The top picks by category include:
- Action: Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered (3.5/5)
- Adventure: Myst (4.5/5)
- Battle Royale: Fortnite (3.5/5)
- Beat ‘Em Up: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (4.0/5)
- Fighting: Street Fighter 6 (5.0/5)
- Horror: Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster (4.0/5)
- MMO: World of Warcraft (4.5/5)
- MOBA: League of Legends (4.5/5)
- Puzzle: UFO 50 (4.0/5)
- Racing: Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Collection (4.5/5)
- RPG & Roguelike: Monster Hunter Wilds (4.0/5)
- Shmup: Cygni: All Guns Blazing (3.5/5)
- Shooter: Doom Eternal (4.5/5)
- Simulation & Sandbox: Microsoft Flight Simulator (4.5/5)
- Sports: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 (4.5/5)
- Stealth: Hitman 3 (4.5/5)
- Strategy: StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void (5.0/5)
I notice some interesting trends in their selections:
- Many remasters and remakes (Legacy of Kain, Myst, Dead Rising, Tony Hawk)
- Some long-running franchises (World of Warcraft, League of Legends, StarCraft)
- A mix of recent releases and established classics
Action: Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered (3.5/5)
This remaster brings together two classic vampire action-adventure games for a new generation. The original Soul Reaver games were celebrated for their dark, gothic atmosphere and compelling narrative about the vampire Raziel seeking revenge against his creator, Kain. The remaster preserves the narrative strengths while updating the visuals, though PCMag notes that players will need to adjust to “old-fashioned combat and puzzle quirks.” Despite these dated elements, the core gameplay experience remains engrossing. It is priced at $29.99.
Adventure: Myst (4.5/5)
Nearly thirty years after its original release, Myst continues to be one of the most influential point-and-click adventure games of all time. This latest update enhances the already beautiful visuals and adds two significant features: virtual reality support and randomized puzzles that create unique experiences with each playthrough. The mysterious island setting and challenging environmental puzzles continue to captivate players, encouraging them to “get lost on the island all over again.” Available for $29.99 on Steam.
Battle Royale: Fortnite (3.5/5)
While acknowledging Fortnite’s mainstream popularity, PCMag argues the game has genuine merit beyond the hype. They praise its approachable gameplay modes, bright and energetic visual style, and excellent construction system that differentiates it from other battle royale titles. The review does criticize the “heavy reliance on microtransactions” as a negative aspect but still recommends the free-to-play game to fans of the genre.
Beat ‘Em Up: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (4.0/5)
Described as a “love letter to TMNT fans,” Shredder’s Revenge draws inspiration from past games, comics, and TV shows to create what PCMag suggests might be “the definitive Turtles title.” The game offers six-player action in both local and online co-op modes. Like Streets of Rage 4, it incorporates fighting game elements to create fluid combo systems. The review highlights the game’s humour and animation quality as particular strengths. It is available for $24.99 on Steam.
Fighting: Street Fighter 6 (5.0/5)
PCMag gives Street Fighter 6 a perfect score, calling it a “fighting game masterpiece.” The review praises the game’s innovative Drive Gauge system that provides more fighting freedom than any previous Street Fighter title. The game balances accessibility for newcomers with depth for veterans through optional simplified control schemes, creative counters, and parry mechanics. The World Tour mode receives special mention for allowing players to create an avatar and embark on a martial arts adventure in semi-open-world environments.
Horror: Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster (4.0/5)
This remaster of Capcom’s 2006 zombie-slaying action game preserves the original premise—photojournalist Frank West battles the undead in a shopping mall—while updating the visuals and adding modern conveniences to meet contemporary standards. PCMag describes it as a “delightful reimagining” of the franchise. It is priced at $49.99.
MMO: World of Warcraft (4.5/5)
Despite being over 12 years old at the time of the article, World of Warcraft remains PCMag’s top MMO pick. They describe it as “the standard by which all other MMOs are judged” and note its impressive list of accolades. The review highlights the game’s continued evolution through many expansions and a recent visual makeover, praising its rich and rewarding experience with customizable races and classes in a fantasy setting. The base game is free to play, with subscription options.
MOBA: League of Legends (4.5/5)
PCMag praises Riot Games’ free-to-play MOBA as “simply put, the best MOBA game you can buy.” The review highlights how League of Legends differentiates itself from other MOBAs by incorporating elements of role-playing, tower defense, and real-time strategy. The extensive variation among playable Champions and the escalating competition that “sinks you deeper and deeper into addiction” are cited as key strengths.
Puzzle: UFO 50 (4.0/5)
Described as a game that “defies characterization,” UFO 50 is a collection of 50 full 8-bit games created by a team of indie developers to chronicle the fictional history of a made-up console. While PCMag categorizes it under puzzles because some games are “real headscratchers,” they note the anthology spans multiple genres with broad appeal. It is available for $24.99 on Steam.
Racing: Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed Collection (4.5/5)
This expanded version of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed adds PC-exclusive characters from Sega and Valve’s libraries and includes all previous DLC content. The review highlights the game’s transformable vehicles that adapt to land, sea, and air racing as a key feature. PCMag positions it as the “final form” of the series. It is priced at $19.99.
RPG & Roguelike: Monster Hunter Wilds (4.0/5)
Monster Hunter Wilds is described as the “long-awaited, true follow-up” to Monster Hunter World, which was credited with introducing Capcom’s creature-hunting franchise to millions of new international players. PCMag highlights how Wilds elevates the series with dangerous and dynamic environments and new mechanics for precisely targeting wounded monsters. The review specifically praises the gorgeous visuals that “bring Monster Hunter into the next generation” and the vastness of the game world. It is priced at $69.99 on Steam.
Shmup: Cygni: All Guns Blazing (3.5/5)
Cygni is positioned as a fresh take on the classic twin-stick shoot ’em-up formula. While maintaining the “classic, arcade-style thrills of blasting enemies out of the sky,” the game introduces innovative mechanics like strategically diverting energy between weapons and shields to balance offence and defence. The review notes the visual spectacle of screens filled with “exploding particles” and the challenge of keeping up with the action. It is available for $29.99 on Steam.
Shooter: Doom Eternal (4.5/5)
Following up on id Software’s successful 2016 resurrection of the Doom franchise, Doom Eternal is praised for taking everything that made its predecessor “a wonderful, demon-slaying shooter and bumps it all up by several notches.” PCMag highlights the game’s “ridiculous weapons, fresh navigation options, and a new multiplayer mode” as key improvements. While noting it can be “almost too over-the-top at times,” the review concludes this is precisely what makes it “one of the best shooters ever made.” Listed at $49.99 but shown at $71.81 on Amazon.
Simulation & Sandbox: Microsoft Flight Simulator (4.5/5)
The 2020 edition of Microsoft Flight Simulator is described as “a delight” that elevates the “beloved series” to new heights. Beyond improved graphics, PCMag is particularly impressed by what they call the “near-magic addition” of a fully recreated and explorable Earth built using Microsoft’s Bing satellite imagery and featuring real-time weather conditions. The integration of these features is credited with transforming the experience. Starting at $59.99.
Sports: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 (4.5/5)
PCMag uses this game to reflect on nostalgia, noting that remasters often cannot live up to our enhanced memories of beloved classics. However, they argue that Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 “doesn’t fall into that trap.” The bundle remasters two iconic skateboarding games from the late 1990s and early 2000s with “a beautiful visual overhaul and new, bountiful options that make them even better than what we remember.” The review confirms that the “brash and exciting action-sports titles are as good as our memories recall.” Priced at $39.99 on Epic Games Store.
Stealth: Hitman 3 (4.5/5)
As the final instalment in IO Interactive’s World of Assassination trilogy, Hitman 3 is praised for building upon the foundation established in the 2016 reboot and its 2018 sequel. PCMag highlights the game’s “expansive levels, new ways to kill, and graphical improvements” as key strengths, noting that it “makes it easy for anyone to become a bald, bar-coded assassin.” The review positions it as a worthwhile conclusion to the trilogy. It is available for $59.99 on Epic Games Store.
Strategy: StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void (5.0/5)
PCMag awards a perfect score to the third and final StarCraft II expansion, calling it “a fantastic conclusion to Blizzard’s five-year saga and a great entry point” into what they describe as “one of the most complex, but satisfying, strategy games ever made.” Unlike previous expansions, Legacy of the Void is completely standalone, not requiring earlier versions to play. The review praises its varied single-player campaign, gorgeous cinematics, and new co-op modes designed to be friendly to newcomers. PCMag definitively states that “Legacy of the Void is one of the best PC games of all time.” Originally priced at $39.99 but listed at $49.97 on Amazon.
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