As the first RTS on the Switch, WarParty is an brave attempt to emulate the glory days of a genre that has long moved on in terms of what it offers players. Admirable as the attempt might be, though, the game is so unrelentingly unpleasant to play, and so limited in scope, that I think I'll be sticking to the plethora of superb turn-based strategy titles that are also available on the console.

It's rare that I find a game so completely inspiring that it continues to consume my thoughts beyond the game, and encourages me to learn something new. I've always had an interest in Chinese history and artistic tradition. I've always had an interest in poetry. I've never had an excuse to delve into Chinese poetry and the history of its poets before Lyrica. And I'm so thankful that Lyrica has given me the reminder and excuse to do so.

Tropico 6 does provide the much-needed stepping stones to advance the series. For a series which often gets continued updates or DLC, Tropico 6 is also with with a long and exciting future ahead of it. The developer has indeed created what sets out to be the definitive version of Tropico, and while there may not be ground breaking adjustments to the core of the series, at its core the series doesn’t need to be something else. The enhancements to the strategy side of the game are welcome, but really, it's the return of the satire that makes Tropico 6 such a delight.

Overall, Darksiders is dated and a little embarrassing, but it’s also surprisingly good. It’s a testament to the robust design choices that Vigil Games made when developing their original title, that each of its parts holds up after a decade of innovation in gaming.

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.

The pacey, stylish, and colourful action, complemented with the neat strategy elements and interesting - albeit high-energy narrative, combine to make The Princess Guide quite unlike the other JRPGs out there.

Games like Yoshi's Crafted World always get overlooked and quickly forgotten - they're not explosive enough, the graphics aren't realistic, and you can't make memes about how it's "destroying" you. But, this game is the perfect foil for all those other titles being produced, and while it's a different manifestation of quality, it's every bit the standard of any expensive, open-world blockbuster out there.

While the Pinball FX3: Williams Pinball: Volume 3 is not the best of what Zen Studios has to offer, this has been my favourite of the three Williams sets so far. The tables all have interesting twists that make them unique from one another and they are faithful recreations of real-world tables.

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 lastability and replay value are the sacrifices needed for tight and innovative design, then Attack of the Earthlings signals a welcome change in a saturated genre. I for one welcome our new insect overlords.

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.

I enjoyed the more robust attention to telling a story and while this means that the levels are more structured, From Software deserves a great deal of credit for clever level design that makes great use of Wolf's prosthetic arm and his great sense of mobility. It will be interesting to see if Sekiro has the same longevity and rabid fan devotion as the Souls games, but I can fully appreciate From Software taking some chances and doing something quite different as well.

There's a basis here to grow into something truly spectacular, but the first entry of open world One Piece hasn't delivered on its promise.

Ninja Village is so bright and charming it's impossible not to get drawn into playing yet another Kairosoft title, and then staring at the screen for hour upon hour. These things are always so perfectly low-pressure playable, that they're just that much easier to open up than the more complex and detailed city builders available on the Switch. That's not to say it's necessarily better, but when you need to simply chill out, there are few better that do it better than Kairosoft.

A Ghost of a Tale is a solid vision, and done justice given its the development constraints. It was remarkably brave of the developer to tackle a genre and subject as complex as this, and it's a remarkable achievement that it has come out the other end as compelling and deeply playable as it is.

It's been quite the period for shooters on the Switch, with the port of Turok the Dinosaur Hunter and the modern buddy-cop shooter, Rico, all releasing along with Apocryph over the last couple of weeks. Apocryph's stylish commitment to the classic shooter genre tradition, and its dark fantasy vibe, make it the most distinctive and appealing of these games. That design also lets the game down when it comes to delivering a satisfying shooter, but people who can still pick up Heretic or Hexen and enjoy them for what they are will also be able to get a couple of hours of frantic fun out of Apocryph.

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.

Having "unlimited replay value" means nothing when it results in such a grind, and I can't help but think that Rico would have been so much better if it was over and done in a couple of hours, but that bombastic action really had a chance to fly thanks to carefully designed levels arranged to help boost that experience.

Blood Waves is the kind of trash that reflects badly on all indies. The developer has taken an established, popular genre, copied the basic elements of it wholesale, but done so in such an incompetent and soulless manner that it's hard to see the game as anything but pure cynicism.

Golf Peaks isn’t going to stand out on the Switch. It’s well made, clean, and the minimalism is appealing, but it’s also somewhat limited and hard to sit down to for long periods. But jumping on a train for a short trip, or waiting for friends to get organised for a game of Mario Kart? Well those off minutes can easily be filled with some Golf Peaks action.

Left Alive is a bundle of genuinely brilliant ideas, let down by frequently shoddy execution. A resoundingly anti-war war game, with a deep understanding of the way that war complicates personal and societal morality, Left Alive asks all the right questions that a game about war should. It also does a great job of making that sense of survival as desperate as it should. If only there was the technical competence behind it, to support those great ideas.

Eternity is a misfire. It's such a pity to see a project that had such good intentions fall to the wayside, but it's hard to share the feeling that for a new developer, making its first game, Eternity is an overreach in just about every way. I'm sure we'll see something much more refined and mature next time around.

Assault Android Cactus' greatest weakness is that it defines itself as an "arcade dual stick shooter" in such a traditional fashion that it's limited by that. The game's greatest strength is that it is so slick, smooth, and energetic that its limitations don't matter in the slightest. This is one cracking game.

Its simplistic combat and dull mission structures mean it quickly runs out of steam for anything other than quick bursts of play, and the Switch has plenty of games that can fill that need in a far more compelling way.

Stellaris is an aesthetically beautiful and rich in storytelling, and I'm fully enamoured to it. It plays beautifully on console, and it's the kind of game that's impossible to put down once you start playing.

Combine the uninspired enemies and level design with a checkpoint system that’s more than happy to erase half an hour of progress if you die midway through a run, and you’ll find that RemiLore becomes a game that’s more tedium than fun.

Devil May Cry 5 is exactly what we’ve come to expect of the series. In fact, if anything it feels like the developers were that terrified of repeating the response to Ninja Theory’s DMC, that they’ve gone overboard on being traditional. But then, with such a slick, enjoyable combat system, and all the witty banter that you could ever want in a game, DMC 5 is a fine way to bring the series roaring back after a decade in limbo.

This game is a false promise and a poorly executed mess.