Lords of Xulima is strictly for the more masochistic of gamers. Its merciless difficulty that only exponentially spikes the further you play should come as a dream come true for fans who like the ultimate in ball-kicking.

As a cricket nut, Don Bradman Cricket is the definitive version of the finest cricket game ever produced. It's also quite possibly the most limited "HD Remaster" yet produced for the console, but Big Ant has now cut its teeth on next-gen development, and I can't wait to see a proper sequel down the track to a game that I have spent more time playing over the past year than any other.

You should be left feeling bubbly after playing Grow Home. It's not perfect in execution, but given it was never meant to be a commercial product, it's easy to see why Ubisoft couldn't resist turning it into one - it's a bright, charming and original little game that has an irresistible sense of happiness to it.

Aside from the lack of co-op, I can't really think of a more engaging action game than Apotheon. Equally, I can't think of a game that fans of ancient Greek mythology will find more interesting than the story that this one weaves. Sorry, Kratos, but you've got nothing on Nikandreos.

At times, Survivalist feels more like work than a game, as Joe scrambles for supplies with no real sense of progression. If you're in the camp which feels that a good survival game needs to feel like work at times, Survivalist is a good choice for its price.

Risk is a touch limited and is a digital version of a game that has aged badly, though this version of the' game is more comprehensive than the Ubisoft Monopoly game.

Hopefully the story can use its established foundation and these moments of emotional investment to drive the story forward as House Forrester attempts to survive the challenges circling in around them.

Battle Grounds isn’t going to convert anyone who sees beat ‘em ups as mindless entertainment. Yet even when its ideas are half-baked in execution, the overwhelming style and ambition here make for one of the genre’s more memorable entries in recent years.

Between the mix of visual styles, characters, story, and the enjoyable exploration and combat, Alphadia is an RPG worth the visit, and I can only hope that Kemco brings more of its catalogue to the PC in the future.

While the visuals and combat are quite simple and not blow you away, The Escapists provides a surprisingly deep game that offers plenty of room for creativity despite the illusion of a rigid framework around your inmate's daily activities.

What impressed me most about Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is its sense of humour.

It sets out to offer a nostalgic JRPG experience, and it achieves that. It might lack the style and substance of a truly good game, but I can think of worse ways for JRPG veterans to eat away a lazy Sunday or two than this.

By and large Avernum 2: Crystal Souls is an excellent title that really serves to remind RPG fans what matters most. This is a throwback title with visuals that likely will not appeal to everyone, but if you have never had a chance to journey through Crystal Souls, this is the perfect opportunity to do so.

While Carbon Fire Studio has demonstrated it has real talent behind it in its first game, I find it to be a lot of effort wasted because I can't look past the fact that this game costs money.

There was so much potential in Criminal Girls: Invite Only to be a transgressive, unique experience, but sadly, narrative missteps limit it from ever realising that potential. Instead what we have is a genuinely entertaining and original combat, and a minigame that, were Criminal Girls to be a higher profile release, would have been controversial indeed.

A surprising mix of old and new, which has managed to once again rekindle my excitement for both the genre and the developer. It may stumble every so often, but Dying Light is still the most fun I’ve had in a while.

A game so narrative driven as this would not be effective if the supporting aesthetics aren't up to scratch, and Life Is Strange is nothing short of a gorgeous game.

If by some chance you missed this game before and enjoyed other tactics game, or you're just looking to take on real people to see how good your strategy really is, then it's easy to recommend nabbing the update.

Superficial elements aside, Pike & Shot is a rock-solid simulation of an era of military conflict that is ignored by most developers and publishers.

The biggest problem with Gunman Clive 2 is that for all the attempts to expand on the original game's formula, it remains a very limited game. It's not just that it's over quickly, but it doesn't do anything to really make it something memorable. It's fun, it's not much more than that, but that might well be enough to give it a go.

A genuine classic game, and there is no denying that it is a supremely well-balanced, challenging and deeply engaging example of turn-based strategy. For all the promise of being a "HD" version, it's not exactly what I would call an update.

Overall, it's a decent trilogy for the price, but length of play time is rather short once you've memorised the patterns and can overcome each game's arcade-style tricks and traps.

For now this game is little more than a noble, albeit misguided attempt to make a MOBA ideally suited to mobile platforms.

To summarise it simply, it’s about how RE’s limitations add measurable impact to your choices. It’s about the exploration and puzzle solving sans omnipresent hand-holding. These concepts are rare attributes in today’s AAA gaming scene. And when laced with enhanced visuals and a friendlier control scheme, RE HD Re-master becomes a precious survival experience for the nostalgic and a necessary one for the newcomer.

It pushes more boundaries and is a sharper satire than the other games in the series, as fine as they are, and that marks this one out as something special indeed.

Unfortunately a lack of personality and gameplay that doesn't live up to its promises have left Ironclad Tactics dead in the water.

As an adventure that does just about everything right in the fun and technical sense, CoE's most valuable triumphs are its sense of humour and accessibility; whether you’re politically knowledgeable or oblivious, and if you have a near-romantic relationship with turn-based RPGs, you will risk yawning through a filibuster if it means becoming the Vice President of this world.

And there's some lovely sketches taken straight from the Fighting Fantasy original book that are sprinkled through the game that help to visualise the action.