult it is to whittle away at enemy health bars, and getting your character’s stats to a place of comfort is going to be a steep climb up a hill that has danger at every turn."

Your hero’s combat prowess is almost negligible in the game’s early hours. Couple that with enemies whose animations aren’t telegraphed as well as they should, and you’ve got a recipe for needless frustrations that actively hinder your progress. That’s especially egregious when you consider that it takes a while for you to get your hands on some decent armor, although I will concede that getting your hands on a weapon is comparatively easier once you know where to look.

With that being said, the game’s melee combat is too clunky for my taste, and it often comes down to chugging healing items while dealing with attacks from enemies that can end you with just one badly-timed parry. Ranged weapons served me a lot better, and I found myself relying on my bow (and a bit of magic once you unlock it) over my sword for the most part, or getting NPCs to do the fighting for me.

The XP thresholds you need to unlock levels are quite high when you think about how difficult it is to whittle away at enemy health bars, and getting your character’s stats to a place of comfort is going to be a steep climb up a hill that has danger at every turn. There’s a lot of room for improvement on the combat front in this one.

That’s a pity, considering that human enemies that defeat you in combat don’t kill you outright, but loot all of the valuable stuff you’ve spent hours gathering to fill their own pockets. In a title where combat was more balanced, that’s an opportunity to go back for a rematch and regain your lost valuables. In Gothic Remake, it’s just better to take the loss and move on, and that’s a real shame.

Crashes and wonky combat animations aside, there were other issues such as NPCs randomly appearing out of thin air, while others would get stuck in their own animations without dialogue windows popping up when you interact with them. Both problems were frequent enough to be noticeable, and definitely took away from the impressive visuals.

"On the technical front, this one comes with too many annoyances that constantly interrupt the experience in ways that can have you giving up on it altogether."

The audio was similarly buggy, often cutting off into total silence at several points, or including the chatter from other characters in crowded spaces during a one-on-one dialogue that forced me to turn on subtitles just so I could keep up with what was being said. For a remake that was meant to usher this one into the modern age, there’s a lot of problems from an era of gaming I thought we’d left behind for good.

It’s now time to answer the question that I’m sure you’re all asking: would I recommend this one to you? Personally, I’m going to persist with the adventure and hope for updates that fix the issues that I’ve highlighted here. But I wouldn’t recommend paying full price for this one in its current state.

The story is absolutely riveting thanks to how well-written each character, and the world at large is. But on the technical front, this one comes with too many annoyances that constantly interrupt the experience in ways that can have you giving up on it altogether. There’s a lot to love about Gothic 1 Remake, but the game constantly works against itself in ways that make it hard to recommend.

If you’re a seasoned veteran of The Colony, you’re probably going to find its issues easier to ignore than a newcomer. But if this is your first time with this one, know that this remake is a superb visual overhaul that fails to hide a plethora of issues that make it hard to engage with. But for those of you who persist, you’re in for a look at what games used to be like back in the day which could have you quite immersed in a story that continues to pull its weight even today.

I’d wait for a sale on this one, as much as it pains me to say it. But like The Colony, modern gaming is an unforgiving place, and Gothic 1 Remake stumbles far too often for it to stand tall amongst its competition.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

Has it achieved that feat? Well, yes and no. Yes, because there are certainly improvements that might make you feel like the three-year wait for this one was worth it. No, because some of the things that plague sport simulators continue to be a part of the experience on offer in this one, for better or worse. Let’s start with what’s good, and the fighting is definitely among the stronger parts of the entire game.

UFC 6 is at its finest when you’re in the Octagon, which is always good for a fighter that carries its ambitions and the expectations of its players. The new real-time striking system is something that’s going to stand out the minute you engage with it. Strikes feel impactful with satisfying feedback that can make trading blows feel convincingly weighty, and you almost feel your blows connect with bone-crunching intensity.

Your strikes don’t depend on canned sequences that feel like they’ve already been decided before you make contact with your opponent. Instead, the outcome of such exchanges now depends on how well you position yourself for an attack, your timing, head movements, and of course, your inputs. It lends a layer of authenticity to every match in ways that immediately make the striking system feel like one of the evolutions we mentioned.

That’s because it makes knockdowns look and feel more believable than they’ve ever been, while each fight now feels more violent and unpredictable. They look so authentic, you’re going to feel like the driving force behind your chosen fighter’s fists and feet for the most part. That’s made even better by the fact that the damage you dish out and take in return is now visible enough to be a visual reminder of how well you’re doing in a fight. The blood paints a grim picture on the canvas, while the injury system makes things quite realistic, although it felt a tad too exaggerated for my taste. Your mileage with it is going to vary, but I did think it could be taken down a notch.

Sadly, the evolution of the striking system feels like it’s actively countered by the stamina bar, which drains far too rapidly for it to be ideal at times, and that does affect the rhythm of fights. It isn’t game-breaking, but it did happen enough for it to be a noticeable annoyance. But it isn’t going to be as divisive as the new Flow State feature. It’s one of the biggest gameplay additions, and is one that could either make or break your enjoyment of this one.

"You’re constantly feeling the ebb and flow of an intense clash, and it’s quite immersive as a result."

It’s a solid idea on paper, as it gives each individual athlete a unique set of strengths that play into their real-world fighting styles. Playing to your strengths increases your Flow Meter, which in turn activates your Flow State once it’s completely filled. That opens up opportunities for finishers, recovering from a bad round, or giving you a distinct advantage in a match you’ve already been dominating, allowing you to take your opponent out of the equation far more easily than you would have without it.

It encourages you to switch things up depending on which fighter you’re bringing to the fight, which is a great way to add a dash of individuality to each athlete while also giving each fight a sense of momentum. You’re constantly feeling the ebb and flow of an intense clash, and it’s quite immersive as a result. I’m a fan, although I can see how the purists among you might end up seeing it as a gimmick rather than a meaningful addition. It’s fun, but comes at the risk of feeling cheesy, as you tend to try sticking to moves that play to your strengths instead of responding dynamically to your opponents with ones that are outside of your chosen fighter’s comfort zone.

It might have worked very well in an arcade fighter, but in something that aims to simulate a real-world sport, it can feel a touch out of place. Aside from the Flow State mechanic, there’s grappling which can feel all too close to what was on offer in UFC 5, as it brings the same stiff rhythm and that deliberate approach from the previous game that’s recognizable almost instantly. It’s got that clunky pacing that makes it feel akin to a tactical exchange instead of a fluid struggle between two fighters who have trained to the peak of their abilities.

It’s a mind game in the middle of a physical fight that doesn’t necessarily make it terrible, but it doesn’t make any evolutionary changes to merit praise. It’s functional at best, and disappointing at worst, depending on whether you liked what was on offer three years ago. Thus far, the gameplay should tell you something about why this one feels like a solid experience, but not one that justifies the long gap between releases in the franchise’s line up. Well, that extends to other areas of the game, including the presentation.

"Some fighters don’t look as close to their real-world counterparts as they should be, with a few awkward body proportions that stick out like sore thumbs showing up from time to time."

In a game like UFC 6, recreating the atmosphere and sheer adrenaline of being at a UFC event is something that’s crucial to the experience. It’s certainly authentic, with walkouts, replays, lighting,  and broadcast-style elements that all contribute to making this one sustain the quality that the franchise has been known for. But there are inconsistencies that crop up and stand out against that backdrop quite prominently.

Some fighters don’t look as close to their real-world counterparts as they should be, with a few awkward body proportions that stick out like sore thumbs showing up from time to time. They stand out against the backdrop of a generally solid experience overall, while the HUD feels far too busy in a game that’s meant to have you laser-focused on your opponent, ready to respond to their attempts to take you down. It’s an issue that works in tandem with the inaccuracies on fighters to bring down the overall presentation from what should have felt like a premium, refined take on the franchise.

However, the game’s many modes kind of make up for those little mistakes. For instance, the Legacy Mode is now a great place for you to dive in when you boot up the game if you’re new to the franchise. It acts as a great tutorial, letting you follow Chris Carter’s career complete with cinematic sequences and fights both inside the Octagon and outside of it. It’s helped along by appearances from Coach Thompson and Carter’s rival Danny Lopez, with the drama and human emotions that come with a career such as his on full display. The fact that his family’s legacy underlines his journey from the regional MMA scene to the UFC is a highlight, and it’s something I found very entertaining.

It’s also a great way to come to grips with the game’s core systems, important mechanics, and more, allowing you to take it all in before you commit to the Career Mode, which features a lot of the same training camps, the integration of social media and your need to manage your online presence, and progression systems in a way that feels natural. It’s well thought-out, and a welcome presence in the game for newbies and franchise veterans alike. That you get to unlock new skills across categories is a nice touch, lending a bit of depth to the game’s progression loop as well.

It also helps the transition to the full-blown Career Mode a lot smoother since you can get to the UFC a lot faster thanks to all the work you’ve already put in. The Career Mode itself is now expanded, with more choices, narrative events, interactions via texts and social media, better training and fitness management systems, and other progression elements, all of which feed into the illusion that your character is climbing the ranks while trying to sustain their popularity among audiences in order to further their career.

"Too many activities are reduced to merely selecting between dialogue options, which doesn’t work well when most of the choices you’re allowed to make feel flat."

All of that’s pretty exciting, but UFC 6 falls prey to a pitfall that has plagued simulation games of its nature: you’re dealing with a lot of menus for too much of the time you spend outside the Octagon. Too many activities are reduced to merely selecting between dialogue options, which doesn’t work well when most of the choices you’re allowed to make feel flat. It all feels mechanical in a way that gives the impression that you’re trying to game the system instead of navigating a range of possibilities in a way that’s fluid and organic.

Moving on to the Hall of Legends, it’s an interesting diversion that’s sure to make UFC fans feel quite happy about its inclusion. You get to move through museum-like spaces, with halls dedicated to popular fighters across the sport’s history. Those halls come with Fighting Podiums that let you step into memorable moments of a fighter’s career, taking control of them in some of the most memorable bouts of their respective careers. It isn’t going to sell more copies of UFC 6, but it’s certainly going to be a nice way to blow off some steam when the pressure of your career threatens to overwhelm you. It’s always good to look to them greats for inspiration, after all.

Fight Now is where you’re going to go if you’re looking for a quick match-up, with different settings, fighters, and categories allowing you to mix and match to your heart’s content. I would have liked to test out the online multiplayer part of the experience, but try as I might, I could not connect to the servers despite multiple attempts. I can’t comment on it thanks to that limitation. It is what it is, though.

However, I can say that I’ve spent enough time with this one to know that it succeeds where it matters the most: the fighting. However, it isn’t the revolutionary sequel that any of us were hoping for, and that’s a damn shame considering how good what’s on offer really is. As an MMA simulator, this one’s as solid as they come, and you’re going to have a good time with it. But as the latest instalment in a reputed franchise, it doesn’t do enough to set itself apart. I’d still recommend it to you, but I can’t help but wish that I could do it more whole-heartedly than I am now.

It falls just short of a generational leap, but I’m hopeful about post-launch updates ironing out at least some of its issues to make it a better rounded-out take on a simulator. It’s got the potential to be the undisputed champion, standing tall among the franchise’s greats, but it’s not quite there yet. This could be the definitive UFC experience given enough time.

But as it stands, it falls just short of true greatness.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

Note: Varun Karunakar contributed to this review.

Getting a game as massive, ambitious, and demanding as Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth to work well on the hardware of the Nintendo Switch 2 – a console with decidedly more constrained specs than the PS5 – was always going to be a challenge for the developers, so it obviously is best to head into Rebirth’s Switch 2 version with lower technical and graphical expectations. What’s heartening, however, is that even with those compromises, the game doesn’t loose any of its charm and mastery.

What exactly are those compromises, however? Well, for the most part, they are exactly what you would expect from a lower spec release of a technically demanding game. The gap between Rebirth’s Switch 2 and base console versions on this front is (unsurprisingly, given the generation gap between the two games) more pronounced than it was for Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s Switch 2 version. You see the biggest and most blatant hits with things such as texture pop in, the downgrade in the level of detail, foliage density, and the like, and other similar aspects such as shadows and draw distances (especially draw distances, in fact).

"What exactly are those compromises, however? Well, for the most part, they are exactly what you would expect from a lower spec release of a technically demanding game."

More than a few times, including in the very early hours of the game (or most times you’re out in an open world section), I have seen textures and assets abruptly loading in right before my eyes, while there have also been a few instances of frame rate drops during both cutscenes and gameplay, all of which is certainly the sort of thing that can – at least momentarily – pull you out of the experience. On top of that, it’s also a shame that, just like Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s Switch 2 release, Rebirth doesn’t offer a 60 FPS option on Nintendo’s platform. While the compromise is understandable given the Switch 2’s hardware constraints, it still feels like a notable omission, particularly given the fast paced and action heavy nature of Rebirth’s combat and general gameplay.

Personally, I tend to be the sort of player that can forgive a game’s technical deficiencies, especially if it’s pulling its weight in the gameplay and design departments (which is most definitely true for Rebirth), but those deficiencies are admittedly hard not to spot here. While they don’t take away from Rebirth’s inherent gameplay and narrative strengths, I certainly do hope the developer will be addressing those issues with post launch patches in the near future.

As much as Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s Switch 2 version comes with noticeable downgrades on its original release, at the same time, there’s no denying that, by and large, the game still looks really good. Environments look lush and enticingly massive and explorable, character models and animations boast impressive attention to detail and personality, and nearly every new map, town, and city you visit is brimming with its own unique visual hook and aesthetic. A constant sense of discovery, joy, and wonder was among the things that helped Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth stand out when it first launched in 2024, and thankfully, on the Nintendo Switch 2, even with the necessary cuts it makes in the technical department, it doesn’t lose that sense of awe and luster.

And of course, when it comes to the act of actually playing the game, this is still every bit the unmissable, spectacular designed experience that it was when it launched on the PS5 a couple years ago. When I reviewed Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth upon its original release, I described it as the long overdue and long awaited realization of the modern open world Final Fantasy formula that the series had been hinting at since the PS2 generation, and going back to it on the Switch 2, I find myself just as enamoured with the game.

That’s because Rebirth is and remains a genuine, unmissable masterpiece – and I don’t use any of those words lightly. It touts easily the best combat I have ever experienced in a Final Fantasy title, and arguably the best non-turn based combat I have seen in any game, period. Rebirth manages to build on Remake’s incredible combat in meaningful ways, delivering a blistering experience that, with an ingenious combination of tight mechanics, meaningful improvements, and consistently well-designed and varied enemy encounters and boss fights, ensures that it never runs out of ways to always keep you on your toes.

"Rebirth is and remains a genuine, unmissable masterpiece – and I don’t use any of those words lightly."

Meanwhile, each character boasts ridiculous mechanical depth and variety, to the extent that each could be the star of their own game. On top of that, the progression and customization mechanics – between the different weapons, Materia builds, stat upgrades, and what have you – add an even greater level of depth and nuance, so that combat and everything surrounding it manage to feel consistently rewarding and addictive even after you have clocked multiple dozen hours into the game.

Outside of the combat, meanwhile, Rebirth continues to tout an equally impressive level of depth and variety. There’s multiple massive open world maps to explore, each boasting a plethora of things to do, their own unique design gimmicks and traversal mechanics and visual hooks, and more; there’s a multitude of different minigames and optional side activities to track down and explore, including, of course, the fan favourite card game Queen’s Blood (which you can and very well may sink an inordinate amount of hours into); and so, so much more. It’s not often that a game that demands a time investment as massive as Rebirth does can successfully hold on to the player’s attention without letting monotony set in, but this one manages to do that with surprising confidence.

The game also does so through solid storytelling- which is one area will mileage will probably vary more than most others. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth doubles down on its predecessor’s decision to be as much of a sequel (or sidequel) to the original FF7 as a remake, and obviously, the decisions it makes in pursuit of that vision will ruffle some feathers, especially given how ambitious (and, often, bizarre) it can be with its ideas. Personally, I have been on board with the developer’s decision to chart a new path for this iconic story for a while now, and in my view, Rebirth does an excellent job of balancing those two conflicting sides. It’s a nonstop rollercoaster with its bombastic storytelling, high octane set pieces, wonderfully performed characters, and more, and from its first minute to its last, it never stops being a compelling experience, even if it isn’t necessarily one that always makes total logical sense.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth was a breathtaking experience when it came out a couple years ago, and it still is now that it has released for the Nintendo Switch 2. Yes, it comes with some technical cutbacks that often are hard not to notice, and hopefully the developer will be ironing out these kinks with future updates. But even as it stands right now, Rebirth’s Switch 2 version is still a great way to experience one of Final Fantasy’s most spectacular and unforgettable outings of all time.

This game was reviewed on Nintendo Switch 2.

While quite dated by the standards of even just a few years later, The 7th Guest was still considered by many to be one of the benchmarks to hit when developing an FMV-based point-and-click adventure game, if not for its gameplay and puzzle design then at least for its visual flair, presentation, and storytelling.

Fast forward a couple of decades, and in 2023, we get a VR-based remake of The 7th Guest, complete with brand new puzzles that make a lot more sense than the original, a fully-realized 3D recreation of the original’s mansion, and even brand new actors taking on the roles of the various other guests throughout the story. Considering the niche nature of VR, however, it was only a matter of time before the game made its way to a more traditional gaming platform, and now, it has been fully translated for “flat screen” gameplay on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch.

In the modern gaming industry, where point-and-click adventure games have largely disappeared, and horror has split off from the genre entirely, becoming its own thing thanks to a variety of releases ranging from Resident Evil to Silent Hill. Keeping this in mind, The 7th Guest feels quite anachronistic; it still has the original’s spooky atmosphere and dark storyline. However, if you’re expecting to be scared, this isn’t quite the game for you. Rather, The 7th Guest Remake is more focused on making you flex your mental prowess over its several puzzles, which can be tackled at your preferred pace, since there aren’t really any time constraints or grotesque creatures chasing you down.

"The puzzles in The 7th Guest Remake are some of the best things about the game, especially when compared to the original"

The story of The 7th Guest Remake revolves around the mansion of Henry Stauf. While not too many details are revealed in the beginning, the basic plot outline is that, at one point in the past, Stauf invited six guests to spend a night at his mansion at Harley-on-Hudson in New York, and to solve a variety of puzzles that would lead them to discovering his deepest, darkest secrets. However, none of the guests were able to make it too far, with many of them experiencing strange, supernatural events during their stay. You, as the unnamed protagonist, have taken it upon yourself to make your way through the mansion’s various rooms in your efforts to discover just what happened to the original guests, and what Stauf’s secrets might be.

Thankfully, The 7th Guest Remake also retains much of the charm of the original by featuring FMV cutscenes that feature live-action performances by real actors. Just about every character, from deep-in-debt married couple Edward and Elinor Knox, to actress Martine Burden, has been wonderfully portrayed by their respective actors, with equal amounts of nuanced emotion and hammy overacting that keeps just about every encounter you might have with their memories thoroughly entertaining.

The general structure of The 7th Guest Remake is quite linear—at any given time, only a few rooms of the mansion will be available, each room housing its own set of puzzles that you will need to solve in order to make progress, unlocking more rooms in the process. The puzzles themselves are also quite self-contained. Even if some of these puzzles might connect to others, these connections never extend to anything outside of the room you’re in, so you never really have to worry about having forgotten a key item or important detail as you make your way through the game.

When it comes to the actual puzzle-solving gameplay, things are once again quite simple, and there isn’t even an inventory screen like you would find in the Monkey Island series, for example. You only have a lantern that lets you look at things in the past, and a second hand that can hold things while you figure out what to do next. The puzzles themselves are also largely focused on logical thinking, sometimes asking you to handle simple mathematics like addition, and other times making you come up with clever solutions to a mini game, for example. The puzzles in The 7th Guest Remake are some of the best things about the game, especially when compared to the original, since the 1993 classic was well-known for its “logic”-based puzzles being absolutely illogical.

"Thankfully, The 7th Guest Remake also retains much of the charm of the original by featuring FMV cutscenes that feature live-action performances by real actors."

However, the puzzles also betray the fact that The 7th Guest Remake was originally envisioned as a VR game. A surprising number of puzzles revolve around moving things around on a surface, for example, which indicates that fine motor skills were required of a player’s hands. Moving these same objects using analogue sticks doesn’t quite hit in the same way, unfortunately. The VR-styled puzzles felt especially egregious in Hamilton Temple’s room, where there was a heavy emphasis on using a pair of magical top hats to teleport between two places. While the original VR version would have you literally reach into a top hat to grab a key item, for example, the regular version of the game has you simply hitting the “pick up item” button, robbing the puzzles of much of their identity and uniqueness.

Other places where the VR roots of The 7th Guest Remake show themselves are in the movement itself. While walking or running around feels fine most of the time, hitting the crouch button doesn’t even seem to feature any gameplay animations. Rather, the title cuts to you simply being at a lower point of view than you would be if you were standing. This, however, is a minor quibble in the grand scheme of things, especially since the only thing it really affects is the game’s overall presentation.

Generally speaking, The 7th Guest Remake is an incredibly engaging experience. Sure, it might suffer from a slow start, since it’s taking its time in setting up the various characters that you will discover secrets about, while also making sure that you fully understand the simple gameplay mechanics that will be used for its logic-based puzzles. Once it gets going, however, it becomes easy to get trapped in the general loop of clearing a room of all puzzles and then convincing yourself that you’ll just take a look at the next room, and maybe solve one or two of the simpler puzzles there. Before you know it, you’ve accidentally spent a couple of hours combing every square inch of the room to find the final puzzle piece. Sure, it won’t be offering you any frights, but The 7th Guest Remake still feels like a fantastic way to spend a relaxing evening with a cup of tea.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

And, indeed, the season so far has seen plenty of exciting on-track passes, followed invariably by instant re-passes – the so-called yo-yoing effect – but the authenticity of hybrid car design is also coming under scrutiny: is racing now too artificial? Should drivers be pushing 100% of the time? Or, is battery conservation still a valid measure of skill?

On first impression, F1’s real-life changes feel comparatively subtle in F1 25: 2026 Season Pack. The update refreshes this season’s driver line-up and liveries, introduces two new teams, and the all-new Madring circuit, but the dynamic potential of lighter, half-electric-powered cars is not immediately obvious. 2026 Season Pack is less about noticeable ‘car-feel’ swings and more about what the new regulations demand, in driving style and racecraft alike.

To acclimatise to the 2026-regulation cars I loaded into Time Trial – among F1 25’s modes incorporating 2026’s updates alongside Grand Prix, unranked multiplayer, split-screen, pro challenges, and career – with new teams Cadillac and Audi, the latter swapping Sauber’s lime green for titanium silver and flaming red.

The new Active Aero package allows front wings to open tandemly with rear wings in the same letterbox-style that defined the now defunct DRS. Both systems operate the same – open wings reduce aerodynamic drag for mild speed boosts, albeit there are more opportunities to deploy the system this season compared to the one-or-two DRS zones of earlier years.

Taking the all-American Cadillac for a spin round Austin and Miami, the car felt suitably reactive. Although – as I’ve already alluded – the difference wasn’t as pronounced as I expected. That said, as subtle as the shift in responsiveness is, I still felt a tweak of controller calibration was necessary. Specifically, I widened steering linearity to soften straight-line twitchiness.

However, these early impressions are incomplete without 2026’s revamped energy systems, so into a race weekend I went for my first taste of the new Boost and Overtake Modes. While Boost is available at any time, Overtake’s extra electrical horsepower confirms this mode as the true replacement for DRS. Not Active Aero, but the monumental power surge you access once you’re within one second of the car in-front at a designated point.

Overtake’s key distinction, however, is you have the entire next lap to expel its charge. In real-life F1, we’ve seen drivers use the system to get the jump on opponents, but also, there’s been plenty of battery-assisted overtakes in unconventional places. Indeed, in-game, along Circuit de Gilles-Villeneuve’s final-sector stretch, Overtake Mode was powerful enough that I careened past multiple cars before reaching the braking point at Montreal’s iconic Wall of Champions chicane. However, depleting my battery left me exposed to a re-pass on the start-finish straight.

Likewise, along the fleeting back-end of Melbourne’s Albert Park I breezed past the car ahead thanks to a mix of Overtake and open Aero. But, my opponent reappeared after the brisk left-right of turns eleven and twelve, presumably conserving battery along the straight with the plan to re-take the place immediately. They secured the pass long-before turn thirteen’s mid-weight braking zone, and having depleted my battery I was unable to counter.

"Clipping in the 2026 Season Pack is inconsistent."

So, the lesson: if you think hitting Overtake is a one-and-done manoeuvre, think again. Yes, opportunely deploying excess power is an effective attacking strategy, but you rely on your battery for defence, too. Upon this realisation, the subtleties of 2026’s battery-spec come to the fore: see, depletion comes at a much faster rate than last year, so you need to take a more active role in harvesting. In 2026, the real-life cars do this under-braking and by lifting and coasting – easing off the throttle early before engaging the brake – and by superclipping – that is, when the engine deliberately siphons power to the battery, creating a polarising scenario where cars slow at full speed, soundtracked by a dip in engine revs.

Clipping in the 2026 Season Pack is inconsistent. Where the relatively short run up to Austria’s sharp turn-three presented downturned engine power, coinciding with a welcome recharge, I didn’t experience the same effect on Shanghai’s 1.2km back straight – a place I’d expect superclipping to be prevalent. Some clarity would be appreciated; while your race engineer describes lifting and coasting, and suggests using boost on corner exit as a way to counteract any pre-corner shortfall, superclipping isn’t mentioned at all. Whether you’re a fan or not, clipping needs to be a fully-fledged feature to ensure the most immersive simulation.

So, the most effective recharging is done by lifting and coasting, which for most will mean adapting your driving style. I found that flowing tracks like Qatar’s Losail International Circuit made lifting and coasting – or, in other words, driving deliberately more measured – quite enjoyable. Throughout its long sequences and the absence of heavy-braking zones, Losail became an opportunity to refine my throttle control. And, during races, Qatar doesn’t demand energy management as strictly as the aforementioned Albert Park or Circuit de Gilles-Villeneuve – the latter going further to expose some bad habits too. Now, more than ever, nailing your exit to turn-ten’s hairpin is crucial to securing a pass on the following straight with battery to spare.

But, while some pre-existing circuits require fine-tuning muscle memory to extract the best performance, Madrid’s all-new Madring circuit is a different beast entirely. It’s tight, twisting, varied, and unfamiliar; a strange feeling, admittedly, racing around a circuit that real-life F1 has yet to visit. Alas, what’s unfamiliar forces proper learning, and a chance to explore potentially unconventional overtakes afforded by this year’s batteries.

See, before Las Vegas and Baku, F1’s street circuits were notoriously difficult to overtake. With Madring, its attacking potential would be unclear if it wasn’t for 2026’s regulation changes. There’s an early-lap opportunity to drag-race toward a tightening chicane where electrical horsepower gets the pass done early. If Madring had appeared on last season’s calendar, this manoeuvre wouldn’t have been viable.

Likewise, I was caught out on the briefest zip toward the final corner, showing that even marginal straights yield opportunities for passing. Whether these scenarios play out similarly when F1 visits the circuit is unknown, but Madring makes for an enjoyable experience in 2026 Season Pack regardless.

"My only gripe, really, is that the strategic potential in the 2026 regs isn’t fully explained."

And that’s the thing: the strongest critique of 2026’s regulation changes accuse the FIA of ‘gamifying’ Formula 1. And while that debate is ongoing, in F1 25: 2026 Season Pack those ‘game-like’ changes translate into a tactical tug-of-war, where energy management boils down to a risk-versus-reward mechanic. Whether you’re recharging for one final qualifying lap as the clock ticks down, or you’re desperate to stay ahead of the pack as your battery’s running on empty, F1’s 2026 regulations expand on-track tension. Through refined throttle control, tactical energy use, occasional ERS trains forcing you toward unconventional overtakes, or the dreaded speed differentials between power surging and battery harvesting cars, you’ve more on your plate in F1 25: 2026 Season Pack than ever before.

My only gripe, really, is that the strategic potential in the 2026 regs isn’t fully explained. Sure, your engineer outlines the fundamentals, but it would be appreciated if onboarding suggested more conclusive ways to use the battery-powered tools for tactical attack and defence. Likewise, practice programs appear unchanged. In my view, this is a missed opportunity to train you on how to extract your battery’s potential. Mid-race dynamic objectives have been updated – in one example my engineer asked me to deploy my battery past a certain threshold before the end of the following lap – but by this time you’re already in the thick of it. My strategic ideas glean from watching F1 for real; casual fans who don’t pay close attention to the sport will have to figure it out for themselves.

So, whilst F1 in 2026 is something of a revolution, in F1 25: 2026 Season Pack these sweeping overhauls are more of an evolution. While the changes aren’t as dramatic as you’d expect, newly meaningful strategy emerges during moment-to-moment racing once you’ve a handle on the battery’s tactical potential. What I’m most appreciative of, though, is that the 2026 Season Pack refines the experience in ways that demand more deliberate driving.

This DLC is more than a re-skin, and fans of the series should be eager to access the update before F1 27’s purported revamp.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

Rebirth continues to be a confident, emotionally charged Final Fantasy title, and it’s easy to see why it’s among the franchise’s top earners. Let’s begin with the story, which feels familiar but not entirely predictable. It continues to sustain the challenge of balancing the old and the new that Remake began, taking the time to honor iconic characters, places, and emotional beats without being a scene-by-scene recreation of the original game.

"Of course, the people you meet along the way are a huge part of Rebirth’s allure."

It constantly toys with your expectations by leaving enough of the game for long-term to leaving enough for longtime fans to recognize, while managing to remain as cryptic as it can be about where things are headed. That’s not an easy feat to achieve, but this one does it with style. I do think you’d have a better time making sense of it all if you play Remake Intergrade, but there’s enough on offer in this one to make it stand on its own two feet. It brings a sublime blend of mystery, momentum, and sheer scale to make it quite hard to put down, even on a replay.

Of course, the people you meet along the way are a huge part of Rebirth’s allure. Cloud, Aerith, Barret, Tifa, and all the others from the game’s cast are brought to life in ways that differentiate them from their appearances in the original game. There’s a lot of new dialogue between various characters, all of which injects them with more personality than you might remember through additional lines of banter as you make your way across a gorgeous map.

They’re more vulnerable and willing to lean on their comrades when their conviction seems to falter, and some of the game’s best moments leave the spectacle of it all behind to bring more quiet, meaningful interactions that add emotional weight to the party’s dynamics and specific scenes. That makes the entire adventure feel like an insightful look into their motivations, and it’s an expansion of the original game that continues to be a welcome presence. They feel like a travelling group of comrades now more than ever, and that’s a very good thing in any RPG.

Of course, that isn’t to say that there isn’t any spectacle on offer. It wouldn’t be a Final Fantasy game without it. This is a massive game, but it manages to consistently bring new ideas and mechanics to keep you entertained for the entire experience. You could spend a quiet moment relishing an emotional story beat before being whisked away into a massive set-piece that has your heart flitting between empathy and exhilaration, with you being none the wiser.

"It’s rare that an RPG manages to pack in so much into its runtime, giving us an adventure that actually feels like we’re on a mission across a vast world."

It brings incredibly designed boss fights, addictive minigames, and a LOT of detours to take as you explore the open world, all of which serve character-driven moments very well. It’s rare that an RPG manages to pack in so much into its runtime, giving us an adventure that actually feels like we’re on a mission across a vast world, our only comfort being the ones who choose to travel by our side against forces that seem overwhelming, but cannot be left free to achieve their nefarious schemes. It’s deliciously old-school but with a layer of modern production values that make it a very potent blockbuster.

The revamped approach to the world design on offer helps with that, and the decision to move away from a rather linear structure in Remake to more open regions that come with so much variety that they feel distinct in their identity while providing visual splendor that continues to have me stopping to admire the sights every now and then, despite several playthroughs already under my belt. From The Grasslands to Costa del Sol to the Gold Saucer, each environment has its own identity, a facet that’s made possible by unique side activities, traversal quirks, and atmospheric touches.

It’s a world that feels like there was a lot of intent behind it, which makes it feel like it was lovingly crafted as opposed to being mechanically built to fill up vast swathes of land with things for players to do. That brings me to the nearly overwhelming amount of side content there is, most of which is purposefully baked into the experience to either expand what you know about the world, deepen the bonds you foster between your crew, or simply reward your curiosity while feeding progression.

All of that makes for a gameplay loop that continues to be quite hard to put down. Start a playthrough of this one, and you’re going to be thinking about it even when you’re away from your consoles. I will say that the activities you take on will depend on your personal tastes, but you’re sure to find something to like amid stuff like hunting down intel about the world, the Protorelic questlines, chocobo activities, or all the things you can do in the Gold Saucer. This one’s dense as they come, and it’s also generous enough to make the RPG side of things feel very rewarding indeed.

"There are more playable characters, which brings a wider range of tactical options for you to utilize. Combat encounters are similarly flexible, letting you take varying approaches to problem-solving on the fly."

That’s because this one’s not just an action game with a bit of customization thrown in to make it feel like an RPG. Instead, it’s an RPG through and through, with a bunch of mechanics that feed into the options you have at your disposal to create synergies between party members. You’ve got Materia, weapon upgrades, Folios, crafting, transmutation of items, a great gear system, and a lot of build potential to let you decide how your party operates when they come under enemy fire. If you’re the type who enjoys finding unique ways to take advantage of well-crafted systems, this one’s probably going to keep you occupied for a while.

Of course, all of the energy you spend on creating the perfect party setup has to feed into something, and that’s where the combat system comes in. It’s easily my favorite part of the entire game, building on the hybrid between action and the ATB system from Remake. There are more playable characters, which brings a wider range of tactical options for you to utilize. Combat encounters are similarly flexible, letting you take varying approaches to problem-solving on the fly.

Your party members’ abilities synergize very well once you sink a little time into enabling such interactions, and with options like character switching, managing your stagger bars, blocking, and dodging based on your enemy’s attacks forming the crux of your basic toolkit, that’s already a lot to wrap your head around. Throw in features like Limit Breaks, Synergy Abilities, Summons, and Materia combinations, and you have a combat system that feels like you’re the conductor of a very talented opera, one that manages to sustain a spellbinding performance on the grand stage that this one offers you.

It all comes together so beautifully that you can’t help but marvel at it all. Between the story, combat, and all that the world has to offer you, Rebirth is a title that delivers the best combat in the series while framing it within a narrative and exploratory loop that makes it stand out instead of diminishing it. Everything you do in this game feeds back into an important layer of the experience, and it works very well to make you fall in love with it.

"If you’ve got an Xbox, know that this one isn’t a compromised late arrival, but a strong offering in the platform’s RPG space, and a title that’s very easy to recommend wholeheartedly."

The Xbox Series X port of the game offers three different graphics modes. One is the Graphics mode, which pushes the game to its maximum visual fidelity while rendering at 4K resolution. There are two performance modes, one that sharpens the rendered image and the other that smooths it out. All modes did a decent job with regard to their performance targets, but we preferred the Graphics mode since this is where the game shines the best, thanks to overall high-quality visuals and assets.

With all that’s been said about it, and not for the first time, you’ve probably already guessed that Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is a superb RPG and a very welcome addition to your library of Xbox games. It brings a bold story, a very memorable cast of characters, a world that does not let you remain idle for too long, and outstanding combat, all of which are woven together so seamlessly that it makes this one among the most impressive titles in years.

Yes, flaws like a bit of stiffness to traversal mechanics, and some slightly exaggerated moments in the story are there. But they’re largely ignorable in the face of an experience that does everything else so darn well. If you’ve got an Xbox, know that this one isn’t a compromised late arrival, but a strong offering in the platform’s RPG space, and a title that’s very easy to recommend wholeheartedly.

It aims for the clouds, with little strife to be found on the gameplay front (pun intended), and it’s been a pleasure to return to it once again.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox Series X.

Which brings us to Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. Mysterious Book has a clear vision that it executes on nearly flawlessly, a vision that also informs and justifies the design choices that the game makes.

"Mysterious Book is one of the increasing number of Nintendo games that is built in Unreal Engine, in this case Unreal Engine 5."

There are two specific qualities that have persisted through every Yoshi game to date – they are exceptionally easy, almost aimed at beginners and younger players; and they are almost always absolutely gorgeous, imbibing gorgeous art and aesthetics that emphasize stylized animation and expressiveness more than photorealism. Both of those hold true for Mysterious Book as well.

Let’s talk about that latter point first, because it is, expectedly, the thing that stands out first. Eschewing the crafts and arts inspired look of the last couple of Yoshi games, Mysterious Book instead returns to the storybook inspired fairy tale aesthetic that Yoshi’s Story sort of hinted at. I say hinted at, because Mysterious Book is a more full fledged realization of that style than anyone may have expected, to a startling degree.

Multiple animations and transitions in the game have flourishes inspired by that conceit, from text and prompts showing up as doodles on the book’s page, to levels slowly being drawn in when you enter them the first time, and much more. Animations in particular stand out, with their distinct stop motion style drawing attention to them right away and emphasizing and highlighting them that much more.

Mysterious Book is one of the increasing number of Nintendo games that is built in Unreal Engine, in this case Unreal Engine 5. Normally, this can mean a poorly optimized and performing game, particularly on hardware with lower power and resources such as the Nintendo Switch 2 is. It is astonishing, then, and presumably a testament to Nintendo and developer Good Feel’s mastery of the engine and the hardware, that none of that holds true here.

There’s no stutter, there’s no overhead, and the image quality is great – at the very least in docked mode, where, no matter how big the TV screen I played it on, Mysterious Book looked gorgeous. In handheld mode, I did find the image slightly softer, relatively speaking – it still remained a good looking game, but the image quality in handheld mode was closer to what I had expected the game to have throughout. It’s a win that the docked mode looks as good as it does, although it’s a shame that doesn’t extend to handheld play too.

As I mentioned earlier, Yoshi games are remarkably easy, to the point that one might consider them suitable for being the very first games someone plays. In the past, this lacking difficulty level hasn’t necessarily been justified by the game’s larger design goals. To be clear, nothing in said goals necessarily contradicted the easy difficulty (it wasn’t a case of the game looking or feeling like it should be difficult, but then being a walk in the park, like, for example, Twilight Princess was famously back in its day).

"Each level is based around one creature (flora or fauna), that, as you play said level, you learn more about."

The games, nonetheless, remained extremely easy side scrolling platformers, lacking challenge to the point that it was reasonable to ask what the appeal was for anyone who didn’t fall in the “very young” or “starting out” buckets. Indeed, this has been a common refrain with several past Yoshi games, certainly the DS and 3DS ones – if it’s just an extremely easy to play 2D platformer, in Nintendo’s catalog, then why play Yoshi?

Mysterious Book, as I mentioned, answers that question, and it answers it delightfully well. The game remains a 2D platformer, as before, but it completely gives up combat, hazards, and fail states. Instead, it’s a puzzle platformer, where the point of each level is traversing the environment by leveraging interactions and combinations.

Each level is based around one creature (flora or fauna), that, as you play said level, you learn more about. You might learn that jumping on it lets you gain more height. Or you might learn that it will absorb water, clearing paths for you. You might learn it can make flowers and plants bloom, or you might learn it plays a musical note when struck. Every level is based around one of these creatures, and each of these creatures has a seemingly endless and dizzying array of interactions, with Yoshi, with others similar creatures, with its prey or predators, with its environment, and more. After a while, the game almost becomes a toy box, where the challenge, more than anything the game poses to you, is trying to figure out if a certain interaction you have in mind can actually be made to play out in Mysterious Book.

In this way, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book exemplifies the toy box design philosophy that Nintendo has imbibed in particular since the dawn of the Switch era with Breath of the Wild. Practically everything in the game interacts with everything else in the game, often in seemingly unexpected and delightful ways. Those interactions can stack and cascade, and they almost never fail to elicit a smile.

"Where something damages you, you get returned instantly to the last safe spot with no penalty or loss whatsoever."

The remarkable thing here is that this premise lends itself remarkably well to the low difficulty conceit of the Yoshi series. You are merely observing these creatures inside the book’s pages and discovering and recording their interactions. There’s no possible scope for you to die – enemies can’t kill you, fall damage can’t kill you, bottomless pits even can’t kill you.

Where something damages you, you get returned instantly to the last safe spot with no penalty or loss whatsoever. There’s also no time limit, nor any other pressure on you, the player. Instead, you can take your own time, however long or short that is, in figuring out all the ins and outs of the level you are in.

This makes this game remarkably well suited to those aforementioned younger audiences. The 2D plane view means it’s extremely easy to control, with no camera control or 3D movement to contend with. The lack of time limits, enemies, hazards, combat, or even a lives system means you have as much slack as you need when going through the levels – and if you need even more than the game offers, you can press the L button at any time to pull up a hint about what you should be doing, or at least looking at, to open the path forward.

Kids don’t have to worry about coordinating or reflexes, they don’t need to worry about “winning” or even “progressing”. Realistically, they can spend as much time as they want in a single level, exhausting all its bevy of interactions and permutations to their heart’s content, and move on when they are done.

"Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is a lovely, very unique, very delightful platformer, and I sincerely hope it represents the future direction for the series."

But where this lack of difficulty presented a problem in the more straightforward 2D platformer format that past Yoshi games adopted, here it hardly matters, because the point, or the challenge, of this game is more in discovering various interactions, and using them to get (or get to) what you want. It’s impressive that a game this easy feels this engaging and compelling, by simply reframing its conceit away from challenge and progress to play and exploration.

Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is not necessarily a killer app, or the next great Nintendo game, for those who’ve been waiting on that. It is, however, a game of the type that only Nintendo makes anymore, certainly with this level of budget and polish. I expected to appreciate Mysterious Book’s merits from a distance, understanding that the game was well suited to its intended audience, but finding little for myself within it.

Instead, I found myself delighted by its whimsical depth, and its never ending trove of surprises. I would love to see a potential future Yoshi game iterate on this formula, and improve upon it even further.

This game was reviewed on Nintendo Switch 2.