Dark Scrolls may not be the merciless challenge its name suggests, but it is a cleverly designed, charming and highly entertaining action game that makes it hard to put the controller down.

Forgotlings is a fine adventure game and a clear and solid step up from Forgotten Anne, both in terms of its visuals, its fantastic world, and the truly delightful characters we encounter along the way. As a game, one might have wished for slightly deeper and tighter gameplay, but it works and is offset by a beautiful presentation and the wonderful world in which it all takes place.

And Roger isn't a complex game nor a long one, in fact, from a gameplay perspective it's rather succinct and basic. But what TearyHand Studio has also cooked up with this game is a hugely impactful and emotionally-complex story that will leave an impression far longer than the approximate one-hour runtime.

Fantastic storytelling, solid pacing, quirky characters, and a good dose of self-referential humour make this experience highly recommendable, even though the Switch 2 version doesn't quite manage to recreate the seamless interaction that PC players must have enjoyed.

All in all, a nice opportunity for those who missed it or for those who want to play some great, ridiculously over-the-top hack and slash while commuting or on the hammock this summer, while on TV it looks very similar to what you remember on PS4. It misses just one bonus from the PS5 version, but it runs great on Nintendo's hybrid system and releases on a sexy deal.

EA Sports UFC 6 is once again a very solid martial arts game, and while there isn't much new in the ring, what's there is good enough. The hits feel great, and I love landing a solid kick to my opponent's head, the kind of strike that makes me go "oooh" with the controller in my hand.

Goals is a type of football game that won't be to everyone's taste, and the choice of graphic style is likely to divide opinion. Personally, I have no problem with it in a game that's more arcade-oriented and features fictional players. For me, the most important thing when it comes to a football game is that it's fun to play. Goals is fun to play. I definitely think you should give it a go, especially as it's free, if you've grown tired of the alternatives.

Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth remains an absolute beast both narratively and graphically, and I'm amazed that a game of this scale and ambition fits onto a slim handheld like the Switch 2 without making any critical compromises. If taking Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, Barret, Yuffie, Cait Sith, and Red with you wherever you go outweighs any technical limitations, here you have one of the most important games of recent years finally on Nintendo, and also one of the best recent instalments in the Final Fantasy franchise (if not the best) finally in your hands

I've found myself glued to the screen with One Military Camp, just as I did with Citadelum. Its endless cycle of things to do makes it excellent entertainment for whiling away the hours, and although I'd love to see larger menus in the handheld version, I won't rest until I've led my boys to victory.

Mina the Hollower therefore never feels like a cheap attempt to ride the simple wave of nostalgia. It isn't just another game in an ocean full of new-old indie titles with tacked-on retro graphics. This feels like a game that truly understands why so many of us fell in love with that era in the first place. It wasn't just thanks to impressive pixel art or infectious beep-boop music, but also for the sense of adventure and exploration. The feeling that there was a fantastic WORLD crammed onto a tiny cassette, a world full of limitations, certainly, but one that also felt like something greater than just a collection of pixels on a screen.

007 First Light has plenty of hits and plenty of misses. In answer to the question earlier, there is enough in this game to give you confidence in IO Interactive and its broader vision for this style of a James Bond game, with plenty of ambition and quality oozing out of every crack. But there is clear room for improvement too, areas that would take this game from being simply an enjoyable and great action-adventure project and elevating it to be something truly unmissable. As it is, you'll enjoy 007 First Light, but it's no Uncharted 4 and it's no Hitman 3, either.

Summing up Bubsy 4D is a much more enjoyable task than I'd ever dared to hope for. Sure, the short playtime, the occasionally barren environments, and the visual compromises made for the sake of frame rate prevent the title from reaching the very highest echelons of platforming. But once the controls are where they should be and you're whizzing across the screen with a smile on your face, the graphical shortcomings fade into insignificance. Fabraz has achieved the seemingly impossible: they've removed the old source of embarrassment and made the red-haired Bubsy relevant again. It may not be a ground-breaking and flawless masterpiece, but it is a genuinely strong, challenging, and incredibly entertaining platforming gem that far exceeds expectations.

There have actually been a couple of moments during the adventure where I've wondered whether I should award our absolute top rating (something I haven't done since 2021). Ultimately, the slightly too easy difficulty level and the somewhat unpolished combo system in the battles meant I couldn't quite justify it - but having said that, this is by far the best Lego game I've had the privilege of playing. There is such a vast amount to discover and unlock, and it has such excellent co-op support that I would highly recommend this to everyone.

I didn’t think Zero Parades: For Dead Spies would turn out as good as it actually did. The only real downside is that it constantly lives in the shadow of its big brother and the genre’s master, Disco Elysium, the game that, in a way, redefined the modern CRPG genre.

The Great Circle on Nintendo Switch 2 continues to offer a pure Indiana Jones experience, where its successes in adapting to a less powerful system outweigh the limitations it faces. With a few launch tweaks to improve those platform-specific features, MachineGames still has plenty of treasures to bring to players with the game.

I'm tempted to call Directive 8020 Supermassive's best game. It probably doesn't surpass the blast that I thought Until Dawn was, as in many ways, it was far more kitschy and downright cheesy, but it worked well as a sort of party horror game. Directive 8020 is a serious sci-fi story. It doesn't surpass its sources of inspiration, but it doesn't pale in comparison either. All the gameplay mechanics Supermassive has worked with before work better here than ever. It's also undoubtedly the game in the series with the most traditional stealth gameplay, and fortunately, the developers show that they know how to do it here too, even if they aren't taking any big risks.

Constance is a pretty nice Metroidvania, yet another one for the collection, one might be tempted to say. It feels good to play; for the most part, everything just works as it should and it actually touches on everyday topics that many can relate to. You might wish for a bit more innovation, since the game plays it safe within the Metroidvania genre, but a game doesn't necessarily need to set new standards to be entertaining and worth your time, and Constance is a great example of that.

This is a game, which while not particularly mechanically complex, has been crafted with such a clear creative vision that it's hard to fault. Every part of Mixtape feels as though it belongs, be it the stop-motion-like animated characters, the picturesque and colourful artistic direction, the straightforward but refined narrative premise, the incredible use of music that has been expertly curated. Mixtape is a movie brought to life in a way few can rival and while it may be over in a flash, what Beethoven & Dinosaur has presented with this game will leave a noticeable impression on you long after the credits roll. Seriously, go and play Mixtape. You won't be disappointed.

ZPF is definitely a shoot 'em up worth taking a closer look at. Technically speaking, it's very impressive, and had it been released on the Mega Drive during the console's heyday, we'd probably have mentioned it in the same breath as classics like Galenancer, Thunder Force and Truxton. It gets most things right and really only falls short in that there is sometimes a bit too much happening on screen at once, and that the game's wildly varied environments don't quite give it a sense of cohesion. But with its satisfying upgrade system and a highly customisable difficulty level, it's a must-have for any shoot 'em up fanatic's collection.

Gorn 2's virtual brawling is entertaining time-killing fun, whose strengths lie in its consistently high-quality execution and silly premise. The story provides a suitable reason to fight and the game also offers the chance to take on various challenge battles outside the main story. Although you end up facing the same enemies a bit too often and the damage can be a bit too sensitive, Gorn 2 has taken the potential of the first game to the next level and made whacking its rubber foes even more fun.

Saros is a fantastic example of just how much good can come from giving a razor-sharp developer the time and freedom to create the game they want from a clear vision. For whilst Saros is, in scope, Housemarque's biggest game to date, it still feels laser-focused in its desire to bring bullet hell into a 3D space and equip the whole thing with an engaging sci-fi story set in a fantastic world.

Minishoot's Adventures has nothing new to say about twin-stick shooters, shmups, or the typical Zelda formula. It's the things you know, just remixed in an innovative way, and perhaps that's enough. It doesn't change your relationship with these respective genre frameworks, apart from convincing you that these frameworks are flexible enough for this sort of thing to be entirely feasible, and that's probably a victory in itself.

The team behind Tides of Tomorrow made a name for themselves with the brilliant Road 96 and Road 96: Mile 0 - both of which were great stories. Tides of Tomorrow is no different, and the game had no trouble keeping me hooked during the 11-13 hours it took to complete. DigixArt are good at telling compelling stories, and they do so again with this game; this time, they spice it all up with this 'asynchronous multiplayer' mechanic, which is certainly a nice gimmick - and which makes the game one of the freshest narrative adventure games we've seen in a long time.

Arcadia Fallen II has pleasantly surprised me. I could easily see myself going back to play the first game just to get the full story. If you're a fan of visual novels, this is a really good choice with a strong story, good characters and solid dialogue. It's a quiet game. A game you play over a hot cup of coffee. Or tea with a little bit of honey in it.

Vampire Crawlers is nothing short of outstanding and its possibilities are dizzying. Play at your own risk, for this is, if possible, even better and more polished than its predecessor.

There is so much charisma exuding from this game it's almost hard to dislike it and the pacing and gunplay is strong enough to keep you entertained when you aren't dazzled by the incredible art and animation.

Replaced is, after all, about emotion, which it has in abundance, with a story that resonates deeply, feels refreshing without reinventing the wheel, and, moreover, doesn't feel the need to provide all the answers.

If you choose to take on Elemental: Reforged, you'll get a competent 4X game with slightly dated graphics and not the most knowledgeable of AI opponents. Thanks to the fact that you do so much else during the course of the game, it rarely gets boring. Although this title is the best in its series, I think certain competitors like Age of Wonders 4 offer sharper experiences today.