The Video Video games You Ought to Play This Weekend – October 17, 2025

I’m not the largest combating recreation fan, however the sudden one which occurred to interrupt by for me was Useless or Alive 4 on Xbox 360. It was an early title for the brand new console, it inexplicably featured a Halo Spartan as an optionally available fighter on the top of my Halo fandom, and – arguably most significantly – I used to be dwelling in a school dorm when it launched and it was the best multiplayer recreation to choose up and play with others. Each myself, my roommate, my neighbor, and some people on the identical ground, all actually obtained into it. I obtained expert at pulling off Ryu Hayabusa’s most complex strikes, and have all the time liked its satisfying counter system that might get you out of your opponents’ combos and particular strikes so long as you knew the appropriate enter. 

To today, it’s nonetheless my favourite conventional combating recreation, and it was additionally the final sequence entry Tomonobu Itagaki directed. I used to be saddened to listen to of his passing and had missed his bombastic quotes over the previous couple of years. I want his household and pals nicely and am redownloading Useless or Alive 4 on my Xbox proper now in remembrance of his work.

With this week’s passing of Tomonobu Itagaki, the previous head of Group Ninja and mastermind of the trendy 3D Ninja Gaiden sequence, there’s no higher time to take a look at Ninja Gaiden II Black. The unique iteration of the 2008 sequel was the final Ninja Gaiden title Itagaki directed, and this 2025 remaster is the definitive model of the sport. 

It boasts improved graphics and efficiency, plus it restores the gore and improve system from the unique launch (which was closely altered within the 2009 Sigma model). Itagaki as soon as referred to as Ninja Gaiden II “the world’s finest motion recreation,” and whereas I don’t consider that declare holds water in the present day, it’s nonetheless a really enjoyable time and a pleasant warm-up forward of Ninja Gaiden 4’s launch subsequent week.

The primary Pokémon Legends reignited my monster-catching fireplace, so it should not be a shock that Pokémon Legends: Z-A is clicking with me. I actually just like the battle metropolis vibes of Z-A; although some will not be eager on a single-city journey, I’ve discovered it to be an fascinating new vantage level on the same old Pokémon tour.

In truth, my favourite half up to now may not even be the brand new, real-time battle system or the precise monster catching and coaching itself, however the typically good vibes of Lumiose. The style is unbelievable, the soundtrack is filled with earworms, and your lodge room in Resort Z is probably the most delightfully lived-in dwelling area from an RPG this facet of Persona. Any excuse to  escape to a brand new Pokémon frontier is a welcome one, however I recognize how Pokémon has managed to seek out an avenue for innovation and somewhat refresh once in a while with its Legends video games.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is somewhat disappointing, to be trustworthy, but it surely’s not so unhealthy that it’s not value trying out. The story is extra linear than I anticipated and the open world is sparse, making the 2 major promoting factors of an open world RPG robust to swallow. That stated, fight and stealth are nice, and whereas the story is not as malleable because it first seems, the neo noir thriller and a forged of robust performances made it value seeing by. For those who’re an enormous fan of Vampire: The Masquerade or desire a recreation that is seasonally acceptable, Bloodlines 2 is value a attempt.

Double Nice’s newest is an inventive tour de power, mixing surreal visuals with the mechanics of an environmental puzzle journey recreation. The sport is finest skilled firsthand, quite than having it described. Nevertheless it’s sufficient to say that you simply management a strolling lighthouse, befriend a large fowl, and that you should journey by a psychedelic alien world of unfamiliar beings. Even when the gameplay does not wow you, the attractive artwork and among the surprises alongside the way in which make it a memorable play. Our full overview has extra. 

For those who’re prepared for the subsequent recreation that can inexplicably hook you for dozens of hours of straightforward arcade play, Ball x Pit is the plain selection. Mixing city simulation, Arkanoid-esque brick-breaking, and roguelite runs and development, the easy-to-pick up gameplay is extraordinarily laborious to place down. Every run challenges gamers to pick and improve completely different balls that can bounce across the playfield, poisoning, burning, exploding, or in any other case eliminating the unhealthy guys as they slowly inch down the vertically scrolling display. Finally, the onscreen will get extremely chaotic. Learn our full overview.