Pokémon Sun and Moon may take its sweet time getting you hooked on its battle monster formula, but once they’re in they’re never coming back out again. Even after twenty years of Pokémon games, Game Freak still has a few surprises and tricks up their sleeve with their most vibrant Pokémon game to date.

Pokémon Sun and Moon may take its sweet time getting you hooked on its battle monster formula, but once they’re in they’re never coming back out again. Even after twenty years of Pokémon games, Game Freak still has a few surprises and tricks up their sleeve with their most vibrant Pokémon game to date.

Nintendo and HAL labs could easily have just made the same game with more puzzles, and nobody would have been upset by that. Instead they’ve upped the complexity, creating a damned near perfect sequel - and something genuinely unmissable for fans of logic puzzles.

Super Mario Maker is every bit the engrossing, feature rich creation tool that it is on the Wii U, but only if you plan on sharing your creations with a very limited pool of people. Its lack of real course-sharing rips out the heart of what made this title so captivating on the Wii U, making it a clear second best choice.

Rush of Blood employs an overbearing use of rote horror imagery, but its immediacy in VR makes it an effective horror game. Brevity aside, Rush of Blood is a PlayStation VR game that you want to own, because it’s one of the best games to demo the PlayStation VR with.

PlayStation VR Worlds is a decent collection of demos that you probably want to own as they’re an excellent way to show off VR. It’s such a pity that these experiences, as much potential as they show, are too brief to be worthwhile.

Darksiders Warmastered is a more than capable upgrade for a game that is almost seven years old. Fortunately, the core gameplay itself is just as satisfying and brutal today as it was in 2010.

Watch Dogs 2 manages to improve on almost every point that made its predecessor so disappointing. It’s a more robust open-world game, packed with meaningful content and mechanics that beg the player to experiment and toy with them. Though it still hangs onto some facets a little too tightly, this is one sequel that manages to make its opening act seem like a mistake best left forgotten.

If Guardian of Gotham tense atmosphere and hard choices are anything to by in this penultimate episode, then Telltale is on the verge of delivering the definitive Batman story in video game form.

Shu is great in its presentation, but falters with its raw mechanics. It provides a solid, albeit simple platforming experience.

Story pacing issues aside, World of Final Fantasy is an absolute joy to play through. The game may look tiny, but it has a massive heart.

Excellent combat and the joy of customizing a character keeps this as a strong entry in the franchise, even as it is undercut by a lackluster story and underwhelming humor. Level design is mostly great with some uninspired moments. Definitely still worthwhile for kids, but not necessarily as intriguing for adults as well.

Dishonored 2's story beats are perhaps a little too familiar, but it makes up for its narrative trappings with open-ended gameplay that rewards exploration and creativity. To call Dishonored 2 a stealth game is a bit of a disservice, because you can play it any way you like.

WWE 2K17 isn’t exactly a step forward for the franchise. At best, it’s stuck in the past and completely lacking in any of the features that made 2K’s beast incarnate a strong contender from previous encounters. And that’s the bottom line.

Dragon Ball XenoVerse 2 makes some massive strides towards improving on some of the deep flaws of the original game. It’s just a super-shame that it also forgets to actually add anything to that foundation to help it feel like a true sequel. I’m just Saiyan’ that is.

The single player campaign is the freshest and most exciting Call of Duty has been in years. It's at its best when it veers away from the series staples and genuinely tries new things. Conversely, its multiplayer isn't - essentially rehashing last year's effort. Zombies? Well, it's Call of Duty Zombies, only with an 80's makeover.

Football Manager 2017 offers inclusive functionality, making sure your decisions as a manager can either win you the trophy, or bankrupt your club. It's fun, but it starts to feel like little more than admin after a while. That, I suppose, is the point.

Agent 47 is back and better than ever. The first season of Hitman has produced the definitive Agent 47 experience in a world of intrigue, espionage and murder. Not only the best Hitman game ever made, but also one of the top contenders for game of the year.

Even if Just Dance 2017 isn't the greatest game, it's still a whole lot of fun. If you have previous iterations, I'm not sure the new modes or songs are a reason to upgrade, but if you don't have a home dance game, this is well worth picking up for kids or partying adults.

A calm and restrictive level on first glance, episode six of Hitman is teeming with poetic kills, intricacy and intrigue as it sets up a subtle tease of things to come in future seasons for Agent 47.

Titanfall 2 is a far more “complete” package then that the first game was, offering one of the best single player campaigns in first person shooter, and a robust and cleverly nuanced multiplayer. It's everything the first game should have been.

Dragon Quest Builders is a superb game, appealing to both fans of the series and newcomers alike. Don’t think of this as a Minecraft clone, but rather as a good Dragon Quest game with crafting and building elements.

Farming Simulator 17 is the best version to date, and if you’ve ever been curious about what the genre is all about, now’s the best time to experiment with something a little different. However, it’s not a title that will appeal to everyone. This is after all a game about watching digital grass grow.

Batman The Telltale Series Episode 3: New World Order may be a slow burner, but there’s a raging inferno of action and tragedy by the time it finishes as the Dark Knight and Bruce Wayne face threats for all sides.

World War I is hard material to tackle, but DICE have managed to do it respectably enough. Battlefield 1’s campaign is memorable, and it’s multiplayer, brutal. The latter doesn’t necessarily provide a whole new experience, but a coat of paint from The Great War certainly makes the series feel nice and fresh again.

Batman: Return to Arkham is neither the game that Gotham fanboys deserve or need right now. Not even the dark knight can foil a plot to downgrade the visuals of two video games which defined his legend for a new medium several years ago.

With reimagined cities, diplomacy and research progression, Civilization feels familiar enough for veterans while making a lot more sense for newcomers. By far the best Civilization experience we've seen in years, only slightly tarnished by slow load times and art that occasionally feels out of place.

While the game is amazing at its core, it's beset by infuriating bugs. The Journey shows promise, but drags on too long, becoming a dull grind before it comes to a close. It's a good start for FIFA on its new engine, there are too many kinks that have yet to be worked out.