Eyad Elkhatib

It is no surprise that the Pokémon franchise, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, is ever-flourishing, with hordes of die-hard fans around the world. However, with 35 Pokémon titles released over the last quarter of a century, one would expect to see a spectacular increase in visual appeal as well as overall mechanics. Unfortunately, the opposite seems to be the case — as the years go by, the games’ overall quality has been dropping.

Gaming has always offered an escape: a portal away from daily woes and a much-needed distraction in times of anxiety or boredom. Of course, sometimes you just want to shoot your troubles away with a first-person shooter, enjoy social gaming with friends in cooperative titles, or even beat up enemies in a fighting game. But, if you are looking for a change of pace with some more relaxing and aesthetic stories or puzzles, here are a couple of wholesome games for cold winter days.

Just when the overwhelming game release schedule of October finally came to a close, November decided to one-up it. With the most-hyped release being the new God of War game, it is easy to miss many other titles that have already come out this month. So, here is some of the new gaming fodder that made an appearance in early November, and a bit about why you should check out these games.