IGN

• PC
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

• SWITCH
• 7.8 / 10
• États-Unis

It’s unrealistic to expect Mortal Kombat 11 on the Switch to look anywhere close to as good as the Xbox One, PS4, and PC versions – and it doesn’t – but to its credit this port is actually better than expected in that regard. It runs at a mostly consistent 60 FPS and the excellent fighting mechanics translate over perfectly. However, its “always-online” issues are amplified when playing away from home because several modes and progression systems become completely inaccessible, and a number of other strange differences in the Switch version compound on the existing problems involving MK11’s Towers of Time and Krypt modes.

• SWITCH
• 8.6 / 10
• États-Unis

SteamWorld Quest is far more of an RPG than it is a card game, but its deck-building twists offer an insane amount of gameplay choice. Its charming characters have tons of individual strategies to explore, which are then influenced by who else is in your party, and again by what cards you actually draw and the order you play them. Because of limited enemy variety and level design, it doesn’t change a whole lot throughout the campaign unless you actively play around with your combat options, but doing so is endlessly rewarding. Its simplified deckbuilding makes Quest an RPG that’s as accessible as it is flexible, and it’s one worth playing even if you don’t care about card games at all.

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

It’s a rare fighting game that hits just about every note as strongly as Mortal Kombat 11 does. Everything from its methodical and deep combat to its fantastically absurd story mode and its rock-solid netcode, right down to its extraordinarily comprehensive tutorial is absolutely exceptional. It’s only when you get into its drawn-out progression that it trips up: the keys to unlocking Mortal Kombat 11’s rich vault of customization options are locked behind the frustratingly gimmicky and grindy barriers of the Krypt and Towers of Time. This series continues to prove that there’s real fighting depth beyond its notoriously gory Fatalities, and this one in particular stands out as a spine-ripping good time.

• PS4
• 8.3 / 10
• États-Unis

Ghost Giant may look like just another VR object-based puzzle-playground from the outside, but its charming world and beautiful story tugged on my heartstrings in a way I wasn't expecting. Considering its only three or four hours long, it’s a PSVR game worth making time for.

• PC
• SWITCH
• 8.7 / 10
• États-Unis

Katana Zero’s time-bending samurai action is the star of the show here, but its unique presentation and entertaining dialogue go a long way in supporting a plot that suffers from feeling like it’s saving its best ideas for a sequel. As action games go, Katana Zero’s shorter length makes it a quick fix, and I’ll no doubt suffer withdrawal while I wait for the next hit.

• PC
• 7 / 10
• États-Unis

Pathway is a small game with big ideas. Sometimes that makes for an excellent adventure, but in this case the two feel out of sync. There are a few outstanding big-picture ideas, like the concept of a procedural road trip with survival mechanics and the thought to blend roguelite elements with tactical-RPG combat: Those ideas really shine when you first start playing, but it becomes very clear over time that each of its core components needs more depth to be as replayable as the games it takes inspiration from. Like bubble gum that loses its flavor, you can keep chewing on Pathway as long as it makes you happy, but that rush you enjoyed when you first unwrapped it isn’t coming back no matter how hard you grind.

• PC
• 8.1 / 10
• États-Unis

Anno 1800 is a grind at times, but those moments of “eureka” when I’d figure out production rhythms and layouts that kept me operating in the green were delightful. It toes a difficult line of welcoming strategy gaming novices while also providing gameplay that experienced tacticians can maximize, with a well-crafted story-based campaign adding on to an already tried-and-true sandbox formula. It’s a beautiful game to look at as well with only one minor issue that you have to really focus in on to see. Outright newcomers to this type of game will have a tough go at it, as important elements of Anno 1800 aren’t given comprehensive tutorials, but diligent gamers will excitedly watch hours fly by once they get settled in.

• SWITCH
• 7.9 / 10
• États-Unis

Labo VR is Nintendo’s most innovative and creative Labo kit to date. It can’t compete with the top-dollar VR available on other platforms and it’s tiring to hold it up to your face for more than an hour at a time, but it still includes plenty of wacky and wonderful Nintendo magic, best exemplified by the Elephant Toy-Con.

• PC
• PS4
• 7.2 / 10
• États-Unis

At first blush, I worried that Iron Rain was a little like EDF lobotomised – a little ‘saner’, more approachable, but lacking a certain something for the process. But as I played more, began diving into meaty, 15-20 minute battles, kept changing my loadout, and saw how different it could feel with friends, it became clear that this was far more than an experiment in sanitisation. Iron Rain is a true spin-off, a new take on an existing and much-loved (okay, somewhat-loved) idea. It won’t have done enough to draw in an audience that wants legibility and good looks. Paradoxically, it might have done too much for some more dyed-in-the-wool fans. But for me, Iron Rain is a more-than-pleasant experiment, a game that feels like it was made by fans of the series with their own ideas. Some work, some don’t, but it’s never short of them – and if you can’t enjoy new ideas at the same time as shooting a 30-foot spider in its awful face, what are you even playing games for in the first place?

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

After a very rough start, I met Outward on its terms, finishing several quests and exploring each of its expansive regions from top to bottom. In doing so, I saw some cool sights, fought some worthy opponents, and cast a lot of cool spells with its impressive magic system. I spent more time, however, slogging through long, boring battles with an otherwise poor combat system, working around major bugs, scrounging berries to eat, sleeping in tents, and just walking the same roads, back and forth, from one familiar town to the other and back again. These flaws didn’t just crop up regularly – they defined the experience. There is the seed of a better RPG here, but it’s buried under too much rough terrain. At its best, Outward can offer novel experiences, a good challenge, and a fun way to play with friends. It spends more time at its worst, though, and that’s boring and tedious.

• SWITCH
• PS4
• XONE
• PC
• 7.5 / 10
• États-Unis

If you’ve never experienced them before, then Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy is an entertainingly compelling collection of courtroom-based visual novels with excellent writing and colourful characters who help paper over game mechanics that can at times be overly rigid and illogical. However, if you’ve already played these games – perhaps even more than once already – then there’s very little incentive to take this collection into your custody.

• PC
• PS4
• XONE
• 7.2 / 10
• États-Unis

As a long-time Burnout devotee, I’m very glad Dangerous Driving got made. It is a wonderful complement to Danger Zone 2; together, they are basically Burnout 6 and the world is better off for it. That said, a drawn-out campaign and less-fun secondary events create a little too much drag on its standalone fun.

• PC
• PS4
• XONE
• SWITCH
• 7.3 / 10
• États-Unis

The amount there is to do and the depth of its political mechanics make Tropico 6 stand out over its immediate predecessors. It's a tropical vacation worth taking when you're looking for an in-depth city-builder with strong personality and a touch of humor, which is something of a rarity outside of this long-running series. But drink too deeply of its perplexing economic systems and you may find yourself feeling a bit queasy.

• XONE
• SWITCH
• PS4
• PC
• STADIA
• 6.8 / 10
• États-Unis

• PC
• PS4
• XONE
• STADIA
• 7.8 / 10
• États-Unis

With Assassin’s Creed 3 Remastered, Ubisoft does everything in its power to bring one of the weaker games in the series up to modern standards, and it’s full of sights worth seeing. The main improvement is graphical, and the scenery of 18th-century Colonial America looks fantastic. There are even some meaningful tweaks made to stealth mechanics to make it feel a little more up to date and less aggravating. Where this remaster falters are places where AC3 can't be changed without fundamentally remaking the entire game from the ground up, namely a stiff animation style, repetitive mission structure, and that goddamn final sequence.

• SWITCH
• 7.8 / 10
• États-Unis

• PC
• PS4
• XONE
• 4 / 10
• États-Unis

I wanted to love Generation Zero because there are so many good ideas in it that could’ve made for a stand-out co-op shooter, most notably the rural Swedish setting and robot enemies. Upon actually playing, however, I found most of those ideas were implemented extremely poorly, turning it into a frustrating and aimless slog through horribly unbalanced combat encounters. On top of that, it’s full of confounding bugs at launch, which make progress more difficult than it should be and even something as simple as teaming up with friends becomes a hassle.