Hades 2 is undoubtedly a great game and one I’ve definitely enjoyed playing. At the same time, it somewhat feels like it’s trying to catch lightning twice, which almost never happens. What I mean by that is, Hades 2 is simply more Hades, it’s a very safe sequel.
It might be blasphemy to say, but I’ve never played Elden Ring despite the fact that I loved the Dark Souls games. Something just always got in the way of me finding the right moment to jump into it. Nightreign’s co-op focus, however, grabbed my attention. Full Co-op is the biggest thing I wanted in any Souls game, and the fact that it’s wrapped in a rogue-lite cloak made it an even better fit for me.
If you put Space Invaders and Slay The Spire in a blender, the aftermath would look a whole lot like StarVaders. The thing is, I love deckbuilding games, but so many Slay the Spire clones land in my inbox every week that they have to really put a unique spin on the formula to impress me.
Monkey sees numbers go up, monkey happy. That’s Balatro in a nutshell. It has an incredibly addictive gameplay loop that manages to activate the same neurons that predatory gambling games and mobile trash love to prey on. The thing is, there’s nothing remotely predatory about Balatro. It’s just a rogue-lite card game with absolutely no stakes. Well, except for the sleep you might lose by playing it well past bedtime.