IGN

• PC
• SWITCH2
• PS5
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

Learning to skate can be hell, and Skate Story proves this by taking us to what’s probably the weirdest vision of the underworld you’ll see without a belly full of Guatemalan Insanity Peppers. Fusing a solid foundation of satisfyingly grounded skate tricks with a bizarre, abstract world bathed in neon and starlight, Skate Story is a wild trip. I question its replayability and the limited nature of some of its objectives (and I did lose focus occasionally while tapping through its regular text-based conversations) but there’s no doubt it’s one of the most distinctive skateboarding games of the decade.

• SWITCH
• SWITCH2
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

It doesn't take psychic powers to see the ideal vision Metroid Prime 4: Beyond was aiming for: it tries to mix the excellent Prime formula with a character-focused story and a large hub world to explore. It doesn't quite reach that ambitious goal, with an outdated open desert area that mostly feels like padding and a cast of characters that provide both a handful of memorable moments and too much chatter at times. But none of its issues come close to ruining Prime 4, which is still an excellent comeback thanks to incredible peaks that are almost entirely self-contained from its stumbles. It mostly knows when to leave Samus alone, and a significant chunk of this 15-hour adventure is spent in delightfully atmospheric solitude. It nails the essential elements of a Prime game that remain special decades later: tense exploration through haunting locations highlighted by amazing worldbuilding, breathtaking art direction, new twists on classic abilities, and flawless technical performance. Even though a few underdeveloped elements keep it from feeling as cohesive as its predecessors, Prime 4 reaches heights worthy of the Metroid name.

• PS5
• 7 / 10
• États-Unis

The stages themselves aren’t going to blow you away and I wish there was a more varied rogues’ gallery to smack down, but Marvel Cosmic Invasion’s tag team action has the juice, and it’s a joy to dig into each character’s kit, especially in co-op. I don’t think it’s a great beat ‘em up, but it is a very good one that I’m looking forward to playing again in the years to come, and it highlights some of the more obscure (and fun) parts of Marvel’s history. If you’re not already into the genre, I doubt Cosmic Invasion will change your mind, but it’s good enough to get my Avengers assembled on a lazy Sunday, kick back, and pop some baddies in the mouth.

• SWITCH2
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

I’m not sure what’s crazier: the fact that Kirby Air Riders exists, or the fact that it’s this great. It’s a blast in local or online multiplayer during its traditional races and unique battle mode, and its frankly absurd amount of fun achievements to chase, meaningful unlockables, and deep customization makes it great for solo players, too. The biggest hurdle to enjoying its dizzying amount of content is how it all controls, as its frantic pace and slippery one-button control scheme is endearingly novel, but occasionally too simple for its own good. Air Riders just can’t help itself in sticking a little too closely to its original blueprint at times, making it not as approachable to pick up and play as Mario Kart, and not as technically rewarding or competitively viable as a fighting game like Super Smash Bros. But if you’re willing to go along for the ride, you’re in for a chaotic action racing game that’s a great time with friends and offers a ton to do on your own.

• PC
• 6 / 10
• États-Unis

Escape From Tarkov is the extraction shooter that started it all, and many of its dense, mercurial systems are fascinating to learn and master at your own pace as it viciously refuses to hold your hand. I genuinely love that unapologetic challenge, but an equal number of things about it are obnoxious, janky, or just plain scuffed to an unacceptable degree – that includes its subpar performance and bugginess, its absolutely atrocious UI, and its unmitigated plague of cheaters. There is still a stellar, tense, and realistic FPS with one of the best progression treadmills ever made buried underneath all that, feeding you interesting things to do for hundreds of hours. But if the jankiness doesn’t entirely smother its promise, the absurd pay-to-win options that completely undermine much of Tarkov’s difficulty come very close. There are still plenty of good times to be found for those with the gumption to push past a whole heck of a lot of glaring issues, but with more polished extractions shooters entering the fold since its initial arrival in 2018, Escape From Tarkov’s 1.0 version becomes more difficult to recommend in 2025.

• PC
• PS4
• PS5
• XONE
• XSX/S
• 6 / 10
• États-Unis

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7’s campaign is a wild one thanks to the scope of its ambition. Not every roll of the dice pays off, but there’s enough enjoyment to be found across its 11 missions to not feel like a dud, at least when played in its desired co-op fashion. Beyond that, its endgame has the seed of a good idea that could be nurtured with future efforts, but it comes across as a little repetitive and supplementary to the story Black Ops 7 is trying to tell. With satisfying gunplay and very fun movement abilities providing solid foundations, there’s a reasonable mix of styles on show here, even if it doesn’t fire on all cylinders 100% of the time. Despite being a step down from last year’s exhilarating Black Ops 6 campaign, it certainly takes some big swings – they just don’t always land. It’s not bad. It’s not good. It’s simply okay.

• PC
• 6 / 10
• États-Unis

Where Winds Meet has a great understanding of what makes wuxia such a compelling genre, but its attempt to shove so many different things into one game only ensures that none of those elements reach their full potential.

• PC
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Anno 117: Pax Romana is a gorgeous antique city-builder that sucked me in for dozens of hours as I planned out my next district or simply watched the bustle along my aqueduct-accented boulevards. I think this series and I were always destined to hit it off, but we kept missing each other or meeting up at the wrong times. I really get Anno now, and I could hardly be more enthused. The fantastic, deep trade system with a side of exciting naval combat really seals the deal. I could take or leave the campaign, but I still don't think I've run out of things to do in the highly customizable endless mode. It may not quite be fit for a triumph, but is certainly worthy of a standing ovation.

• PC
• SWITCH
• PS5
• XSX/S
• SWITCH2
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Ball x Pit is my favorite game of 2025. Even with a clunky city building phase you can’t afford to ignore, the actual action of its Breakout-inspired runs is enormously fun. I get stuck in a "just one more run" mindset every time I sit down to play what I swear is going to be a quick round or two. Its strategies run surprisingly deep for a simple brick-breaker, rewarding smart planning and forethought more so than RNG and luck alone. It's a rare game that I’m still excited to play well after I beat the main story and, in a lot of ways, I wish I were playing it right now. If you want your life to be completely upended by a seemingly simple brick-breaking roguelite, I cannot recommend it enough.

• SWITCH2
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom left a lot of unanswered questions perfect for exploring in a prequel, but Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment isn’t all that interested in answering them. What it is interested in is weaving together iconic mechanics from its source material to deliver the best musou action the series has seen yet. It constantly rewards your knowledge of Tears of the Kingdom through clever, often hilarious movesets that recontextualize abilities to fit its over-the-top action, as well as smaller payoffs like boss weaknesses that are consistent across the pair of games. Carving through thousands of enemies remains fun throughout the roughly 18-hour campaign and beyond thanks to constant upgrades, smart systems that encourage you to use a variety of characters, and great technical performance. It’s just a shame that Age of Imprisonment fails to tell a story worthy of its potential, choosing to deviate from deepening our understanding of Tears of the Kingdom’s lore in favor of focusing on new characters who are completely unrelated. That direction isn’t inherently bad, but if you were hoping for a prequel that meaningfully pulls on lingering threads like the Zonai, Ganondorf, the Secret Stones, or the Sages, you won’t find it here. But when the prequel we have to settle for in its place is a seriously fun action game with tons of optional content to keep you going, it’s still a trip into the past that’s well worth taking.

• SWITCH2
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake beautifully concludes Square Enix’s remake trilogy. By using the iconic HD-2D style, it’s able to recapture the retro magic of the originals while giving them a modern facelift. Both games adhere to old-school turn-based combat that holds up despite being fairly simple, with the first offering a tightly focused solo adventure and the second being more expansive with its party-based structure – not to mention its stronger emphasis on storytelling and character development. By including helpful quality-of-life features, Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D remake feels approachable without losing that warm and fuzzy nostalgic feeling. And while it doesn’t resolve some uneven difficulty woes, when taken alongside last year’s Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, this collection stands as a heartfelt tribute to the origins of Dragon Quest’s enduring RPG legacy.

• SWITCH2
• 5 / 10
• États-Unis

Once you've given Full Metal Schoolgirl a couple runs, you've pretty much seen it all. There are decent ideas with potential that meld the shooter genre and roguelike framework well – it's unfortunate that they get squandered by foundational shortcomings. Whether it be a misunderstanding of what makes the genre work or an intentionally derivative take on roguelike games, the loop it creates is woefully repetitive with boring level design. Although I found some mindless fun since its fundamental gameplay is decent and shines a bit brighter towards the very end, it's certainly not good enough to redeem this monotonous shooter. The anime-inspired charm wears thin as its tropes quickly become annoying, even if its premise shows promise. I got into a groove in its final hour as I ascended the last floors with gear and upgrades that were fun to use, but the climb to get there wasn't exactly worth the slog.

• PC
• 7 / 10
• États-Unis

If you're nostalgic for the survival horror games of old, Tormented Souls 2 can provide a modern-looking trip down memory lane, with all the good and bad that brings. It has a tense atmosphere to soak up and some gorgeously spooky locations to explore, but you’ll need to push through janky combat and a bit of backtracking to enjoy them. Its esoteric puzzles really test your brainpower in a way that could sometimes frustrate, but also delighted the part of me that missed smashing key items together to see what would happen. There's a lot to enjoy here, as well as plenty that perhaps should have remained in the past, but Tormented Souls 2 still manages to stand as an entertaining callback to the adventures that made contemporary horror gaming what it is.

• PC
• 5 / 10
• États-Unis

Double Dragon Revive feels less like a return to glory that its title might suggest, and more like a police sketch of someone trying to describe what the series they loved looked like from memory. There’s the important details you’d need to identify it by – simple combat with big super attacks, peacocking bad guys of all shapes and sizes, the subway, casino, and elevator stages required by law to be in games like this – but none of it feels distinct or special, and the parts in which it's passable get held back by wonky, unresponsive controls and maddening difficulty spikes. Revival suggests reinvigoration, but this feels more like exhuming a shambling corpse.

• PC
• XSX/S
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

The Outer Worlds 2 doesn’t try to rewrite Obsidian’s RPG playbook, but it’s yet another strong refinement, with smoother combat, diabolically compelling buildcrafting and loot, and a story that immediately made me want to start again to see an alternate outcome. The sluggish first act and lack of enemy variety make it a bit of a slog at certain times, but once its story of political intrigue kicks in and the new flaws and perks system gets its claws in you, it can be quite hard to put down. All these improvements put The Outer Worlds 2 that much closer to being the Fallout: New Vegas successor we hoped this series would be, and that’s worth getting excited about.

• PC
• XSX/S
• PS5
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

Hemingway once wrote “the world breaks everyone, and afterwards many are strong in the broken places.” There is strength in living through something that shatters you and trying to find meaning in the ruins. That road isn’t straight. It twists and curves and circles back, and you may find yourself going in reverse when you least expect it. Bounty Star understands that. Clem’s path isn’t an easy one; it is a road that winds through both the highs of blasting apart mechs as you collect bounties from the cockpit of a Raptor and the more tranquil moments spent tending to chickens on a farm. It’s one she cannot navigate alone, that is built on the grace and support of the charming people she meets along the way. But it is worth traveling. Sometimes, the only way out is through. Sometimes, you have to go back to the thing that brought you to ruin because it’s part of who you are. Sometimes, you have to get back in the f***ing robot and hope there’s a life on the other side.

• PC
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

I couldn’t stop smiling as each melon, shoe, playing card, traffic cone, and house satisfyingly snapped into place on my whirling clump of stuff as I rolled across time and space. The only time Once Upon A Katamari broke my delirious grin was when it tickled my ears with riffs so funky the bassist practically reached through my TV’s speakers and slapped a stank face out of me (and that’s meant as a compliment). This appropriately ostentatious, energetic return is the best the Katamari series has been since the PlayStation 2 era. With cleverly implemented tweaks to the ever-satisfying gauntlet of rolling delights, a stellar soundtrack, and offbeat charm in spades, there will always be room on my hard drive for Once Upon A Katamari.

• SWITCH
• PS5
• XSX/S
• PC
• PS4
• SWITCH2
• XONE
• 7 / 10
• États-Unis

Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted adds new vigor to a tower defense classic that still holds up 16 years later. It focuses on consolidating all the content from its many different versions into one package, while also introducing some decent new modes, a few quality-of-life improvements, and inconsistently updated visuals. Some of its attempts to remaster the original come with questionable design and stylistic choices, which can occasionally undermine its otherwise commendable updates. Still, Replanted provides a good way to get introduced to or re-acquainted with one of the quirkiest puzzle-strategy games of the 2000s.