Overall, Tiny Bookshop is a fun, cozy game for book lovers where you live that dream of running a bookstore, while also forming friendships with the locals. The use of real books makes it feel personal, especially if you’re someone who reads often, plus it makes recommending titles to others a breeze. While the story isn’t perfect due to its lack of execution, it’s not too big of a deal unless you’re someone who’s invested in the narrative. Regardless, it’s still enjoyable and could introduce you to your next book.

I felt enamored with Kena: Bridge of Spirits throughout the entirety of its gorgeous adventure, but its gameplay and exploration doesn’t fully match the high expectations set by its stunning visuals. It’s got some solid combat that has just the right amount of challenge, some clever puzzles itching to be solved and plenty of nooks and crannies to explore. But the rewards for curious exploration aren’t always that exciting, and I wish I’d had more time getting to know the likeable Kena herself before the credits rolled. Still, Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a captivating and well-made affair with a big heart, and will surely scratch an itch for many gamers keen on taking part in a touching journey through one of the prettiest worlds ever created.

Eyes in the Dark is a great little roguelike platformer whose clever upgrades system and unique presentation are enough for it to stand out in a crowd. Although the Impediments system can leave your experience a bit too at the mercy of RNG, overall the variety of upgrades and difficulty curve ensured that Eyes in the Dark remained a fair and fun experience. If you are seeking a new roguelike to get invested in, you should definitely consider a trip to Bloom Manor.

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes shines bright in the long lineage of games in the Musou formula. Miles better than its predecessor, this is one of the smoothest Warriors-style games yet. Barring a rare example, its mission and gameplay loop holds up. The narrative does the best it can in a genre not particularly known for stellar stories, but will still remain a little oddly paced from time to time. Provided is a joyous occasion to revisit some treasured familiar faces and engage in riotous combat and a smooth experience not too barred down by menus. If the series continues on this trajectory, it’s all smooth sailing ahead. For Fódlan!

My Time at Sandrock is a cosy yet action-packed farming simulator that has you not only building up a dying town, but uncovering a conspiracy that threatens the quaint lives of the inhabitants. With every new update, the game has been getting stronger and stronger. And while admittedly there are some shortcomings with accessibility and glitches, My Time at Sandrock still manages to be a title fans of the farming sim will absolutely love.

Fire Emblem Engage is an okay addition to the Fire Emblem series, with fun and varied maps and enough changes to the tactical mechanics to make it probably worth playing for any FE fan, though not all of its changes are winners. Its spectacular graphics are something to behold; it’s just a shame that it is accompanied by a story that falls completely flat and emblem heroes that are shadows of their former selves. It’s just sadly underwhelming in the face of what its predecessor, Three Houses, achieved better. 

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon is a quirky little diversion from the main series. Replacing swift combat with slow-paced exploration and puzzles, it’s quite a different attraction. I love the storybook illustrations and narration, and exploring the atmospheric Avalon Forest with Cheshire’s various abilities was great fun. Issues with the forest’s discouraging mazelike map and the simplistic combat are easily trumped by the oodles of character and charm offered by this whimsical spin-off.

Master Chief is back and better than ever. Halo Infinite introduces open-world elements that don’t distract from the main story and add value to its replayability and memorable action. Even with the inclusion of the thrilling Grappleshot, the gameplay still maintains its signature feel. Multiplayer may need a lot of finetuning, but it costs nothing to play and provides plenty of frantic fun for a group of friends and solo players. With more features and additions to come, Halo Infinite isn’t slowing down… No. I think we’re just getting started.

Alan Wake Remastered is yet another classic gaming experience that has been given a new lease on life. While the ongoing trend of remasters and remakes may slowly be becoming tiring or seem uninspired to some, there exists a handful of games in recent years that have reaped the benefits of getting a second chance to strike gold. As a new player coming into the series, I was incredibly excited for this remaster and I came away from the experience with my expectations met and surprisingly exceeded. To see a much-discussed game in the best possible light, means the things that matter to what made the game special back in 2010 remain so today. Remedy delivered a fantastic video game thriller over a decade ago and with the help of the team at d3t, it has done so again with even more polish and refinement than the original ever thought to possess.

Never quite sure what’s lurking below the surface, Dredge captivates from the jump with a well-defined and engaging gameplay loop built atop the foundation of a creepy and beautifully atmospheric setting. The storytelling and questing push this fishing management game into new territory as you uncover just how deep this ocean runs. Some repeated quest archetypes aren’t enough to drag this gem down as Dredge continues to surprise and delight from the moment you first set sail to when you finally hang up your sailor’s hat.

Promenade is a cute 2D platformer with heavy inspiration from 3D platformers of yore. It dips into other genres like puzzle, Metroidvania and collectathons and eases players into its varied gameplay ideas. While the game could explain things better, such as what buttons to press for certain mechanics, what it does is create a great and vibrant experience for its players. Considering this is the debut game from the team at Holy Cap, it’s a fantastic achievement.

Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma perfectly blends the farming and combat experience with Japanese influences. The result is an immersive cultural experience that you don’t want to put down. You actually feel like you are rebuilding villages and restoring prosperity to the land instead of just being a landowner. While it isn’t perfect despite several improvements to the formula, it nevertheless delivers a fun experience that you won’t soon forget.

Slender Threads is an easily digestible adventure narrative, featuring great voice acting and a dramatic, spooky story. The sinister dream motivating Harvey’s actions adds some good tension to the unsettling town of Villa Ventana, but the big reveal at the end fails to impress. Seasoned veterans of adventure games may miss the lack of creative, out-of-the-box thinking, though the game’s simple puzzles will probably work for a casual playthrough, or for genre beginners.

Playing Reanimal, everything feels grander, more abhorrent, and far more centred around creating a deeply unsettling thought experiment that will stick with you well after the credits roll. While the game itself is a short journey marred by its single-player AI companion, lacklustre combat and puzzle-solving gameplay, it is one I felt impelled to take over and over again.

It might be unfair of me to make so many comparisons between Ys VIII and IX, but like I said, I absolutely loved VIII. IX does a lot of things well, but many elements are subpar compared to how its predecessor handled them. Still, the Gift abilities make the city of Balduq a delight to explore, and the tried-and-true battle system is as exhilarating as it ever was. Ys IX: Monstrum Nox is not as polished or as fulfilling as Ys VIII, but second best is nothing to scoff at. This is a fantastic RPG, and an excellent entry in this long running, underappreciated series.

Card Shark’s story, art design, and soundtrack alone make the game a worthwhile experience. What begins as a classic rags-to-riches story quickly evolves into something far more interesting, full of intrigue and betrayal. Progressing the story by cheating the pants off a bunch of pre-revolutionary French dandies in cards is a truly unique and satisfying premise, and it’s largely pulled off well apart from a few imprecise controls. Otherwise, the gameplay might be a little too one-note to hold your engagement for the entire runtime of the game.

The King is Watching is a satisfying, if slightly homogeneous, tetris-like roguelite base builder. While it struggles a bit with variety and uneven meta-progression, its gaze mechanic is a simple and clean hook that, alongside a creative setting and range of kings, makes for an almost comforting building manager run after run. The only problem is, that may not be enough to steal player’s gaze away from the wealth of other roguelikes it’s competing with this year.

Azure Striker GUNVOLT 3 manages to close out the trilogy by upping the ante in all the right ways, introducing new mechanics to keep things fresh whilst re-imagining and building upon what made fans love the series in the first place. A true work of art that blends a retro aesthetic with today’s capabilities, this feels like the culmination of Inti Creates’ many years of work and has been well worth the wait since its predecessor was released back in 2016. If this is the last GUNVOLT title, then we can at least rest comfortably in the knowledge that the Azure Striker went out with the big blue bang he deserved.

While PGA Tour 2K25 is definitely a competent golf game, it’s the little touches that elevate a game from good to great. In a genre as established as golf games, it’s surprising that this title doesn’t quite hit the mark. However, for those eager for the latest golfing experience or who haven’t played a new golf game in years, PGA Tour 2K25 is still a good choice.

Sonic X Shadow Generations gives Shadow fans everything they could wish for and more in this celebration of the Ultimate Lifeform’s history. The level design established in Generations and Sonic Frontiers has been perfected in the generously sized Shadow Generations storyline, with reimagined stages and boss fights from Shadow’s past appearances alongside heaps of references and tributes you’re bound to love.

MLB The Show 24 does not do anything innovative but what it does do is great. Baseball fans will be able to live out their dreams, both as a player and making their favourite team a dynasty. The Storylines mode is a great history lesson focusing on players that would not be showcased otherwise, while new players will find themselves in familiar game modes from other sports games to orient themselves with. While there is nothing particularly new with the game, it is a fun and informative package that is accessible to all, even those without a good knowledge of baseball who want to learn about its early beginnings or its more recent stars. Those who aren’t interested in history have enough other ways to play the game and still get entertainment out of it.

With its skilled application of a foreboding atmosphere instead of cheap jumpscares, The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow is the perfect game to lead us into the spooky season. It’s a well-crafted mystery that is creepy in all the right places, taking us back to a not-too-distant past of superstition. If you’re in the mood for a suspenseful tale of oft-overlooked folklore and themes of grief and loss, the Excavation of Hob’s Barrow gets my firm recommendation.

Much like the characters themselves, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy is a really funny mish-mash of ideas and concepts with some working better than others. At its best, the campaign is strong with well-produced cinematic cutscenes, likable characters, gorgeous environments and an action romp that excites when everything is in sync. On the flipside, the pacing of combat stops things from getting into a solid rhythm until later in the game, and I much preferred my time solving puzzles or platforming while enjoying the epic story. When so much of your journey will be spent in combat, that’s a bit of a shame. Despite some quirks, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy is a super-fun superhero adventure that hits more than it misses, with a banging soundtrack and a lot of personality that more than makes up for its shortcomings.

Teardown does a great job in delivering on its premise, offering players the ability to pull off professional heists any way they want by manipulating the environment to their advantage. You will always have something to do if you get bored of the campaign, such as the sandbox mode where you can experiment and play to your liking, or the challenge mode where you put your skills to the test. Unfortunately, the game’s freedom is tied to your progression in the campaign, forcing you to work within certain constraints. Unless you are a big fan of creating your own experiences, you can quickly become bored of the game if you don’t give yourself time to take a break. Despite this, Teardown is still a solid sandbox experience that can provide hours of entertainment and goals to work towards. For players looking for a good sandbox experience that makes you think and promotes your creativity, you can’t go wrong with Teardown.

An incredible video game seventeen years ago and an incredible video game now, Ninja Gaiden II Black is an immensely strong and timeless action game. All these years later its combat animation, diverse arsenal of weapons and setpieces are unmatched. Though there’s still the issue of it not quite being the most definitive version, this 3D reboot run of the Ninja Gaiden franchise is as relevant as ever. Remember around the time of this trilogy when the age-old debate was whether pirates or ninjas would win in a fight? You simply need to look no further than Ryu and his friends in their blood-soaked glory.

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 doesn’t hold back in showing you what it’s like to be a Space Marine. Combat is gruelling, intense, and punishing even in the best of times. It’s also not easy to understand the importance of the Space Marines if you aren’t familiar with the lore. But if you are willing to give the game a chance, it provides some of the best hack-and-slash shooter experiences and immersive settings. It’s never been more enjoyable to be a Space Marine and understand the horrors of fighting in never-ending conflicts.

With a touching tale of yearning and personal growth on a backdrop of a near sci-fi future, Old Skies meets the standard of quality I’ve come to expect from Wadjet Eye Games. It explores the moral quandaries of time travel in a way I have not seen before, asking not what effect it might have on the future, but what effect it might have on the travellers. Its story is told well, all the while offering mostly quality puzzles that have plenty of potential for fleshing out in a future instalment.

Team Ninja has created a challenging and engaging action game in a fantasy version of Three Kingdoms China. The combat mechanics are intuitive and all work together, making strategy and consideration of each next big boss fight vital. However, those same systems can be overly complex with a flurry of gauges, ranks, and stats to consider all at once. Even with a few difficulty spikes and balancing issues, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is still a fun adventure with creative bosses and exciting battles.