While there may be bugs everywhere, it’s hard not to be in awe of the extensive open world Bethesda have created with the Commonwealth. Streamlined progression, an improved narrative, and extensive customisation make Fallout 4 a serious contender to the RPG throne.

A solid multiplayer shooter that ticks all those nostalgic boxes for fans of the original trilogy. The graphics and audio design are excellent throughout and the net code has performed without fault. However, the lack of a proper offline mode and small number of multiplayer maps is frustrating given the opportunistic Season Pass content on the horizon.

The addition of online co-op gives the campaign mode a great boost. There are some irritating connectivity issues in co-op and zombies though. The competitive multiplayer is much smoother and reliably packed with maps, modes and a dizzying array of unlocks. You'll struggle to find a shooter with more value than this year's Call of Duty.

With staggering depth to both its map design and new Mastery progression, Heart of Thorns gives Guild Wars 2 players old and new plenty of engaging ways to keep playing. There are still refinements to be made in certain areas, but ArenaNet have shown they are up to the task, making this a worthwhile expansion for MMO fans.

The live action cutscenes make Need for Speed painful to witness and the bland events and dull tracks mean you'll soon tire of hanging out in Ventura Bay. It's a shame, as the graphics are fantastic and the customisation options are top quality. If EA continue with the Need for Speed brand, they need to focus more on what's under the hood.

Like a box of assorted chocolates, you might not like everything in the box, but what does take your fancy will have you coming back for more. Coming in at the perfect price point, the Jackbox Party Pack 2 gives you five varied games that will entertain you for hours. Perfect as a party piece, especially with Christmas just round the corner.

Tales of Zestiria is passable in most departments, but it makes no real effort to excel at anything. The combat and visuals aren't aging well and the story and characters are clichéd, even for a JRPG. There's some fun to be found fusing equipment, but overall the series needs to up its game.

While it may be short and lack replayability, Funcom have delivered a well-crafted and finely tuned psychological experience with The Park. The exceptional audio design helps to build a chilling and tense ambiance that will delight fans of The Secret World, while even newcomers can enjoy the chilling tale of one mother’s search for her son. A true psychological thriller that you'll want to play with the headphones on and the lights off.

While there are still blemishes that stop it matching the heights of Brotherhood or even Black Flag, Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate restores faith in the series by delivering a highly enjoyable open-world experience. Jacob & Evie make for entertaining characters in a beautifully crafted Victorian London filled with content that will keep you busy for weeks.

As a whole series, Life is Strange has been an intriguing and emotional experience. The rewind mechanic is an intelligent inclusion to the interactive drama genre and gives the impression of having significant control over the narrative. That said, there's certainly an argument that player choices have all been leading to a singular binary decision which somewhat softens the finale's emotional punch.

This is, without a doubt, the finest series Telltale Games have produced to date. Whether you’re already a Borderlands fan or not, Tales From The Borderlands delivers an emotional, entertaining, and downright fun episodic adventure title.

A great idea executed poorly. £15.99 on PS4 is a big ask for a shoestring budget shooter that handles far worse than the games of yesteryear it seeks to emulate. Nostalgic retro FPS fans would be better off spending the money on a copy of the book.

WRC 5 patronises gamers with hollow victories amidst a game full of painted-on features. It's a shame, as the track design is suitably stuffed with tight corners surrounded by car-shredding traps. Car handling is up to the task, if a little lacking in speed and excitement. You're better waiting for 2016's rally games.

An essential purchase for Uncharted newbies and the graphical upgrade makes it hard to resist for series fans too. Naughty Dog's trilogy shames the competition with exceptionally detailed levels, blockbuster action scenes and a lovable cast that will be sorely missed when the series wraps up with Uncharted 4 next year.

This is one of the best Lego games in years and the toy-to-life interactions are fantastically handled via inventive uses for the docking station and the three characters. Not being able to tick off all the usual in-game collectibles without paying a fortune for extra characters is a poorly judged slap in the face for fans of the series though.

It doesn’t fix everything that was wrong with Destiny, but The Taken King does enough in all the right places to make it a highly enjoyable FPS experience overall. A renewed focus on narrative and a streamlined progression system helps to push Destiny in the direction it should have been heading all along.

Tearaway Unfolded has found a new home on the PS4 and contains plenty of new ways to use the DualShock 4 for unique in-game interactions. It's still worth owning if you've played the Vita version too. Difficulty is nicely balanced for players of all abilities and there are lots of collectibles for completionists to find.

This generation's finest racer. Turn 10's racer certainly has the looks, but it's the raw speed and intuitive handling that make the occasionally over-long races thrilling from start to finish.

The unfortunate truth is that its narrative fails to deliver a coherent and satisfying conclusion to the series, but as a stealth sandbox The Phantom Pain is peerless.

This interactive horror movie is heaps of fun and packed with moments that'll have you and anyone watching jumping out of their skin. Being able to kill off characters you don't like is more fun than you'll want to admit. You'll definitely want to play it more than once too to put the cast through hell again and again.

Surviving in a real post-apocalyptic wasteland would be a miserable existence. Mad Max nails that feeling of just wanting to crawl under a rock wait for the end. It's a miserably dull grind, occasionally made bearable by the vehicular carnage once you've suffered through the first half.

Puzzles and their bizarre solutions are just the right amount of complicated and satisfying to beat. While not bringing anything new to the genre, Broken Sword 5 is a fun point and click adventure -for both long-time fans and newcomers- with a compelling and mysterious religious conspiracy plot.

The repetitive missions grate all too soon and the bloated levelling makes little difference. The random chunks of story lack consistency and will only be understood by hardcore fans of the show, who deserve a better narrative than this. But when played in short bursts or with people online, there's an easy-going yet empowering flow to the action that makes it hard to put down.

This could have been much better if it had made a few more modern day concessions like random loot drops and a proper XP system. Still, if you're a retro gamer who fancies a change to Diablo III, it's undeniably fun for an evening session while you catch up with friends or even with randomers online.

Q.U.B.E. is unquestionably fun, it's simplistic and it's addictive. Unfortunately the addiction soon becomes Q.U.B.E.'s downfall as the increasing desire to have 'just one more go' soon turns Q.U.B.E. into a 4-5 hour game.

A true lack of visual improvements makes the Vita-to-PS4 transition ultimately appear underwhelming, but those desperate for more adventures with Kirito no doubt enjoy running around the colourful world of Aincrad – so long as they employ patience while getting to grips with the combat system.

One of the most relaxing games I've played in ages. Submerged is a game happy to let the player explore, with minimal challenge making for an experience that focuses on player exploration and stopping to enjoy the view. The story of the children and the desolate world around them slowly becomes clearer, leaving just enough room for the player's personal interpretation.

With a host of options adding accessibility and longevity, 3DS Streets of Rage II turns the best game in the series into a definitive version. Crisp visuals and fun, responsive gameplay will remind fans of the original why it was so great, and educate newcomers as to why it was – and frankly still is – the crème de la crème of side-scrolling beat-em-ups.

While admittedly good-looking, there's not much here for anyone that played the game five years ago. For newcomers, especially those without a PS3, Kratos's bloodthirsty pursuit of vengeance is a titan of the action genre. You may want to wait until the price is right though.

There is only so far you can take a game titled Godzilla. After the fun of smashing up buildings and flinging helicopters soon wears off, you begin to find yourself with a mediocre title that becomes repetitive at best.

The controls and the way they unpredictably unleash the wrong moves at the worst possible time really disrupt Tembo's platforming gameplay. Pair this with a no-mercy difficulty and you have a frustrating mess that could have been so much more.

The game mode strip down this year by Codemasters with F1 2015 is evidently step one of many for a reboot of the popular franchise. Where modes have been taken, major improvements have been made. A whole new game engine giving advanced visuals and handling makes F1 2015 the best yet.

Tamriel Unlimited is neither a great Elder Scrolls game nor an MMORPG for the ages, but it's something else entirely. An addictive if often awkward compromise with an astonishing amount of quality subscription-free content.

There's a great arcade flight sim in here somewhere. Vector Thrust offers a huge number of unlockable planes, thrilling dogfights and a bevy of modes, but its abysmal campaign and wildly inconsistent quality should have been caught in Early Access.

Mega Coin Squad is a fast-paced coin collecting platformer with fun gameplay and visually pleasing retro style. Though its single-player gets repetitive fast, gamers looking for a fun and chaotic experience with friends will love the multiplayer.

The definitive version of a true modern classic. Steins;Gate presents a truly captivating and uncompromising storyline with exquisite characters, powerful themes and often heartbreaking choices to make. It's a beautiful, essential thing.

Operation Abyss buries a great dungeon crawler beneath obtuse mechanics and an atrocious interface. Thankfully the story and the sensational dungeon design makes it well worth excavating.

Rocksteady and Batman is a combination we'll sorely miss. Their trilogy ends on a high though, with a refinement of their excellent Freeflow combat and Predator modes. The Batmobile is a somewhat mixed experience, but its heart is in the right place. Our much-awaited tour of the city of Gotham was a gorgeous sight to behold and an unforgettable goodbye.

J-Stars Victory VS+ is a crossover for the ages and a delightfully mad brawler in its own right. A few shortcomings are overshadowed by the attention to detail, great cast, riotous combat and the big silly grin it will leave on your face.

Yoshi's Woolly World is Nintendo at their inventive best. Delightful and deceptively devious, this sensational platformer encourages you to explore, experiment and genuinely play with it at every turn.

Lego Jurassic World has clearly been rushed through to release alongside the new movie, and as such is riddled with bugs and glitches -more so than any other licensed Lego game. There are plenty of grin-inducing moments for fans of these incredible movies though and as such Lego Jurassic World is still worth a look if you love the films enough to forgive the defects in its DNA.

While the decidedly average combat and alarming number of technical gremlins are disappointing for a title that's been in development for so long, The Witcher III: Wild Hunt is still a must-buy title for genre fans.

Once the balancing had been fixed it could be a great team-based shooter, but its monetisation and unlock system will no doubt rub a lot of players to wrong way. That said, it’s free and a fairly small download, so it’s certainly worth a look, but time is running out to get things right with new competitors almost ready to steal the spotlight.

Supercharged Robot Vulkaiser is a deliciously cheesy homage to mecha anime and an exhilarating bullet hell shooter with a fun transformation system. It's not ASTRO PORT's finest work by any means, but innovation plays second fiddle to pure satisfaction.

Hatred delivers some fleeting sadistic satisfaction and a gorgeous art style, but quickly becomes a tedious chore. After all the controversy, it's disappointing that the finished product is mechanically flawed and otherwise completely forgettable.

Horizon Shift is a seriously impressive bit of SHMUP. Fierce and fresh, it rejuvenates ideas from classic shooters with a sensational twist of its own.

We're thrilled that Lord Of Magna: Maiden Heaven made its way West. It's a delightful distraction with great combat and characters that makes up for a few flaws with its earnest sense of fun.

The stealth options aren't quite as reliable as last time, but the core shooting experience is incredibly fun with meaty weapons, a ramped up pace and enjoyably over-the-top characters.

Splatoon blows third-person shooting wide open with its wildly unique mechanics and uninhibited sense of fun. Approachable for newcomers and enjoyable for old hands, it's an impressive Wii U exclusive, though we'll have to take Nintendo's promises of free DLC and updates on trust.

You'll need three forgiving friends and a silly sense of humour to make the most of Magicka 2. It's an utterly sensational cooperative romp that refines the series' superb spellcasting into hilarious yet surprisingly tactical chaos.

Sadly, House Of Wolves presents horrible value at £19.99 or as part of a season pass that costs as much as a retail game. Once again Destiny sells the illusion of meaningful content for a Queen's ransom.

A fantastic package, containing two meaty match-3 RPGs and hours of quality content without a single microtransaction. Accessible, deep and involving, it's great for killing a few minutes or an entire evening at a time.

Combining with frantic combat and an utterly barmy sense of humour, the side-scrolling action of NOT A HERO can be just as unforgiving as it can be enjoyable. Providing you have the patience to overcome its challenging later levels, BunnyLord’s flawed yet commendable political campaign is certainly worth your vote.

In an attempt to prove the viability of the GamePad touchscreen as a primary input device, Nintendo accidentally created an inferior sequel to a decade-old DS puzzler. Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush squanders much of its potential and achingly beautiful visuals, functional but lacking in lasting fun.

Hyperdimension Neptunia U is a superb tie-in, a saucy parody and most importantly a satisfying handheld brawler in its own right.

Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. is a devastatingly unique strategy game with the pedigree to back it up. Fun and challenging, blending turn-based tactics with third-person shooting, there's nothing like it on the market.

A simulator with soul, Project CARS strips the bloat out of the racing genre to focus on what truly matters: the cars, handling, tracks and exhilaration of real driving. Sensational weather effects and impressive visuals make it well worth the wait.

Omega Quintet boasts a unique idol premise, enjoyable exploration, quirky characters and a sensational combat system. Sadly the unlikeable protagonist, disappointing visuals and other issues make the PS4's first exclusive JRPG more difficult to recommend than it ought to be.

Project Root blithely assembles the worst parts of classic SHMUPs and exploration-driven shooters into a complete mess. Lacklustre presentation, an inappropriate progression system and clipping glitches on all formats round out a thoroughly disappointing package.

Consider Mortal Kombat X your first essential fighting game of the new generation of consoles.

While it sounds great on paper, the execution varies throughout and for every moment of triumph, there are many more instances of frustration and exasperation.

Though its one-track mind and ruthless AI takes some getting used to, the robust mechanics, great interface and presentation are an incredibly impressive feat from a one-man studio, while sensational shipbuilding and fleet battles prove incredibly satisfying.

The Indie Mixtape is a success, giving five interesting yet overlooked games a new lease of life at a bargain price. Though the eclectic mix of genres may not be to your tastes, and you could cherry-pick the best games separately on itch.io, this brave compilation does a great job of showcasing hidden talent.

State Of Decay: Year-One Survival Edition is the definitive way of experiencing this fiercely unique zombie sim and a true highlight of the survival genre. Though still rough and ready, it's undeniably a complete package.

Fantastic visuals and enhanced AI behaviour makes the virtual world of San Andreas come to life, and the Rockstar Editor is a powerful tool for machinima creators. It really is the definitive version of a modern classic.

Titan Souls is a brutal and breathtakingly elegant boss battle bonanza, but it's difficult to find a satisfying rhythm thanks to a host of inconsiderate design decisions. What starts out as wholesomely frustrating can quickly become infuriating and even surprisingly repetitive.

Fans of old school shooters will enjoy Tower of Guns for its classic approach to firing from the hip and strafing through borderline bullet hell stages. The randomly generated rooms and enemies repeat themselves sooner than we'd like and the frame-rate goes to hell in the really busy rooms. There are some tasty guns to be found though and it's a lot of fun in small bursts.

Keebles is a deceptively difficult fusion of cutesy physics puzzling and vehicular engineering. Fun and wholesomely frustrating once you smash through the challenge curve, but plenty of potential goes untapped due to its roots as a Windows 8 app. Nevertheless, a robust and incredibly addictive first attempt, and a foundation that Burnt Fuse will hopefully build into a sensational franchise.

It's knuckle-gnawingly difficult at times and would rather spit in your eye than point anything out for you. But fending for yourself in the incredibly well-designed environments is a rewarding, empowering and yet humbling experience that gamers will talk about for years to come.

Ride is one of the best bike racing games in years and is much more appealing than the dry offerings of Moto GP or SBK. The bikes are fantastically detailed and there are enough handling options to appeal to any race fan. Moving most events to new road circuits was a great idea too for those of you bored with the Moto GP calendar.

Dark Souls II: Scholar Of The First Sin is the definitive version of a masterpiece. Surprising for veterans yet deceptively welcoming to newcomers, this rebalanced remaster proves as deeply impressive as it is brutally compelling.

Under Night In Birth: Exe Late is a class act; a gorgeous and responsive 2D fighter with a great cast that encourages aggressive play while letting newcomers in on the ground floor.

Against all the odds, it's the single player campaign that's proved to be Battlefield: Hardline's biggest selling point. Trying to play through as a 'good cop' by arresting baddies instead of filling them with lead is very rewarding. But the gunplay is as fun as ever if you want to play that way too.

The gorgeous HD assets and stonking amount of included DLC are well worth the price of admission, but it's a shame that The Pre-Sequel's performance issues stop this collection from being as handsome as it should be.

Pillars Of Eternity is a masterpiece and nothing less than essential for anyone who's ever heard of the Infinity Engine. Superbly written, expansive yet rich and detailed, tactical and thought-provoking, it's the sort of roleplaying experience that we've been dreaming about for years.

Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters tells a great story well and sets a new graphical standard for visual novels. Sadly its attempts to provide more player choice and agency fall flat, both in terms of vague (often creepy!) character interactions and tedious turn-based combat.

In an effort to be bigger than the original, Hotline Miami 2 bloats the arcade gameplay of the original into an grinder that punishes risk-taking and frequently feels irritating or unfair, not satisfyingly tough.

A deeply atmospheric, emotionally compelling game that manages to treat war as a serious topic and examines the hard choices made by those caught in the middle of conflict.

Level design is still exceptional; expansive with a real sense of place.

If you don't care about playing last-gen material on new-gen platforms, give this a miss, do yourself a favour and pickup a copy of the original Saints Row IV for under a tenner.

Blackguards 2 delivers more brutal hex-based strategy and environmental puzzling while refining the original formula in several smart ways. The more open yet focused campaign, propped up by a fantastic central character who's as evil as you want her to be, makes for a satisfying if punishing experience.

A great remake of a terrible sequel that fails to take the series anywhere remotely interesting.

A remarkable homage to the original survival horror masterpiece to be enjoyed by fans of the original PS1 game, the GameCube remake or even complete newbs. Some of the mechanics like the dated inventory system can and will frustrate, but the overall journey is a rewarding one through one of gaming’s most important games.

An enormous, expansive and peerlessly written RPG that succeeds both on the strength of its world and its innovative campaign structure. So long as you're willing to read and exercise a little imagination, that is.

Zany humour finds wonder and wackiness in the mundane, while the recruitment system lets you build a versatile army that changes the way you explore and battle in a JRPG.

A fun, accessible and utterly bonkers 4v4 team sport that allows onlookers to get involved in crazy and unpredictable ways. It's a local multiplayer revelation, though long-term appeal and value is questionable especially once it returns to £11.99.

If you can get past the clunky storytelling and the repetitive missions, you might a diamond in the rough that really empowers you to revel in the design aspects of its zombie-infested sandbox.

Unmechanical Extended is just as short and sweet as the original; a gentle yet compelling use of four hours that's best enjoyed in a single sitting.

Despite the desperate efforts of its kinky spanking, erotic imagery and unpredictable battle system, Criminal Girls: Invite Only is a crashing bore.

Even if the mechanisms of this game seem a little dated now, we're reminded how the story and its characters are timeless in their good humour and quality, and in that respect, this Remaster should hold almost as much joy for newcomers as it does for returning fans.

Freaking Meatbags makes three hackneyed genres feel fresh and exciting again, uniting real-time strategy, tower defence and twinstick shooting with the simple joys of obscene genetic experimentation. Though it sometimes feels like the prototype for a timeless classic, the tiny team managed to deliver a solid, stylish, humorous and satisfying package at a bargain price.

Deathtrap brings hectic tower defence, satisfying Diablo-style combat and compelling persistent progression together in ultraviolent gothic style. Smart design choices and satisfyingly hectic moments abound, while the level editor is a stroke of genius.

Sunless Sea is a masterpiece of interactive storytelling, atmosphere and exploration that spins a unique, tense and frequently tragic new yarn every time you play. It's a shame that the spiteful economy and repetitive early game gradually forces you to focus on the systems, not the stories, but the quality of the writing elevates Sunless Sea into something rather special indeed.

What could have been an underground smash as a budget download has been spread thin to justify a AAA price, leading to grave concerns about its glacial progression, value, longevity and DLC strategy. Though still utterly fantastic under optimal conditions, Evolve asks far too much for an inconsistently enjoyable experience.

Thrilling mechanics, plentiful missions and robust unlocks make it the Top Gun for genre fans who own the system.

Visually astounding throughout. Graphics fans will adore every grimy nook and cranny of the Victorian London setting. Sadly though, the game around it is crushingly average. The shooting sections are fun enough but far too few and far between, and much of the game is spent watching cutscenes or being forced to walk through one, so much so that it rarely feels like you're 'playing' the game at all.

The Book Of Unwritten Tales 2 proves that point & click adventure games don't have to change to be relevant in 2015. They just have to be better. It's enormous, hilarious, referential, satisfying and absolutely worth £24.99.

Dragon Ball Xenoverse captures the brutal thrill of soaring aerial anime battles better than practically any game I've ever played, all while allowing us to genuinely enter the Dragon Ball universe as our own character by participating in key canonical events and crazy 'what if?' scenarios.