Goat Simulator 3 is a more extensive and technically polished but also less charming version of its predecessor. It’s perfect for co-op or brief relaxation, so the ideal course of action would be to buy it discounted and play it in short sessions.

If you expect a revolution in terms of gameplay, you’ll be disappointed. The developers still experiment in search of the perfect interactive cinematic experience formula, but their attempts are too modest to really make a difference. The Devil in Me is not only derivative, but also squanders the potential of its story and setting, and compared to The Quarry, looks like an unpolished project developed on a tight budget.

After crazy Shadow Warrior 3 and toned down Trek to Yomi the Warsaw-based Flying Wild Hog studio offers a new IP that combines Wild West, horror and steampunk. It’s an explosive concoction with a surprisingly complex combat system, but if slaying monsters is not enough for you and you expect a wider range of experiences, Evil West is not a game for you.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales is still very enjoyable, but mainly because the base game was great, as this stand-alone expansion does next to nothing to evolve the formula. If you’re okay with getting more of the same, you should not be disappointed, especially that the port is solid and looks fantastic on a powerful PC.

Sonic Frontiers is both the best and the worst entry to the series. Romping around the open environments is great, the bosses are among the best Sonic has ever met, and the soundtrack is once again full of bangers. It’s a shame that every step of the way you can see that the development was rushed, which resulted in an incredibly rough gameplay and made my experience sad and painful.

Pentiment is one of the most intelligent and most engaging adventure games I have ever played. Just like Umberto Eco’s “The Name of the Rose”, Obsidian’s masterpiece intertwines crime mystery with historical, theological and personal threads and embeds all that in a very believable portrayal of human relations. I’m convinced this brilliant game will be remembered for decades to come.

Fortunately, Bloody Ties is more than just a series of arena fights, as it also offers other types of quests and a pretty extensive (but not particularly great) story. If you enjoyed Dying Light 2 and are thirsty for more, you will probably be satisfied with this DLC, but don’t expect it to elevate the whole experience.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II offers excellent, perfectly toned-down multiplayer that – unlike the previous games in the series – requires good but not superhuman reflexes. Guns feel better than ever and the extremely dynamic, huge Ground War is a great mode for a Battlefield fan. Modern Warfare II is simply the best online shooter available. What’s more, the single player campaign is outstanding too. Missions in its second half might disappoint those who expect to have their finger on the trigger all the time, but amazing graphics and some really cool assignments make bearing with those gameplay experiments worth it.

Bayonetta 3 turned out to be fresher than I expected thanks to Viola (an additional heroine with her own fighting style), side chapters that reward stealthy approach, and the ability to summon demons who aid you in combat. However, as much as I applaud introducing new features, I must point out that they are a bit less polished than the mechanics we’ve seen before. Despite some little problems Bayonetta is still one of this year’s best games and a must-have for every Switch player.

Victoria 3 hides its light under a bushel, but once you invest enough time to get acquainted with all of its mechanics, you’ll realize it’s one of the best, most engaging grand strategies ever.

Some say God of War Ragnarok is a below-par effort from Santa Monica Studio, because in reality it’s just a glorified PS4 game. You know what? Just ignore those voices. It’s an excellent sequel whose story perfectly sets the evolving relationship between Kratos and adolescent Atreus against the backdrop of key events from Norse mythology. The scale, the visceral combat, the end of the world looming on the horizon… Play this game, it’s worth it.

The PS5 version of Persona 5 Royal is the best edition of one of the greatest games of the previous generation. However, is a set of DLCs and an upgrade to 60 frames per second worth paying the price the publisher is asking? I don’t think it is. Someone should break into Atlus’s Palace and change the hearts of the management, because this rip-off is distasteful.

This curious mix of a roguelike and a reversed bullet hell shooter will either discourage you quickly or – if you give it a chance – amaze you with gameplay intensity and quite complex mechanics revealed gradually. You’ll either love Vampire Survivors or hate it – I don’t see a middle ground here.

Playing The DioField Chronicle, I kept thinking of the popular meme: “Mom, can we have Fire Emblem? No, we have Fire Emblem at home”. The DioField Chronicle could have been a competition for the Fire Emblem series, but it’s not as complex as it pretends to be, fails to offer anything more than just solid basics and ultimately turns out to be bland.

Did Batman’s mentees manage to carry on without him? They did, buy he would’ve coped better. Gotham Knights has its moments, but its not as fun as Rocksteady’s gems and fails to hit the visual quality I expect from a PS5 game despite running at 30 fps. WB Games Montréal delivered a decent title that satisfies the hunger for adventures set in the DC Universe, but I had the feeling the developers didn’t even try to beat the Arkham series.

New Tales from the Borderlands impressed me with its graphics and pleased me with settings that let you customize QTE’s or even turn them off completely. It’s a shame that the game didn’t inherit its predecessor’s cool writing and kept annoying me with cringe-making attempts at humor. What’s worse, it simply bored me.

Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope is a surprisingly refreshing sequel based on the same concept but not afraid of substantial changes. Some encounters seem out of context and the story is lackluster, but the game benefited greatly from reworked combat system (ditching squares for free movement was a good idea after all) and significantly increased emphasis on exploration. For me, it was one of the best gaming experiences of 2022.

The PC edition of Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection is decent in terms of technical execution and still looks good despite the years, but in 2022 its graphics are not jaw-dropping anymore. The gameplay should appeal to those looking for a simple de-stressing fun and an adrenaline rush, but heavy emphasis on a cinematic experience may not be everyone’s cup of tea and the multiplayer modes are missing.

1428: Shadows over Silesia is a very good adventure game, an unexceptional stealth game and a frustrating action game with some traces of an RPG. I enjoyed its engrossing dark story set in medieval Europe with magical elements, distinct atmosphere, great music and very difficult (yet logical) puzzles, but unpleasant combat and other flaws sometimes turn Shadows over Silesia into a chore.

FIFA 23 is a worthy farewell to the series’ current name. The HyperMotion2 technology makes gameplay more realistic and simply better, while the changes to Ultimate Team’s squad chemistry system are a step in the right direction. However, it’s a shame that single-player modes were neglected once again.

Cultic borrows heavily from grandpa Blood, but is a step backwards compared to Monolith’s cult classic. Admittedly, all available guns are fun to use, but even though the game is short, it still overstays its welcome due to bloated, boring environments and repetitive enemies.

A Plague Tale: Requiem tells an engaging story set in breathtaking sceneries of 14th-century France where enchanting flowery meadows contrast with battlefields reeking of corpses. For the most part, it’s a safe sequel, but some improvements to the formula gave the game a chance to win over those disappointed by the extreme linearity of its predecessor. Requiem offers open, sometimes very spacious environments with multiple paths and hiding spots, but it’s a shame that mediocre AI can’t keep up with more freedom and possibilities given to the player in terms of dealing with enemies.

Inspired by the works of Giger and Beksiński, Scorn is a visual masterpiece that will leave you uneasy, feeling defiled, possibly horrified. And worst of all – it will probably make you brood over uncomfortable things. It’s simply not a game everyone will enjoy. It will discourage some by exceeding the limits of good taste. Others will be too goal-oriented to take in the atmosphere, intellectually engaged in solving puzzles so much they’ll miss their consequences, too excited by encountering enemies to notice their weapons have an umbilical cord. But I’m sure some will appreciate Ebb Software’s captivating creation deeply.

Grounded captivated me with its survival layer and the atmosphere of its wonderful miniature world. Then it discouraged me with a couple of ill-considered design choices, including ones that artificially extend its length in a tiring manner. Ultimately, however, I kept coming back to Obsidian’s game not because I had to, but because I wanted to. Despite having devoted 60 hours to Grounded, I can’t shake the feeling this backyard still holds many secrets and I’m eager to discover them.

In some respects Prodeus pretty much seems to be a clone of the very first Doom, but it imitates the legend ridiculously well, because the guys from Bounding Box Software perfectly understand the pillars of id Software’s success. Their game is fast and satisfying, old school and modern at the same time, sounds great and looks even better.

Aided by the Terrible Toybox team, Gilbert and Grossman deconstructed the legend and rebuilt it, modernizing it but also paying homage to the past. Return to Monkey Island is not just a great point’n’click that will remind you why you fell in love with the genre, but also an artistic statement that needs a certain degree of maturity to be fully appreciated. We were promised a comedy about pirates, but also got a piece on mortality.

The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow is charged with the aura of moors and local folklore. I really enjoyed taking part in the experience of the heroine stranded in a strange place were the real and supernatural worlds intertwine, but I also have to applaud logical puzzles and a really engaging story.

For me Shovel Knight Dig is the blandest of all games starring the blue knight. It does everything decently as a 2D roguelike platformer but fails to impress in any way and I would only recommend it to those fans of Shovel Knight who have already played all previous entries to the franchise.