With lovably odd characters, a fantastic art design, and a really engaging style of gameplay, Deponia shows what a modern point and click game should be. Despite a steep incline in difficulty that may catch a few players off guard, Deponia’s highlight is its character design and writing, and you can expect to be entertained throughout.

Short on puzzles and scares, Layers of Fear 2 ultimately feels like an overly dark walking simulator. You’ll have covered a fair bit of ground by the time you reach the credits, and avoided some pretty unusual hazards, but the unfair deaths you’ll have suffered along along the way will leave a bad taste in your mouth. And the game’s story doesn’t quite pay off, either. Layers of Fear 2 is a swing and a miss for Bloober Team in my eyes, unfortunately.

Team Sonic Racing might not be the strongest, most innovative racer out there, but fans of Sega’s previous karting games as well as fans of Sonic will definitely find something to enjoy. The team elements are very well implemented, and it’s nice being encouraged to work as a team in a game where you would otherwise do everything in your power to take your friends down.

Fighting games just don’t get much better than Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R, and that’s all you need to know.

Overall though, Irony Curtain: From Matryoshka is a unique triumph, a game that offers a fresh take on a well-trodden genre that’s far funnier than a game about communist history has any right to be. It manages to feel incredibly polished without losing that distinctive indie touch; the feeling that you’re playing a distinctly authored experience that hasn’t been focus-grouped to oblivion. Be prepared to think outside the box, but make sure you check out this beautifully constructed and often hilarious adventure that’s sure to delight anyone who loves a good point and click game.

If you’re after an experience like no other, that will challenge your problem-solving skills in logical and believable ways, you absolutely need to play Observation. It’s one of the most compelling and surprising games I’ve played in recent years. Its biggest achievement, though, is that it didn’t make me feel like I was playing a game; it made me feel like I was genuinely assisting a crew member in distress.

Lovecraft’s Untold Stories is a fun shooter, for the most part. It doesn’t gain much from mining Lovecraft lore; you could swap out the foes for any other number of pixellated nightmares. But slaughtering your way through the hordes is a satisfying and challenging experience, and there’s enough replayability here to keep you diving back into the abyss.

Rage 2 isn’t the biggest game in the world. Nor is it the prettiest, or the most polished. Once you’ve explored its tame open world enough to open up your combat options however, it doesn’t really matter. In the heat of battle, the only thing you’ll be experiencing while playing Rage 2 is sheer joy. And it’s good enough to make all the boring bits in between feel worthwhile. It’s not perfect, but it shows that id’s brilliant brand of combat can be enhanced and implanted into an open world.

As retro collections go, Castlevania Anniversary Collection doesn’t impress with its features, but the games themselves pick up the slack. Buy this, and you’ll be in classic vampire-killing heaven.

If you fondly remember the games and want to revisit them on your fancy modern console, sure, why not? Just bear in mind they might not be as engaging as you remember them to be.

Sniper Elite V2 Remastered is far from being the best Sniper Elite game you can play right now, but it’s still worth your time if you want to see bullets travel through bodies in gory detail.

If the idea of a game that lets you poke around and learn everything on your own, you’ll have some fun with Save Koch‘s wacky, hectic world. There’s a lot to like if you have the patience to figure it out. But if you prefer your sim games with clear instructions, then you’d better pass on this one.

An adventure game at heart, A Plague Tale: Innocence expertly fuses storytelling, stealth and action to form a coherent, flowing and altogether gripping experience that's hard to put down.

If you’ve never played Saints Row: The Third before and can’t imagine playing a game on anything other than the Switch, The Full Package is a must-buy despite its technical issues. To be fair, when docked, the Switch version probably falls in line with the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions anyway. It’s also a must-buy if you use your Switch pretty much exclusively as a handheld device.

Playing against the CPU is bound to lose its appeal eventually, which leaves Puyo Puyo Champion‘s local and online multiplayer modes being the main draw. But for not much more than the price of a couple of coffees, that shouldn’t be much of an issue.

If you’ve played Table Top Racing to death already on another format there’s probably no reason to pick up this new Switch version unless you’re really keen to play it in local multiplayer. If you’ve never played it before though, this new Nitro Edition may be worth adding to your collection if you fondly remember the mad antics of games like Micro Machines. Its races may not be all that exciting, and success may sometimes feel dependent more on luck than skill, but Table Top Racing: World Tour – Nitro Edition is still entertaining.

This is a collection that has had a lot of care and thought put into its construction. It has all the features that you’d expect and more, and while it’s not quite the budget release that other retro compilations tend to be, you do get what you pay for.

Close to the Sun is a game that’s only remarkable for its scenery. And it’s a shame, really, as the Helios could have carried a great tale. As it is though, while there’s nothing about Close to the Sun that’s broken, there’s nothing compelling enough to make it worth your while, especially with its short run time and lack of replayability.

Mainly thanks to its dull combat and floaty controls, Giga Wrecker Alt. isn’t the game it could have been. There’s a great story waiting to be unravelled if you have the patience to work through the game’s issues, but a few hours in, it really will become a slog. Giga Wrecker Alt. is a unique game, for sure, but uniqueness alone doesn’t make something good. The basics have to be there first, and in this case, they’re just not.

The Nintendo Switch version of Istanbul is a fantastic board game adaptation.

If you’re a fan of snooker, then Snooker 19 is a must have. Its realism, range of players and arenas make it the Fifa of snooker games. But the lack of depth and repetitive career mode means that Snooker 19 pots the white ball just after the black. Casual players may not find much longevity, but snooker fans will enjoy it nevertheless.

It’s a beautifully executed hybrid of puzzle game and tycoon sim that charms and challenges in equal measure.

Fade to Silence‘s strengths definitely outweigh its weaknesses, though. Its unique setting makes you want to go out and discover its secrets. Its camp building elements reward you for seeking out other survivors and building bonds with them. And the survival aspects give the game depth and added challenge. It isn’t just a bog-standard adventure game with a frosty backdrop; in Fade to Silence, the weather is your biggest foe.

Don’t go into it with lofty expectations, and Konami Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection will serve you just fine.

A “chore” is the best word to describe UglyDolls: An Imperfect Adventure. Just because a game is aimed at children isn’t an excuse for lazy, uninspired design. With a boring world, mind-numbing and repetitive missions and a waste of its source material, this is one game not worth your time, no matter what your age.

It’s actually surprising just how good World War Z is.

Even with its lack of replayability, you should buy Katana Zero right now if you’re a fan of action games with great tales to tell. When its thumping music kicks in, you know it’s time for action of the highest calibre.

Mortal Kombat 11’s combat is fluid and intuitive, and even when you’re losing it’s a joy to play. It’s a game that's fun just to mess about with, but once you master its nuances it becomes even more rewarding. Once a gory joke, Mortal Kombat has evolved to become one of the most accomplished fighters you’ll get your hands on.