Unless you’re a lifelong fan, Transformers: Battlegrounds will offer little in the way of depth to the “casuals”. As a game, it feels like a badly ported mobile game barely fleshed out for the console players.

A delightful refreshing new story for a cosy sim blends with an extremely creative puzzler in Lonesome Village, which features a cute art style and relaxing vibes throughout. With a few patches to address crashing, it could be among the best in the genre. Even with these issues though, the game gets my recommendation with a caveat to save often so you don’t lose your progress.

Chef Life: A Restaurant Simulator captures both the stress, gratification, and realism of the heat in the kitchen. With the opportunity to juggle many different knives at once, such as prepping, managing staff, and cooking, there’s a lot to this game. Players can show individual creativity through plate and restaurant design, or focus simply on the meal. It’s a solid addition to the many different cooking games within the simulation genre.

With better game design choices and no hard crashes – Moonscars would be a great addition to the 2D Soulstroidvania genre. It’s hard to enjoy the bleak aesthetics and the rich lore of the world when the game doesn’t let you finish it however. The combat is fresh yet familiar but every mechanic outside of that isn’t really needed. But this may be one to perserve with, if you need that Souls itch scratched.

Labyrinth of the Demon King is a nostalgic and pummelling entry into the survival horror/dungeon crawling genre. The Feudal Japan setting and atmospheric level design sets itself apart from its contemporaries but doesn't quite sustain its thrills in story or puzzles. Whilst the combat is rigid and slightly unfair, it's a core element to it's differing approach of retro style PS1 horror.

Mythic Ocean is a choice based visual story game. With 3-5 hours per run, you build relationships with Gods in order to choose which God can create a new world. It is up to you how the world plays out based on your choice of interactions with each God. It is not a game that punishes you with any danger, and brings a relaxing explorative tone to the player – but it is a hands off experience. Sometimes this is at its own detriment, with no cues or indications of what to do at times which can lead the player swimming in circles. This game is short and sweet, but does try to make the most of a lot of potential it has.

With assured writing and gorgeous pixel art visuals, Mothmen 1966 is a compelling start to the Pixel Pulp series. A few clunky puzzle elements are the only blemish on a fast paced and engrossing story that helps pass two hours in the blink of an eye.

Ravenswatch delivers a tantalising co-op rogue-like experience for those willing to partake in the action alongside others. Taking on the dark world of Reverie solo proves less enticing thanks to its imbalanced difficulty, but after a year and a half in Early Access, Passtech Games have delivered a well-crafted, visually appealing dark fantasy spin of familiar fables.

With puzzles that will have you scratching your head for hours and a narrative that encourages you to do so, it’s a smart game that has just a few niggles that do very little to sour the experience.

It’s not very helpful at the start, and at times the comedy falls flat. But stick with Breathedge and there’s a surprisingly deep mechanic entwined with a Schafer-esque story adventure.

A good first lap for a racing series debut, RiMS Racing is a game designed for bikers. It adds an element of maintenance and customisation to the racing formula which makes for a compelling career experience. With great action on track and a unique system off it, RiMS is certainly worth your time but has room for improvement in a sequel.

A strong third main entry in this insane series of brawlers, No More Heroes 3 is both accessible to new fans and daunting at the same time. A lot of it will make sense to fans, naturally, but may put off those just treading water. That being said, the main story is practically standalone, with some of the most colourful and creative bosses outside of a Souls game.

Crash Drive 3 might be rough round the edges but it’s a content filled playground of stunt ramps, loop-de-loops and tank battles that’s worth a look. Played alone it’s plainly average but with friends, the game comes alive and thanks to cross-play, it doesn’t matter what platform they’re using. It’s big, it’s dumb and it’s regularly exhilarating. This entry is real growth for a series that is coming into its own.

A competent action adventure with a focus on stealth and platforming, Steel Seed is a fun enough romp through futuristic giga-architecture. It’s unintended glitches and unresponsive combat bring it down, and the overall package isn’t all that compelling when better examples exist elsewhere.

The Invincible crash lands out of excellence as it’s overall technically flawed. However, the contents of the story, the themes it explores and the general art direction make for a great sci-fi title. If you can get over the less-than-stellar controls and bloated plot, you may just witness a shooting star, but maybe don’t make a wish on it.

Dark and Deep produces an eerily stylish darkness thanks to the art direction of Gustave Doré and threads of narrative that threaten an engaging tale. Unfortunately, it becomes consumed in its own deep dark, owing to labourious mechanics, disjointed pacing and frustrating puzzles. There’s a glimmer of light in this heart of darkness, but you’ll struggle to find it.

Little Nightmares III still looks incredible, but clunky controls, an awkward camera, and a watered-down sense of dread stop it from fully reaching its potential. Co-op brings a fun new twist to this entry, but some of the fear and magic that made the series special seems to have slipped through the cracks.

The Inner Friend is a short but sweet experience that will give back as much as you put into it. You’ve got to read between the lines with this game and if you like your narratives to have a clear structure, you’ll likely bounce right off this. If you like a game to challenge you, to make you think and maybe, just maybe, make you feel something, then The Inner Friend is certainly worth a look. Some sticky platforming sections aside, it’s a thrilling and occasionally chilling game that’s truly artistic in its vision.

A tremendously fun FPS with a quirky and creative presentation, Fashion Squad Police is packed with fast-paced and surprisingly deep non-violent action. A couple of difficulty spikes and occasionally frustrating encounters smudge a slight stain on its beaming overalls, but they’re more a water mark than a red wine stain. Grab your dapper sneakers, suit up your most glamourous get-up and start slapping the dull outta the unfashionable lot.

Born of Bread would grab your attention if it was in the shop window of a bakery. It has all the hallmark elements for a warm and inviting paperlike RPG, though its contents are lacklustre with a basic story, systems that punish your exploration and a combat system that needs a little tinkering. However, the heart of the game and all-around pleasantries do make it at least half a baker’s dozen.

Blades of Fire doesn't try to reinvent the Souls-like wheel, but it does add some new aspects to it. With a unique weapon crafting mechanic and varied combat system, it's only let down is the unfairness of combat itself. Still, it tells a good story through its leads, one that does entertain throughout.

Grim Guardians: Demon Purge is flawed in a lot of the ways it sells itself on. As a Metroidvania, it’s a really weak attempt, but as an Arcade Action Platformer it’s astounding. It just didn’t lean into one or the other enough. If you’re not a fan of Gal*Gun, most of it will go over your head, but fans may love this. Though as an entire package it just does okay.

This is one of the most accessible Metroidvanias to embark on. Pronty’s underwater excavation in a city, crawling with well-designed bosses is one for both newcomers and seasoned players of the genre. Combat is lacklustre and it doesn’t reinvent in any game-changing capacity, but it sure is a world worth diving deep in.

Too much is left to chance and not enough to player skill. I guess you could call it the pure definition of insanity. But those gamers who like a cruel, twisted challenge to keep them awake at night whispering just one more jump over and over again will find a decent game and one almighty almost insurmountable challenge here.

If you’re in the market for a cosy sim that combines creativity, humour, pure charm, and the scratching of every itch in the cosy genre. I Am Future is it, whilst tackling every gripe that has existed before within the genre. Whether you’re a fan of cosy games, or lite survival games I Am Future is something special. I can’t recommend it enough.

Lords of the Fallen could have been another accessible cookie-cutter souls-like. But with the addition of Umbral, the world of the dead layered upon the living, it breathes new invention into exploration, increasing tension, and unique combat, managing to cement itself as essential in an increasingly crowded and quality genre.

Sonic returns in an inescapable mishmash of strong mechanics and ideas alongside poor execution and empty lifeless ‘open-zones’ that offers little to tie it together. Whilst this could be the start of a brand new revolution for modern Sonic games, Frontiers still feels like a beta test, and one that fans shouldn’t have to playtest for Sonic Team to work out what to do next.

Monster Jam Showdown brings the chaos of their live shows to your gaming systems in fine style. A huge celebration of the Monster Jam universe, Showdown absolutely nails the aesthetic and is crammed full of replayability. If you’re one of the many fans around the world, you’re going to flip for this.