There's precious little sign of excitement, imagination or progression, the weapons are weedy and the storytelling poor. Given that there are plenty of other twin-stick shooters with better gameplay and graphics out there, you'd be mad to buy it were it a fiver. At over £30, however? That's the biggest joke of all.

New features like the Hunter Styles and Arts and Prowler mode are a gift to less experienced players, while the sheer wealth of content and great online play will please long-term fans.

If you like your Metroidvanias it's well worth diving in.

It's rare that a game can be beautiful, gruesome, tense and exhilarating all at the same time, but Inside does just that. Its six years in the making really show. It might be just a sidescroller on paper, but it's so polished and well-put-together that its a showcase of Playdead's mastery. It's captivating and moving, gory and bleak but ultimately, Inside is a piece of art from the first stumbling steps to the closing credits.

We'll accept that there's some filler and that some of the gameplay's getting long in the tooth, but if TT Games keeps churning out games with this much charm and humour, we'll keep on buying them. As it is, the new combat and puzzle mechanics keep things fresh, while the lure of new stories set around The Force Awakens is hard to resist.

While fans will find something to love in its hardcore gameplay and old-school character design, non-fans should steer well clear.

Mirror's Edge Catalyst makes some major missteps in the story and character department, but hey, that's what the mute button is for...More important is that when the action is go and Faith is in full stride, Mirror's Edge Catalyst is as thrilling and sure-footed as they come.

From its celebratory replays to its hero of the match voting and on-the-fly hero switching, it's a game that does everything it can to make you feel good and bring you into the scene. Play it if you love online shooters, play it if you don't: Overwatch is ready to join the likes of Quake and Team Fortress 2 in the pantheon of greats.

If you're into RPGs and turn-based tactics, then this is an utterly essential purchase.

Homefront: The Revolution has plenty of ambition and a handful of good ideas, but it's spoilt by the clumsy execution. Much as we love the mix of gameplay styles and those classy customisable guns, we can't get over the lifeless gunplay, clumsy movement and woeful AI.

Relax – this is very nearly the Doom you've always wanted but never really thought you'd get. By focusing on DOOM's brutal, ultraviolent heart iD has created an all-action FPS in the old-school style, but with next-gen looks and a handful of mod-cons. It's not going to reinvent the genre, but it might help you rediscover all the good stuff that used to make it tick.

Shadow of the Beast might not be exactly what true fans were expecting, especially with a few strange gameplay and narrative choices, but there's still something here for everyone. It's short, but it's only £11.99 and there's plenty of replayability here - not to mention it's two games for the price of one.

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.

It's the most appetising game smorgasbord we've ever had the good fortune to sample, with just the right blend of impactful storyline, cinematic cutscenes, explosive set pieces, exploration, discovery, puzzle solving and good old shootouts.

You'll fall for Alienation's great twitch gameplay, but it's with its RPG-like elements that the hooks really sink in. Alienation has created something that's part twin-stick blaster, part sci-fi dungeon crawler, with all the looting, levelling and upgrading that implies. Limited locations and the repetitive shoot 'em up gameplay might make it a less enticing prospect a few weeks in, but right now it's impossible to resist.

The graphics are basic and the controls can be tricky. Switching cameras is a nightmare when you can't remember the positions, making the business of stemming the tide of bots a little more stressful than it should be. Yet Starfox Guard turns out to be weirdly addictive.

Sometimes great, sometimes rough but mostly patchy, Star Fox Zero is depressingly mediocre. Fox and the gang deserve much better next time around.

It builds and evolves to eventually become an RPG that stands firmly on its own, borrowing from its peers but making sure it's also totally unique. We haven't been able to put it down, and we've not said that about a 3DS game for a while.

Stunning graphics, excellent platformer gameplay and a story full of cheeky nods to its origins and multi-faceted jokes make this the game that Ratchet and Clank fans deserve - and everyone else deserves to play.

Dark Souls 3 must bow its head to its Playstation predecessor - but should be proud that it manages to be a gruelling, challenging adventure, pushing endlessly through horror and weirdness.

If they dial back the gorgonzola, the product placement and adjust that cover mechanic, this could have been a perfect game...But, for now, you've got the best-looking game on Xbox One, jam-packed full of familiar faces and top-notch acting, complemented by strong gameplay mechanics and a popcorn-crunching TV series.

If you've got the time and patience to overcome its seemingly ​impenetrable​ exterior, then Dirt Rally is a thrilling racing game that's best in its class. This is a game where satisfaction can be had with a podium finish and one where you'll feel a true sense of pride and joy for every hard-earned victory... as rare as they may be.

UFC 2 is the best attempt to date at turning the sport into a game, and seasoned fans will no doubt be able to overlook its shortcomings and enjoy it for what it is - a gorgeous-looking but ultimately flawed fighter.

It's not as technical as Street Fighter, not as chaotic as Smash Bros and not as fluid as Tekken, but if it just offered a bit more of a challenge and some more depth, it would be right up there with the best of them.

There's no getting away from the fact The Division is the best open-world that Ubisoft has ever created, while the gameplay is consistently entertaining and cohesive. The deep RPG elements and tactical gunplay just add to that. Plus, the fact you can get so much enjoyment out of being a solo player, with that experience heightened by buddying up, is quite a feat.

So far, Hitman feels like the perfect blend of Absolution and Blood Money; the accessibility and polish of the former, but with the same approach to level design and characterisation as the latter. It looks fantastic and the frame rate even holds up during the busiest scenes on PS4.

Fans of the original will wolf down everything this revamp has to offer, and if it passed you by back in 2006, this is the best way to experience it for the first time.

A bright, colourful and tasty blend of all your favourite multiplayer shooters, it will leave you with a big smile on your face and feeling good inside.