Abyss Odyssey is a thematically deep game. On the surface it's a simple action platformer crossed with roguelike, but under that surface is a true rarity; a game made by South Americans that rejoices in South American mythology.

I haven’t been able to put this game down, though, because through its weaknesses, it is a clever spin on the basic idea of Scrabble, and thanks to all those items and board variations, a nearly endless variety to make each new game its own experience. It might not be the “level up” on Scrabble, I imagine the developers went into the project aiming to make, but they certainly have come up with something that is perfect to pair up with a coffee on a Sunday morning. And I do love my Sunday morning coffee games.

A wonderful combination of good game design and enchanting aesthetic direction.

I definitely don’t regret the download – even though my Switch is bloated full of titles, I can see myself always coming back to Downwell whenever I need to fill a short five to ten minutes.

While I don’t think Criminal Girls 2 goes anywhere near far enough to be the extreme Sadean experience that it clearly wants to be, at least we have a game that achieves something down that path. Art needs extreme experiences, and genuinely extreme experiences (aside from those laden with gore) are rare indeed in this industry. Kudos to NISA for not only taking a chance on the first Criminal Girls, but backing up its faith that people do appreciate this kind of experience by localising the second too.

Nurse Love Addition is subversive, intelligent, and quite beautiful. The Nintendo Switch has become quite the home for the VN, as we expected would be the case as the PlayStation Vita moved into legacy. These games are always a more natural fit for the handheld, and the Nintendo Switch's gorgeously large screen really does this one justice.

Curious Expedition 2 might not be too much of a step up from its predecessor, but then it also didn’t need to be. The original was already an excellent foundation in the way that it provided players with a challenging roguelike focused on exploring exotic lands and discovering incredible wonders. Now, with Curious Expedition 2, not only is that gameplay fine-tuned and refined, but the art matches the wonderous beauty that your characters are meant to be witnessing.

With Conception Plus you get a really wonderful, albeit uncompromising and traditional roguelike dungeon crawler, with all that that entails. That's not where the game's strength lies, though. Conception makes clever use of anime tropes and fan service to drive home social satire that's particularly pertinent to Japan at the moment, and only going to become moreso over time. It's by turns fun and silly, but it's also much smarter than you may have assumed from the box and concept.

Ultimately, that's what you want from a fighting game; something that anyone can pick up and enjoy on their terms. SoulCalibur VI offers an enjoyable story for people who want to get into the lore and characters, fanservice for people that like sex appeal in their fighters, as well as a blend of instantly accessible action and a learning curve for people that want to dig further into the mechanics of it all. Because it is so accessible and enjoyable, I suspect that SoulCalibur VI will become one of my most played fighting games, because it's just that versatile and enjoyable that I'll just default to it when I'm in the mood for a fighter (or looking to play with someone else).

AI: The Somnium Files is such a superior storytelling experience that its hit-or-miss puzzle action is hardly an issue. By turns witty, sharp, horrific, nasty, and even at times sexy, AI: The Somnium Files is one of those games that very few people will play, but an awful lot of people should. As far as the noir genre goes, it's every bit the example of it that Judgement is. Sure it has lower production values (and those anime fan service moments that a section of players just love to rip on), but it's also deeply intelligent, frequently hilarious, and impossible to put down.

Ultimately the success of Samurai Warriors 4 Empires rests on how well it has been able to merge action and strategy together, and while I feel this veers strongly on the side of action, compared with even the Dynasty Warriors Empires series, there’s still enough thinky stuff to do between battles to add nuance to the overall experience.

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy Ash of Gods: The Way anywhere near as much as I did. What could have been a big step backward from the bold and ambitious effort of the original Ash of Gods has instead become one of the most genuine efforts to push the burgeoning “deckbuilding card game” genre forward.

Ultimately the only complaints that I can levy against SEGA Mega Drive Classics Collection are that there is not quite enough icing on what is an admittedly very generous cake. With this compilation you’ll be getting 50 games at an absolute steal – and while some of them are historical curios that won’t be worth your time, most are fantastic.

Having too much of a good thing is the possibly the most forgivable flaw that hit too many games, and Patapon has the pick-up-and-play vibe going for it, meaning that you can always take a break from it if it starts to become draining. The only other issue with Patapon 2 is that the rhythms will get stuck deep into your brain, and it takes ages to push them out. And then you'll load up the game again and it'll be stuck all over again. It's just that charming, bright, and catchy.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX will be one of Nintendo's most niche titles of 2020. With that being said, I fall squarely into the Venn diagram that makes the target demographic for this game, so I loved every second of it. As a fan of Pokémon, Mystery Dungeon roguelikes, and whimsical, light-hearted, and wholesome art styles, Rescue Team DX clicked with me on every level.

I’m not sure why Square Enix has decided to become so prolific with the SaGa property. Three games in a single 12-month timespan is the most ambitious release schedule we’ve ever seen for it. But I’m also not complaining. SaGa has always been something of the forgotten child of Square Enix’s JRPG properties. With any luck, that’s changing now, and a whole bunch of people are going to realise just how good Frontier 2 here is for the first time.

This is a really enjoyable strategy game, and has so much room to grow that it's genuinely exciting. Adding additional factions and campaigns will add to the longevity of Fantasy General II, but even as it is right now, this is a near-perfect blend of tight, varied tactical action, gorgeous fantasy aesthetics and plenty of depth. It has been great to welcome a beloved classic back.

On the one hand, we’re talking about the game that is to Kojima what Dr. Strangelove is to Stanley Kubrick (i.e. the masterpiece in a resume that basically has no misses). Even considering how brilliant Death Stranding is, Metal Gear Solid 3 is just something special, meaningful, and important as a work of art. It’s hard to see how anyone could improve on it, so it didn’t really need a “remake” in the way some other titles do. On the other hand, this really isn’t a new game, and while it wouldn’t be fair to say the remake’s efforts were “lazy,” it’s also hard to shake the feeling that where the Silent Hill 2 remake was exciting by virtue of how new it was, this is just that game, that we’ve already played and loved to death, in a prettier dress. But hey, if you’ve somehow not played Metal Gear Solid 3 before, this is going to blow your mind.

Trek To Yomi is what happens when you’ve got a compelling creative vision, and build a game around it, rather than the other way around. Everything you see, sense and experience in this game contributes to the overall experience, with absolutely no fat or waste. It’s intense, dark, and unforgiving, but it’s also the kind of haunting experience that will stay with you for a long time to come. If Menchiari continues to work with the right developers, and continues to deliver to this standard, he’s going to be one of the all-time great video game artists.

A truly fine racing game, and for PlayStation 4 owners this will be the first next-generation racing game of worth for serious revheads to sink their teeth into. Racing beginners, or people who are used to racing games where powerslides are enough to get around corners may feel very frustrated with this one at first, but I can't think of a racing game that is more worth taking the time to get to know, and master, than this one.

Part of me is agonising over every detail and wondering what – if anything – I missed, but that is already subsiding in the hours since I left that police station for the final time. I may be slowly coming to peace with what has happened, but the memories that Her Story created will last a lifetime. Her Story has become intertwined with mine.

Tormented Souls 2 is the kind of horror game you like to see from independent developers. As a clear passion project that is willing to push back against “best practices” to maintain the creative vision, it’s here for people who have fond memories of the formative years of survival horror, while also looking very modern. It’s by no means perfect, but the clear enthusiasm that went into it – and the fact that it’s so atmospheric – makes it compelling.

Lost Dimension is an incredible title, with a constant sense of escalation and drama.

The “remaster” is good because the game itself is, but given some of the work we’ve seen in remakes and remasters in recent years, this one is far too pedestrian for its own good. I can’t help but wonder just how incredible Tales of Bersaria could have been if it was given a full-on remake to bring it to parity with the most recent new game in the series (Tales of Arise). That could have been something truly special.

It’s all so completely charming that immediately after swearing for a few seconds, I was good to go again. I would like to see Koei Tecmo and Square Enix collaborate on more of these kinds of games down the track. Dragon Quest Heroes 2 is undeniable proof that the mix between a genuine JRPG and Warriors game works, and now it’s time for a Final Fantasy Heroes, methinks.

I found myself utterly captivated by this game, which takes so many creative risks in the name of its vision. The limited “story” in favour of a deeper narrative working on a more subtle level, downbeat and muted visuals, and graceful rather than visceral combat are all things that are lauded in video games, however appropriate to the experience that the developer is crafting. But this team stuck with the vision, and we should be thankful for that. If you do enjoy the likes of theatre, opera, and ballet, then Valkyrie Elysium belongs to the incredibly small group of titles that share a similarity to those art forms, and that’s more than a nice to have, it’s the kind of art we need to see more developers experimenting with.

Like a wave of nostalgia, Focus on You is over fleetingly quickly, and it's not exactly a deep and meaningful experience. It is beautifully produced and performed, however, and an excellent use of the unique experiences that VR enables. It's not going to win game of the year awards, but nostalgia is a tricky beast for developers to work effectively with, and I think this one captures the aesthetic and tone of a nostalgic memory perfectly.

Say what you want about Dear Esther, but The Chinese Room really know how to respect its legacy. Almost a half decade on since it first saw light as a Half Life 2 mod, Dear Esther has captured the hearts and minds of players, effectively started a genre and polarised the gaming community perhaps irreversibly. And the developers absolutely know this as they relentlessly justify their artistic choices in the commentary. This game is rich and thought provoking in its design, hiding its depth behind simplicity. It deserves an hour of your time.

There’s not much more I can say about Amnesia without going heavy on the spoilers, and part of the reason it has been re-released on Switch is so people can experience them for the first time. However, what’s important here is that Amnesia: Memories is a well-written visual novel, and in so many ways epitomises the qualities of what you might expect from a “classical” otome game. For that reason alone, genre fans, and anyone interested in learning about it for the first time, owe it to themselves to check this game out.

Tekken 8 is, without a doubt, a highly polished gemstone of a fighting game, and it offers players the opportunity to demonstrate some truly elite skills through the aggressive, offensive-first focus on the combat system. But outside of the overly serious, hardcore fighting game community, it’s difficult to see this capturing the imagination of many. A lack of humour, creativity, narrative and personality makes it clear that Bandai Namco’s only real interest was making sure that no one was offended by the game and therefore it will be the headline act at fighting game tournaments for years to come. Luckily for the developers, they hit the brief and it almost certainly will be exactly that game.

This was always a great game, but the improved visuals and social features, as well as the additional content that Square Enix continues to add into the game, is enough for me to happily say that Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn has become my favourite MMO.

Kromaia Omega’s technical shortcomings are kinks that can be ironed out. That I’m lavishing a game that physically ails me with so much praise is a testament to its glorious, grand vision. If other companies are bold enough to follow in Kraken Empire’s footsteps with similarly intricate shooters, this game could be the launch pad for a whole new subgenre and that’s exciting stuff indeed.

Once you push through the initial slog, Metal Max Xeno Reborn is a truly entertaining take on the apocalypse. The mixture of tank modifications and turn-based combat using those vehicles is something different for JRPGs, and it’s nice to have a game that acts as a foil to the aggressively dark apocalypses that plague this industry.

I am so happy that The Dragon’s Trap was rereleased in this way. Its visual style appeals to a whole new generation, and the love and attention given to the game as a whole will make fans of the 1989 original smile from ear to ear. From the hand-drawn visuals to the instrumental soundtrack, everything about The Dragon’s Trap remake shows how remakes should be done. This isn’t a mere cash-in for nostalgia’s sake, this is a remake that has been targeted for all audience, a rare gem for sure.

These tables are so beautifully designed with all kinds of challenging scoring opportunities.

Yu-No's biggest problem is that it's a game that deserves a lot of respect for its intricate, intelligent storytelling and nuanced look at deeper themes, but unlike the legendary visual novels that people do tend to take seriously (Steins;Gate or Danganronpa, for example), Yu-No's fan servicey elements are on the juvenile side of things just often enough that certain elements of the community will dismiss the game on that basis. It deserves better than that, because Yu-No is a brilliantly written, seminal visual novel, and even in the fan service it gets things right far, far more often than it misfires.

It's Worms, and Team 17 has done a good job in restraining itself this time around so that the only gimmicks within the game genuinely add to it. What's important to note here is that the Nintendo Switch is absolutely perfect for Worms, and that fact alone makes this the best entry in the series in years.

Gravity Rush 2 deserves to be one of Sony’s biggest games of the year. Even if you weren’t able to get into the first, give this one a go. The story’s self-contained enough that you’ll still be able to follow along, and in the effort to make the game more accessible to a wider audience, the overall experience is also more refined and there’s clearly a meatier budget backing it.

The expanded Utawarerumono franchise might never elevate beyond the most niche of niche properties, but it is a wonderful, positive contribution to video games, and Monochrome Mobius continues translates this from a blend of visual novel and tactics to a traditional JRPG with complete success. This is a beautiful, heartfelt and sweet little game that, at around 30-40 hours, doesn’t outstay its welcome. It also reminds you that sometimes a determination to tell a good story really is better than AAA-blockbuster production excesses and flashy and overly complex gameplay gimmicks alike.

It's easy to be charmed by Café Enchanté, which brings together whimsy, romance and humour together with one of the more understated joys - having a favourite café and being able to take a moment out to enjoy both it, and the company that it brings.

I’d be lying if I said that this is a game for everyone. By its nature, the absurdism and surrealism of Romeo is a Dead Man is only going to resonate with people who can appreciate that quality about it. The game itself point-blank refuses to be entertaining to play on a passive level. But given that video games around us are becoming more and more generic, “best practice” driven, and in general, everything that Romeo is a Dead Man pokes fun at, it’s nice to have the occasional game that’s willing to put some people off in pursuit of its creative vision.

The bright, charming, and community-focused story, in a world without a great evil or catastrophe to reveal the ugliness of humanity, means that Nelke, like every other Atelier title, is the perfect foil to the unrelenting angst and anger of so many other games out there.

If you’re after a rhythm game that’s heartwarming, bold, and a hell of a lot of fun to play at parties, then you don’t have to look any further.

Neptunia ReVerse is clearly a "first-run effort" by Idea Factory to take the tools of the PlayStation 5 and see what they can do with them. It's perhaps a less ambitious effort than what Idea Factory made as its launch on PlayStation 4 (Omega Quintet), but putting that aside, this is a genuinely good game, worth the time of any JRPG fan, and by its very nature the perfect introduction to the entire series for new players with the new console. The additions that have been made here make it even more complete and also worth a replay for the Neptunia faithful. And if nothing else having an excuse to watch Neptune and the other girls run around in swimwear costumes for a few hours is always worth the investment.

I have not minded the opportunity to step back into Oblivion at all. It’s a big, beautiful adventure with some truly exceptional, memorable moments. The world of Oblivion alone is a perfect recreation of the Dungeons & Dragons descents into hell from my tabletop days, and I had such a rush of nostalgia playing that through again. It has made me feel old to reflect on the fact that it’s a 20-year-old game and I swear I remember playing it new like it was yesterday, and nostalgia always comes with some rose-tinted glasses, but yes, I haven’t minded having the opportunity and excuse to play this again at all.

If Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth is really the last big 3DS release, it's one smashing swan song. The game is more straightforward than its predecessor, but this change plays to the strengths of Persona’s multitudinous characters. All up, it’s an exemplary crossover game worth investing hundreds of hours before you even start playing in just to appreciate its nuance.

Those gripes are minor indeed. Bayonetta Origins is a far more brilliant addition to the Bayonetta character and mythos than I would have ever guessed it could be. It’s by turns sensitive, charming, exciting and dramatic. The game gives Bayonetta a depth of character that adds so meaningfully to the world and story of this incredible character. This is essential. It’s not a “spinoff.” It’s a critical addition to the franchise. PlatinumGames has truly delivered something both surprising and special with this effort.

Demon Gaze II is only one or two tiny steps away from breaking away from its genre trappings to be a game that is so good that people who don’t usually like the dungeon crawlers should give it a play. The developer has done a great job in making the game more accessible (while still leaving plenty of ultra-difficult stuff there for the really committed), and the art direction for the characters and monsters is so vivid and vibrant that you can’t help but admire them.

I have to wonder if the gaming audience is quite ready for the kind of metatextual experience that Stranger of Paradise presents. It’s not only a game that doesn’t take itself seriously, but it outright challenges players’ expectations on how games are made and how they should be played. It’s hugely entertaining and as experimental as Final Fantasy at its best, but I do wonder how well something so reflective will click and be remembered as a great in the longer term. I only hope that people realise that the nonsense of Jack, his iPod, and his obsession with Chaos is just the surface of this brilliantly smart, layered thing, and they then take the time to dig into what Stranger of Paradise is really saying as a work of metatextual satire.

The Escapists has not only everything I want in a game, but also everything I want in a premium mobile title. One price gets you everything: dozens of hours of gameplay that includes sneaking, crafting, grinding, and the snazziest orange jumpsuits you'll ever see. The port is incredibly successful, with both control schemes working well and being easily interchangeable. To sum it up, I love it. I love it so much that I'm going to stop writing about it to continue playing some more — I'm eyeing HMP Iron Gate and think I can bust our in record time.

Platforming is tight and varied, and the plot matches the lighthearted tone of the rest of the game. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is a spirited little game, and by far the best 2D platformer on the PlayStation 4 to date.

Mario Kart World is magnificent. It features the tight and refined gameplay you expect from the series, a brilliant new Knockout mode, and such colourful energy and vibrancy that it was the perfect title to launch the console. I really didn’t think there was much else Nintendo could do after Mario Kart 8, but I stand corrected.

I can't recommend this game enough. It tells a cracking Shinto werewolf story, and the drama of the game's "courtroom" scenes are every bit as compelling as we've seen in the likes of Danganronpa and Lost Dimension. The presentation is a little on the pedestrian side, but don't let that put you off exploring one of the hidden gems of the genre.

Lord of Magna is pure comfort gaming. It wont dazzle you with its production values, nor will it break your mind over its philosophy or test your skills at JRPGs with its difficulty. Instead, just like the hero's obsession with adopting new people into his ever-growing "family," this is a game that you'll develop a deep and personal attachment to, because it was built with a purity of intention that is so rare these days, and tugs on the heart strings in just the right way.

Disgaea 1 is the one least likely to overwhelm people who aren't deeply familiar with tactics JRPGs and complex JRPG systems. For this reason, this remaster is the perfect entry point for the curious, and anyone interested in the history and heritage of Nippon Ichi's premier franchise will get a kick out of it too.

It’s refreshing to see a game tackle hard issues so earnestly, and I can honestly say this is a story which will stay with me long after playing.

You do also get to play around with photo modes and the like; Compile Heart play the fan service up to its maximum, and there are some little bonuses in there for people who already own the game on PlayStation 4. Really, though, there's not much to add above and beyond our review of the PlayStation 4 game; this is an almost surprisingly good port to Nintendo Switch, and thanks to those mobile roots it does feel like a game better suited for the comforts of a handheld than the "big screen" - the combat action lacks the sustained thrills for the big screen experience, but the dynamic twitch gameplay makes for the perfect commute killer.

While the core mechanics remain functionally the same, that (even more) exotic setting and (lesser known) time period, brilliant environment design and brief, but effective, narrative all combine to make something that offers just that little bit more.

Phil Fish has forced me to put more thought into playing a video game than I would have initially liked, but I feel like a better gamer for it. I used to think that the joy of exploration and unbridled sense of discovery was lost to the games of consoles past, but Fez has not only proven me completely wrong, but it has given me hope for the future.

SEGA snookered itself a little with the original Puyo Puyo Tetris. The reality is that that game was so perfectly complete that whatever came next was going to feel slightly diminished because its core strength - the ingenious ability to combine two very different puzzlers in a cohesive manner - was no longer new and exciting. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 does everything that original game did. It's every bit as charming, entertaining, and downright fun. The problem is, it doesn't have the same impact now, and if there is going to be a Puyo Puyo Tetris 3, the development team is going to need to come up with a new trick, else the prestige of the oddball crossover is going to start to fade.

Fate/Extella Link is a delight. It takes beloved characters from a beloved anime franchise, and then appropriates the Koei Tecmo Warriors gameplay structure with such style and panache that Koei should be taking some notes itself. If only the developers hadn't gone with the ham-fisted sci-fi elements. Fate doesn't need that stuff.

I’m really happy to see Cygames take the console adaptation of Shadowverse seriously and, rather than try and shovel a free-to-play thing on players, use this as an opportunity to broaden the appeal of Shadowverse, give the card game itself some context, and give fans the same kind of joy that they took out of Pokémon TCG all those years ago. With taut mechanics, a fun, light-hearted narrative, excellent production values and an almost obscene level of depth Shadowverse: Champions Battle is a genuinely impressive effort, and the best digital card game currently available on the Switch.

Olympia Soirée really is a distinctive and interesting visual novel, however. The Shinto themes and elements give it an entirely Japanese aesthetic and tone, and that's supported with just the most gorgeous soundtrack, filled with traditional instruments. The art and setting for the game are both impeccible, and while Olympia Soirée will put some players off with its harder, darker edges, this is ultimately a game that has something to say. Yes, sure, that means it's not always the feel-good romance that you might have been expecting from the screenshots... but wouldn't you rather a game that got you thinking? I know I do.

It's not the most artful, the most intelligent, or the most important, but it's certainly going to be the most spectacular. And I know for a lot of players out there, the spectacle is all that matters.

Ys Seven was already a solid experience and the upgrades that it has received for the PC make it even better. Like the Ark of Napishtim, bringing Seven over was a great idea as it continues Adol’s adventure for all those that never did either move to a console market or have the chance to pick it up back in the day.

Anno’s core strength is the cities that it allows you to create. Sometimes it does feel more like a puzzle game than a simulator, as you desperately try to figure out how to give your most demanding residents access to everything they crave. However, the satisfaction of doing it well is almost incomparable for the genre. I am a firm believer that simulation games, at their best, teach you about real-world jobs, processes, and social/cultural/environmental dynamics, whether that be flying a plane, driving a train, running a hotel or building a city. Anno does that, and it presents players with a vision for cities that will, hopefully, be the future of urban planning.

Cellar Door Games' Rogue Legacy is inherently hardcore and unapologetically retro. It's a game that should be marred by repetition, yet its careful blend of genres features such great variety and personality it's near impossible to stop playing.

Whether this release is testing the water for a return to the series, or it's just a dip into the library to throw out a release in January, Onimusha is one of Capcom's finest and least appreciated. Hopefully with this new version, creaky as it can be at times, the game (and franchise) finds some new fans. It would be great to have Onimusha and Nioh competing side by side to have the premier Japanese dark fantasy crown.

Most importantly of all, you really can ride the trains, and the game is absolutely gorgeous. About the only thing that would have made the experience even better is if you could jump off the train and explore the stations and cities that wouldn’t be developing were it not for you. That aside, the game plays beautifully, is perfectly comfortable with a controller, is expansive, and is both enjoyable and illuminating. Everything that a good simulation game should be, really.

I will say that I wish that Tom Clancy's The Division 2 had more to say. The thin story is not helped much by its characters and stands in sharp contrast to the intriguing setting and mission development. These tasks certainly provide more interest than the simple fetch-quests found in most games, and it is interesting that mission characters are often more interesting than those who help propel the primary storyline forward. Despite this concern however, just about everything else The Division 2 does is fantastic, and I have found myself logging back into it over and over again as I further explore what the game has to offer.

Warlock 2 is an incredible well crafted game that is easy to bury hours into. Like any other good strategy game it can take some time to find the right strategy that will suit your play style, but that process of discovery is what makes these games so enticing.

The only issue right now is that Wars and Battles, currently, is a download for a single campaign, and while there's enough content in the package to justify the price, the game's real value will only start to show itself as additional campaigns are added in.

Don't think of the game as a free-to-play one. It's actually very expensive if you want to be competitive, and so it's a premium game. It's worth it, but go in expecting it to be a big part of your gaming hobby going forwards.

Machine Games has taken an aged franchise and brought it into the current world of gaming, yet they’ve done so without compromising the core tenets that are at the heart of Wolfenstein’s identity. As competent as it is a shooter, The New Order elevates itself from your standard run-and-gun action game by crafting a world that is actually worth caring about, and it’s done so with a level of confidence that is worthy of commendation.

Aside from the occasional localisation foible, Death Mark is a magnificent example of how a more literary approach to horror can really work within the context of a video game.

As a character-driven bit of Final Fantasy fanservice, Chocobo Mystery Dungeon Every Buddy nails the bright, bubbly charm and joy of a good, humble JRPG. It’s the small moments where you get to simple appreciate Chocobo for the adorable character that he is that it’s at its best, and accompanied by the comfortably familiar and accessible dungeon crawling that it has, this is a relaxing, pleasant, joyful game, and I hope it sells brilliantly, so Square Enix can realise that this is one mascot that shouldn’t be put on ice.

Ultimately, Saviors of Sapphire Wings and Stranger of Sword City Revisited form a welcome package that’s sure to delight fans of dungeon crawlers. I like the way that Sapphire Wings’ moderate difficulty and focus on narrative serve as a good introduction before throwing players into the much more punishing Stranger of Sword City. I’m glad that Experience Inc.'s western partner, NISA, is seeing the value in releasing these niche games to a Western audience, and the added appeal of playing these games on-the-go is a plus for the genre. And speaking from a purely value-for-money perspective, you’re getting two full length, lengthy games for the price of one, and you’ll be happily dungeon crawling for weeks and weeks if you choose to pick this one up.

There is so much more that this game gets right than wrong. To call Tom Clancy's The Division 'just a shooter' is doing it quite a disservice. It has some elements of the genre, but it comes away more akin to an RPG when things are said and done, similar to how Mass Effect successfully blended genres and came out stronger than the individual sum of its parts. It lacks the amount of narrative control over the story that Mass Effect provides, but in most other respects The Division accomplishes the things it sets out to do. It might not be the textbook definition of fun, but the bleak world is interesting, the combat is engaging and I found progression rewarding.

I cannot in recent memory think of a game that has moved me as much as Ori and the Blind Forest has. The art style, soundtrack and design of the game are all breathtakingly beautiful. On their own they stand strong, telling the story of the forest and its destruction in a way that is more powerful than a text prelude could ever be. Together, they combine into something that feeds off each other to create one incredible game experience.

To say anything else about Emio would be doing you all a disservice, as it’s a winding, twisting mystery that is best enjoyed unspoiled. If you did play the remakes of the first two Famicom Detective Club titles then you’ll get more of the same here, just with modern standards of writing. That alone makes it a much stronger experience, because the narrative in this thing is incredible.

Never 7: The End of Infinity and Ever 17: The Out of Infinity are both very different experiences, but both are worth picking up because they give you an insight into one of the auteurs of our industry. Kotaro Uchikoshi has a rare talent for bringing a literary quality to his projects, and with these two we get to see what he was like at the beginning of his career. That’s a treat that you shouldn’t miss.

For all its wealth of content, Puyo Puyo Tetris does rely on developing and then maintaining a strong online community for truly long-term value. As a local multiplayer game, you’ll be glad to have it around for the parties, and it’ll help plane trips and other long travels fly by in a snap. Get hooked into the game’s steep learning curve online, however, and you’ll have a game that you’ll be playing for months, if not years, and not once, for even the briefest second, will the game lose its charm.

Musings over fan service aside, Samurai Maiden is wildly entertaining B-grade fun. Like many of D3 Publisher’s other most notable titles, it rolls with its trashiness and embraces B-grade aesthetics and tone in totality. It doesn’t take itself seriously (at all), and doesn’t aspire to be anything more than a genre piece, made for people that probably already knew if this was for them from the first batch of screenshots. The fact it actually plays nicely to go with its fun theme is the icing on the cake. These kinds of games are becoming less and less common, for reasons that are best left to opinion pieces elsewhere. The point is, we need to enjoy stuff like Samurai Maiden when we get the opportunity to, because when they’re done as well as this, they’re a riot, and it would be tragic to see these kinds of games disappear.

The visuals, while still appealing, act a bit unsteady at times and the episode could have been longer. Telltale is asking for a fair chunk of cash for an episode that is measurable more in minutes than hours. But the art style, excellent voice acting and interesting story do more than enough to make up for those other deficiencies as Telltale Games turns in its finest release yet.

Sayonara Umihara Kawase+’s mental gymnastics are every bit as sadistically soul crushing as they are cunningly compelling and this two-spirited nature poses a serious entry barrier.

It one of the most immediately playable games at release I’ve ever encountered, with very few bugs or design flaws. You, dear reader, now have the power to become an all-powerful Overseer yourself. It would be a mistake not to.

Doraemon Story of Seasons brings the best of the long running Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons formula together with a true cultural icon of Japan. It's rare that the Doraemon video games make their way out west, but this one works so well as a Story of Seasons title that if it is your introduction to Doraemon, you're in for a treat. Even if it means you'll then have around 1,700 episodes of the anime to catch up on (and no, that's not an exaggeration).

So that’s In Other Waters – a play-it-on-its-own-terms sci-fi adventure that’s enormously niche, but excels at what it sets out to do. For those who like to see hard-sci-fi, and a plausible representation of what life on other planets could be like, this is sure to be a fascinating game which will have you dreaming up theories for weeks. But be warned as well though, this is a game which demands effort from the player and isn’t afraid of standing out from genre fare. So if you’re ready to take the plunge with an open mind, the waters of Gliese 667Cc are calling, with a voice unlike any you’ve heard before.

Cytus Alpha is one of the finest playing rhythm games you'll ever come across. It's abstract, minimalist and focused, but it delivers such vibrant rhythm game action that it's impossible not to love.

Nippon Ichi continues to be one of the more experimental developers within traditional JRPG genres. Disgaea has always offered a fundamentally different approach to tactics JRPGs, and the two Witch and the Hundred Knight titles did interesting things with the action JRPG. Being different means they're not for everyone, but Labyrinth of Refrain is perhaps the developer's most mature, nuanced, and interesting effort yet.

I can't think of a single thing that truly disappointed me about Transport Fever 2. It's elegantly presented and understands that some efficiencies are required for the sake of playability.

To be very clear here: This version of Rogue is a faithful port of a game that is around 40 years old at this point. That was three years before the original NES version of Final Fantasy (not the remakes), and even then this version is a graphical overlay over a game first released even earler, back in 1980. Rogue is very (very) close to the very first RPG ever made, and there is no way that this port is for anyone but the (very) nostalgic. At the same time, Rogue is such an influential game that the basic idea of it continues to power a significant chunk of modern releases. If you can find a way to enjoy how primitive it looks and the relative simplicity of its systems by modern standards, Rogue holds up almost shockingly well.

Call of Cthulhu is the Cthulhu RPG I never realized I needed in my life. From the moment the atmosphere shifted upon entry to Darkwater, I was hooked. The Cthulhu mythology is presented with obvious appreciation for the source material, crafting a story of cosmic horror and the cults being crazy enough to worship those beings. Aside from some difficulty with sneaking, the game makes the descent into madness... fun? Can one have fun when descending into madness?

There’s this inescapable rhetoric that latches onto the mere whisper of the name “Sonic the hedgehog”, claiming the blue blur hasn’t had a great game in decades. While I disagree, Sonic Mania is a liberating experience that needs no asterisks to qualify it. Sonic sequels have so often been rushed or subjected to gimmicks that compromise what works, but Mania finally stops to acknowledge past successes, adds logical improvements, and enhances it all tenfold with personality. It even proves that Sonic can be more nuanced than the cursed phrase “gotta go fast” implies.

This is now the fifth time I have played Xenoblade Chronicles, and I've enjoyed it every time in the same way that I enjoy re-reading a good book. The game's themes, storytelling standards, and tone are all spot on. This is an interesting and fundamentally deep game that highlights the best of what is possible within the JRPG structure. It's a little disappointing that the developers didn't take this opportunity to tackle some of the superfluous stuff that is at odds with the better elements, and I've yet to be won over by the new narrative arc and whether it does anything to actually build on what was already a perfectly dense work. However, the core of the game is that powerful that the main reason to buy into this - that visual re-work - is more than enough to be worthwhile in itself.

This here is a masterpiece of narrative storytelling, one of the strongest examples of game-as-art that we’ve had in years, and a remarkable, cinematic, triumph that has the rare distinction of also being a major studio project that is both creative and original.

What I have to emphasise here is that the base puzzle game of Puzzle & Dragons is so, so addictive. Backed with a simple, pleasant aesthetic and speedy mechanics that mobile games specialise in, it's easy to watch the hours fly by without really realising you've been playing for so long.

In most other regards Arslan is a fairly standard Warriors experience, but between the strong, epic, narrative, gorgeous setting, and the varied bunch of really enjoyable characters there is more than enough here to justify its place among Koei Tecmo’s growing stable of licensed work.