Joe Juba
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Game InformerLatest Reviews
In Xenoblade Chronicles 2, players could easily spend 100 hours fighting monsters, completing sidequests, and collecting items. While that lengthy RPG was worthwhile (especially after post-release enhancements), repetitive and mundane quests made many of those hours feel like bloat. As a comparatively short expansion, Torna: The Golden Country had the...
At its best, Octopath Traveler reminds me of my favorite 16-bit role-playing games. Strategic turn-based combat tests your skills, a job system gives you the freedom to tinker and optimize, and a fantastic retro aesthetic brings the world and creatures to life. However, Octopath Traveler isn’t always at its best....
Video games are often described within the context of escapism, immersing players in wondrous worlds and putting them at the center of epic quests. From that angle, The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit is relatively mundane; it’s set in a plain house on a regular Saturday morning, and stars a...
Vampyr
When I was a kid, I tried assembling a model car. This was back before “Nailed it!” was a meme (and before the internet in general), but I remember being disappointed by the disparity between the picture on the box and my final result. Compared to the idealized image, my...
If you’ve ever wondered how item stores in video games manage to stay in business, Moonlighter lets you step behind the counter to find out. As a young merchant named Will, you spend part of your time tending to your shop, and the other part diving into randomly generated dungeons...
God of War
In gruff moments of fatherly instruction, Kratos repeats the phrase “be better” to his son, Atreus. This happens in different contexts, but the lesson remains consistent: Your decisions are not bound by precedent, and the choices of others are not examples to follow – they only set standards you can...
No government is perfect. While many idealistic concepts give birth to new nations, the implementation of those ideas usually strays from the intent – and yet, governments can succeed and thrive despite their imperfection. Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is the same. It chronicles the monarchy of King Evan...
The original SteamWorld Dig was defined by its rewarding progression loop, fun exploration, and steam-powered cast. As a mining robot, your job was to excavate resources, then spend the money on items and abilities to make you even better at excavating resources. That simple, addictive formula still applies to SteamWorld...
Games can transport us to imaginary worlds, but even within fantastical settings, we rely on certain information to help us play and process the experience. Games tell us who our enemies are, which doors are locked, and when we’re going in the wrong direction. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice also gives you...
Slime Rancher
You are alone on a faraway planet, and a strange piece of technology is your only way to survive an alien frontier teeming with unfamiliar creatures. Slime Rancher’s set-up may sound like a tense sci-fi shooter, but the reality is far more relaxing. This easygoing simulation from developer Monomi Park...
Every numbered entry in the Final Fantasy series starts fresh with new characters and mechanics. That’s standard, but when Final Fantasy XII released in 2006, it went even further to establish an identity separate from its predecessors. Its real-time combat system and MMO-style world are unique, and Final Fantasy XII:...
Valkyria Revolution is not the game Valkyria Chronicles fans have been waiting for. It may share some similar themes and terminology with previous titles in the series, but this spin-off veers into distinctly different territory – usually with bad results. Though I love Valkyria Chronicles, I’m not disappointed with Valkyria...
