Ninja Gaiden 4 is, without a shred of doubt in my mind, the best action game of 2025. It’s co-developers Team Ninja and PlatinumGames doing what they do best; firing on all cylinders to provide a wicked hard combat experience that puts priority on learning effective combo routes and enemy behavior - as well as spatial awareness - over bloated health bars or other cheap difficulty tricks.

Like the best of its peers, such as Devil May Cry 5 or the Bayonetta games, Ninja Gaiden 4 gives you all the tools you need to make quick work of almost any foe in the game. But getting to that point is a skill that demands utmost mastery at its higher difficulty levels. And embarking on that journey here manages to recapture that satisfaction of the best the character action subgenre has to offer.

If you’re already a Ninja Gaiden head, you’ll be pleased to know that all the staples are here. Multiple weapon types with expandable move sets, dismemberment for instant-kill obliteration attacks, and the need for a careful balance of offense and defense to get the better of the armies of enemy soldiers and daemons standing in your way.

It’s not without its faults. Environments can be quite dull, often lacking in the gorgeous vistas and arena variety of its predecessors - while prior games often had you fighting for your life in claustrophobic spaces, combat areas in Ninja Gaiden 4 are decidedly more open and boxy. There’s also an over-reliance on on-rails platforming sections that are largely scripted. They can look cool, but certainly lack the challenge and thrills of the main combat loop.

These slight hitches aside, Ninja Gaiden 4 provides an exhilarating combat experience with strong enemy variety and tremendous chapter-ending boss fights. And as a bonus, while the main plot isn’t spectacular, series fans can expect plenty of callbacks to Ninja Gaiden’s universe - albeit none that I will explicitly spoil for you in this review.

Raven's call

In Ninja Gaiden 4, the corpse of the colossal Dark Dragon continues to loom over Tokyo, emitting a rain of death and decay that threatens to destroy the city. Our newcomer protagonist, Yakumo, is a ninja of the Raven Clan that forms an uneasy alliance with a priestess named Seori. The goal of the partnership is to actively resurrect the Dark Dragon in order to slay it - body, soul, and all - for good.

Returning series legend Ryu Hayabusa, meanwhile, is none too happy at the prospect of bringing such a great evil back to life. He allies himself with the Divine Dragon Order (D.D.O. for short) - one of the game’s main enemy factions - in order to combat the Raven Clan’s plan.

This doesn’t so much set up Hayabusa as the villain as it does provide conflicting ways to solve the problem at hand. It’s the most interesting aspect of Ninja Gaiden 4’s plot, but don’t expect Nier Automata levels of storytelling here. Like other games in the series, the story serves a simple backdrop to the action, not the core focus.

Yakumo himself begins as a fairly one-note entity. I do love his design, emulating a painfully 2010s level of edginess; clad entirely in black and sporting a haircut that threatens to cover his line of sight entirely. But he’s an effective contrast to the more traditional, arguably sensible look of Hayabusa. Something much more rebellious and unpredictable in nature.

Steeped in blood

That chaotic nature plays strongly into Yakumo’s weapons and abilities. While he has access to iconic Hayabusa-brand moves like the gap-closing Flying Swallow and cranium-obliterating Izuna Drop, Yakumo’s very much his own beast with his signature Bloodraven form.

At any time during combat, assuming you have a sufficient amount of gauge, Yakumo can enter Bloodraven stance by holding the left trigger. This powers up his light and heavy attacks, but is also able to break through guarding enemies and interrupt unblockable attacks noted by a handy exclamation point icon.

Shifting between Yakumo’s base and Bloodraven forms is a skill unto itself. It’s certainly fun to rip enemies to shreds with it at first. But as the game progresses, you’ll be pressured to use it only when necessary. Running out of Bloodraven gauge means you won’t be able to effectively deal with blocking enemies or punish charged attacks, and can leave you wide open to heavy damage.

Even without Bloodraven form, you’re still powerful. Hitting enemies with basic combos enough can dismember their limbs, leaving them vulnerable to an instant-kill Obliteration attack. Furthermore, holding the heavy attack button charges up your ‘Ultimate’ technique, which zips you to the nearest enemy for enormous damage and outright killing weaker foes.

Hayabusa, meanwhile, feels suitably distinct. You’ll get control of him around the second half of the game, and he’s a lot weightier and grounded than his edgy acrobatic counterpart. His sections feel a lot more like classic Ninja Gaiden, and feel noticeably harder as a result.

On the defensive side, both Yakumo and Hayabusa are able to block, dodge, and parry incoming attacks. Parries are ultra-satisfying here, creating a flashing glint that lets you immediately hit back with an attack of your own. Dodging is also incredibly useful; when done at the last moment, it creates a Bayonetta-esque ‘Witch Time’ slowdown effect that helps you effectively reposition and get some free hits in.

Slice and dice

You’ll be doing all of this at breakneck speeds in the average combat encounter. When the game starts mixing in multiple enemy types - and even some elites - knowing when to both attack and defend becomes a high priority, and it’s a skill that’s heavily rewarded. Better performance leads to higher stage ranks, resulting in more currency and weapon experience to spend on life-saving consumables and additional weapon techniques respectively.

It’s not all combat, though. Ninja Gaiden 4 occasionally breaks up the pace with avenues for exploration. These often let you tick off specific side missions, or gather hidden collectibles or take part in optional challenges for additional currency and weapon experience.

These are nice distractions, allowing you to momentarily take a breather in between ruthless bouts of combat. Platforming sections achieve this, too, but these do grow stale rather quickly. There’s a good variety, often making use of traversal items like a grappling hook, glider wings, and a surfboard (Joe Musashi would like a word here, I think). However, these often run a bit long and ultimately only serve to pad out any given stage’s run time. I often found myself just wanting to have them over with to get stuck into the next batch of bads.

Level design in general isn’t a particular strength of Ninja Gaiden 4, either. It certainly serves its basic purpose, but there isn’t a strong variety here. Most arenas are large and square-shaped. Some have differing levels of verticality and let you zip about with the grappling hook.

But most arenas feel designed to your advantage. In prior Ninja Gaiden games, you’d often struggle for space in smaller rooms and hallways, or have enemies charge you from either side or via hidden passageways. There’s little in the way of the element of surprise in Ninja Gaiden 4 - nothing to especially catch you off guard during most encounters. The core combat loop remains incredibly strong, but a bit more variety in level design would definitely have been nice.

Thankfully, the game’s incredible boss fights are always worth trudging through the most uninspired levels to get to. Bosses are massive and all feel distinct. They feel like unique challenges in and of themselves, often requiring you to figure out which weapon types are most effective, and having you deal with unpredictable attacks. They’re incredibly thrilling and almost always backed by a superb blood-pumping soundtrack.

While the overall look of levels are a bit dull, I can’t fault the game for its visual fidelity. Characters and weather effects especially look stunning. And as you might expect from these developers, animation and combat feedback are satisfyingly on point.

It’s a winner in the performance department, too. For me, Ninja Gaiden 4 ran at a near-immaculate 60 frames per second on both Xbox Series X Digital Edition and PC via the Xbox app. It’s worth noting that this is a ‘Play Anywhere’ title, too. Meaning if you buy on Xbox, you’re free to play your copy on PC, too, and vice versa (so long as your purchase was done via the Microsoft Store). It’s also available day one on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, so it’s definitely worth checking out and downloading if you’re subscribed.

Should you play Ninja Gaiden 4?

Play it if...

Don't play it if...

Accessibility

There's a very robust amount of accessibility options in Ninja Gaiden 4. For starters, if you're not overly keen on its crushing difficulty, 'Hero' mode offers optional toggles for easier combos and auto dodge and block mechanics. Other game related options such as auto healing and quick-time events can also be enabled here.

For vision-related accessibility settings, players can enable color highlights for both player characters, enemies, and objects in the world, helping them stand out against the background. You can also enable a high-constrast background. On the controls front, options for left-handed and single-handed play are available, too.

How I reviewed Ninja Gaiden 4

I played Ninja Gaiden 4 for around 18 hours across for this review, completing the main campaign once. I went back and forth between playing on Xbox Series X Digital Edition and my gaming PC thanks to Xbox’s Play Anywhere feature. On Xbox, I primarily used the Turtle Beach Stealth Pivot and Razer Wolverine V3 Pro controllers for play, while on PC, I went with the old reliable 8BitDo Ultimate 2.

I also hooked my controllers up with the RIG R5 Spear Pro HS wired gaming headset for more immersive audio, with my LG CX OLED TV for display while playing on Xbox Series X. I also played through a good chunk of Ninja Gaiden 2 Black on via Xbox Game Pass to get a grip on how this new game feels in comparison to the remastered classic.

First reviewed October 2025

There’s always been one big problem with Ubisoft’s flagship dance party series since it made the jump to modern platforms. Without the motion sensing capabilities of the Kinect, Wii Remote, or PlayStation Move controller, it’s just been a pain to control.

Sure, those playing on Nintendo Switch have benefitted from the option to use a single Joy-Con in one hand, but if you were on PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X and Series S you’d have to rely on awkwardly waving your phone around with the Just Dance Controller mobile app open on screen. The results weren’t particularly accurate or reliable, making chasing high scores far more awkward than it ever should’ve been.

With Just Dance 2026 Edition, however, it feels like the series has once again found its footing. This annual expansion introduces camera scoring letting you simply prop up your phone to record your actions and it’s something of a revelation.

Pair this brilliant feature with a fantastically varied song selection that contains some of the most visually stunning music videos yet, heaps of content, and a neat new mode, and you have by far the best instalment in years.

Break it down

If you’ve played a Just Dance game before, then you know the basic thrust here.

You pick a song from a selection and a stylized music video begins on screen. Your goal is simple, match the moves of the on-screen dancers as closely as possible - racking up points for every successful move as you go. Your score is then added to a leaderboard, measured against your previous attempts, or those of other players if you prefer. It’s a simple but effective formula, especially when you factor in the countless cosmetic unlocks awarded for hitting various goals and used to decorate your online profile.

Well-implemented local co-op makes it a great pick for livening up parties for up to four friends, while solo players can use an on-screen calorie counter to turn their dance into a workout. These aren’t entirely new features as Just Dance 2026 Edition is the fourth entry since the series made the transition to more a live service model, releasing as song packs alongside meaty updates rather than entirely new games, but there’s still a lot that’s new and exciting here for returning fans to enjoy.

The big new inclusion is the camera scoring system, which has been added to the existing Just Dance Controller mobile app. Whenever you start a compatible song you’re asked whether you want to play with the old motion scoring, or camera scoring. If you select camera scoring you’re instructed to prop up your phone on a surface a few meters away from your play space and line yourself up with an on-screen silhouette.

I normally play in the very compact area around my desk, so I was a little sceptical that I would have enough room but I was thankfully proven wrong. Propping the phone up on my bookshelf, it detected me immediately and never lost track of where I was. Playing without the weight of a phone in your hand is liberating and makes it so much easier to follow the choreography. Worrying about accidentally catapulting your pricey device out the nearest window every time a move has you swing your arms is finally a thing of the past.

Better still, if you already own Just Dance 2025 Edition you’ll be able to play all of those songs with this new control mode, giving you a fantastic excuse to revisit them. The only minor letdown here is that you can only use camera scoring when you’re playing alone. This is presumably some technical limitation and not a huge dealbreaker, but is worth bearing in mind if you were planning to pick up the game just for co-op play.

It can also be a little bit tricky to keep your phone stable. I reliably managed it with some books, but you might want to invest in a cheap phone stand if you intend to set it up directly in front of your screen.

Backing track

It wouldn’t be a new Just Dance edition without a heap of fresh songs to play, and this year's entry doesn’t disappoint. Your enjoyment of any line-up is always going to come down to personal preference, but I found the 40 or so tracks this year to be fantastically varied.

Where previous years have been dominated by one or two big artists or themes, 2026 Edition has everything from recent hits like Chappell Roan’s ‘Good Luck, Babe!’ and Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘Feather’ to long-awaited party titans like Smash Mouth’s ‘All Star’.

K-pop fans can feast on Babymonster’s ‘Drip’ while TikTok addicts will have plenty of fun with viral sensations like Doechii’s ‘Anxiety’. Just Dance titles also offer their own original songs which for the last few installments have basically boiled down to generic pop with slightly cringeworthy lyrics. One of this year’s however, the cutesy ‘Sokusu’, is genuinely very catchy with an easy to learn but hard to master dance that has you hopping across the screen.

Each track is accompanied by a gorgeous music video which all stand apart as some of the most attractive and complex that the series has had yet. They look stunning with a wide range of colorful visuals and themes. Some also break away from the conventional Just Dance aesthetic in innovative and interesting ways. Take this year’s inevitable kids song inclusion, a Bluey-inspired medley that’s animated exactly like the hit children’s TV show or the spooky claymation style of ‘Born to Be Alive (Reborn Version)’.

A few songs have engaging alternate versions too, whether that’s relaxed drag show performances or intense sports routines designed to test your fitness.

If all of this somehow isn’t enough, you can add to your library by picking up previous Edition releases (which are available pretty cheaply now) or subscribing to Just Dance Plus to stream hundreds and hundreds of songs taken from across the series.

All versions of Just Dance 2026 Edition include memberships of varying length (which you can activate at any time from an in-game menu) and it only costs $24.99 / £19.99 to add on a whole year - a very reasonable price for what you get.

Personal highlights for me include the energetic ‘Love Ward’ from Just Dance 2018 and the utterly ridiculous Angry Birds ‘Balkan Blast Remix’. The only thing that could possibly make it better would be if some of the best tracks from the more obscure entries came over.

Where’s Koda Kumi’s ‘Cutie Honey’ from the Japan-exclusive Just Dance Wii, Ubisoft?

Lab rats

Just Dance games rarely ship without some kind of new mode, and Just Dance 2026 Edition is no exception. This year you get a new co-op Party Mode themed around a mad scientist’s lab. It lets you play any of your owned songs in short bursts with weird visual effects overlayed on top.

This could involve an animated dinosaur appearing on screen and blocking your dancer from view to being forced to clap for points.

The effects themselves are amusing but not particularly game changing, though the fact that the mode can draw from your entire song library is great. If you’re playing with a Just Dance Plus subscription then there’s a strong chance that you haven't played whatever comes up before, forcing you to adapt not only to the special challenges but an unfamiliar routine.

It’s a great way to find new songs to play, and I've picked up a few new favorites that would have otherwise been completely overlooked given the sheer size of the roster.

It also helps avoid the struggle to pick which song to play when you’re joined by friends, leading to a much more frictionless experience and helping everyone get straight to the dancing rather than faffing around in menus.

I can't think what else you could possibly want from a dance party game.

Should I play Just Dance 2026 Edition?

Play it if…

Don’t play it if…

Accessibility features

There is unfortunately no dedicated accessibility menu in Just Dance 2026 Edition. The game supports scoring via both holding your phone in your hands or using its camera but each method requires a substantial range of motion across your whole body. The user interface can be tweaked somewhat, for example disabling visual score feedback or song lyrics.

How I reviewed Just Dance 2026 Edition

I played almost 10 hours of Just Dance 2026 Edition on PlayStation 5. For the controls, I relied on my Porsche Design Honor Magic 7 RSR Android phone using the official Just Dance Controller mobile app.

During that time I played the songs that appealed to me from the overall line-up, chasing high-scores in both motion control and camera control modes. I compared my experience to my hands-on testing of previous Just Dance games on a wide range of platforms including Just Dance VR.

First reviewed October 2025

Taking control of a lighthouse wasn't on my video game bingo card for 2025, but that’s the thrust of Keeper, a puzzle adventure game from Double Fine Productions, with an emphasis on strange style and atmosphere over mind-warping challenges and obstacles.

Inspired by Creative Director Lee Petty’s musings during the COVID-19 pandemic, Keeper imagines a post-human island where metamorphosis has run riot with unusual lifeforms now occupying structures and environments, all built around a central mountain.

There’s a surrealist feeling here, as if Double Fine reached into the minds of artists Salvador Dali and Max Ernst, while drawing inspiration from some of the odder music videos from Radiohead and Gorillaz; this vibe is only given more weight from music that blends soft uplifting tracks with glitchy, darker tunes that wouldn’t be out place on an album like Kid A.

Petty describes the game style of Keeper as “weird, but chill” and I can’t disagree. There’s a sense of discovery and wonder as the adventure progresses, yet without the angst to constantly press on at speed.

Lighthouse leanings

This journey begins in a suitably bizarre manner: a run-down, dormant lighthouse suddenly erupts with light to rescue a seabird, who you soon discover is called Twig, from a cloud of dark and malevolent bat-like creatures.

Flipping to the player’s control, the lighthouse shakes awake, crumbles to the ground, and then sprouts a quartet of legs to shakily stumble down a rock outcrop and begin a journey to the top of the mountain, with Twig in tow.

And that’s about as much as Keeper reveals in its opening chapters.

There’s no narration, no spoken or written dialogue, or any other text to give voice to the characters or setting. Rather, the world react to the lighthouse and Twig's squawks, while an authored camera acts as your guide, being fixed in place from scene to scene, which ensures your attention is directed to important parts of the environment without being overtly obvious.

While I would have liked a bit more movement to better peer at some of the weirder and wonderful details of the island and its inhabitants, this approach works well and meant I never really got lost or turned around in what can be a visually bombastic setting.

Keeper also drip-feeds abilities and ways to interact with the environment, initially starting with the simple move to shine the lighthouse’s light independent of its direction of momentum, which has the satisfying effect of prompting some plants and fungi to bloom and sprout.

This quickly evolved into the ability to focus an intense beam of light onto surfaces, which melts away some obstacles and prompts reactions from onlooking critters. It scratches a very innate human itch to try things, and had me blasting light at all sorts of objects and outcroppings to see how the game would react.

The lighthouse then gains the albeit to dash, helping it traverse obstacles. And as the game progresses, there’ll be new ways to navigate the world; I don’t want to spoil any surprises, but it kept Keeper feeling fresh over some 39 chapters.

In general, the light is the main way the lighthouse can interact with the world, but Twig is not merely here for the ride and effectively serves as the lighthouse’s hands. When a little blue star emits from an object, be it mechanical or natural, Twig can be sent to interact with it, which switches the player into using a button, key, or joystick to have the seabird peck, pull, or turn the object.

It’s the combination of the lightbeam and Twig that holds the key to most of the Keeper’s puzzles. Starting off as simple one-stage puzzles, such as shining a light on an organic growth to get it to react, then sending Twig out to pull it out of the way, building to ones with multiple stages and interactions at once.

One of the more complex puzzles involved jumping between three points in time, in a rather creative and satisfying way to bring back life to a machine; oddly enough, it reminded me of the brilliant Effect and Cause mission in Titanfall 2.

None of these puzzles were particularly challenging. And I only had a couple of moments of head-scratching where the tight camera angles meant I missed a path to an object or interaction I needed to complete a puzzle.

There was one area where I had to get past a blocked tunnel, where I could see the solution, having followed previous interactions, but the game’s logic wasn’t playing out here. With mounting frustration, I’d hit my head, and indeed the lighthouse’s, against it multiple times, thinking I needed to perfectly time a suite of moments to blow away the blockage. Instead, I simply had to first take another path, which, given the camera angle and the color palette of the area, seemed more part of a wall than a navigable route.

Ultimately, I was expecting more complexity to some of these puzzles, so I would overthink potential solutions, rather than poke around in a few more corners, which, to Keeper’s credit, is exactly what I was supposed to do.

While I lack the patience to ponder really tricky puzzles, I do wish there were a little more challenge to the ones Keeper throws up.

Some are so simple that they almost feel like busywork, such as needing to rotate a thumbstick to crank a wheel rather than just pressing a button and having it done. Keeper just about keeps to the right side of this, but there are times when interactions can feel there just for the sake of it, rather than leading to interesting discoveries.

The world is enough

The absence of brain-wracking puzzles, or indeed any failstate for Keeper, is intentional, with Double Fine wanting the journey through the world to be front and center.

And what a world it is.

You start out crunching through a ruined and near-fully obscured seaside town – you can just make out a tarmac road now lost to eons of passing time – to traversing seaside paths, caves, forests, mini archipelagos, and towns and structures that wouldn’t look out of place in a Zelda game.

Adopting a cartoon-like aesthetic that reminds me of Disney Pixar movies, these areas are all gorgeous and richly detailed despite using the soft, painterly-esque textures. There’s a vibrant color palette here, too, which just begs Keeper to be played on an OLED display, such as those you’ll find on some of the best 4K TVs.

Naturally, light plays a big part here, with the beam of the lighthouse cutting through right shadows and intermingling with volumetric fog. But it's the way the light triggers a reaction from the flora and fauna that makes the environment feel alive.

There’s nearly always some creature on screen, be it Twig quietly chirping as the lighthouse enters a foreboding cave, to flocks of birds soaring across a blue sky, jellyfish floating in technicolour plateau, and hulkling beshelled creatures walking, flying, or swimming in the background.

Animation is also top-notch, from the scuttling of tiny creatures to Twig’s wonderfully expressive movements. I can’t help but be impressed at how Double Fine manages to inject so much character into the lighthouse, blending its scuttling insectoid legs with the jaunty wobble of its broken body and metal roof, which serves as at pseudo hat that shields the light-holding structure, itself able to convey a surprising amount of emotion in cutscenes.

Add in some detailed soundwork that even has the quiet clicks of gears moving as the lighthouse ‘looks’ around, and deft use of cinematic camera angles, and Keeper presents a an absorbing world I could just sit and stare at; there are some platforms and outcrops in the journey that exist solely for this with the camera pulling back and giving you a surreal landscape to drink in.

Surreal feel, Pixar plot

Keeper’s artistic presentation and aesthetic wear the theme of metamorphosis very much on its sleeve. The idea of how nature could evolve without human interference, then taken to a surreal level, isn’t subtle but is certainly eye-catching.

Yet for all the weirdness Double Fine touts, including one set piece where it felt like pseudo-70s psychedelia was being forced into my eyes, I found the core narrative of Keeper to be fairly normal. The story of an unexpected journey to reach a destination with a newfound companion, while avoiding an unknowable malevolent force and encountering strange but companionable characters on the way, could be picked from a Disney movie.

While there were some really fun and captivating set pieces across Keeper’s adventure, I could see the direction of the story and its beats from miles away. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as Keeper is more about the vibe of the world than an unfurling plot.

However, with inspiration from Dali and mycelial networks, I was hoping for a story that embraces bizarreness below the surface or had a more thought-provoking story than one that could be boiled down to being a buddy adventure.

There are some neat storytelling flairs, such as having details and context layered in achievement text; for example, you only find out that the antagonistic force that’s threatening the island is called The Wither via the first achievement and chapter titles – the latter you’ll only see in the chapter select menu.

But these don’t really go deep enough for my liking, and I was left wanting to know more about the island, the societies that inhabit it, and The Wither.

It could be argued that any deeper elements of the story are open for interpretation, but I don’t think there’s enough environmental storytelling here for that to play out. I’m all for games being considered art, but I don’t think they work as vehicles for abstract interpretation in the same way as paintings.

None of this would matter if Keeper lent more into its puzzles and systems of interaction to present more of a challenge and depth to its world. Take Astro’s Playroom as a prime example: it hardly has a plot, but it throws up a bounty of puzzles and system-led interactions all wrapped up in an oddball world.

But Keeper eschews the puzzles for a more absorbing adventure, yet I feel it needs more of a story to hold that up.

A great example of this can be seen in 2012’s Journey, which tells its emotional story through its environment, music, and exploration, without the need for any text or puzzles.

None of this is to say Keeper fails at what it set out to do, especially as I enjoyed my time with it and happily jumped back into chapters to drink in its visual splendour.

Were this a decade ago, I’d have happily applauded a Pixar-style narrative and aesthetic in an adventure game.

But it's 2025, and my expectations from artistically focused games are higher than what Keeper delivers.

Ultimately, with all the turmoil at Xbox right now, I’m pleased to see Double Fine have the chance to create something esoteric and original, rather than a remaster of an existing game. And for that reason and more, Keeper is worth experiencing over a weekend to immerse yourself in its art, world, and creativity.

Should you play Keeper?

Play it if...

Don't play it if...

Accessibility

Keeper has a selection of accessibility options that you can adjust to suit your needs. UI text size can be adjusted, and screen narration is also on offer. There’s also the option to adjust how frequently prompts pop up. There’s a standard option to tweak different volume settings, such as turning down the music but keeping the main sound up. At launch, Keeper will feature 26 interface languages.

Most importantly, there are fully remappable controls and the ability to accept alternative inputs, along with the standard options to tune aim sensitivity and vibration feedback.

Keeper can have a lot going on screen at once, which can be a challenge for people like me with somewhat compromised sight. There's not much that can be done here, but the pacing of the game means you have time to take in the details and spot areas of interest at your leisure.

How I reviewed Keeper

I played Keeper to completion, over around seven hours, which involved poking around in corners for secret paths and achievements. As a fairly linear game, there aren’t any extra modes or features to tap into, with Keeper all being about its main story experience.

I reviewed Keeper on an Xbox Series X connected to an LG C1 OLED TV running in its gaming mode, playing with a standard Xbox Wireless Controller. There are no performance or graphics settings to choose from, and I simply ran Keeper on my setup as it came, with no adjustments, and got a rather smooth experience.

On the audio side, I played Keeper using a Bang & Olufsen Beoplay Portal Xbox headset for the course of the game, which worked well with the soundscape and music the game pumped out.

First reviewed October 2025

Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is a remake of the classic Japanese role-playing game (JRPG), The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky, which was first released 21 years ago. Developer Nihon Falcom has modernized its 2004 title with full English voice acting, an overhauled combat system, and multiple quality of life improvements, bringing it to just about every modern platform you can imagine.

Now, I’ll put my cards on the table. I’m totally new to the Trails series. Sure, I predominantly play role-playing games (RPGs), but I simply hadn’t found the time to sink my teeth into it. But Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter appeared to be the ultimate entry point. Why? Firstly, it’s a remake of the very first part of the Trails story – but it's also got a smooth, up-to-date UI and graphics, making it very easy to get into for new players like me.

And after hours and hours exploring the Liberl Kingdom, I have to say, I’m so happy that I got the opportunity to dive into a Trails game. Yes, Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is a very apt remake, with addictive combat, an engaging plot, and brilliant visuals. Here’s a rundown of my experience with the game, and why I think it's among the best RPGs of 2025.

Brace yourself for an epic journey

Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter follows the journey of Estelle Bright and her adopted brother, Joshua Bright, as they aim to track down their missing father and become Senior Bracers – essentially protectors of the peace.

As the tale unfolds, Estelle and Joshua find themselves embroiled in something much deeper than a simple search and rescue. I won’t spoil what’s to come, of course, but the game isn’t short on twists and turns. Although things take a while to get going – the opening is pretty lengthy – the narrative remains intriguing throughout. Cutscenes never feel overlong or convoluted, either, so rest assured, you’re in for an engaging adventure.

Estelle and Joshua make for interesting dual protagonists – Estelle is the explosive, fiery, energetic type, who’s all action. Meanwhile, Joshua appears more measured and introverted, resulting in some humorous conflicts, especially earlier on.

I will say that a few characters – Estelle included – do have that stereotypical over-the-top anime energy. This can be a little intense in moments, and may wear some players down, but it rarely bothered me, personally.

And the English voice acting is delivered to a high standard – every character’s personality is communicated with genuine passion and care. This adds so much texture to the various individuals you meet throughout the game, and it's a very welcome improvement from the 2004 original.

However, there are some segments – even in the main story – where scenes aren’t voice-acted, or bizarrely, only partially voice-acted. For instance, I encountered a non-player character (NPC) whose lines were voiced entirely, while those of Estelle, Joshua, and company were not. This resulted in a kind of awkward viewing experience, slightly reducing my immersion in the scene.

A Liberl dose of upgrades

It's not only voice acting that elevates the Trails in the Sky experience, though. Just about every other area has been significantly upgraded, making the game a lot more appealing than its original counterpart.

Perhaps the most obvious thing is that the visuals have received a major revamp. And I’m a huge fan of this new look.

Character models looked fantastic on the PS5 version of the game, environments are bursting with color, and elements such as shadows appear natural. That’s not to mention the fact that the game ran just about flawlessly for me, with a smooth frame rate and short loading screens throughout my playtime, even when fast-traveling or playing in the handy high-speed mode.

I massively appreciated the graphical quality here – especially when you consider that the original game used chibi-style sprites in combat and cutscenes, rather than fully fledged 3D models.

Something else I loved about this remake was its revamped original soundtrack. The music in Trails 1st Chapter is a beautiful mixture of funky, emotive, and invigorating, with almost every track complementing your battles or exploration down to a T. I also adore the fact that you can cycle between standard, arranged, or original background music – that sort of optionality is seriously commendable.

One more thing I want to shout out is the improved UI. I found the various menus in the game to be extremely easy to navigate through, whether I was equipping new gear, cooking up a new dish, or viewing my status. Everything about this game is silky smooth; it really is a joy to play.

The only aspect that I’d argue could’ve been improved would be the localization. There are some grammatical and translation errors littered throughout the text displayed throughout the game. I’ll admit that this is a small issue, especially as the voice acting is ultra-clean and the story has been faithfully re-created.

Chain…follow-up…I just can’t stop

I’ve been excited to discuss this game’s combat because it seriously impressed me. There are two ways to battle through Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter: quick battle, real-time action-based combat; and command battle, a turn-based, more slow-paced approach.

It’s great fun to dive headfirst into scuffs via quick battle. I had a blast slashing up my opponents, charging up almighty crafts, and weaving around incoming attacks. If you stun an enemy, you can even switch into command battle and fight with an advantage over your foes, making it easier to clean up normal encounters quickly and load up on exp.

Command battle is the default for boss and mini-boss encounters. Turn order is displayed on the side of the screen, and on each turn you can decide whether to: cast an art, like a healing or attack magic; leather your opponent with a craft – a strong physical attack; use an item, shield, or flee. You’ll also get the chance to follow up or chain attack your enemies for huge damage. It took me a while to get used to this system, but when I nailed down the right arts, I was able to withstand harsh strings of enemy attacks and then launch a deadly counter-offensive.

You’ll need to get used to the orbment and quartz system if you want to stand a chance against some bosses, too – there are some difficulty spikes that are punishing to say the least.

The orbment system essentially requires you to string a range of gems together in a specific pattern in order to unlock new arts. Some, like Earth Guard, proved almost necessary for me to get through some tough battles in the early game – if you’re struggling, I’d suggest re-evaluating your build-out in this department, as well as purchasing better gear at an in-game shop.

If you’re still struggling after re-stratagizing, don’t fear! You can simply turn down the difficulty, which ranges from Very Easy all the way up to Nightmare. As an experienced RPG player, I went with Normal – but this was by no means without its challenges.

Yep, I got my fair share of kickings during my playthrough. Sometimes, I was left dumbfounded as to how I could possibly survive such high-damage attacks and whittle down some imposing health bars. But the orbment system really does encourage experimentation, and when you finally nail down the right strategy, victory is oh so satisfying.

Sure, the game is going to ask some tough questions of you – but it’s also going to give you the tools to find the right answers. And in the end? That makes for exceptionally satisfying gameplay.

As someone who was experiencing a Trails game for the first time, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from this title. But truly, it blew my expectations out of the water. With a mixture of gorgeous graphics, addictive combat, a whimsical world, and a gripping plot, Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is a top-class JRPG.

But not only that, it's also a top-class remake. There are just so many improvements – a new UI, battle mechanics, visual style…I could go on. And it rarely feels like Nihon Falcom takes any half-measures. There are some small localization errors and some offbeat partially-voiced segments, sure. And some may find the difficulty spikes to be intimidating.

Still, Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is one of the best remakes of 2025, and one of the best JRPGs I’ve played this year, no question. If you’re a fan of the genre, this is an easy recommendation, and if you’ve ever wanted to get into the Trails series, now is the time to do it!

Should you play Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter?

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Accessibility features

You can adjust the subtitle language to English, German, French, or Spanish, and select either English or Japanese voice acting. There are a number of ways to customize the camera’s behavior, too, such as normal or inverted configurations, camera movement speed, and camera distance.

On top of this, there are difficulty options, including a Very Easy mode if you just want to focus on the game’s story. Unfortunately, there is no colorblind mode.

How I reviewed Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter:

I spent more than 30 hours playing Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter, predominantly focusing on the main story, but also picking up a few side quests here and there. I played the game on Normal difficulty throughout my time with it.

When playing Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter on PS5, I had my console connected up to the Sky Glass Gen 2 TV and used the Samsung HW-Q800D soundbar. On occasion, I also dipped into the game via remote play on my Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, but this was pretty rare.

On a personal note, I’ve reviewed a variety of games here at TechRadar, including recent releases like Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army and Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles. I'm also a life-long fan of JRPGs, with some of my favorite games including Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, Persona 3 Reload, and Final Fantasy VII (the original, of course).

First reviewed September-October 2025