IGN

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

Harmony: The Fall of Reverie is a powerful visual novel that mixes a world-bending story with deeply personal stakes. Helpful quality-of-life features like the ability to go back and re-read earlier messages are also as approachable as they are omnipresent. It takes a while to get going, though it also makes familiarizing yourself with its somewhat dense lore easy thanks to a built-in codex that explains most of the in-world jargon required to understand what’s going on. But hidden between Reverie’s magic and metaphors is a story firmly rooted in the power of community, reflecting the resilience of the human spirit itself.

• PC
• PS4
• XONE
• PS5
• XSX/S
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Diablo 4 is a stunning sequel with near perfect endgame and progression design that makes it absolutely excruciating to put down. The story is a pretty big disappointment despite still being a noticeable improvement over Diablo 3 and there are some annoying bugs that need squashing, but the combat, the loot game, and both the sights and sounds of this world are impressive enough to smooth over those rough edges. Diablo 4 takes the strategy of refining things the series already did so well rather than giving it a more substantial overhaul, and that careful and reverent path has shaped this massive sequel into one of the most polished ARPGs ever created, which makes slicing through the legions of the damned a hell of a good time.

• PC
• PS4
• PS5
• XONE
• XSX/S
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

I can't say Amnesia is still a groundbreaking horror franchise like it was at the beginning. The larger story it was building has already been played out with Rebirth. But Amnesia: The Bunker proves that smaller, anthology-style episodes within its universe can still bring the tension and the scares. And Frictional's bag of tricks is far from exhausted when it comes to getting our hearts pounding and making us carefully consider how to use the limited tools available to us. It's not an unmissable experience, but as an Amnesia fan, it definitely sated my appetite for some gut-churning horror and moody, bleak storytelling.

• PC
• 6 / 10
• États-Unis

Starship Troopers: Extermination’s early access version is pretty light on content, but already does a decent job of pitting a large group of marines against an overwhelming force of alien bugs, and building fortifications gives you something to coordinate on as you hold out long enough for a thrilling extraction. That said, my recommendation to those who would need to be convinced to drop their current forever game and enlist is to wait and see how early access comes along over the next year. The building mechanics are solid and add a new dimension to the co-op squad shooter genre, but you’ll exhaust most of that novelty quickly and then have to grind out your new class abilities repeating the same missions dozens of times. With some time, Extermination could become the premier bug-stomping romp for big teams, but in its current early state, mobile infantry can do the dying without you.

• PC
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Where many modern games invite you to sit back and enjoy the ride, System Shock wants you to sit up and experience the SHODAN. Tweaking the technical workings of Citadel station to come out on top and foil SHODAN's machinations is just as compelling as it ever was, making the original System Shock one of gaming's classics for a very good reason. Nightdive's remake masterfully brings most of the aspects that haven’t aged as well into the present day, with excellent new graphics and nearly all the modern gameplay conveniences you could want. Get out there and give her hell, hacker.

• PC
• PS4
• PS5
• XSX/S
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Street Fighter games are always benchmark moments for the 2D fighting game genre, but Street Fighter 6 feels extra special. The Drive System is an incredible addition to the fighting mechanics that gives you a veritable Swiss Army knife of options and meter-management decisions right from the start of every single round, the starting roster is the best Street Fighter has ever seen, its online netcode through three betas has been impeccable so far, and the number of smaller details that it nails right out of the gate is unprecedented. It’s so good that even the poor story and extremely slow progression of the single-player World Tour amounts to only a jab’s worth of damage on its metaphorical health bar. Whether you’re completely new to fighting games or are a seasoned vet, Street Fighter 6 is a must play.

• PC
• PS5
• XSX/S
• 5 / 10
• États-Unis

After Us is difficult to recommend for its platforming alone, though its nature-focused kitsch gives way to gorgeous visuals as you breathe life back into its post-apocalyptic world. Some of its levels left a grin on my face, whereas others had me begging for sweet release from the inconsistent controls and directionless world. At least there’s a silver lining in that its beautiful art direction and entrancing musical score make for some really cool sequences. And yet I can’t help but feel like After Us is too heavy-handed about its environmentalist themes for a video game that hardly characterizes its protagonist and has literally no dialogue. By the end, I felt like I’d have done less environmental damage had I simply chosen to skip it.

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

Resurgence does an admirable job of capturing the spirit of Star Trek. This is a series that fundamentally believes in doing the right thing and treating others with compassion, and that’s reflected by the many well-written decisions you’re presented with here. The choices are almost never easy, but the lack of a morality system or any indication of what you’re “supposed” to do creates a sense of freedom to act how you imagine these characters would. I wish certain storylines had more closure, and I would love some version of a chapter select, but by the time the credits rolled I was satisfied with the choices I’d made and entertained by the wide variety of Trek-flavored minigames, and already thinking about what I’d do differently next time. And that’s what Star Trek is really about: choice. The choice to be better today than we were yesterday, to accept one another, to try and do the right thing. Resurgence gets that. As Jara Rydeck remarks, “As we take our next steps into the unknown, the greatest insights that lie ahead are what we learn about each other.”

• PC
• PS4
• PS5
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Humanity is a beautiful, modern reimagining of Lemmings that feels as esoteric and artsy as Enhance’s previous games, while ambitiously stepping onto new terrain for the action puzzle genre with the pitter-patter of countless little feet. It somehow manages to intermingle platforming, action, and real-time strategy elements with mind-bending finesse, and its open-endedness means I could be sitting here and tinkering with it for years – much like I have with other games with great level creators like Dreams and Little Big Planet. Humanity bursts out of left field with something so unexpectedly brilliant that I can’t help but recommend it to everyone who’s ever enjoyed a puzzle game.

• PC
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

Interesting turn-based RPG combat keeps Darkest Dungeon 2’s roguelite progression fresh for hours – if you can push past the early, intentionally punishing humps and like it for what it is, rather than the close retread of Darkest Dungeon that it isn't. Its structure may be frustratingly random at times, even so much as to feel meaningless or pointless, but a gambler's spirit can see you through those weird patches of bad luck or directionlessness. Besides, this game would have to be really bad to drag down the vibes of the moody lines and grumbling narration that live at the heart of Darkest Dungeon 2.

• PC
• XSX/S
• 6 / 10
• États-Unis

The Last Case of Benedict Fox features a wonderfully unique supernatural setting that’s full of interesting ideas, but mixed execution and control issues meant that I could only enjoy its morbid mystery in patches. While I derived great satisfaction from completing its genuinely taxing puzzles, my progress with the main case too often stalled thanks to ambiguous objectives and poor navigation tools that had me retreading sections of its sprawling map to an exhausting degree, routinely stalling the story’s momentum for prolonged stretches at a time. Many of its flaws are of the type that seem like they might be remedied via post-release patching, but in its existing state The Last Case of Benedict Fox is like one of its protagonist’s bungled double jumps – it reaches for greatness but falls a bit too short of the mark.

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

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor takes what Fallen Order achieved and wall-runs with it, then double-jumps and air-dashes straight into an epic lightsaber battle. Rather than taking us back to square one to begin Cal’s journey as a Padawan again, we’re trusted with control of a full-fledged Jedi Knight who we can grow into a master of superhuman mobility and fantastic and challenging combat. With a new set of larger, more diverse, and densely packed worlds to explore and a memorable cast of returning characters, Survivor tells a story that may be predictable but is still fun and at times emotional to watch play out. Launch performance issues aside, it’s a sequel that does virtually everything better than the original – which was already an exceptional Star Wars game. If Respawn makes one more like this it’ll complete the best Star Wars trilogy in 30 years, hands down.

• PC
• IOS
• ANDROID
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Honkai: Star Rail is the best free-to-play game of the year so far. Its stellar storytelling and satisfying progression systems offer dozens of hours of content that a HoYo newcomer can enjoy, even without paying for gacha items or having played Honkai Impact 3rd or Genshin Impact. Combat boasts layers of strategy for those willing to dig into details without barring more casual players from enjoying it. Its worldbuilding also expands outside of the main story into the side missions and interactable objects, making an already captivating world even more lively. It surpasses even Genshin in my mind, and I can see myself playing even months from now.

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

Dead Island 2 is a hysterical Los Angeles-infused satire that does most things well enough, but feels like a stroll down the Walk of Fame of celebrated zombie games I’ve already played without adding many new ideas of its own. In fact, aside from the stellar comedy bits, I can think of very few things that Dead Island 2 does better than last year’s Dying Light 2. Still, if you’ve ever wanted to put your Wolverine claws straight through a zombie’s face or knock someone’s head off with a golf club, Dead Island 2’s got you. Its bloodsoaked melee combat and memorable characters are a lot of fun, especially when accompanied by friends in co-op multiplayer. The somewhat generic crafting weapons and upgrading your skills as you lay waste to armies of spray-tanned undead is entertaining enough on its own, but the strong writing and completely irreverent tone are the true stars of the show.

• PC
• SWITCH
• PS4
• XONE
• PS5
• XSX/S
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

Dredge erupted out of the left field as 2023’s most unforgettably creepy fishing simulator. Without spoiling anything, its slow dive into Lovecraftian horror intermingles with subtle elements of seabound thrillers like Jaws and Moby Dick, and yet despite its twists, its fishing and sailing mechanics are simple enough to be relaxing – just as long as you don’t stay out past dark. Its colorful graphics, intelligent story, and seafaring sound design are alluring, but calling it a management sim betrays how simple and approachable it is. Though it still may not excite anyone in search of abyssal depths, its world map, upgrade tree, and story offer more than enough interesting decisions of their own to make a 12-hour fishing expedition feel concise. At the same time, a lack of combat and meaningful customization give little weight to its excessive grinding, and these are clear opportunities for improvement on the next voyage.

• PC
• PS4
• PS5
• SWITCH
• XONE
• XSX/S
• 5 / 10
• États-Unis

• PS5
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

Horizon Forbidden West’s Burning Shores DLC is a worthwhile addition to this acclaimed action-heavy sci-fi series. Fun new challenges and enemies are introduced and cool new ways to dispatch them are presented with regularity. The story is more concerned with developing character than it is working towards dealing with the imminent world-ending threat, and it’s Aloy at her most personal and believable yet. A couple of poor boss battles aside, it’s a great new chapter with enough creative new bells and whistles to keep fans more than happy.

• SWITCH
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

With nicely redone graphics and excellent music bringing the classic turn-based tactical action up to modern standards, Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp is a great return for this long-neglected series and gives me hope for a follow-up that includes the DS games. While there isn’t much variety in the game modes, Advance Wars’ depth comes from the number of variables you can adjust to make every match feel unique. The biggest miss is the lack of multiplayer matchmaking, which makes it harder to get into a game than it ought to be in 2023, but at least you can play online. Playing against the AI will keep me interested in the short term, but I predict the inability to play against random opponents online will limit my spontaneous play sessions. However, the sheer number of maps, playable COs, and options for each match means that when I do, it's sure to be a unique experience.