Large scale sci-fi strategy is a genre that will hopefully be here for many years to come. And at its core that’s what Dawn of War III is, and what its campaign and multiplayer highlight – epic sci-fi strategy with armies of varied units fighting against different races in heated and intense battles. It’s no secret that developer Relic understands this genre well, which in turn means that the balance and differences to be found among the Space Marines, Orks, and Eldar -- not only in units but in presentation and characterisation -- shines throughout. Which makes the addition of MOBA-like elements less of an experiment, than it is a different and fun approach. And just like the action-RPG direction of the second outing, Dawn of War III once again has made us eagerly anticipate what’s next for the series.

After each episode, you even get a chart highlighting the path you’ve taken with spoiler-free hints at the breadth of outcomes and scenes available. And even with all of that, each new twist and turn feels unexpected. As a slice of brand-new interactive choice-driven narrative drama, As Dusk Falls impresses. But it’s an experience held back by its photo-filter visuals and interactivity that never quite feels like an extension of its many dramatic moments.

Peggle 2 is an extremely safe sequel, and consequently a bit dull, most of the time.

The game shows conceptual promise – you unlock some mild security manipulation powers that will hopefully be pushed further in future episodes – but conceptual promise isn’t worth much until it has been delivered upon.

Something a bit different from the annual update they've come to love. It's another triumph for EA Canada.

What makes this so immersive is the extraordinary animation and artwork. Everything feels alive, from the pulsating creatures that line the walls, to the slick and swift movement of the boss creatures.

The hardcore JRPG lovers looking for meaty Switch representation will froth over this, but as a new entry in the field, Bravely Default II only displays acid rain level nostalgia. It’s the dinosaur they just added feathers to, to make it seem like something new, but really, it’s all the same skeletal system we’ve known and studied already for so long.

In the end the narrative isn’t quite as strong as the puzzle content found throughout, but nonetheless Q.U.B.E. 2 is an impressive entry in the test-chamber puzzle game subgenre first made popular by Valve’s Portal.

Like Treyarch before them, it feels like Cold War is Raven’s break-free moment, and their “love letter” reads passionately and completely with this Black Ops entry. We’ve talked up Assassin’s Creed Valhalla maybe being the only real next-gen title this year, but with Cold War, Activision is making a cold case for Cold War to be considered in the same conversation. And so far, we’ve collected all the evidence we need to agree.

With a shift away from clear-cut good and bad, Spec Ops challenges the sympathetic grey-matter with highlighted gaps between 'killing machine' and morality lessened as you tread "the line".

In the end Saints Row The Third Remastered is a reminder that the style of action seen in Grand Theft Auto and Crackdown can find a cartoonish and juvenile middle-ground. A place where the concept of gangs and friendship is both comic and grounded. A place where player freedom lets you make your mark on the world with style and a distinct lack of grace. With the fourth Saints Row leaning ever more into the absurd, thanks to a plot that deals with alien invasions and virtual realities, Saints Row The Third Remastered is arguably the series at its best.

Shadows of the Damned will not change games, or gaming. But it will make you laugh and will keep you engaged for some time. It's a solid 10-hour experience for anyone versed in the genre, and if you're into upgrading and collecting, you could squeeze a bit more out of it.

The Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind is a definite success, it faithfully recreates and updates the iconic location for both modern audiences and modern gaming hardware. Seriously, simply walking around and taking in all the sights is worth the price of admission alone. Well, for those that think fondly of their time spent with the original Morrowind over a decade ago. But, with a great story that expands and digs deep into the sort of lore and history that would make any Elder Scrolls fan happy, The Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind feels very much like its own thing too.

During the latter half of the game you wouldn’t me amiss spamming your way through most battles whilst playing closer attention to the story, dialogue, and engaging world. In the end, the approachable combat gives the fantasy dungeon-crawling of Operencia a wider appeal than say a new Wizardry might. Fans of party-based RPGs in the vein of Baldur’s Gate or Dragon Age will find a lot to love here too, thanks to the combination of great writing and wonderful presentation. And hey, any fantasy world that features a relic called the magical Amulet of Zotmund is one worth visiting.

Crysis 3 comes so close to greatness that it’s a tragedy that it didn’t make it. If the next game focuses a little more on mood-setting moments where the player – gasp – has no way to kill anything at all, then it’ll be the perfect sci-fi shooter.

This is truly a developer putting all their skills and knowledge to use, funneling it into one singular creation, whilst also focusing on presenting it to players not at all familiar with the series.

Dead Island 2 does leave you wanting more, in a good way. The simple combat is endlessly engaging and gory, thanks to the physics, the weight of each hit, and the next-level destruction that lets you shoot holes through zombies or leave a wound right where your blade struck. In co-op, it’s a blast and funny in ways that watching classic b-movies with friends that feature over-the-top violence. In the end, there’s enough here to make us want Dead Island 3. Here’s hoping we don’t need to wait ten years for the next one.

In the end though it’s the improved combat, minus a few camera issues and frustratingly difficult boss encounters, the progression and build possibilities, and the wonderful level design that go a long way to make up for the lack of narrative drive. Or interest in what happens to the world. In this regard The Surge 2 is an improvement, but an experience that still feels like it’s a few more brutal dismemberment finishers away from finding the right plan to research and build its full potential.

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate gets more right than it gets wrong, but in trying to amend some of the sins of the series, it exacerbates the issues instead of offering a cure. Despite that rather lengthy list of cons at the bottom of my review, one thing’s for sure: Assassin’s Creed Syndicate is still a hell of a lot of fun.

While the initial training section leaves a lot to be desired, with early maps throwing you in the deep end, once you get the hang of the controls it's one hell of a wild ride with multiplayer sure to keep you coming back for more time and time again.

Dying Light 2 Stay Human’s greatest achievement is its freedom of movement, and the playground Techland has designed for you to best leverage that is a triumph of what feels like infinite proportions. At its most fundamental core, at the headiest tine of it all, the game’s promise of an open-world with zombies and near limitless freerunning opportunities is delivered to the letter. Unfortunately there’s much around those three pillars that simply isn’t delivered to the degree it’s obvious the studio would have liked. Whether it’s in performance, pacing or overall balance, across every system Dying Light 2 has cracks in its seams.

Having hundreds of different weapon mods and customisation options are great if you’re a gun nut, but when everyone dies after a few hits it starts to lose its appeal. Instead it’s the stuff where strapping a vehicle or chopper with C4 and letting it glide into enemy territory before setting it off should have been encouraged more in the overall design. In the end, Ghost Recon Wildlands suffers because it plays things a little too safe and fails to make proper use of the gorgeous fictional world of Bolivia in a way that offers more than solid stealth shooting, fun co-op, and small bursts of player-created fun.

It's easy to praise American Nightmare for what it is, but it's also hard to ignore what it's not: the proper Alan Wake sequel we're clamouring for. It's a game constrained by form, obviously meant as a stopgap in which Remedy can test out a few new ideas without having to craft an entire new game around them.

The comedy which can be described as absurdist is also full of heart and warmth, and there’s a focus on positivity you can feel throughout.

Despite its devotion to performing the necessary post-introduction busywork, and needing to tread water in preparation for future episodes, The Lost Lords remains entertaining.

Garden Warfare may not be the most ambitious game ever made, but its one with a clear sense of personality and identity, which is more than you can say for a lot of other online shooters.

Smoke and Mirrors establishes that The Wolf Among Us will likely be worth seeing through, although whether it’s worth doing so now or waiting for the season’s end is a more open question than one might have anticipated at the end of the first episode.

Bugs are aplenty. The voice system barely works, crashes happen regularly and pings fluctuate from game to game.