Perhaps the biggest flaw though is that the controls never stop being cumbersome. With several important information screens requiring more than one button to be held to be seen (never mind a strange and convoluted "emoticon" system for multiplayer matches).

Even with the dreary visuals Tiger Woods 09 is certainly the best golf game on the Wii so far.

Sadly, the game which unfolds around these interludes isn't half as enjoyable. The first instalment to be set in North America, Far Cry 5 is Far Cry at its least engrossing, clumsiest and most basic, though there's still just enough going on here to keep a returning fan involved.

An otherworldly journey that runs out of things to do.

A solid storyline backed by hauntingly good graphics and sound, with entertaining combat and weaponry make this a hard game to put down.

Still, discarding relatively minor mechanics issues, Crimson Butterfly gets along by virtue of its intensely unnerving atmosphere, crafted by delicious graphics, decent storyline and even better-than-usual voiceovers.

An entertaining side dish that easily justifies its asking price.

The two styles of play - high scoring or Pokemon catching - allow you to explore the tables twice over with different motives, while the immediate accessibility will suit players who are looking for some purely basic pinball fun. Only the most demanding of pinball wizards would be right to turn their nose up at Pokemon Pinball's charming slant on the genre.

Dawntrail ups the ante with exhilarating combat experiences and builds a stunning new world, but meandering storytelling highlights the MMO's flaws.

An intriguing response to one of Nintendo's greatest ever games.

A wonderful piece of entertainment, and easily the best adventure game since the days of "Grim Fandango."

An enjoyable history lesson that survives the test of time.

History repeats itself with a joyful, educational flourish in Age of Empires 4, a game of sweet simplicity and bottomless depth. [Eurogamer Recommended]

Mastering the game's in-body platforming is an urgent thrill, beaten down less violently here under the auspices of our old friends keyboard and mouse, and stands out from the homogenised interfaces of modern first-person and platform games.

Limp and lumpy online isn't quite enough to distract from the brilliantly reverent package curated by Digital Eclipse. [Recommended]

The core of SteamWorld Heist still burns brightly in this turn-based tactics sequel, but its bid to go bigger and better is a risk that hasn't quite paid off.

A game that captures that rarest commodity in gaming: joy. It's an experience where comedy, camaraderie and personal improvement are tied together in one glorious whole. It's also a game that hasn't even got off the ground yet, as its community get to grips with the track creation tools and the potential for re-designing the environments.

Motorsport Manager's a couple of tweaks away from greatness, then, but it's far from a disappointment.

Robert Louis Stevenson used to play with his stepson's soldiers when he was sick in bed, an act that seems impossible to disentangle from his rangy, childlike, often febrile imagination. The Pathless is a little chillier than that - there are clear reminders throughout that key people from the team that made this also made stuff like Journey, with its cold poise - but it retains something of that dream of play. Speed and imagination and great beasts burning in the trees. I had fun.

Fun, cheeky and irreverent, Death of the Reprobate prances through art history with a wicked twinkle in its eye, and is one of this year's most memorable adventure games.

The combat's fluid, relatively deep and involving once it gets going, but it's also a wholly repetitive game that's been surpassed in so many meaningful ways that you can't simply be content with 'more of the same' anymore.

Veteran trainers, on the other hand, need to ask themselves if they want more of the same… again.

When you've battled through all 14 single player levels, played it on co-op and worked your way through some solid multiplayer action, you won’t feel like you've played a next generation title; heck, you won't even feel like you've played the best shooter out this Christmas.

South Park: The Fractured But Whole is an RPG with tangible qualities and enjoyable passages, but without the bite or imagination you'd expect of the name.

There's much work to be done before LucasArts can boast it has created the ultimate Star Wars FPS. Sure, it's the best one yet, but with some often laughable AI and creaking tech underpinning it, the flaws are there for all to see.

The Warriors more than holds its own on its transition to the PSP. For a start, it's still a perfectly playable, charming and downright brutal game - there really is nothing quite as ludicrous on the shelves today.

Smackdown vs RAW is the wrestling "FIFA" - drowning in customisable settings, but the gameplay isn't always completely there. However, like "FIFA," SvsR has made some admirable steps this year.

There's a difference between kicking your arse until you learn from it, and kicking your arse until you get lucky, and Ninja Gaiden 2 fails that crucial test all too often.