DENNIS GAGLIARDOTTO
The Entropy Centre Review
Though we've seen games in all sorts of genres in puzzles, adventures, platformers, etc. utilize time reversal, forwarding, slowing, bending, and more as a gameplay loop, The Entropy Centre stands out as one that is not only consistent with the mechanic but witty and humorous throughout, making for an entertaining trek through puzzles in a Portal-like manner that wears its inspirations proudly on its sleeve.
Asterigos: Curse of the Stars Review
Even though it's wearing its inspirations on its sleeve, there's still enough about Asterigos: Curse of the Stars that makes it a great game in its own right and provides its own identity, and a big part of that has to do with its flexibility, accessibility, and simple intuitiveness of its gameplay that makes it a comfortable and enjoyable experience compared to most within the genre.
Voyage: Xbox Edition Review
Voyage right away leads players into a vibrant adventure with an emotional story driving the immersion and pacing, and does so in a mostly efficient way depending on how the player can reasonably handle two characters at once.
Dead by Daylight: Resident Evil - PROJECT W Review
Dead by Daylight: Resident Evil - PROJECT W is a solid chapter that brings in some more fan favorites of one of horror's most prestigious and celebrated titles, and all the content in PROJECT W feels genuine and respectful of the source material while adapting them into the Dead by Daylight universe. Albert Wesker, Ada Wong, and Rebecca Chambers all wonderfully work themselves into the formula while retaining the fun of its core gameplay.
Disney Dreamlight Valley (Switch) Review
Disney Dreamlight Valley is fantastic in every sense of the word when it works—but only when it works. While we can't speak for other platforms at the moment, the Nintendo Switch version is an unfortunate mess riddled with bugs and technical issues that brings with it some of the most frequent and egregious crashes seen since the launch of Nintendo Switch. The lingering feeling of progress being lost once again and a crash being triggered by basically *existing* throws any sense of comfort out of the window while playing Disney Dreamlight Valley, and what should have been the most magical farming experience ended up diminishing in quality with each passing hour.
XEL (Switch) Review
There has never been a shortage of Zelda-like titles, and for good reason - they're usually fun, charming, and riveting. However, some almost become too reliant on the nostalgia and aesthetic, providing a false promise and a disappointing venture into what otherwise could have been a promising experience in the right hands. Unfortunately, XEL finds itself in that camp, providing a game that more often than not loses its soul, feeling careless in the process.
Infinite Links (Switch) Review
There's a lot to like about Infinite Links that will please more casual players than hardcore, but even the hardcore crowd like myself should have something to appreciate here as the simplicity of it all makes the experience oddly relaxing as you're essentially on auto-pilot while playing. From a compelling enough group of characters, diverse kingdoms, and biomes, as well as a battle system that's palatable and intuitive, Infinite Links is a great pick-me-up for those wanting a budget-friendly JRPG that won't ask too much of you while still providing an epic that's engaging enough to sink your teeth into no differently than the juggernauts of the genre.
V Rising (Early Access) Review
V Rising adds itself to the list of ever-expanding lore and content within the vampire genre, and does so with an influenced yet identifiable panache that helps it give it a life of its own, all while remaining incredibly engaging, visually appealing, and most importantly fun to play, and even in its Early Access state V Rising has already begun to feel like the true definitive vampire experience.
Wonder Boy Collection Review
Wonder Boy Collection houses four classics of the localized Monster World series that bring us through a nostalgic trip through some of the most seminal platformers of their time. For some, it may feel empty on the surface, but ultimately when you jump back into these games you'll find yourself having a ton of fun with every entry even if the frustrations tend to build due to the era they come from, but it’s a solid collection for both fans of the series and those wanting to educate themselves with a piece of history.
Time Loader Review
Time Loader won't blow puzzle fans away by any means, but it's a nice and relaxing enough trek through a time period that's so vastly overlooked in favor of the decades between the 40s and 80s we see so much of, though its caveats and slow-paced nature will likely bore more than entertain, and it's a shame when a lot of detail has clearly been put into its level design despite the lack of graphical fidelity on Nintendo Switch.
Ocean's Heart Review
Ocean's Heart from top to bottom is a beautiful game that no doubt wears its inspirations on its sleeve and showcases them in a way that feels both nostalgic and modern, with a familiar UI reminiscent of the greats, and takes you on a genuine journey throughout a multitude of towns, dungeons, and areas across the seas that feel fleshed out and polished, all while remaining immersive and fun.
Welcome to Elk Review
Welcome to Elk hits all the right notes when it comes to an adventure that builds upon its mysteries and weirdness, and does so in an odd slice-of-life approach that works extremely well to the structure of how the game paces itself and plays. Welcome to Elk is excellent in this regard if you can get over the art direction that typically comes tacked onto more raunchy adult cartoons, and it's also one worth checking out whether on the Switch or elsewhere to experience and share these stories that feel like they only come once in a lifetime.
White Shadows Review
With such a creative and visually appealing direction, there's no denying that White Shadows could be up there with the greats of the genre such as Little Nightmares and Inside, however a sloppy checkpoint system that feels simultaneously fair and unfair can lead to frequent frustrations. In the end, however, White Shadows is yet another wonderful addition to the narrative genre of dark, side-scrolling puzzle games that tell a story through its environment, and wonderfully weaves in a unique creative direction to tackle sensitive subjects.
Arcadia Fallen Review
Arcadia Fallen's blend of alchemic and magical fantasy weaved in with the politics of war make it a thrilling adventure and remains captivating throughout thanks to the strength of its dialogue and characters, and it further goes to show that a good story or game can be presented in any fashion so long as one enjoying the art has a bit of imagination.
Beyond Blue for Nintendo Switch Review
Beyond Blue is an exceptional game that really highlights the beauty of the deep blue sea and its marine life without forcing the player into random acts of survival, and instead opting to have them experience the tranquility and freedom of the vast world underwater that houses all sorts of fascinating sea life, and even with its technical shortcomings it's still worth a dive whether Switch is your main platform or not.
Reviver Dia Plus by Brook: Pokémon GO Auto-Catcher Review
With a solid, premium feel and build to it, the Dia+ Auto Catcher is a device that's suitable to just about any lifestyle and tasks with no risk of visible wear and tear that can ruin or alter the experience. Regardless of the model being chosen, Brook has built a multi-use, multi-purpose peripheral that, to me, exceeds even first-party devices and helps streamline the quality of life and comfort of Pokémon GO as a whole, becoming a device that I now can't see myself without.
Cupid Parasite Review
Cupid Parasite is a unique take on the Otome genre that, while not exactly aimed towards men, is entertaining and flexible enough that even those outside of the target demographic can enjoy with its touch on mythologies and how we handle and interpret love in modern day society.
Shadow Corridor Review
Shadow Corridor has elements in it that can easily make it a great game if it left its brutal design to higher difficulty levels rather than making it the default design of the game, and while the game does have an easy mode that allows for a mini-map to be displayed, it doesn't change the fact that checkpoints are few and far between with all progress essentially being lost with a few exceptions like collectibles that all leave your inventory upon death. The designs of the locations with Shadow Corridor are fine, but its massive maps feel almost endless when realistically an estate would have at least some sort of limited floorplan put into place. Instead, every map in Shadow Corridor feels like an amusement park, but one where the amusement is the last thing on anyone's mind.
Darksiders III for Nintendo Switch (Review)
Darksiders III on Nintendo Switch is a mostly well-done port that is likely to take a lot of people by surprise given its huge graphical upgrade over its previous generation predecessors. While the game itself is far from perfect, it should be commended that even with a few downgrades here and there, the overall integrity of the game remains intact and officially completes the entire Darksiders series being available on Nintendo Switch, which lends itself nicely to handheld play despite a AAA production that's as epic and grandiose as the series has ever been.
YouTubers Life 2 Review
YouTubers Life 2 is a rather enjoyable management sim that takes the formula of what would normally be in a cheap mobile game and gives it a nice big-budget polish that makes it a formidable game amongst others in the genre. While most will judge from the title of the game alone and assume it's a nonsensical grab at popularizing YouTubers and getting fans close with some of the site's biggest names and influencers, it's actually more so about building your own empire in a fictional world and city while you run around in various locations in a simple yet well-built town and get yourself accustomed as you follow your dreams towards a successful channel and career.