Weird and wonderful ideas with a handful of mechanical imperfections is sort of Double Fine’s whole brand when you think about it. In Keeper’s case, it does such a good job of creating a compelling and beautiful world with a sweet, if simple, story of two unlikely creatures bonding and saving the world, so the minor frustrations just wash away when I consider the experience as a whole. You keep being you, Double Fine.

From a lone Japanese swordmaster who rises to the Shogunate by the power of his blade and charisma to plotting the downfall of a dynasty as China’s Grand Chancellor or becoming a bona fide god king in the jungles of Angkor, All Under Heaven would be a strong offering on its own, speaking to fans of Shogun and Three Kingdoms alike. But tagged onto CK3’s foundation it’s something of a multiplier: What if the lone swordmaster ventures West along the Silk Road? What if you want to be Marco Polo? How about a nomad world conquest run that starts by taking care of China? Could you defeat Genghis Khan through an alliance between the Holy Roman Empire and the Son of Heaven?

The result is about the most straightforward but successful sequel you could ask for. It takes the core gameplay of the first game, makes a few additions without changing anything of what people liked, and then just goes about making everything bigger and better. If you liked the first game, this is exactly the sequel you wanted, giving you more of the same while making the experience smoother in the process. You could argue that there was more of an opportunity to innovate, but I’d argue that if fresh ideas are what you’re after, PowerWash Simulator 2 isn’t the place you should be looking – unless you count the fresh smell of soapy water, of course.

If combat design is all that matters to you, then Ninja Gaiden 4 is a fantastic entry into a legendary series, but the design of some enemies and areas become familiar far too quickly, and your hundredth time killing a haunted lantern or soldier isn’t going to get your blood pumping. The pacing might be slightly off, but the action is always on beat.

Despite a few annoyances, the key areas where Pokémon Legends: Z-A experiments are a big success. The new battle system is great fun and makes for a unique challenge compared to what the series normally offers. While I think there are still steps to take to strike a better balance between that system and the catching mechanics from Arceus, I’m just thrilled to see Pokémon be a franchise willing to take risks again. I can’t wait to see what fresh idea the team at Game Freak tries next, as so far, it’s two-for-two in terms of Legends successes.

Baby Steps is simultaneously brilliant and genius while being one of the most immature games in existence. It shouldn't be missed.

Chrono Gear: Warden of Time is a fantastic love letter to Hololive and platformers alike. While non-Hololive fans will have a lot of the fun go over their heads, the 2D platforming gameplay is still creative and refined enough to be a thoroughly enjoyable experience. That said, it is definitely made for fans, with references, in-jokes, and loving tributes stuffed into every corner, which makes it a simply joyous ride.

I don’t know what more you could ask for from a Hades sequel. Everything that the first game did so well, Hades 2 does it even better, letting you enjoy the story and characters of this world on a more intimate level than before while the game’s combat, encounter, and level design feel more refined as you control the battlefield and slay Chronos’ minions by the hundreds. It all comes together to remind you that Hades and Hades 2 really are the ultimate roguelikes.

Still, the fact remains, I’ve never had this much fun with a kart racer not named Mario Kart; Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is finally a high-quality alternative to the series that understands how to make going fast fun in a variety of ways. I like Mario Kart World a lot, but it has its fair share of detractors, and those people will be thrilled with what CrossWorlds has to offer.

Ghost of Yotei proves that most games deserve a sequel. The bones were there with Tsushima, but Sucker Punch has improved every area that was lacking. All the characters have depth and personality, including the villains, climbing feels better, missions are more varied and have worthwhile stories, it explores the indigenous Ainu people, their traditions and customs, and the impact Japan’s wars had on them, and the performances from the cast are excellent in Japanese and English (Erika Ishii oozes cool, and I’d go as far as to say this is Noshir Dalal’s best performance ever). Yotei is a massive step up and easily Sucker Punch’s best game yet.

From the cast’s detached, off-kilter performances – both in Japanese and the English dub – to the art, which contrasts beauty with horror, every aspect of Silent Hill f is calculated to enrich the story it tells. It trusts its audience completely, never spelling everything out in bold letters, allowing you to bring your own interpretation and making you feel like an active participant in the telling without resorting to dialogue trees with arbitrary choices and consequences. This is Hinako’s story, but just like the village gossips, in one final violation of her autonomy, everyone will have their own opinion on how it ends.

There may be dozens of indie metroidvania games released on Steam every month, but Hollow Knight: Silksong is the perfect reminder of why none of them ever got as big as this pair of games. Silksong pushes the genre to heights it has never known before, combining a fantastic aesthetic and narrative with extremely polished exploration and boss mechanics. While there are frustrations that can grate on you in those annoying moments, they quickly fade away when the game is viewed as a whole. It really does live up to the hype. I’d still like the next one in sooner than seven years though, Team Cherry.

How much you enjoy Legacy of the Forge comes down to how much you’ve played KCD2. If you’ve still got hours of quests to plough through in Kuttenberg, then Legacy of the Forge is the perfect accompaniment that gives you more to do. If you’ve already exhausted the game, though, then the quests here will feel a bit thin. It depends on what you’re looking for, but I enjoyed returning to Kuttenberg and becoming the most respected blacksmith in town. I just know Martin would be proud.

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar is a faithful but ambitious remake of an overlooked Nintendo DS game, and it’s great. It’s a simple game that doesn’t ask too much of the player, but it’s incredibly satisfying to expand your farm, gather your produce, and make a massive profit at the Grand Bazaar. If you want a polished, cozy game to go into Autumn with, Grand Bazaar is a great choice.

Like Abzu before it, Sword of the Sea is a simple game that is worth anyone’s time, especially as it won’t take up much of it. It’s the kind of calming title that you can slip into a single evening and just let yourself be carried along by its satisfying movement, gorgeous visuals, and easy-going challenges.

It’s classic Kojima stuff, overexplaining every aspect of the story and even things that have no bearing on the plot at all. You can seek some of this out by calling your handlers and having optional chats, but there are at least three hours of cutscenes here by default. Still, like many of the other best games of the time, this is designed to be played and played, looking for better times and results, so you’ll be skipping them all by your second playthrough anyway, which is arguably when the game comes into its own — when you work toward those no-alerts, no kills runs.

If you’re someone who loves this kind of logic puzzle, then Is This Seat Taken? is a must-buy. It uses simple rules to create complex scenarios that feel great to solve as you untangle the web of conflicting desires. It only makes me wish I could do the same whenever I have to get on public transport.

Apex Legends now is a very different game to when it first launched in 2019 – we certainly didn’t envision being able to play it on a handheld then – but that means if it didn’t appeal to you before, there’s a good chance that the game now offers something you might like. This is still one of the best battle royale games you can play, and the Nintendo Switch 2 version is incredibly solid. If you’re looking for a fast-paced FPS to play on Nintendo Switch 2, look no further than Apex Legends.

Dear Me, I Was… is a short but incredibly bittersweet story about life, the things we all love and fear, and human connection. If you’re a fan of animation, then it’s hard not to recommend.

It’s messy, as it should be, because life is messy, and creating art is messy. I’d probably stop short of saying that Surgent Studios has created a masterpiece, but if ever there was a need for proof that games can be art – something that has been proven countless times before and will be countless times again in the future – then Dead Take is as good a proof as any. It’s an unmissable, tense experience, and one I’m glad I got the opportunity to have.

Altogether, Eremite Games learned a lot from the slightly controversial Keepers of the Stone — the content offered in Nightwatchers is not only great, this time there’s plenty of it: Redemption complete. Can we get, like, armadillos next?

This is one of the most inventive, exciting multiplayer games in years — a proper remedy for all the copycat hero shooters we’ve had to contend with. It might look like one of those at a glance, but Wildgate is something else, an experience we haven’t had before. Get three mates, choose a ship, and head out into the rift for the most fun you can have online right now. If Wildgate's post-launch plans come to fruition, it's only going to get better.

Ultimately, you already know if you’re going to like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4. If you played and enjoyed the last remake, it’s basically an essential game on any platform. While I don’t care for the litany of customization options, the core gameplay is fantastic and the classic levels have been recreated beautifully. 3 + 4 has almost everything you’d want from a remake of Pro Skater 3 and 4.

It’s a little messy and definitely has a few missed opportunities, but the core gameplay is so much fun that I couldn’t put it down. It captures the thrill of exploration that made Odyssey so compelling while taking the gameplay mechanics in a completely unique direction that kept developing in ways I didn’t see coming, and that’s exactly why I love Nintendo’s fun-first approach to design so much. If you’ve been waiting for a reason to buy a Switch 2, it’s just arrived.

I’d go so far as to call Odyssey RimWorld’s best and most essential expansion — it widens the scope of this already fantastic story generator to a truly planetary scale and even beyond.

Persona 5: The Phantom X does a great job of giving you main story content of a quality that is as good, if not better than Persona 5, and uses that good will to tempt you over to the more gacha-ified aspects of the experience. To do this, it makes a few compromises to the Persona formula that I don’t like, mostly in how it deemphasizes the life-sim elements, but I still think it is a very enjoyable experience that will keep you well-fed if you’re gagging for more Persona content and are impatiently waiting for Atlus to get on with making Persona 6 already.

Still, there’s nothing quite like this — especially since Ubisoft turned Rainbow Six into an online hero shooter. No one makes proper hardcore military sims anymore; that door has been closed for a while. Well, Ready or Not kicked the door right in and proved there’s still a massive audience for them on PC. With a few patches, I’m sure it’ll do the same on console.

Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut is the best way to play one of the best games in the series. It looks great, runs well, and the new English dub is very good — with a few exceptions here and there. It stumbles in a few places, but it rarely sullies the charm of the game that millions adore.

So it’s a bit of a faff to find the right setup for you, but once you have it, Nintendo Switch 2 is a perfectly cromulent way to play Cyberpunk 2077. It’s by no means the best way, as it has performance issues and limitations that the other current-gen versions don’t have, but it’s still Cyberpunk 2077; it’s still one of the best western RPGs in recent memory, and the novelty I get out of playing it on a handheld device never ceases to make me smile.

Every single criticism I had of Death Stranding has been addressed, allowing this sequel to show the full genius of Hideo Kojima’s vision. His favourite music, the recurring themes he explores, his famous friends, the tribute to Low Roar’s late frontman Ryan Karazija, the nods to his previous work, the post-COVID anxiety imbued into the story, and even the Kojima-made trailers leading up to release – playing Death Stranding 2 feels like making a personal connection with the man himself. He’s reaching out his hand from the other side and there’s little you can do but grasp it. You can feel the brush strokes, and now and then, that wink. A Hideo Kojima wink.

Fortnite is better on Switch 2 than it’s ever been on a handheld device, and a night and day improvement over the original Switch version. It’s more than serviceable in both docked and handheld modes, and it’s almost certainly going to be my main way to play going forward.

Sonic gives me hope that my 34th year will be my best year too, and Sonic X Shadow Generations feels like a great way to send off the old era of Sonic while welcoming a new one.

Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma stands as one of the better life-sims out there, striking a good balance between the village, its people, and the outside world you can explore. The town-building elements make it really feel like you’re regrowing these places into prosperous societies, and it’s a lot of fun getting to know all of the colourful personalities that reside there. Combine that with simpler farming and a solid main narrative, and you have the perfect place for Rune Factory newcomers to start.

Street Fighter 6 is the most popular fighting game of the generation, seeing almost seven times the entrants of the next most popular title at EVO Japan 2025. It supports an aggressive playstyle and in its first two seasons has introduced characters that feel more bold and daring than anything we saw in Street Fighter V until its final days. It is, undoubtedly, the best fighting game to play in 2025, and it’s shockingly good on Nintendo Switch 2.

Survival Kids is better than I ever expected it would be, and it’s brought me an enormous amount of laughs as my friends and I stumbled through surviving on and escaping a tropical island. It’s held back somewhat by its limiting puzzle design, but when it all clicks and you’re laughing it up with friends and family, it’s hard to pay much attention to the few flaws it has.

Image quality aside, Fast Fusion is a speedy racer with a lot of content, and it’s also one of the cheapest Switch 2 launch titles, only being beaten by Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. It’s a minor shame that there’s no real online matchmaking, but at the price point, Fast Fusion still presents the best deal you can get at launch on Switch 2. If you’re still eager for a new F-Zero, Fast Fusion will fill the void in your heart for now.

Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer is a near-perfect version of the arcade original. It plays great, runs smoothly, and the new Time Attack mode is a great addition. Once the price drops or goes on sale, this will be an arcade racer that everyone should have.

From its philosophical musings to its management and exploration, The Alters pulls you in from the opening and refuses to let go. It has the same quality of a good strategy game where real life hours get sucked away as you tick off tasks and work towards goals, but it’s even more engaging because you want the answers to all of its mysteries, too. Minus some iffy technical performance – frames drop in certain areas, and there’s some strange flickering around character models occasionally – it’s brilliantly executed, completely original, and just the right level of stressful.

Mario Kart World is a genuinely fantastic package, though it still feels as if it falls short of some of its open-world racing contemporaries. The open-world design isn’t being made the most of here, but the tracks are still fantastic and Knockout Tour is one of Mario Kart’s best-ever multiplayer modes. If you’re getting a Nintendo Switch 2, you need Mario Kart World.

Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time isn’t up to the quality of a big Animal Crossing release, and it doesn’t quite have the depth of dedicated farming and life sims, but it makes up for it with a breadth of activities that are simple, but so hard to put down. This isn’t going to replace the likes of Animal Crossing or The Sims in your heart, but Fantasy Life i is a genuinely heartwarming RPG adventure that scratches the social sim itch.

Elden Ring: Nightreign is more Elden Ring, but it also isn’t. It’s a brave new multiplayer experiment, and a bold recycling of older assets, to mixed results. Parts of Nightreign will likely define your fondest gaming moments of 2025, while the frustration caused by others might haunt your dreams. Nightreign’s budget price indicates that this isn’t the next big FromSoftware Souls experience, but it is something incredibly special. If you’re a FromSoft fan that wants an interesting co-op experience with no Ultra Instinct Comet Azurs, Elden Ring: Nightreign shouldn’t be missed.

It may not revolutionize VR game design like Half-Life: Alyx, but Batman: Arkham Shadow is a great example of what the platform can be with a triple-A budget. All of the key mechanics that make the Arkham series what it is are translated brilliantly to this new format, leading to a game that fits right in with what came before while still feeling like a bold step forward.

Brushes with Death isn’t the best part of Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, but it’s a firm reminder of why we should still be talking about the game when we decide on the best of 2025.

If you are a fighting game fan, have friends who are fighting game fans, or just want a deep dive into one of the best parts of fighting game history, then Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a clear winner. It’s worth buying even if you ignore the underwhelming curio that is Capcom Fighting Evolution, which I completely neglected to mention here. There are at least three distinct games here that different audiences will return to time after time for multiplayer sessions, and everything else is just a bonus. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a firm reminder that Capcom and SNK have developed some of the best fighting games of all time, and with this compilation, you don’t even need to be an old-head to know it’s true.

Doom: The Dark Ages is yet another hit from a series that can’t seem to miss. It keeps the core of intense, fast-paced shooter gameplay, actively enhancing it with new mechanics that alter the moment-to-moment action while keeping the pulse-pounding feeling the same. Like Doom 2016 and Eternal, I’m left craving another hit already, but I’ll happily wait another five years for it if this is the result, unlike CoD’s exhausting annual release cycle.

Looking at Stellaris BioGenesis in a vacuum, it’s one the best-ever expansions released for the game, though still quite expensive when you consider the fact that you need other DLCs to get the most out of some of its offerings. This one will grow on people once the stardust over its launch controversy has settled and everyone has calmed down a bit.

Drop Duchy brings together city-building, tactical combat, and Tetris under a roguelite mantle and fits it together so neatly that you can’t see any seams. It’s one of those perfectly polished little gems that know what they want to be and do.

In an era where Sony insists on remastering games that feel like they’ve just come out, to see something almost 20 years old brought into the modern era is a joy that has clearly won back fans who were drifting away after Starfield. If Bethesda feels like printing money, then it needs to move similar remasters of Fallout New Vegas and Morrowind up the agenda.

So I leave Haste having got exactly what I wanted from it, no more, no less. Its momentum-based platforming mechanics are great fun that tap into that sense of satisfaction I love from the genre. While it could’ve done with a bit more variety in terms of boss and level design, the core gameplay is so much fun that I struggled to put it down, and I’m sure the endless mode will keep me hooked for quite a while.

Very few games I’ve ever played have captured that feeling, and even fewer have done it as masterfully as Expedition 33 does. It’s the kind of story I will always carry with me; its messages of loss, grief, and acceptance are second to none. Add to that incredible combat that mixes careful strategy with skillful reactions and unique mechanics, all wrapped up in a world that is a treat for the eyes everywhere you look, and you have a game that I will never stop praising.

A deeply complex and satisfying tactics game, Mechabellum is essentially the result of a steamy night involving StarCraft, Armored Core, and chess and it will completely consume the life of any mecha-loving masochist dipping their toes into it — it’s the current apex of auto-battlers.

While having fewer shiny additions to greet you with immediately on the faction-building screen than previous DLCs, Age of Wonders 4: Giant Kings is exactly the type of expansion I’ve been patiently waiting for. We can finally unleash all those handcrafted power fantasies on a world that has the flavor and style to match our creations.

While the roguelike elements can cause frustration, Blue Prince still manages to be a fantastic experience. It nails the sense of discovery and leverages the randomness to keep it going much longer than a traditional puzzle game does, all while constantly motivating you towards a grand objective that’s satisfying to solve.