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Willa Rowe

Willa Rowe

Contributor
Author/Co-Author of 19 articles

Willa is a freelance games critic based in New York City. Before contributing to Digital Trends she previously wrote for Inverse and Kotaku. Beyond her writing, Willa talks about games on the Girl Mode podcast alongside her co-host Robin Bea.

Willa fell in love with video games as soon as she was born, having grown up watching her siblings play Ocarina of Time and Mario Kart on the Nintendo 64. She fell in love with criticism through her other artistic passion, theater, and managed to combine these two things into a career. Willa earned her master's degree at the Columbia Journalism School. When she isn't writing or talking about video games she is either cooking, watching anime, or thinking about the New York Mets.

A distorted Eiffel Tower looms over a city that looks similar to Paris

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33’s style is its substance

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 uses the visuals of the Belle Époque era to reinforce its narrative of optimism and grief.
Gaming Features
A robot walks across a grassy field with ruins in the background.

The Talos Principle: Reawakened hits very different in our new AI future

The Talos Principle: Reawakened is a great remake that suffers from the context 2025 brings to a puzzle classic about artificial intelligence
Gaming Features
Kirby riding on a flying star looking back towards the camera

Kirby Air Riders for Nintendo Switch 2 gives a GameCube classic a sequel

Masahiro Sakurai is back to direct a sequel to the cult classic GameCube racer.
Gaming News
Nintendo GameCube controller on red background

Nintendo Switch Online adding GameCube games exclusively for Switch 2

Wind Waker finally showed up at a Switch direct, just not how everybody expected it to!
Gaming News
A overhead view of a Switch 2 Pro controller.

The new Switch 2 Pro Controller has some big improvements

The Switch 2's Pro Controller brings back buttons to Nintendo's new console.
Gaming News
A blonde girl rings a bell and a brown haired boy walks behind her. They are surrounded by animals.

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar might fix my biggest problem with farming sims

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar's most unique feature encourages you to take pride in your work and remember that farming sims are all about community.
Gaming Features
A white-haired woman wielding a sword with a white dragon behind her stares at a black haired man also wielding a sword with a blue and black dragon behind him.

Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma is a jack of all trades that actually can do it all

Guardians of Azuma's brand-new setting gives Rune Factory the chance to improve the familiar formula without changing the game entirely.
Gaming Features
A man stands next to a white-haired woman as they look over an alien lanscape

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition Review: this Wii U classic is a survivor

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition stuns thanks to a grand sense of scale that puts equal emphasis on the big and small aspects of its world.
Gaming Reviews
A white exhibit room with wooden floors has multiple pieces of art hanging.

This free interactive museum lets you explore Wikipedia like never before

The Museum of All Thing uses scale to bring a whole new perspective to the vast wealth of information we have available to us.
Gaming Features
Multiple cyclists pedal inside of an arena.

The best Steam Next Fest demos: try these 10 games for free today

Check out the latest Steam Next Fest for free demos on some of the most exciting games you should be adding to your wish list.
Gaming Features
cabernet vampire game recommendation hed

Finally, a good vampire video game to sink your teeth into

Narrative RPG Cabernet let's players decide what kind of vampire to be in a town full of potential friends and victims.
Gaming Features
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Sayonara Wild Hearts’ hypnotic new PS5 mode is worth the double dip

Sayonara Wild Hearts just got a surprise PS5 release, which includes an excellent new mode that's worth playing.
Gaming Features
A woman with an eye patch wearing a green jacket stands behind a woman with red hair wearing a black jacket.

This Ace Attorney inspired indie raises the stakes by adding a poker influence

Fans of Phoenix Wright shouldn't miss of the Devil's inventive cyberpunk twist on a familiar formula.
Gaming Features
Three figures clothed in sci-fi military gear run through a green alien world.

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition doesn’t mess with what already works

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition acts as a great entry point for anybody who's been too intimidated to try the series before.
Gaming Features
A black and white photo of five siblings posing together.

Succession meets Return of the Obra Dinn in this thrilling mystery game

Search the internent for clues about a generational family feud in The Roottrees are Dead's deducitve puzzle box.
Gaming Features
A masked man holds a flaming sword towards the camera.

Borderlands 4 gets a new trailer and a September release date

Gearbox's looter shooter series returns this September with more information to come in a special deep dive State of Play in Spring.
Gaming News
A young girl in a white dress looks back. She carries a bag and a bow on her back while holding an orange leaf in her hand.

One of 2024’s most overlooked games just came to consoles. Don’t miss it twice

2024 hidden gem Momodora: Moonlit Farewell just came to consoles, and it's a stylish Metroidvania worth checking out.
Gaming Features
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Grand Theft Hamlet review: something rotten

Grand Theft Hamlet blends online gaming and Shakespeare to mixed results.
Entertainment Entertainment Reviews
A blond boy casts a fishing line into an ocean filled with monstrous fish. A boy with red hair and a girl with cat ears stand next to him.

This RPG turns my favorite part of Stardew Valley into an entire game

Sea Fantasy takes Stardew Valley's fishing and turns it into a great RPG all its own.
Gaming Features