The Occupation is a great experience that will have you breaking a sweat as you attempt to use every last second you have to discover the truth about the Turing Incident.

A sophomore cyberpunk slasher, Ghostrunner 2 successfully builds on the foundation of the original game with new abilities and gimmicks.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 is a kitchen sink sequel to the original sleeper hit from 2012, building on what worked about the first game to create an RPG experience that’s still unlike any other.

The crazy amount of content will keep players busy for a long time, and with post-launch updates promising even more to come, Mario may just have to beware an inbound blue shell.

Lost Words is an emotional journey that is told beautifully, and only slightly let down by the lack of gameplay and puzzles in between the fantastic storytelling.

Demon Turf’s few flaws do little to detract from an excellent 3D platforming experience that’s worth checking out, whether you’re a casual player or potential speedrunner.

Ghost of Tsushima is, despite some minor blemishes, an impressively sharp swansong for the PlayStation 4.

Subnautica: Below Zero makes you feel like arctic explorers as you traverse the icy climate of planet 4546B. If you are able to stick with it and continue to move forward to find ways to dive deeper, Below Zero has plenty of discoveries to uncover.

Two Point Campus is an excellent example of a developer learning, improving, and innovating upon a formula to create something that’s immediately familiar, but also throws in a fresh spin.

Although Dirt 5 is very different from previous entries in the series, it’s still a great racer that embraces its arcade approach with a vibrant art style, fun game modes, and joyful gameplay.

Rad could and should become one of 2019's greatest sleeper hits.

There’s Norway you won’t be engrossed in this beautifully crafted and well written Scandinavian mystery.

It’s not perfect, but The Suicide of Rachel Foster is certainly up there with the best in its genre.

Despite its meandering dialogue and laughable French accents, if you are looking for a rewarding single-player driven campaign, A Plague Tale: Innocence is the game for you.

The wolf brothers have faced a lot since they left Seattle, but “Faith” ups the ante in one of the best episodes so far, even if it could do with just a bit more gameplay.

Deathloop is an awesomely entertaining ride with stealth and puzzle elements that help make it feel like the big crazy sci-fi adventure it wants to be.

The Messenger is a retro-styled old school challenge that starts off easy but will soon test any player’s hidden ninja skills. This is a multi-genre homage to some real classics that manages to feel like a long-lost gem.

Desperados 3 brings the franchise hooting and hollering back to life — and maybe better than ever.

Don’t Escape: 4 Days In The Wasteland is a unique, well made survival game and a great way to spend your final days.

Little Nightmares 2 is a stellar game in its own right and a testament to the power of horror storytelling that lets you find the fear for yourself.

Uncharted nails the cinematic adventure so well, and it’s great to see the two campaigns looking as crisp as they do on the screen.

Guardians of the Galaxy is a spectacular, albeit lengthy adventure with enjoyable mechanics and a surprisingly deeper story than what is on the surface.

She Remembered Caterpillars is great puzzle game with a deep story and engaging, ambitious, and colourful obstacles to test you. Simply put, it is one of the best puzzle games in years.

DUSK has found a fantastic home on the Switch, where its top-tier throwback FPS can bloom in all its bloody, wretched glory.

The conclusion to Artyom’s journey has the best gameplay and most compelling story of the series, on top of incredible visual and audio presentation. It retains the series’ simplistic stealth system and falters with control, writing and dialogue issues, but even so, Metro Exodus is an odyssey worth undertaking.

WRC 8 is finally a true match for the Dirt series with its authentic presentation, engrossing gameplay, and varied selection of vehicles and circuits.

Green Hell wants to put you through hell and back in an uncompromising and original survival experience with one of the best narratives the genre has ever provided to boot.

Blazing Chrome isn’t some grand reinvention of the shoot ‘em up genre at large, but for the most part, it does a masterful job of utilising the genre’s best conventions.

Telltale’s The Expanse reinvents their mechanics while being a faithful inclusion to the lore that fans of the books or Amazon’s TV series will get the most out of.

Oxenfree II: Lost Signals brings the same level of charm and creepiness as its predecessor, and though its new perspective doesn’t quite push narrative or gameplay elements far enough into the unknown, it’s still an excellent scary story for a dark and stormy night.

Alan Wake Remastered mostly improves on an already excellent horror shooter experience, introducing a genre icon to a brand new audience.

While Layers of Fear 2 might make a misstep in how it concludes, almost everything preceding is a horror joy and a significant improvement on its predecessor, it aptly adding more layers to the experience.

Hunt: Showdown is an incredibly intense and sometimes nerve-racking game that will require a lot from you. In return, it delivers an experience and a world you will have a hard time finding anywhere else.

What Jon Shafer’s At The Gates gets totally right is that feeling of ‘just one more turn’. It really pushes you to continue playing, expanding and exploring the world.

Republic Commando’s brilliant gameplay and compelling story more than make up for the dated visuals, although the Switch version might not be the definitive experience.

Naff campaign and some potential balancing issues aside, Battlefield 6’s multiplayer is top notch large-scale chaos.

Project Aces throws a bit too much at their long-awaited return to the franchise and not all of it sticks, but Ace Combat 7 delivers the heart-pounding air combat the series is best at and looks and sounds stellar doing it.

Rough combat and simply serviceable story aside, Assassin's Creed Mirage trims the fat while also adding plenty of promise for future entries in the series.

While some off-track quirks diminish the experience somewhat, Gran Turismo 7’s excellent gameplay places it firmly ahead of most of the racing game genre.

While the story is lacking and does ultimately feel unnecessary, it’s not enough to take away from what is a super fun and replayable game.

King Of Fighters XV is the franchise’s biggest stage yet, and when the lights are on brightest, this game shines.

And even though it’s throwing a pack of quite disparate elements into one weird cocktail, the result doesn’t taste half bad.

Samurai Warriors 5 is over the top in its action, beautifully painted in its presentation, and offers a surprisingly decent narrative. It may get grind heavy, but that doesn’t stop it from being the freshest Warriors game in years.

With upgrades and improvements made to practically every aspect of the game, F1 2019 looks stunning, and gives driving enthusiasts plenty to get to grips with.

Weedcraft Inc is a supremely addictive tycoon sim that lets you build an empire of your ethical choosing with a tonne of complex and complimentary systems to keep you lighting up.

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons is a smart, fun and well-executed roguelike take on the beat ‘em genre.

Sniper Elite 5 successfully builds on the foundations of Rebellion's long running series, but some glitches do hamper the experience somewhat.

Although Football Manager 21 isn’t as in-depth on Xbox Series X as it is on PC, it manages to provide a fun and engaging management simulator that has been sorely missing from consoles for some time.

While still Borderlands at its core, Wonderlands stands on its own as a great entry that’s worth trying.

While mechanically flawed, Judgment bridges the gap between new and old Yakuza fans marvellously and points towards a confident future for a new franchise.

Evil Genius 2 is a solid, expansive, and fun lair management and defence game and a welcome return for the franchise.

Thanks to some clever subversion of a troubling dive into the psyche, The Shattering could go down as a new favourite in the narrative thriller genre.

Unruly Heroes is a super fun take on an old story that is full of charm, breathtaking art, and more challenges than you can shake a bo staff at. It’s certainly not going to make anybody forget other Journey to the West adaptations, but it has so much going for it that it makes this version of the story all its own.

From the Ashes is a brilliant game that takes what is good about Soulsborne and combines it with a satisfying co-op shooter.

With a fantastic style and superlative gameplay, supported by the best netcode in the business, Skullgirls: 2nd Encore is right at home on the Nintendo Switch.

If you don’t have a PC that’s up to standard or just want to suffer consecutive panic attacks from the comfort of your couch, They Are Billions is one of the best RTS games you will find on console.

Summer camp was never this thrilling when I was a kid.

Battlefleet Gothic: Armada II is a beautiful and ridiculous space opera that delivers on pretty much every front. Anyone who has ever wanted to smash big chunks of (heavy) metal cathedrals together will love this game.

The strategy is deep and challenging, leaving little room for error while also feeling fair and balanced even in the worst situations. The story will leave you wishing for something with actual depth, but the gameplay more than makes up for those deficits with meaningful choices and beautiful design.

Though Intermission reuses assets from the base game, it offers enough new and exciting material to more than justify the price of admission for Final Fantasy fans.

Chivalry 2’s approach to medieval combat is equal parts satisfying and silly, creating a raucous multiplayer experience that begs to be played with friends.

Bloodstained doesn’t hide what it is or where it came from; it embraces that. I wish it had been a new Castlevania game, but it doesn’t need to have the name to champion everything that made that excellent.

Despite requiring the virtue of patience, Triangle Strategy is a great time. Grid-based battlefield lovers should definitely make a plan to play it.

Night School Studio can toast to creating a funny and endearing tale.

By the time you have to leave this strange planet, there’s a real sense of disappointment as it’s a world that you want to keep exploring for as long as possible.

What Despelote shows, in my opinion, is that it’s important to take a breath and focus on what’s in your control, and sometimes, that’s taking the time to find your own fun.

Combining some of the best (and worst — sorry, Capcom Fighting Evolution) of their back catalogue with smart updates and improvements, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is an easy recommendation.

A Fold Apart stands apart from its indie puzzler peers thanks to a heartwarming story and some truly innovative paper riddles.

Thanks to its wide variety of choices and unforgiving consequences, Tron: Identity is a surprisingly high-stakes visual novel that draws you in and keeps your attention.

The slow pace and relatively easy combat make for a great game to relax with, which fits the Switch perfectly.

Despite its flaws, Kingdom Hearts 3 provides a more than fitting end to Sora’s chapter. With careful lessons learned from its past, Kingdom Hearts’ future has never been so bright.

A great game that will likely be even better soon, Mortal Kombat 11 offers plenty for any fighting game fan, though it does need some refinement with regards to certain modes and features.

No Code’s sophomore title nails the organic intricacies of feeling like an artificial intelligence system while also telling a compelling and ambitious science fiction narrative.

Broken Lines is a solid turn-based strategy-RPG hybrid with endearing characters, strong tactical gameplay that doesn’t overstay its welcome, and an alternate history WWII survival-mystery story filled with desperation, hopelessness, and dread.

Terra Nil is a charming and deceptively deep strategy game with a lovely aesthetic that flips conventions in a compelling way.

RiffTrax: The Game proves how good a party game can be when just about everyone can play.

Though some weak modes dampen the overall package, Samurai Shodown might just offer the best pure fighting game experience in recent memory, for both veterans and newcomers alike.

Hell Is Other Demons goes the distance in its refined and frantic gameplay that captures the nostalgia of 8-bit arcade shooters.

Carrion is a lean but undeniably fun reverse horror with plenty of clever ideas that will have you second-guessing meatballs.

Though not a flawless reinvention, WWE 2K22 is a monumentally large step in the right direction for the series.

Damsel is a fast paced and stylish affair that keeps your heart racing with intense gameplay, despite some eventual repetitiveness.

Fire Emblem Engage does away with intricate relationships systems and in-depth downtime between battles, choosing to focus on a well-rounded tactical turn-based combat system that will be hard to beat this year.

Steelrising is a unique soulslike with its own identity and aesthetic, powered by strong characters and great art direction. It doesn't push the envelope on any other aspect of the genre it finds itself in, however, which may alienate those familiar with the gameplay of the soulslike formula.

While Irony Curtain doesn’t add anything particularly new to the point-and-click genre, satirical humour, likeable characters and fun gameplay make this a puzzle game definitely worth your time.

A great space combat simulator that is fun to play and contains plenty of great moments, even if it is a little barebones in some places.

Volume 1 of the Battle Network Collection has become the definitive experience for new and returning players. Battle Network 2 and 3 are some of the Blue Bomber’s best titles, and online play will make mastering them together the best they’ve ever been.

Volume 2 of the Battle Network Legacy Collection is the definitive experience for new and returning players. BN6’s excellent combat design and PvP finally have the online component to make them shine, and BN5 is a worthy entry in its own right.

El Paso, Elsewhere might suffer from some filler levels, but the excellent gameplay and writing make it worth checking out.

Lost in Play provides a delightful gaming experience for kids and adults alike, boasting charming characters, fun puzzles, and an irresistible sense of childhood magic.

An action-packed adrenaline shot to the head that lives up to the rest of the classic FPS series, Serious Sam 4 provides a lot of high-end fun sprinkled with death and destruction.

There is something special and fun about Going Under that should not be slept on.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 is immensely fun and easily the best instalment of the franchise to date. You will absolutely want to set sail for this one.

Aliens: Dark Descent marries its inspirations with reverence for its source material to create arguably the best Aliens game of all time.

While the procedural generation makes it slip on a banana peel somewhat, the rest of Ape Out is such a stylistic and hyperviolent joy that you can't but be charmed by it - even the jazz.

A little Cris Tales before bed will make you feel like a kid again—a kind of time travel that most games only dream of.

While the games themselves may vary in quality, Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy still presents a pretty solid case for purchase.

Red Dead Redemption on the Switch is the exact same Western epic you know and love. That’s both its greatest strength and its greatest weakness.

Ghostrunner’s fusion of parkour and one-hit kill gameplay makes for a challenging but brilliant experience worth checking out.