Microsoft’s Game Pass subscription is likely the best deal around: For a fraction of the price of a full game, you get access to hundreds of titles every month, some of which are brand new. But when video games cost millions to make, and news of studio layoffs are constant, you don’t need to look at an Xbox balance sheet to know the numbers aren’t adding up for a service...

Sony and Microsoft don’t sweat Nintendo. At least, that’s the corporate line — they still might be coming for Nintendo’s ass.  Sony has shrugged off the notion that the PlayStation brand, with high-end graphics and adult-friendly play, could be considered in the same market as Nintendo’s Switch. Meanwhile, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer openly dreamt of porting games to Switch and intends to support the Switch 2 through his expansive (while...

While 2021’s Lost in Random was far from a roguelike, the team behind the adventure game always knew its zany world and dice-based gameplay would be a great fit for the fast-paced, combat-focused genre. “Lost in Random being a roguelike sounded like a great idea and [way] to continue with the IP, but taking a new spin on it,” Martin Storm, the director of the new roguelike Lost in Random:...

The Switch 2 launch lineup was weird — or that’s what I thought after watching the April Nintendo Direct, anyway. Sure, Mario Kart World as a launch game made sense from a business perspective. When a re-release of Mario Kart 8 sells 68 million copies on the original Switch, it’s hardly surprising to see Nintendo lead with what data shows would more than likely be a big success. But was...

Nintendo’s Switch 2 is at the very start of its life — and, as with every young console, excitement for the new hardware is held in check by the quest for something to  play on it. Nintendo debuted the system with one of the biggest guns in its arsenal: a new Mario Kart. Elsewhere, the launch line-up has been the usual grab-bag of ports from other consoles and upgrades of...

A ’90s psychological thriller like Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue and a modern-day comedy like Spy x Family didn’t seem like they had much in common, until J-pop star LiSA connected the dots for us. In a moment of serendipity, I wore a Perfect Blue T-shirt to my interview with J-pop rock icon LiSA, a powerhouse Japanese singer celebrated for her dynamic vocals and more than 30 anime opening/closing themes, including...

Preferred gifts in Persona 5: The Phantom X are just like regular gifts, but they’ll give your synergies an extra boost. As you meet and hang out with confidants in Persona 5: The Phantom X, your synergy will increase, but you can give them a gift to increase your synergy even further. However, be on the lookout for each confidant’s preferred gifts to level up your synergies even faster. Here...

The multiplayer experience in Mecha Break revolves around finding the best Strikers for the role you want to play in the party and locking it in. That’s where a tier list of best mechas comes in handy.  For this tier list, we compared the mechas based on the role they play in a party. There are three major roles in the game: Attacker, Support, and Defender. Some mechas feature hybrid...

Palworld features more than 100 creatures, titularly dubbed “Pals.” You can treat your Pals with love, or you can put them to work in a factory — and even butcher them. With this many Pals in one game, it can be hard to tell which ones are worth keeping or employing your base. Pals have different elemental types and work skills, making it so no two Pals are exactly alike....

For a game about robots, Mecha Break’s human pilots sure do look impressive. Mecha Break, the recently released free-to-play mecha shooter from Amazing Seasun Games, is a hell of a lot of fun. The minute I learned of its existence, I knew I’d be devoting a great deal of time to beating up giant robots with my own giant robot. I did not, however, expect to be devoting a great...