From the trailers, we always knew Ghost of Tsushima would be pretty. But I was not expecting a combat system this engaging and fun, or a story this gripping and emotional. It is easily one of the best games of the entire PS4 generation, and given its competition, that’s saying something.

You won’t find a more complete racing experience in gaming. In the grand scheme of things, Codemasters does most things as well if not better than every other developer of racing games in the industry. Visually, the game is stunning and the gameplay is balanced for all players. On the downside, a little more imagination would place this undisputed king of racers even higher on that mountain.

It’s stunning. It’s important. And it’s a deeply well-told story to the point where I genuinely cannot fathom why anyone who has fully beaten the game, not just heard the spoilers, not just watched a streamer snark their way through it or watched ripped YouTube cutscenes, doesn’t appreciate what it has achieved here.

In the same way that Fortnite perfectly captures its objective with visuals, SMB 3 nails their comedic caricatures on the diamond.

Overall, this is an amazing game that works on its own and fleshes out the story and setting of Final Fantasy VII in a remarkably cogent way. Fans of the original game may have wanted something more faithful in a functional sense but this is still an excellent game and one you will be more than happy to pour your time into.

Overall, this is a very faithful remake of a classic and beloved shoot-em-up with a fascinating world setting, now brought to life in a new and visually vibrant way. There is a definite learning curve here though, even for such a simple and direct control setup, but it’s worth sticking with and becoming The Divine Visitor the world needs.

Samurai Shodown is very much true to its gaming lineage and works a lot better on the Switch than you would expect. So if you like quick paced fighting games with lots of vicious bladed weaponry and a surprising amount of tactics, then this is definitely worth a look.

Know that if you’re overwhelmed with the world, stuck inside, or adrift in a life that you know will look totally different next week — get Animal Crossing.

With many of the smaller gaps filled from last year’s game, this is yet another championship-caliber season for Sony San Diego Studios. MLB The Show 20 does so much right that it’s foolish to spend too much time lamenting it’s flaws. Gameplay, visuals, improved customization and depth; it’s hard to ask for much more.

I can definitively say the game has more positives than negatives and feels less raw than its predecessor, but it still isn’t as complete as other sports titles.

The game is a mess, and not only that, some of the ways that Reforged is a mess actually impact the original Warcraft III. So even if you didn’t buy the remaster and just want to play your old game, you’ll still face some of the same problems with the new launcher, connecting to servers and so forth. [Impressions]

It’s nothing revolutionary, and the writing hasn’t improved from the base game much, but it’s a solid entry and it’s fun to have Moxxi leading supported by the returning character.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is one of the best Star Wars games I’ve ever played and one of the best “Soulslike” games out there, surprising as that may sound.

Modern Warfare gets the series back to its roots with plenty of nods to the 2007 original, but it also does enough to keep the game fresh and exciting, and it looks simply stunning on both console and PC.

It is relentlessly charming, consistently charming, and punctuated in every moment by the sheer joy of sucking. When the weather turns cold, pop this one in and imagine the troubles of the world gone, at least for a few hours.

It feels as if this was a rebuilding year for the WWE 2K franchise. While a few of the legacy strengths such as the creation suite are still strong, the most important part, the gameplay is in a bad place. The previous years’ version of a game shouldn’t play significantly better than the new title, but that’s the case with WWE 2K20.

NH4 is still fun to play, but there just isn't enough newness here to make upgrading to this version a necessity. If you own, love and still play NH3, I'm not sure you'll find NH4 a must-have for your collection.

There are already plenty of solid roleplaying games on the Switch, but you absolutely need to add Dragon Quest XI S to your collection if you haven’t already done so. Put simply, it is still a thoroughly incredible game and almost peerless within the genre.

It’s great to see a small team of gamers attempting to fill a massive void in the sports gaming universe, but at the end of the day, the game still has to be fun to be considered a success. I wish this game was better so that it could be an option for college football gamers and for those looking for a game with the potential to ultimately become an alternative to Madden...Unfortunately, it’s not yet good enough to create that sort of optimism.

FIFA 20 is fun, which is the most important thing. The developers in charge of gameplay have done just about all they can do to make this title a joy on the virtual pitch. It’s shortcomings are because of a lack of innovative improvements to core modes. That keeps it as a really good game, but a notch below great.

Daemon X Machina takes much of what made the Armored Core series work but goes its own way to make something new. As a standalone mecha gaming series then, Daemon X Machina has gotten off to a solid start, but it needs more work on the missions and story. It’s not as strict or as unforgiving as many of the Armored Core games but I think there is definitely room for a mecha game like this. So if you like to play with nicely designed mecha packed full of weapons and destroy all kinds of robotic enemies, then Daemon X Machina does a good job letting you do just that. So ignore the more casual players out there and try this out, as this is a proper mecha game.

An excellent remake of an already faultless Zelda game. If you never played the Game Boy original, then you absolutely need to pick this up. If, like me, you grew up playing this game, then there is a lot of new content to keep you busy. While Breath of the Wild was the game many bought their Switch for, Link’s Awakening has only reinforced that decision for me. So buckle up and let a friendly owl show you what Koholint Island has to offer.

If you’re a sports gamer who isn’t necessarily into hockey video games, you may be missing out on a title that has produced a rapidly improving product over the past two years. NHL 20 is my favorite edition of the series since NHL 13, and one of the best in franchise history.

Borderlands 3 does not feel like a total transformation for the series, just an evolution. And that may leave some part of it stuck in the past, but overwhelmingly, it’s a game that’s still a blast to play, particularly for those into the loot shooter genre.

NBA 2K20 delivers the best on-court experience in years, and that carries more weight than any other aspect of the game.

Metal Wolf Chaos XD is a decent enough port of a cult classic mecha game but misses the mark over the Xbox original. That said, even if you are not a fan of mecha games, you should still give this game a go. It’s raucous and a lot of fun and finally it is now more widely available. However, as someone that poured a lot of time into the game over the years, I still think the Xbox version is the best.

I'm having a lot of fun with Madden 20, and readily admit it is improved from last year's game, which I didn't hate. However, my fun is regularly curtailed by an inexplicable limitation in almost every mode. Madden 20 gets a lot more right than it gets wrong, but it still won't let itself be great.

Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a good game but not a great one. Its main mistake is trying to do too much and reducing the effectiveness of the player in combat and building. My only hope is that the eventual third game returns to a more focused approach, as I really feel that with the Dragon Quest Builders series, these games benefit from the mantra that less is more.