Guild of Dungeoneering: Ultimate Edition is a remaster done right. All new animations, effects, bug fixes and nice surprises are stuffed in alongside all of the DLC content to make a complete package. The handcrafted art style is lovely, the card-based exploration and combat mostly satisfying and easy to get into. While it may lack a bit of depth to keep the dungeon raiding at full throttle, it has enough in the tank for a good few hours of monster slaying.

System Shock is a classic and Nightdive Studio have not gotten in the way of bringing it to modern hardware. With punishing gameplay, relenting atmosphere and an all-timer villain with SHODAN, it’s an incredible remake. The console experience isn’t the best but it doesn’t totally dampen the grandfather of immersive sims.

Despite a short run time and relatively straightforward golf mechanics, Golf Club Wasteland wows with its world, vibrant graphical direction and amusingly sarcastic and critical story notes. I haven’t played anything quite like it this year, but I’m absolutely thrilled that I gave it a go as it’s cemented its place as one of my favourite little titles. If the idea of a beautifully desolate round of golf on a decimated Earth appeals to you, grab your 9-iron and get hitting, you won’t regret it.

Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town continues the same charming cutesy aesthetic as its predecessors, although at times feels discombobulated in organisation. A decent enough farming management addition to the genre, the game features a depth of gameplay but is light on narrative. Prepare and expect to be in it for the long haul if you want to see any real results from your hard work.

Overall, Knights of Honor 2: Sovereign is a fun and well made addition to the grand strategy market. It was always going to be tough to stand up to the leaders in that genre, but the game makes a good case for itself, and I enjoyed my time playing it overall. With a few additional quality of life features over time, and hopefully more content moving forward, it can live up to its full potential and maybe even rise to the throne itself.

A few barely noteworthy technical hiccups and a multiplayer mode that could have been a little more than it is are the only marks on an otherwise absorbing and ingenious puzzle game. TENS! on Nintendo Switch is totally unlike the mobile version and it’s all the better for it.

An accessible and innovative shoot-‘em-up, Habroxia 2 does more than enough to stand out in a crowded genre. While it hasn’t turned the genre on its head and lacks leader boards, the combination of auto scrolling shmup, twin-stick shooter controls and RPG-lite elements make for a refreshing and exciting game.

Featuring a well crafted, mystery fuelled plot informed by an intriguing cast of characters, Unforeseen Incidents is a distinctive and engrossing point and click adventure. You can tell a lot of work has gone in to making the Nintendo Switch version of this title and it pays off in a fluid, accessible experience. A few foibles here and there are the only blemishes on an otherwise very enjoyable game.

A cosy, relaxed afternoon kind of game, Time Loader is a short, unchallenging but easy going little game. The soundtrack is lush and the gameplay, graphics and story are all decent enough to keep you engaged. While not memorable or worth screwing up the space-time continuum for, Time Loader is a dependable little earth JCB.

Fluid movement, excellent level design, gratifying combat and a bombastic soundtrack make SPRAWL a fantastic and challenging shooter. It has the odd problem with traversal and a frustrating late-game bug, but SPRAWL has the systems to match its ambitions. As you fight half a dozen mechs and ping off headshot after headshot, you’ll forget all about everything else.

Whilst the DNA of Party Animals is nothing new, there’s enough here to warrant giving it a go if you’re a fan of the genre. The visuals are great, the animals are cute as all hell and the levels are beautifully designed. Playing it with friends really brings the game to life, so don’t forget to bring some along.

Trails Through Daybreak II delivers another dramatic episode in the long-running and consistent series. It breaks hardly any new ground beyond a few additions to combat and some new places to explore, but the story is a wild and mature sequel sure to delight fans.

Plants Vs Zombies: Replanted is a remastered return to the garden, sharpening up the visuals and adding co-op and bonus modes, without losing any of the original charm. It’s faithful, nostalgic revival that balances fresh additions and original roots for the game that started it all.

Dying Light 2 ups the ante from the original in almost every way, offering more satisfying parkour, combat and enough jump scares to make you never want to walk in the darkness ever again. A worthy and essential sequel.

Super Crazy Rhythm Castle is a mixtape of differing qualities. There are a couple of bangers in the form of its rhythm gameplay and cartoonish style. There are some flops in its messy difficulty curve and obstructive puzzle mechanics. The music is the perfect blend of childishly amusing yet annoying in equal measure, leaving a tracklist that’ll have highs and lows for all the family, but you’ll be mostly smiling throughout.

TopSpin 2K25 brings the series back in serious style, with plenty of options to enjoy and absolutely superb gameplay mechanics that really brings the sport to life. The new gauge mechanics bring a whole new level of strategy to the game and the huge roster of new and legendary players allows you to create some classic matches between legends you may have never seen before. TopSpin 2K25 is absolutely superb and thirteen years later, reclaims its crown as the pinnacle of the tennis game genre.

Despite the console-centric flaw of navigating menus and unforgiving opening hours, Darkest Dungeon II is a brutally brilliant turn-based RPG roguelike. From the flawless presentation to the complex systems, the game leaves so much room for near-endless opportunities to tinker with – Darkest Dungeon II is a challenge you can’t help but accept.

A stylish, well-voiced, visual novel that tells a poignant and heartfelt story over five, one-hour episodes, We Are OFK is more interactive TV series than game. Let yourself drift away in its peaceful melancholia, but don’t expect much in the way of gameplay.

An original platforming experience, Onde combines a bold, fresh visual style, gratifying traversal mechanics and a fantastic soundtrack into a very satisfying game. A few rough edges are the only blemish on a unique game that’s worthy of your attention.

Super Perils of Baking is a 16 bit, 2D side scrolling platformer and an ode to the retro game genre in terms of variety, difficulty and platformer peril. It’s jam packed with things to do and collect but you’ll need a sprinkling of rage induced dopamine to get you through the enemies, highs and lows. There’s hours of fun that’s certainly worth your time, especially for the price point.

An essential game for fans of Borderlands, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is a spin off that’s worth exploring. What’s more, this game feels like a turning point for the series as it becomes smarter and funnier than it is goofy and crude.

New Super Lucky’s Tale on PS4 is a charming, fun and technically solid port that looks gorgeous and plays well, even if there’s nothing particularly new to see here. Money burning a hole in your pocket? Get Lucky.

For a new IP a bit rough round the edges, there’s plenty to like with Penny’s Big Breakaway and her excellent array of platforming Yoyo moves. But hewing too close to the Sonic formula means it rarely feels unique or essential.

If you can get through the crashes and technical hitches, Necrobarista: Final Pour suits the Switch well. It is a beautiful appealing visual novel about one last night before death takes you to pass on. You don’t play the game, you watch the story unfold. The characters are individual with clear meaning within the story. The story has an interesting concept that could be taken in any direction.

It may seem daunting and punishing, and it is. But its visual beauty and aesthetic has me compelled to explore more of this world and the Shells that inhabit it.

Atomic Heart is a solid yet over-indulgent first entry from a developer that maybe had more ideas than it could manage at once. The individual atoms and particles have wonderful potential, but their quantum connection to each other feels wholly missing thanks to their competing directions. I have hope a sequel could deliver on the fantastic premise and stellar world-building, but just like nuclear fusion, it’s an optimistic dream rather than an exciting current reality.

Post Void will assault your retina’s with flashing lights and colour clashes that’re both hypnotic and headache-inducing. The old school, fast paced shooter action tied to a system which demands you kill, kill, kill are almost impossible not to enjoy but this is a punishing game that’ll need the player to have a lot of patience with the repetition it’ll put them through.

World of Horror is an unrelenting but unforgettable graphic adventure that anyone even vaguely into horror needs to play. The diverse and almost unlimited playability of the game makes for a consistently terrifying experience, whilst the eerie MS Paint visuals and pitch-black writing make it feel like a phenomenon of its own.