Balance Challenge is an excellent game that has been criminally ignored by the gaming press., and comes highly recommended.

It's a delight to see that Paradox Interactive is still supporting the PlayStation 4 port of Cities: Skylines and this latest DLC is an essential for any player who thinks they have city building down to a tee. For casual players there is not much beyond childish delight but in the scenario sandbox of destruction and design, Cities: Skylines - Natural Disasters makes a gameplay experience that is tense, trying, and terrifically satisfying.

With the exception of Fibbage 3, each game in The Jackbox Party Pack 4 requires a minimum of three people but, the pack's potential isn't fully realised without a substantially larger group. This is a party pack that is sincerely meant for a party. Smaller groups will be able to get enjoyment out of Civic Doodle or Fibbage, but Survive the Internet, Monster Seeking Monster, and Bracketeering, especially, are designed with larger get-togethers in mind. Despite an emphasis on playing with a big group, The Jackbox Party Pack 4 stands out as one of the strongest entries in the series with no discernible weak links in the pack's line-up. Along with continuing the trend of swapping out traditional controllers for smart phones, it's entirely possible to host a game over a stream, negating the need to find 8-16 friends for some local Jackbox shenanigans.

With a substantial amount of content to unlock, it's hard to go wrong picking this one up.

Despite initial reservations, Dragon Spira's innovative method of raising party members' stats through minigames became a favourite activity. Coupled with the expected humorous tale, the retro style soundtrack, and interesting outfit and job changes, it nestles comfortably as one of the most interesting KEMCO titles released later on in the Nintendo Switch's life, small niggles aside.

Cubello is an excellent start to the ArtStyle series, and future entries have a high standard to match up to.

Tiny Barbarian DX is an extremely enjoyable action-platformer that has lasting challenge to it. The refined mechanics and the way the story unfolds is most of why this is so much fun to play. It may not win any beauty contests and the lasting appeal comes up a bit... short because of lacking incentives. Thankfully, the local two-player co-op rounds out the value making this a pretty fun game at parties. Tiny Barbarian DX may not be as memorable or as appealing as the likes of Shovel Knight or Hyper Light Drifter, but it is every bit as good and is clearly a product of a lot of passion put into it. The barbarian-fantasy sub-genre just does not click with people like it did once upon a time in the 1980s and it seems most gamers refuse to play a 2D action title that is not a Metroidvania derivative. Tiny Barbarian DX will most certainly satisfy anyone looking for a thrilling and focused 2D sword 'em up

Almost every single one of the so-called "boomer shooters" tends to focus almost entirely on fast, high-octane action. WRATH: Aeon of Ruin fools you by thinking it's the same as them but it isn't. Oh, sure, it has plenty combat to satiate your need for killing evil things with cool weapons, but you are also meant to soak into its strong dark fantasy atmosphere, and spend hours exploring its beautiful, vast realms. While it has its flaws, with chief among them its needlessly large maps, it's safe to call this trip back to the magic of the past a modern classic of the genre.

Forget about the little issues that Monster Hunter: World has here and there. There's only one big flaw, and it's the fact that it can be overwhelming towards newcomers, or those who just like their gaming to be a simple, pick-up-and-play deal. Those who'll persevere will discover something that, although simple in structure (fight monsters, craft weapons, and then fight some more monsters), is extremely enjoyable.

Fans of frantic action and beat 'em up style fighting will be overawed by how intense Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge is.

Inazuma Eleven surprises in just how well it pulls off its ambitions. It's not perfect, but darn is it fun! Even for non-soccer fans, there's a lot to like here

Puzzle fans really should not miss out.

Whilst not perfect, DuckTales: Remastered stays faithful to the NES original and its gameplay mechanics, with the exception of forced collectibles and prolonging levels with cut-scenes.

A World to the West is actually superior to its predecessor. The puzzles are wonderful and offer up some real head-scratching challenges, and the mechanics are engaging and fun. Parallels are evident between this and A Link to the Past and considering the quality of that game, in the comparison, it shows the quality of this one. A real surprise here, it is definitely one of the best Nindies to hit Nintendo Switch yet, and considering some of the titles hitting the console recently, that's really saying something.

A hugely satisfying and wondrous adventure.

What Bleed lacks in play time, it makes up for with one of the most fluid control schemes to grace a platformer. Wryn's triple jump allows for a flow of movement that encourages dodge heavy, bullet hell style level design. Coupled with a well implemented bullet-time mechanic, stages require quick reflexes to complete, especially when taking rank into consideration. While the main story takes less than two hours to complete, unlockables, Arcade mode, and higher difficulties keep Bleed a highly addictive, and highly replayable, experience.

Accompanying the inevitable amount of fanservice, Lovekami: Divinity Stage is filled with colourful detailed scenery, heart-melting moments of friendships between the goddesses and Yamato, and an insightful perspective on the music industry. The story is enchanting and despite what feels like an unusually limited range of choices requiring player input in a visual novel, the likelihood of replaying the tale is high because of the appealing characters and the overall feel-good spirit of the tale.

While the core game itself shows its age, both in the visuals and partially as a result of the latter, in the gameplay stakes, the heap of additions and options added to this latest release of the Neo Geo cult classic help soften the deal, as it is clear what kind of audience re-releases of such old titles are geared towards: fans of retro games in general or of the Neo Geo/arcade titles in particular. As such, it does not disappoint in the slightest as it remains still a thoroughly playable and enjoyable experience that was in its time amongst the finest golf games available, but also one of the more accessible. Naturally, being a Neo Geo title at heart, Neo Turf Masters is still a very challenging one, and newcomers to the genre of video game golfing should not pick this one as their starting point, since it does not at all explain all the parameters that they should look out for before they hit the ball. Knowing the ins and outs of golf, either video game golf or the real sport, is a requirement for sure, lest the player be in for a steep learning curve. For all other players looking for some retro golf action at home and on the go thanks to the Switch, look no further!

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is a real delight to play, holding its appeal even several years after its original Wii U release. Switch owners have already been treated to a fantastic rendition of the Kirby series, and now the more veteran of gamers out there can get some platforming goodness with the higher difficulty and variety offered in Retro Studios' effort.

For those looking for something that is unlike anything else on the market, Squids Odyssey fits the bill almost perfectly.

Although Going Under is a short venture where the art style and humour may not be for everyone, the fun action, creative world, and addictive gameplay make this an excellent roguelite well worth the work hours. And again, Jackie can pat the office dachshund!

Zoe Begone! is the perfect example of a modern arcade game. It takes the best from modern gaming tools to add a wonderful polish to its graphical style that those from the days of arcade halls couldn't. It stays close to its roots with a gameplay cycle that will take 5-10 minutes before the game over screen appears, before players last half an hour as they learn not just to beat the game, but also chase high scores. It is so refreshing to see a game dare to go in this direction and even make the easy difficulty level challenging for real, obviously not being meant to be beaten easily. The only thing lacking to make the arcade feeling 100% pure is an actual arcade cabinet.

While some infrequent instances of poor game design prevent the game from being an absolute success, it's still a very worthy entry in the Sonic franchise that can keep up with and, in some areas, even surpass its home console counterpart.

Twelve years later, and the dreary little world of Persona 4 Golden is as captivating as it's ever been. Having it on Steam is a wonderful boon to its accessibility, given the limited range the Vita and PSTV had, and this port more than does it justice. The elements unique to the expanded rerelease may not add much to the experience, but there's no doubt that this should be on everyone's list of must-play RPGs.

Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution does a great job of feeling exactly like a Game Boy Advance game that holds up in the modern day. Despite limiting itself to the capabilities of a previous console, its presentation is incredibly charming even when not played in the modern style, and the game design on display is strong enough that Shantae Advance might actually surpass some of Shantae’s other recent outings. While some of its action-centric areas can get a little confusing to explore, and it never goes quite as cinematic in its set pieces as other games, the overall package is strong and series fans will not be disappointed.

The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria is a fantastic multiplayer survival game. The mining is fun, the fighting is serviceable, and the progression feels really nice. The fact that it brought back Gimli and is set in the Fourth Age is really cool, especially since the player has a custom character in the story. Best experienced with friends, but totally fine to play alone. This title really deserves more attention than it got! Highly recommended to all fans of Middle-earth.

As an early adopter of Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid, it's a delight to see nWay listening to the initial issues and addressing them as thoroughly as they have. Rosters and stages have increased exponentially and by focusing firmly on the Shattered Grid storyline of the comics, have created a fanboys dream in terms of a story mode. Mostly all series are represented here and with game expansions and updates being added constantly, if your favourite isn't there, rest assured they are coming. Fans are also being consulted on next additions which is really appreciated. At its core, there has always been an in-depth well crafted fighting game on offer, but now with all the bells and whistles raising it to a real contender for the fighting game throne. This has got the power.

Littlewood defies tradition with its unique premise, proving that Happy Ever Afters really can happen. Having control over how world reconstruction occurs is a huge bonus, enabling everyone to have an individual style with endless scope for personalisation, even with resident demands. Gameplay will stretch into dozens of hours, with you having the freedom to focus on whatever aspect of rebuilding you want, subject to certain quests being carried out.