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MMOs are a risky and fickle beast. Plenty have come and gone in the past, disappearing into the ether as their player numbers dwindled, while others have only grown in popularity with each passing year and new expansion. Based on the early returns--at least for its arrival on Western shores--Lost Ark looks like it might settle into the latter category, as its servers are already filled to the brim with eager adventurers. The fact that it's free-to-play is an obvious advantage in this sense, but this stylish Korean hybrid of MMO and action RPG has a lot more going for it, with spectacularly punchy combat and heaps of content to sink your teeth into. It's not without its fair share of faults, both from a design and monetary perspective, but the early signs are certainly encouraging. Lost Ark's overarching plot adopts a well-worn and stale structure, pitting the mortal world against an invading army of demons. The story primarily focuses on a continent-spanning hunt for the s...

Fifteen hours into Elden Ring, I defeated Godrick The Golden, the first of five Elden Lords. In the time between emerging into the Lands Between and striking him down, I'd discovered decrepit ruins, ventured into twisting caves, stumbled upon enemy encampments, and battled tooth and nail against challenging bosses. From Software's games have always made you feel small in many ways: They tell you that you're worthless--a plague-ridden rat or accursed Undead, unfit even to be cinders. They ask you to navigate unflinching brutal worlds and pit you against enemies that systematically dismantle your ego. Elden Ring maintains the nail-biting combat and air of mystery that has distinguished From Software's Soulsborne games, but it's elevated to new heights by the studio's interpretation of what an open-world game can be. Having brought down Godrick, the breadth of the world--and the way in which From Software has applied its signature style to an open world--was on ful...

Described by developer Serenity Forge as a "romcom adventure game," Land of Screens is both charming and decidedly more grounded than similarly sentimental games. While it examines the weighty process of how we build ourselves back up after suffering a loss, rather than sending players down the path of introspection, it opts to be a bit more simplistic and deliver just one pertinent message: There's a whole world outside your phone screen and you might just be missing it. However, in taking this approach and focusing so entirely on this one message, Land of Screens ultimately comes across a bit too reductive and preachy to deliver it as subtly and powerfully as it could. Land of Screens begins as life as Holland knows it comes to an end: After five, long years together, her partner has just called it quits on their relationship. Before she even has the time to process her feelings and what this means for her life, Holland finds herself pacing around her bedroom thinking...

The first time I dropped into a game of Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier , my main opponent was the clutter on my phone's screen. The game's smattering of touchscreen controls include an analog stick for moving around, a button to shoot, another button for a melee attack, one for jumping and parkouring, and one for crouching and hiding. Get close to a treasure chest and you can open it with another button. There's the inventory menu for swapping between weapons, and the one for using your consumable items to heal. And there's the section of the screen dedicated to Materia, the little orbs you can find that give Final Fantasy VII characters the ability to use magic. Because The First Soldier is a mobile game, all that stuff sits on the screen , occupying the same space you're expected to fight off other players in. It's cumbersome--half the time, my thumbs were in the way of the action. The other half, I couldn't remember which button to hit to call down...

Few fighting game series can claim to have the sort of cross-generational impact and enduring history that King of Fighters does, but in recent years, developer SNK has struggled to stay on equal footing with its competitors. With 2016's The King of Fighters XIV suffering from dated-looking visuals and wonky online matchmaking that even the most polished gameplay would struggle to overcome, the new generation of KoF stumbled out of the gate, turning off the new blood it wanted to bring in and leaving many series stalwarts somewhat dissatisfied. Sometimes you learn by taking hard knocks, though, and SNK has clearly taken KoF XIV's reception to heart, giving its newest title a pleasing visual revamp, tidying up the gameplay, tossing in some extras, and making the online combat better than it's ever been before. Though it won't mop the floor with its opponents, it's enough to make KoF XV a serious contender again. The King of Fighters series' claim to fame is that...

I enjoy the simplicity of Grapple Dog. The title tells you this is a game about a dog with a grappling hook, and it is what it says on the tin. It's this direct approach that encompasses all of Grapple Dog's design philosophy, recalling the heyday of mascot platformers. The result is a mostly unsurprising but very solid retro platformer, with controls that are precise enough to achieve an enjoyable flow. Similar to classic platformers, the story of Grapple Dog is delivered with a very light touch. Pablo the dog and his anthropomorphic friends accidentally empower a robot bent on collecting mystical Gadgets--artifacts that resemble everyday items from our world–to open a portal and return to his world--which would, of course, destroy theirs. It seems to be mildly commenting on disposable culture, and when it ventures into more serious territory, it doesn't really feel earned. That said, the writing is unobtrusive and what is there is often funny, especially with incidental ...

Horizon Forbidden West can be daunting in its size and scope. That feeling only grows as you uncover its map, collect gear to fill in its giant arsenal of weapons and armors, or unlock a huge number of special moves, skills, and passive buffs from its expansive, revamped skill tree. But while it casts an imposing shadow, Forbidden West often keeps its focus on characters and their stories, and that approach works to break the enormity into smaller chunks and give your adventure stakes that matter. The game is continually compelling not because developer Guerrilla Games filled it with a huge amount of stuff to do, but because so much of that stuff is thoughtfully constructed and sometimes even emotionally engaging, instead of just feeling like items created to add as many map markers to the world as possible. Forbidden West picks up almost immediately after the end of its predecessor, Horizon Zero Dawn , and its DLC add-on, Frozen Wilds , and it expects you to be very familiar with pr...

When developer Techland added the subtitle "Stay Human" to Dying Light 2 , it seemed to signal the team's intentions to rediscover (and showcase) the humanity nestled at the core of the story. Since 2018, the team has made promises about the numerous narrative branches Dying Light 2 players would find in the game . Those branches are there, and they are indeed plentiful, but experiencing them felt equivalent to falling out of a tree and hitting my face on every branch on the way down. While Dying Light 2's most crucial element, first-person parkour, is certainly better than it's ever been in this massive sequel, much of the rest of the game fails to keep up. Dying Light 2 is set in the fictional Villedor, a new city in the story, and features a fresh, grizzled hero central to its conflict. As a "pilgrim," an outsider perceived as dangerous to the few remaining safe zones in the world, Aiden Caldwell ventures into Villedor in search of his sister Mia, wh...

Sifu ponders the question: "Is one life enough to know kung fu?" Based on my own battered and bruised experience, the answer is a resounding "no." Death is ingrained into every aspect of developer Slocap's latest brawler, as you'll die, die, and die again before licking your wounds and returning to the fray for another seemingly misguided attempt at emerging from a fight unscathed. Sifu is a punishingly difficult game that won't appeal to everyone. Reaching its conclusion requires a mastery of its combat mechanics, so those looking for a challenging game that demands skill and improvement from the player will find exactly that in Sifu. It's an excellent modern beat-'em-up with deep combat mechanics and a fascinating aging system that sets it apart from its contemporaries by altering the way you progress from one chapter to the next. Before delving into Sifu's unique hook, it's worth noting that its combat provides the basis for everythin...

It's easy to drop an hour or two into OlliOlli World without even realizing it. Send your cartoony character careening down one of its brightly colored 2.5D skateboarding courses and you might find yourself trying again and again to nail a tough jump, or discover the right pathway to slip into a background portion of the level and unveil new secrets. It's a game that invites you in with catchy music and a lighthearted art style, but can quickly make time evaporate as you fight to complete one last challenge, hit one last high score, or beat one last rival. The balance between chill and intense, between losing yourself in the skating flow and feeling like you need to check off every challenge the game can throw at you, is a precarious one. What makes OlliOlli World so good is that it manages to nail that balance, providing a bunch of different experiences even on the same course. You can take the more carefree approach, nailing tricks here and there and just enjoying the ride,...

When developer Techland added the subtitle "Stay Human" to Dying Light 2 , it seemed to signal the team's intentions to rediscover (and showcase) the humanity nestled at the core of the story. Since 2018, the team has made promises about the numerous narrative branches Dying Light 2 players would find in the game . Those branches are there, and they are indeed plentiful, but experiencing them felt equivalent to falling out of a tree and hitting my face on every branch on the way down. While Dying Light 2's most crucial element, first-person parkour, is certainly better than it's ever been in this massive sequel, much of the rest of the game fails to keep up. Dying Light 2 is set in the fictional Villedor, a new city in the story, and features a fresh, grizzled hero central to its conflict. As a "pilgrim," an outsider perceived as dangerous to the few remaining safe zones in the world, Aiden Caldwell ventures into Villedor in search of his sister Mia, wh...