An excellent job of renovation and gameplay modernization for one of the finest horror games of the PlayStation 2 era. Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake takes the original title and brings it into the modern age through targeted gameplay enhancements, new storylines, and top-tier audio-visual production—all of which bode well for the future of the franchise. Minor technical and balance issues persist, but we are confident that these will be largely resolved through post-launch updates.
If you're willing to forgive a certain amount of roughness and a basic combat system, 1348 Ex Voto will take you on a pleasant journey through medieval Tuscany lasting five or six hours, depending on your patience with exploration. I'm not a keen observer, so I missed a lot of upgrades, but I still enjoyed the game.
John Carpenter's Toxic Commando is a cooperative first-person shooter for four players in which the main objective is to survive gigantic waves of zombies. Each character follows classic RPG archetypes—support, tank, operator, and striker—and can upgrade their skills and powers through a skill tree tied to the Sludge God's toxin. Missions involve traversing large maps following waypoints until the final showdown, but exploration is essential to recover heavy weapons, ammunition, and medkits. The pace is almost musou-like: endless hordes of undead to be mowed down amid blood, dismemberment, and constant chaos, with the option of running them over even while driving heavy vehicles. Even solo, thanks to well-managed bots, the action remains frenetic and fun.
Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered does a good job overall of modernizing a video game from over twenty years ago. The narrative charm of the saga remains intact, and the "quality of life" options—most notably the fully 3D camera—help to at least partially freshen up a gameplay afflicted by severe repetitiveness. It is a pity about some overly invasive aesthetic tweaks, primarily regarding the lighting, which ruin the decadent gothic atmosphere of the original. An original that, fortunately, is always right there: you just need to press two buttons to switch to the 2003 release, which has remained almost entirely intact, for better or worse.
WWE 2K26 builds on the success of the previous version, which was already excellent. The main addition is The Island mode, which, however, still feels undeveloped (and a bit of a money-drainer). The rest of the game has seen some refinements and adjustments that raise the bar even further. Unfortunately, a few bugs are currently undermining stability, and most importantly, the crowd experience in the arenas isn't up to par with the rest of the simulation.
Pokémon Pokopia is a beautiful game that perfectly embodies the Pokémon soul. Omega Force's Animal Crossing-Minecraft hybrid makes friendship its cornerstone, and between one construction and another, between one friend and another, the world torn apart by selfishness seems to be reborn in the blink of an eye. Pokémon Pokopia is a mature game, probably the most mature in the series. Let's hope Game Freak takes notes for the mainline too.
Planet of Lana II continues the formula of the first game: environmental puzzles based on Lana and Mui's cooperation, a few essential controls, and simple yet fluid gameplay. The puzzles are intuitive and well-integrated into the environments, rewarding observation and timing rather than complex logic. Artistically, it remains a delight, with refined animations and a quiet yet effective narrative. However, the structure is almost identical to the original: the mechanics are often repeated, and the action is sparse, with very low difficulty. A coherent and refined sequel, but lacking in courage.
High on Life 2 tries to be more of a videogame than High on Life ever was — and to be fair, it actually succeeds. The problem is that nobody really asked for that, especially since, when you strip it down, it’s still an average shooter that in this second iteration loses much of the meta‑ironic charge that defined the first game.
Mewgenics is a turn-based roguelite that blends deep tactical gameplay with unapologetic dark humor. The action order is individual and dynamic, determined by stats and modifiers, while cats have no fixed classes: collars define their role, abilities, and progression, with upgrades chosen from random pools. Each feline can take part in only one run, making breeding and partial skill inheritance central mechanics. A competitive AI, full permadeath, and numerous random events ensure constant variety, balancing strict strategy with genetic unpredictability.
Everything has led to this... Resident Evil Requiem is the game that sums up 30 years of the saga, taking us back to where it all began. It was a huge risk for Capcom, but one that paid off almost flawlessly, delivering a narratively compelling, technically sumptuous title characterized by two gameplay styles that are as different as they are well blended.
