Lords of the Fallen just about justifies the return of this forgotten franchise by being basically fine. It has a few clever ideas and a whole bunch of very predictable ones, ultimately resulting in a soulslike experience that won't feel particularly new or fresh, but rarely offends or goes too far wrong.

Not just great for a free-to-play game, Honkai: Star Rail is a genuinely fantastic RPG with slick combat and an engaging story loaded with content. The biggest caveat is, while generous, its gacha system may tempt some players into unwise purchases.

Detective Pikachu Returns is more adventures with the charming electric mouse from the original, but the straightforward investigation mechanics can be incredibly frustrating in a game that wouldn't look out of place on the Wii U.

Ubisoft Bordeaux has delivered exactly what it promised. Assassin's Creed Mirage is a compact, stealth-focused adventure that punishes anyone trying to go in loud, and it does so in a world that's always a delight to explore (and be chased through).

The game engine here is demonstrably better than Forza Motorsport 7's but, in terms of breadth of gameplay, presentation, general excitement, and enjoyment gleaned from racing the AI cars, the older, now-deleted Forza Motorsport 7 is clearly superior. More content including tracks and event series will be added over time, so it will certainly improve, but right now the career mode here is so sedate and one-note, it's hard to recommend Forza Motorsport's offline mode over any of its peers.

Competent and stylish in its real-time strategy, The Lamplighters League puts an art deco spin on a simplified XCOM formula, but is let down by real-time segments that dilute and distract from its core offering.

Not to get too lofty, but you know how a musician's ears have been trained to pick up elements in music – I honestly felt like that during the last stretch of Cocoon's puzzles. I knew what the game wanted from me and I followed. It's a silent language that you learn to translate. Cocoon cuts out all the noise, and the result is one of the best puzzle adventure games of 2023. I've learned to pick up Cocoon's silent harmonies, and they're beautiful.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series makes for a compelling prequel to the show with a few glaring issues outshone by complex, engaging characters.

Despite leaning a little too heavily on fan-servicing familiarity, Payday 3 proves there's still fun to be squeezed from its well-honed heisting template yet.

The most playable FIFA – oops! – in years. This is an encouraging new start for the EA Sports FC franchise, with Ultimate Team innovations truly standing out, and PlayStyles adding a smart new wrinkle to the on-turf action.

Witchfire enters early access with a bright future ahead of it. While there's certainly some rough edges, The Astronauts has assembled the skeleton of a capable fusion between FPS sensibilities and roguelite punishments, and I'm keen to see how it evolves over time from here. [Early Access review]

Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty is the culmination of CD Projekt Red's efforts to right the wrongs of a challenging launch, with this premium expansion combining with Update 2.0 for a total revitalization of Night City. This is Cyberpunk 2077 at its best, and with the price of entry this low you've got no excuse not to dive back in.

A fizzy addition to the party game canon, Party Animals brings ample amounts of chaos and chuckles, with an uneven mix of modes highlighting the physic fighting shortcomings. Still, it's never not fun to hurl a friend off a speeding train and see them shrink into the distance.

Mortal Kombat 1 is a superbly presented fighting game with something to offer players of all experience and familiarity with NetherRealm's sprawling MK universe. The Kameo fighter system injects new strategic depth into combat, the rebooted timeline feeds a ridiculous story, and the suite of game modes are both varied and well made.

For those migrating away from Friday the 13th: The Game, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre could prove to be a welcome alternative. While this new multiplayer horror game certainly shows promise, my earliest hours with the family have been hindered by needless friction. It's occasionally thrilling, but often frustrating.

An open world racer that gets better the more you play it, revealing a wealth of high-quality racing in a beautiful, technically spectacular Hawaii. While it lacks originality, it is better than Forza Horizon 5 in several ways.

Inventive, challenging, and deliciously dark, Lies of P retains the core structures of similar action RPGs while adding new surprises to the mix. The potential for richer character builds and depth of choice for the player is bolstered by a haunting narrative that, despite the clunk of certain new mechanics, cements the experience as a powerful contender on the Soulslike scene.

Fae Farm is a low-stakes, inclusive, and supremely cozy farming sim that delivers some uniquely interconnected features in a neat and accessible way. It's a narratively charged, explorative experience, and a shining example of devs having learned from the mistakes of other farming sims.

Goodbye Volcano High is a heartfelt coming-of-age drama about a group of teen dinosaurs confronted with an uncertain future. Dreamy pop ballads and an absorbing dialogue system offer a gateway into an introspective story about being young, queer, and chasing your dreams in the face of impending disaster.

Starfield is an expansive and beautifully crafted open world experience full of endless discovery and opportunities.

A deep dive into an emotionally resonant, thematically intriguing, and visually striking abyss, Under the Waves' waters are choppy at times, but there's pearls to be found amidst the turbulence of its enthralling ocean.

It's a joy and a relief to realise that Sabotage hasn't merely mimicked classic '90s JRPG, but committed to understanding what makes them tick. Its nostalgia is neither gratuitous nor cynical, instead working disparate references together with original ideas into a coherent whole. While it's a little disappointing to discover that there's isn't great depth to the turn-based battles and other systems, the immense quality and detail in the pixel art, soundtrack, location design, characters and plot ensure that Sea of Stars remains a stunning achievement to the end.

No matter what nominally noticeable technical changes are happening under Madden 24's hood, they don't represent the gargantuan changes needed to bring the NFL series in line with various yearly sports game competition.

Armored Core 6 is FromSoftware like we've never seen it, back on its mech beat with renewed vigor after 10 years away. It's an exhilarating game that lives up to the promise of action that only mechs can deliver, and it's a refreshingly short and easily replayed experience that still manages heaps of depth.

Fort Solis starts strong but quickly struggles to circumvent its shortcomings. Despite the strong visual identity and drive towards absolute immersion, this narrative-adventure ultimately suffers due to its glacial movement and finicky controls. There's promise in the concept, but a lack of refinement is palpable in the execution.

It's a stark demonstration of what a lack of confidence in your core vision can do. There is a good shooter in Immortals of Aveum, maybe even a great one, but you'll have to do some digging to find it.

Blasphemous 2 leans heavily into its inspirations, and therefore doesn't reinvent the wheel – but with more to see, more to do, and, of course, more to slaughter, it improves on its forerunner's familiar formula across the board with devastating results.

The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood is a masterwork of narrative and character, positing impactful questions while grounding everything against a backdrop of superb card-building intertwining with its story and moral dilemmas.