The core Plants vs Zombies gameplay is still as strong as ever, so there is still tons of fun to be found in the sequel. But after the first game's carefully crafted difficulty curve, Plants vs Zombies 2's grinding can make it feel like a more inconsistent experience.

Even when progress slows down, the game's light strategy and thrill of opening a new pack of cards is hard to deny, making The Collectables a surprising treat in the overcrowded sea of free-to-play games.

It's a bold attempt at marrying real-time strategy values with MMO elements, and although it's difficult to judge the game until a community has built up around it, the early signs are very positive.

Dishonored's open-ended approach is a commendable one, but we felt the way it cheats the player out of the best ending if they choose the 'wrong' play style to be a bit frustrating. However, while it's a little short, Dishonored is ultimately a very enjoyable experience, with a vivid, unique world that will surprise whoever steps into it.

Consume Me offers an inventive take on narrative design in gaming. In how it blends mechanics and story, it uses the power of the medium to create something that's uniquely engaging and empathetic, and leaves a lasting impact that helps to cement it as one of the year's best indies.

Hearkening back to the original Dark Souls, the expansion is impressively intricate, challenging and extremely fulfilling.

Mortal Kombat on Vita is a solid port of a top-drawer fighter, but little more than that. if you already own the home consle edition, it's pretty much a question of how much the opportunity to play it on the go with added mini-games appeals.

For all of its drawbacks, when the whistle blows and the game kicks off, PES 2012 offers a satisfying, unpredictable and utterly enjoyable game of virtual football.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's campaign is tight, slick, and lots of fun, it almost avoids getting totally bogged down with militaristic mumbo jumbo, thanks to a barmy plot, and fun, albeit cliched characters, and most importantly, genuinely creative and impressive gameplay mechanics, that don't involve shooting. Sure it's as short as ever, but given it's one part of the package that includes zombies and multiplayer, it's easily the best Call of Duty story for many years, and perhaps one of the best shoot-em-up campaigns, too.

For those who haven't played Limbo before, or for those who simply want to play it again while riding on the bus, you can download the iOS version with confidence that it is just as creepy and well-crafted as on any other platform.

Wii Fit U really does take advantage of the software and hardware available, even if there are a lot of individual devices to keep track of.

Smooth Operators takes a significant time commitment to build up your company, but it will have its hooks in you long before then. This sort of cyclical design has flourished on smartphones and tablets already, and now removed from free-to-play constraints it progresses at a much more natural pace.

As only the first of five episodes, it is difficult to tell how the series will play out and evolve from here. However, The Wolf Among Us: Episode 1 - Faith makes a fantastic first impression and has us eagerly awaiting the next chapter of Bigby's story.

It's a unique take on the war-based theme, and will evoke your inner voyeur, dazzling in its moments of exposition as well as its suggestive junctures.

Wayward Souls is an intense challenge, but that only makes the feeling of reward all the greater when you finally succeed, and unlock the next multi-floor deathtrap to explore.

Sqwords offers a new type of puzzle that will have wordsmiths mulling over their smartphones and tablets for hours.

If Vicarious Visions has proven one thing with Skylanders Swap Force, it's that the toy-to-life genre is showing no signs of becoming another ephemeral fad. The game takes the series to a new creative peak without compromising the level of fun and charm that has helped Skylanders attain the status of global phenomenon.

Archangel is slow to get started, but after gaining some abilities and spells the pace of combat picks up for a satisfying and long-lasting dungeon crawler.

OlliOlli 2 is a great example of a sequel done right. The developer has been very astute in identifying areas that could be expanded on, tweaked and refined, while leaving the excellent controls, campaign and daily challenges untouched.

Sniper Elite 3 treads that fine line between realism and fun, but it comes together well, providing cheap kicks for those who enjoy over-the-top sniper kills, and a modicum of tactical depth for players looking for something more substantial.

Dark Souls is intentionally stubborn and mysterious throughout, and seemingly resists your efforts to improve, but that's all part of what makes it so enjoyable.

If you can find a team of friends to enlist into your squad, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Wildlands is, well, wild. However, the sheer amount of travelling, planning and stealth required for numerous missions doesn't lend itself to online co-op with random drop-in muggles. But steaming through an endless line of ridiculous drug kingpins in a big world with an even bigger arsenal is intoxicating fun that'll keep you coming back for another hit. Just pick the right squad, or you'll become a literal ghost pretty quickly.

On many levels Dead Rising 4 is a disappointment, content to riff on the slapstick violence and revive past glories but showing no real desire to do anything new. There's precious little depth and the combat is shallow, while some sections seem designed to show up Frank's inability to cope with tooled-up human foes. Yet there's something weirdly cheerful and festive about Frank's misadventures, about crafting homebrew weaponry and putting it to work.

Super Mario Maker 3DS is a great port, with creation tools that work wonders on the touchscreen and the Challenge mode is a brilliant addition. It's only besmirched by the fact online sharing is so very limited. Perhaps with a future update? We seriously doubt it.

It's not hard to knock Battleborn, but that shouldn't take away from the fact that it can be a blast to play. It still gives you the variety, the sense of growing power and the competitive thrills of a good MOBA, while also dishing out the kind of madcap, crazy shooter action that Borderlands fans have come to know and love.

Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain shines as a party game, adopting a family-friendly approach that evens the playing field regardless of each player's age and experience. We had a lot of fun with our family and friends across the 20 puzzle activities featured in this accessible and budget-priced package. It's just a pity that there aren't a few more minigames (or a slightly more substantial single-player component) for greater replay value.

Space Marine 2 is a brutally fun action game that will be best experienced with friends in multiplayer, and while the gameplay and story itself are serviceable and don't do much to innovate the series or genre, fans of Warhammer or anyone looking for an old-school shooter will have a good time turning tyranid swarms into puddles of blood.

At its best, Fang and their friends' journey is affecting and thought-provoking, and while their time threatens to be cruelly cut short, the time we spent at Volcano High was mostly well-spent.