Pixel Piracy is difficult to get into: there is a lot to be learned and lots to remember; namely getting to grips with the vast inventory system and mastering how to keep the crew in check.

Whether it be from lack of supplies or enemies after your sweet juicy flesh; there is always something guaranteed to go badly each game.

Far Cry Primal‘s map is absolutely huge, and is literally teeming with objective markers and missions. I challenge even the most ardently focused of players to travel to their intended location without getting sidetracked on the way.

There are clear throwbacks to some classic side-scrollers (Turtles in Time, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage)…. but they seem to have missed the point that games have moved on since then.

Dreadbit should have excluded any roguelite features to make for a more compelling and engaging experience.

I spent a very long time trying to come up with a reason to mark Unravel down as a game but I just… can’t! Really, I can’t think of one negative thing to say about it. From the visuals to the audio, the smooth and responsive gameplay (and lack of glitches) to the touching story/message; there is nothing wrong with this game. Honestly, if you even slightly enjoy puzzle or platformer games, even slightly, buy Unravel. Do it.

There may have been a shortage of actual new modes added to Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 but it doesn’t really matter; the gameplay is so balanced and engaging that you won’t really care.

Not content with just the one story mode, Nitroplus Blasterz: Heroines Infinite Duel has two, but unfortunately both are pretty unremarkable.

At the end of my time with MagNets: Fully Charged, I never felt the thrill I get from the very best video games, or even pushed through the rough to find a diamond. I found a game with limited appeal, repetitive gameplay, basic mechanics, and a pointless attempt at a story. It’s never a bad game, but it’s never a good game either. I remain indifferent and somehow, that is both the best and worst thing I can say about any game.

Much of the ‘action’ in the game… hints at excitement but never pushes the boundaries to make for really thrilling gameplay.

A game like Dark Souls 3 is best gone into blind so as to heighten the sense of wonder and accomplishment you feel when you discover things for yourself, and I don’t want to rob you of that. All you need to know is that without any shadow of a doubt, I believe Dark Souls 3 is the finest game in the Souls series to date. It looks amazing, sounds amazing, plays amazing; the only things that let it down are the minor technical issues and perhaps the sometimes inconsistent difficulty level.

I’m already itching to get back into the Gungeon. Even if it’s occasionally frustrating, it’s still an addictive, rewarding experience. Polished gameplay and accessibility make way for fun, frantic and stylish firefights, whilst the classes add variety and cater to different playstyles. It’s a game that feels great to play alone, and is probably even better with a friend through local co-op. Simplistic, yet full of depth, Enter the Gungeon deserves to be in your collection.

The original premise and certain parts of Acorn Assault: Rodent Revolution‘s story start out fun, but unfortunately it doesn’t sustain for the full hour or two that it took me to complete the game. I enjoyed the first few fights exploring the mechanics and the opening lines of dialogue, but the game quickly became repetitive and irritating. Acorn Assault: Rodent Revolution is a game that promised to be a charming indie title but fell tremendously short.

Players who love Michonne, or who love any action game with the right amount of drama and zombie killing, can pick up the season pass in order to get access to the first two episodes and the third upon its release.

If you get a big kick of out having pages of stats to micro-manage, or finding a lot of loot, then you may gleam some enjoyment out of of playing Sadame, but for me, I appreciate its art and its classes, and that’s unfortunately all I can commend.

It’s simple, but simplicity can be handled in a classy way and I think that Soul Axiom does a great job with something pretty barebones.

Whilst Action Henk certainly won’t float everyone’s boat with its iffy visuals and reliance on score chasing to provide any long-lasting attraction, it is still an interesting and addictive combination of racing and platforming.

[Californium] did get challenging at times, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t rage quit once or twice, but in the end the reward for finishing was worth it.

Whale Rock games have done a great job of making an engaging, challenging and rewarding game (if not the deepest in story-terms) but the difficulty makes it pretty prohibitive for most gamers.

Though pretty to look at, there is no depth to MOP: Operation Cleanup and that makes it feel like a hollow shell of a game.

From its ridiculous lack of content to boring and repetitive gameplay, there isn’t much in the way of redeeming features for Blast ‘Em Bunnies. Frankly, it’s unreal that it’s available on PS4, Xbox One, 3DS and PC. It’s just an unfinished, poorly thrown-together game.

The pixelation, the darkness, the lack of story, and the sounds all come together in this synthesis that hammers home a single point deftly: die endlessly in an arena of death, and die better every time.

The brilliance of this game lies in the fact that these are all viable strategies, and that all are possible if you plan enough moves ahead.

Despite those flaws however, Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders still provides a great and thoroughly engrossing crime story that any fan of the point and click genre will surely gleam some enjoyment out of.

Fans of the comic books will surely love this addition to Michonne’s story, as it gives a glimpse into what went on during her disappearance in the comics. Others will enjoy it for its easy to learn gameplay, terrifying post-apocalyptic world, and its cast of unique characters.

It’s an incredibly mediocre offering that tries but ultimately fails to revitalise the struggling genre.

Ultimately it seems that the creators came up with a brilliant idea but rushed the product: although for some the core game will be enough, for those looking for real longevity and replay-ability Gurgamoth will be sacrificed prematurely on the altar of one-night-only party games.

The tight mechanics and gameplay cannot be overlooked and EA certainly has made good on that ground. Is it as enjoyable as the previous titles? No. It lacks the depth which its predecessors possessed and as a result, you’re left with little will to return. Regardless, this is the first half-decent golfing game on the current gen consoles, and aside from the gimmicky Night Club Challenges and inclusion of Star Wars Battlefront-themed courses, Rory McIlroy PGA Tour offers a level of realism that you’re unlikely to find anywhere else right now.