Gothic is unique because it treats the world like a realistic place with magic and large threats. Most NPCs look out for themselves and the combat in this game is brutality incarnate. There is a charm to this game, however, that sets it apart from the likes of Skyrim or The Witcher . When you grow more powerful in this Adventure game missions, it feels earned. It encourages you to think outside of the box to exploit NPCs and finish quests. It never received a large following, however, something a reboot could help fix.

The street battles in Yakuza and the recent Judgment series are reminiscent of classic coin-op beat-em-ups like Double Dragon and Streets of Rage, with their over-the-top fights and special moves. Double Dragon: Neon is a good combination of old and new mechanics with the fighting game form

Despite the modern and realistic settings, the games feature brawling mechanics similar to the old-school beat-em-ups combined with traditional JRPG elements with near-random battles and leveling up. While few games replicate the Yakuza series, these games should satisfy f

E3 2019 will be beginning soon, and as always, the show has a ton of rumored appearances. Some of these have recently been confirmed for E3 like Marvel's Avengers and the new Darksiders game, but some are definitely in the air. This doesn't mean there won't be any surprises, but as it stands, E3 has a plethora of announcements that are rumored for the showc

Although its current window of release is unknown, Techland's Dying Light 2 is one of the bigger games known about so far. It was delayed from its spring 2020 window, instead likely releasing sometime this fall. And when it does, it has been confirmed to be a cross-gen release on PS5 and Xbox Series

The Yakuza series launched in 2005 to great success in Japan and developed a cult following in the West. Yakuza 0 introduced the series to a more mainstream audience. The games feature semi-open and faithfully recreated Japanese settings in famous Tokyo cities and their seedy underbelly. The first seven games in the series center around Kiryu and are self-contained stories in their own right. The eighth title, Yakuza: Like a Dragon , introduces a new protagonist, Ichiban, with unique motivations and a turn-based combat sys

Developed by Ebb Software and heavily inspired by the works of H. R. Giger, the original designer of the Xenomorph from Alien , Scorn is a first-person horror game that was first announced all the way back in 2014. After ongoing issues with funding, Scorn is back and in development for Xbox Series X and PC. Set in a nightmarish universe, Ebb Software has designed the game around the idea of players being thrown into an unsettling environment that makes them question what they see. Each location contains its own theme, and players will need to acquire skills, unlock weapons, and complete puzzles to make it out al

Bug Fables is weaponized nostalgia. Moonsprout Games set out to make a game that would bring you back to the mid-90s and early-2000s, and if you played RPGs back on the SNES or N64, then this is going to unleash all the tingly feelings of your childhood stored at the back of your br

Originally scheduled for a March 2020 release, Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is an action RPG with enough elements of horror to fit the description. Set in the fictional World of Darkness, a group of rogue vampires has broken the masquerade and begun killing and turning humans throughout Seattle. Players take on the role of a newly turned vampire and must learn to control their new powers before joining one of the cities' vampire groups. Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is coming to PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X sometime in 2

Bug Fables is pretty solid in every aspect, but I will admit to some mild frustration due to the game's dedication to being a Paper Mario tribute act. As a result of the flat style, sometimes the platforming and puzzle sections were a little awkward. Lining up certain jumps could be hard to gauge as the shadows under the characters were too light to reliably determine where I was going to land. This problem could be exacerbated if I was trying to go toward or away from the screen as the ground might not be fully visible due to the camera's position. The side view of the game could also be a hindrance to solving puzzles as it would be hard to properly aim abilities like Vi's Beemerang, which made some puzzles more annoying than they should have b

L.A. Noire has more in common with some of the investigative mechanics in the Yakuza spin-off series Judgement. However, fans of Yakuza love deep character stories and crime dramas filled with twists, turns, and betrayals. This late 1940 set drama is an easy recommendat

Whenever Fable 4 is planning to hit shelves, Xbox needs to highlight that it's coming out the gate strong and delivering what the fans want. It needs to show it has the system selling names, the exclusives, and the groundbreaking ideas to hang alongside the likes of Sony and stake itself a bigger claim in the generation to come. Microsoft has already shown that the Series X has groundbreaking technology and its marketing thus far has been wonderfully open and honest. All it needs now is a killer game that shows off exactly what the console can do, and Fable 4 seems to be exactly t