And yet, it had me hooked. Unlocking new characters, discovering the depths of their kits, ramping up the Entropy Effect levels for more punishing conditions – even if it lacked the stage and enemy variety of Dead Cells, it was a trip. A pure power fantasy that seemingly never stopped ramping.

We hence arrive at BlazBlue: Entropy Effect X, a free update for the current game, which also marks its launch on consoles. Despite similar issues to the base game, I’m probably as hooked as before, mixing and matching Tactics, and delving into the Sea of Possibility to learn what exactly is going on.

"Before venturing into the Sea of Possibility, you can choose an Avatar based on a BlazBlue character (with Icey and The Beheaded from Dead Cells as guest characters). Entropy Effect X on consoles also includes all the DLC, which means Rachel, Hazama and Bullet are at your disposal, provided you have enough Analyzers."

Which brings us to the first major thing – the story. I could be hard-pressed to tell you what exactly went down in the base game, but Entropy Effect X’s story makes an immediately strong impression. As Doctor A, you work under the mysterious Doctor Mercurius alongside four other colleagues. The mission is to engage with the Diving Bell System or DBS and enter the Sea of Possibility, collecting Shards to stop an impending disaster.

It’s not long before BlazBlue characters start appearing, and while lorehounds will find some significance, I’m impressed with how much of Entropy Effect X’s narrative stands on its own. Eventually, Doctor A is known as Ace, and his colleagues don different aliases to match their demeanor and habits. Their backstories go beyond those simple denotations, however, and it’s interesting to see just how much their personalities shift with every major dive.

Why exactly has everyone gathered to help Doctor Mercurius? What is she hiding? And are the Shards of Possibility really just that or something else altogether?

Of course, you won’t know for sure without taking a dip. Before venturing into the Sea of Possibility, you can choose an Avatar based on a BlazBlue character (with Icey and The Beheaded from Dead Cells as guest characters). Entropy Effect X on consoles also includes all the DLC, which means Rachel, Hazama and Bullet are at your disposal, provided you have enough Analyzers.

The gameplay loop is simple – cut through multiple stages, known as Depths, and defeat the boss at the end, eventually culminating in Depth 5. Before each new room, you’re given several choices, from increasing your max HP and MP to choosing different elemental Tactics. Blade causes circular blades to emerge near enemies, dealing damage; upgrade it enough times, and it will spawn more blades while pulling them in. Toxin, as the name implies, poisons your enemies, and depending on the upgrades, it can either spread from other foes, burst, or even create bubbles via pufferfish that make them float.

"Entropy Effect X leans into that further courtesy of the Extreme Zone. Much like the Entropy Zone, it’s a series of modifiers that increase enemy numbers, damage, health, and so on – cranking it up further will unlock passive bonuses to give you some advantages."

There’s already more than enough complexity to be found in mixing and matching Tactics, especially when discovering synergies between elements. It’s the depth of the character roster that really fuels the itch for one more run. Take Naoto, the newest character, for example: He can unleash a typical multi-hit combo in the air and on the ground. However, unlock enough of this Potential, and you can use rising uppercuts with invincibility windows or charge up each hit in a combo. Then you add more strikes to that uppercut, make it so that it activates in mid-air, and then unlock triple jump to reset your ability to perform it each time. His SP can also be harnessed to enter Overdrive Mode or unleash separate enhanced attacks, which you can mix in with regular strikes.

Further adding to this are Legacy Tactics. Whether you clear or fail a run with a character, they can be saved as an optimized Avatar. In future runs, you can select two optimized Avatars and activate their Legacy Tactics (aka special moves separate from the current Avatar). Found a particularly spicy elemental Tactic? Save it, and it’ll activate every time with the Legacy Tactic, though you need to find the corresponding elemental Tactic in the current run, depending on its rarity.

And again, this is only scratching the surface of build diversity. Covenants can provide special benefits at the cost of debuffs, like starting with negative MP in each new room. Trials require completing a certain number of battles with a debuff to net something special, like flat damage reduction. The Black Market lets you sacrifice some of your max health for benefits such as increased health with each Perfect Clear of a room. Then there are the Mind Unleashed Effects, which offer nothing but positives and can be total game changers for boosting your damage.

Entropy Effect X leans into that further courtesy of the Extreme Zone. Much like the Entropy Zone, it’s a series of modifiers that increase enemy numbers, damage, health, and so on – cranking it up further will unlock passive bonuses to give you some advantages. However, you can also unlock different nodes that grant access to Vanguard Battles – mini-boss fights that award Mind Unleashed perks like crazy – or allow for leveling up your Legacy Tactics. There’s also Overdrive Mode for a temporary boost when the situation calls for it – and it will call for it once you venture into the new Depth. Without delving into spoilers for the new boss, it starts suitably epic and transcends anything that Entropy Effect has achieved till now to incredible results.

"I would have liked to see the final Depth fleshed out more, and maybe another character added alongside Naoto. However, for those who never experienced the original, it’s worth diving into again and again."

As much as I enjoyed it, though, there are still some areas which could have used improvement. Objective variety could have been spiced up more – plenty of areas still require simply slaying out or surviving by slaying out to progress. The makeup of the levels themselves also isn’t too complex. Sure, they sport gorgeous art direction and music (seek out Sakura City immediately) with some interesting little hooks. Otherwise, you’ll see way too many familiar sights after just a few runs. And while the regular enemies each have something unique to them, they feel too few in number, further affecting the replay value. It also doesn’t help that the final Depth is more or less a boss rush en route to the final-final threat.

However, BlazBlue: Entropy Effect’s strengths, from the combat to the customization to the character depth, are exceptionally strong. The sense of progression is also great, as you upgrade your Mind Strength for more max health and healing efficiency or play around with Mind Crystals – passives that can provide refreshes, increased attack damage, or cause certain Tactics to appear more than others. If you’re especially hurting for Dive Points, participate in some extra training, though you’ll need an avatar with a comparable enough Combat Rating to succeed (and no repeats are allowed).

While it may not portend to offer the same longevity as a Dead Cells or even other rogue-lite hits like Hades, BlazBlue: Entropy Effect X adds on to an already good side-scrolling action title in some solid ways. I would have liked to see the final Depth fleshed out more, and maybe another character added alongside Naoto. However, for those who never experienced the original, it’s worth diving into again and again.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

Next is Relooted on February 10th, followed by BlazBlue Entropy Effect X on February 12th, both for Ultimate and PC tiers. The latter marks the rogue-lite action side-scroller’s debut on consoles, bringing a new character, biome, and story mode.

But wait, there’s more. On the same day, both subscriber tiers can check out Roadside Research, where up to four players control aliens running a gas station, Starsand Island, an early access farming game with an anime aesthetic. February 13th sees Henry coming to visit, specifically Henry of Skalitz, as Kingdom Come: Deliverance becomes available for Ultimate, Premium and PC tiers.

If that’s not enough open-world goodness, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora also joins the service on February 17th. Obsidian’s action RPG Avowed will become available for Premium subscribers on the same day. Fortunately, there’s only one game leaving the service on February 15th – Madden NFL 24 – but considering Madden NFL 26’s arrival, it’s not the biggest loss.

Resident Evil Requiem

The big one, the main event, the raison d’être for many survival horror fans. With the long-awaited return to Raccoon City, a fusion of first and third-person perspectives, and Leon S. Kennedy looking more fly than ever, Resident Evil Requiem is simply the game to watch out for in February. It’s been a long time coming – can you believe Resident Evil Village was almost five years ago? – but based on everything we’ve seen thus far, it will be worth the wait and then some. Look for its launch on February 27th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, PC, and Nintendo Switch.

Nioh 3

“Let’s have a dream of everlasting peace,” said Tokugawa Ieyasu, probably, to which his younger grandson probably said, “No.” With a Kyoto beset by Yokai and no other options, it’s on Tokugawa Takechiyo, the rightful heir to the title of Shogun, to travel back in time and fix things. But even as it incorporates new open-field elements for non-linear exploration, seamless switching between Samurai and Ninja styles, and all kinds of nasty new enemies, Nioh 3 retains that addictive hack-and-slash gameplay and masocore difficulty that we know and love. It’s available on February 6th for PS5 and PC, with a free demo available for both now.

Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined

The art style, the music, the visual overhaul – everything about this screams old-school adventure. Granted, this isn’t the first “different” edition of Dragon Quest 7, but the developer isn’t just aiming for fancier graphics – it’s also streamlining the original story, adding new content and bringing quality-of-life features (like instantly defeating lower-level enemies in the field). Couple this with new activities and the new Moonlighting system for combining Vocations, and Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined could be the best possible version yet when it launches on February 5th.

Romeo is a Dead Man

Say what you will about Suda51 games, but one thing is for sure: You never know what to expect. So the concept of Romeo is a Dead Man, where one Romeo Stargazer dies, revives, and hunts criminals across space and time with the special Dead Gear? Not exactly on everyone’s bingo card. Nevertheless, the surreal presentation, bloody hack and slash combat – with a delightful assortment of weapons to wreak havoc – and over-the-top bosses will more than suffice when it launches on February 11th for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.

BlazBlue Entropy Effect X

If you enjoyed Dead Cells, then BlazBlue Entropy Effect offers one of the more low-key enjoyable – and addictive – rogue-lite side-scrolling experiences out there. For its console release, however, 91Act is going bigger, adding a new story centered around the Sea of Possibility, with Ace seeking the Shards of Possibility to save the world. If none of that matters to you, don’t worry – Entropy X adds Naoto Kurogane as a new playable character alongside new bosses, enemies, stages, and more.

Mario Tennis Fever

I’ve got a fever, and the solution? More Mario Tennis from Camelot. I don’t think any campaign can ever match up to Mario Tennis: Power Tour, but Fever’s set-up of having Baby Mario and friends re-learn their tennis skills is at least somewhat enticing. Beyond that, the real hook is the new Fever Rackets, each with unique abilities called Fever Shots that can turn the tide of a match. Couple that with “Mix It Up” Mode’s unique twists and a whopping 38 playable characters, and Mario Tennis Fever could maybe, probably, be a sleeper hit when it launches on February 12th for the Switch 2.

Ride 6

Arriving about two and a half years after Ride 5, Ride 6 makes the jump to Unreal Engine 5 while packing over 250 bikes. The usual stars appear, but this time, players can also take Baggers and Enduro Bikes onto the track. And if you prefer something a little more free-form, off-road tracks finally properly debut in all their dirty glory. Couple all this with a new Career Mode, RIDE Fest, which sees you going up against Legendary bikers in their category of choice, and Ride 6 is looking packed ahead of its release on February 12th.

Yakuza Kiwami 3 and Dark Ties

A visually improved version of Yakuza 3 probably would have been enough, but RGG Studio went the extra mile by revamping the combat mechanics, adding new activities (including managing a gang of bikers), progression systems, and even a whole new side story focused on Yoshitaka Mine. All this for just $69.99. Are we a little worried after the demo was rated “Mostly Negative” on Steam? Well, sure, but maybe there will be some improvements, at least visually, before its launch on February 12th for PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch 2.

Reanimal

How do you create something that’s somehow even more disturbing than Little Nightmares? Tarsier Studios apparently has the answer with Reanimal – a story about two siblings seeking to find their friends after an unknown event has brought overwhelming horrors into their lives. The mood, the aesthetic, the isolationism – it’s all here but darker and more expansive. Launching on February 13th for Nintendo Switch 2, PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X/S, Reanimal invites you to pick up the pieces of a fractured home, or die trying.

ASTROBOTANICA

Even after years of the same crafting, harvesting, farming, and building in this genre, ASTROBOTANICA’s premise has me intrigued. It’s set during prehistoric times, but this isn’t a Far Cry Primal situation. Instead, you’re an alien named Xel, who must study and collect plants to tolerate the atmosphere. From there, hijinks with neanderthals, mysterious sights, six skill paths, and more await. Of course, it won’t all be accessible – ASTROBOTANICA launches into early access on February 16th for PC – but it still promises dozens of hours of exploration.

Styx: Blades of Greed

Why send in an orc to tear down the front door when you could send, well, an orc to rob everyone blind? Styx returns in his third adventure, this time with a crew and a hankering for Quartz. Three massive sandboxes await, and based on the multi-level Wall, where you can jump down chimneys to infiltrate kitchens and poison meals, or mind control guards to do a flip, there are a lot of options for stealth sandbox fun. It’s launching on February 19th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC.

Ys X: Proud Nordics

The original landed somewhat less ideally than I would have liked, especially compared to Ys VIII and Ys IX. Proud Nordics doesn’t look to severely overhaul its combat systems, so much as add new content in the form of the Aland Island and a story revolving around a mysterious Mana user. Regardless, if you’re hungry for more, from arena battles and new bosses to fresh Mana Actions, Ys X: Proud Nordics is worth watching out for when it launches on February 20th for PS5, Switch 2 and PC.

Aces of Thunder

Replaying Ace Combat 7 or diving into Project Wingman to prepare for Ace Combat 8 is nice and all, but what about flight combat in VR? That’s what Aces of Thunder promises when it launches on February 3rd for PC, PS5 and PlayStation VR2. Between an extensive range of WW1 and WW2 aircraft, full HOTAS support, and 15 maps – with War Thunder developer Gaijin Entertainment at the helm – it looks like it could be the most immersive dogfighting sim yet. And while VR is ideal, an optional non-VR mode is also available.

Tales of Berseria Remastered

Why a remaster of Berseria, especially when Xillia 2 is right there? A question for another day, perhaps, but at least it’s one of the more well-received entries in the series. Launching on February 27th for Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC, and PS5, Tales of Berseria Remastered adds the usual quality of life options, from turning off enemy encounters to accessing the Grade Shop from the start. You even get a healthy chunk of DLC from the original.

ChromaGun 2: Dye Hard

We won’t be getting Portal 3 anytime soon, but there are plenty of other first-person puzzles worth diving into, such as ChromaGun 2: Dye Hard. Aside from the obvious riff on certain plot elements, the concept of walls attracting objects (sentient or otherwise) of the same color is intriguing. Paint the world red, or blue, or orange, to progress, and hopefully not suffer agonizing death at the hands of many killer robots.