Days Gone isn't a particularly good game; however, I had no illusions of that going in. It's perhaps the ultimate culmination of the incestuous nature of Sony's first-party development - a game full of systems and storytelling that have been aped from other places internally and executed better elsewhere (seriously, this game even steals the "talk to the gravestone of your loved one and update them on the story's events" gimmick of Horizon Zero Dawn). It's a title that desperately wants to punctuate itself with moments of quiet poignancy but instead hits you over the head with what feels like the unhinged ramblings of a madman. It's a game I would describe as unflinchingly competent but inherently uninspired.

There were, however, a few things I took away from Days Gone for which I will give it credit, even if by accident:

1. Despite this being one of the most unpolished AAA games I've ever played, it did result in at least one amazing glitch. After catching a stray Molotov, my character became engulfed in flames and remained in that state even after technically putting it out. I spent the next several hours with this visual glitch ostensibly cosplaying as Ghost Rider, and it carried through several of the game's most important cutscenes until I had to reload my save.

2. Days Gone actually lets you kill children. Zombie children, granted, but most games of this nature kind of pretend kids don't exist or lock you out from hurting them, so I'm glad they had the balls to let you do it.

3. One of the few games brave enough to have part of its core message be "Revenge is based, actually." Kudos.

About once a year I return to Frostpunk to get a handful of playthroughs in, mostly in the main scenario, but this wonderfully weird combination of survival game and city builder always tends to pull me back when I'm lacking in something else to play. It took me a little while to wrap my mind around the intricacies of its systems but it's thankfully a game that's still fun to learn even in failure.

The biggest compliment I can give to Frostpunk is that I originally played this game in the middle of summer, and by the end of my first session, the unyielding oppression of its frozen scenario left me positively freezing in real life. There's a genuine psychological effect to it that makes you absolutely feel like you're cold, even when it's 90 degrees outside. Never experienced anything like that before.

For me Yakuza 6 undoubtly has one of the weaker stories in the series, if not the weakest. But it's nontheless also one that pulls at your heartstrings, because it highlights once again Kiryu and his strong bond to his loved ones.

While I do not like certain aspects of the story, like Haruka's teenage pregnancy and the long search for the father that followed after, I could still enjoy it for what it was. But mostly because it was great to see how committed Kiryu is to his family. Papa Kiryu in Y3 was a sweet experience, so Grandpa Kiryu in Y6 is just as endearing and heartwarming to see. Just like in Y3, I like how the game switches from grandpa simulator to the usual Yakuza stuff we're used to and I honestly couldn't ask for more.

Kiryu and his ties and strong emotions towards his loved ones is a strong component of the series, so it's only natural that family bonds, especially fatherhood, and blood ties are the main aspect of Kiryu's final journey....or so I thought.

With the announcement of LAD Gaiden and LAD 8 it's clear that Kiryu's journey seems far from over and honestly? I'm very happy about that, because Kiryu is one of my favorite characters in all of gaming. The fact that LAD Gaiden will also feature the traditional Yakuza combat, which I really love and will dearly miss in future installments, makes me even more happy and excited.