While the character and world design offers an intriguing playspace, the puzzle and combat mechanics are so simple that I was left unimpressed by the end of my ten-hour playthrough.

While Madden 25 feels like a great improvement on last year's game, it still feels like much of its core is standing in place. While that leads to a feeling of "Maybe next year" that the series has fostered before, it's definitely a better game than last year's effort.

Star Wars Outlaws is a perfectly playable experience that will only be enhanced by a player's potential love of the series and its world.

Black Myth: Wukong infuses the cultural heritage of China, its rich mythology, and one of its most important pieces of literature with an action RPG structure that's as deep as it is grand in scale. However, this same scope leads to some inconsistency across the board that is a detriment to the overall quality.

Splintered Fate is a great Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles roguelike that possibly sticks a little too closely to the template set by one of the genre's finest. And yet, as I played through run after run with a co-op partner, I didn't care one bit.

Offering the best way to play Luigi’s Mansion 2, but falling short of the crown of best game in the series thanks to its superior supernatural sequel, this HD remake is an ideal pickup for any Switch owner who didn’t own a 3DS.

The Monster Hunter Stories remaster is a very faithful rendition of the original game. It adds a fresh coat of paint, better performance and English and Japanese voice acting. With the core experience still very much intact, this could well be the definitive way to experience Monster Hunter Stories going forward.

More casual players of the series who just want to experience the racing on offer will find much less to write home about in F1 24. To an unseasoned eye, the experience here is largely similar to last year’s offering, with one track fewer and sans the continuation of Braking Point, which is a bi-annual affair. As such, F1 24 is a mis-season refresh, and a much harder sell than usual with this yearly release.

The sweet heart of Toriyama beats here, but it alone can’t help to make Sand Land compelling for most.

Although the novelty of swiping wears off pretty quickly, Reigns: Beyond is an impressive game for its price point. For less than £5, it’s not a risky investment - and it's probably worth the entry fee just to experience the unique gameplay and hilarious script. It’s definitely more suited for short bursts on mobile, but if the Apple Arcade isn’t an option for you, then the Switch version is a nice alternative.

There is - or at least, I want there to be - a great game here, with combat that structurally emulates what made Suikoden so memorable and recognisable and a world filled with countless varied characters.

If you’re looking for a new rogue-lite to sink your teeth into, Beat Slayer offers an excellent rendition of the genre, with the rhythm-based combat only elevating it further. I’d have liked to have seen a little more innovation in the game’s upgrade system, and the character work here falls a little sub-par of what I’d expect in a game like this.

The game certainly gets better as time goes on, and the story is well-told enough that it's worth experiencing for survival horror fans. However, it comes with the caveats that the overall gameplay leaves a lot to be desired, and its survival horror contemporaries just do a better job on nearly every front.

Mario vs Donkey Kong is a charming puzzler that’s great in short bursts, but the repetitive formula, short length, and occasionally frustrating controls leave it paling in comparison to other top-tier Mario outings on Switch.

Classified: France '44 is a strong debut from Absolutely Games that's worth a go if you're looking for hours of well-designed turn-based combat, varied missions and encounters, and a highly replayable campaign. However, it doesn't quite hit the potato masher on the head when it comes to exploring its WWII setting and creating a narrative about the human cost of war.

Bandle Tale feels like a game some people will thoroughly enjoy, but others might grow tired of when the systems start piling on top of each other. It’s surprisingly complex, and about as long as the average big-budget RPG, but whether players will have the same patience for it remains to be seen.

With a poor story mode offering, wildly expensive microtransactions, and visibility issues that really hamper gameplay, I can't see Foamstars making waves in the sea of multiplayer shooters that already exists.

Airhead has redeeming qualities, including stunning art direction, an amazing soundscape, and a steady drip-feed of upgrades that serve to keep the gameplay loop fresh. Metroidvania fans who have the patience to stick out the frustrating gameplay will find themselves an incredible world to explore, and one that’s filled with an interesting story, concept, and secrets. However, the core gameplay loop quickly spirals from being an interesting gimmick to an infuriating irritation, and it’s not one that I can see most casual players enjoying all that much.

Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League, live service ambitions aside, is a fun shooter that feels like the closest you’ll get to a virtual DC Comics theme park; it looks great, and it’s full of recognisable characters. And, like a theme park, much of it feels hollow, designed by a committee for a focus group that may not even exist anymore to keep them engaged and coming back. Despite this, and like every time I've been to a theme park, I've come away feeling like I've had fun, as forgettable as the specifics may be.

Ready or Not is a game that is designed to make players feel uncomfortable. In one way, its tense gunfights and the uncertainty of what's behind the next door achieve that in spades. On the other, the locations and missions will cut a little too close to reality for some.

With new crafting recipes, a new Royal Tool that makes you feel like Doctor Strange, and new companions to adventure with, while A Rift in Time ends up feeling just as grindy as the original content does, it's more cosy game content that is perfect to pick up and play this holiday season.

Born of Bread is a lovely little RPG with gorgeous Paper Mario-inspired visuals and a great sense of humour that helps elevate its by-the-books gameplay. I had a lot of fun with it, but also quite a few frustrations with glitches and soft-locking, which is a shame as it’s a real gem outside of those problems.

There are lots of design choices I didn’t mesh with in Frontiers of Pandora. I love the world, but barriers blocked me from fully immersing myself in it, and it’s littered with activities and outposts plucked straight out of the 2010s and planted in Pandora’s soil.

Modern Warfare 3's multiplayer is the shining light of this year's Call of Duty offering and is without a doubt the glue holding the whole package together. Unfortunately, it's hard to ignore the glaring cracks in what should have probably been an expansion for MW2.

The Invincible might have its minor problems, but they don’t do much to draw from the fact that Starward Industries has proven that the direct adaptation of The Invincible was always destined to be a video game.

My Time at Sandrock is a game that you’ll have no trouble getting into if you’re a fan of the genre. If you’re new to cosy games on the whole, though, it’s also one that is easy to pick up and play - making it a great entry-level title for those checking out something slower in the colder months and dark nights.

From the moment you fire up Robocop: Rogue City and see his cruiser’s bumper scrape up the ramp, it is clear who the game is for - if you’re a fan of the 1980s classic you’re in for a treat. Otherwise, the poor performance and uninspired gameplay make it hard to recommend the game to someone who isn’t already a fan of OCP's finest. One thing you can’t take away from Teyon is they have delivered a true-to-the-film Robocop experience, but whether you'd buy that for a dollar is up to you.

Overall, Little Goody Two Shoes is a lot of fun, but may not be what you’re looking for if you’re on the hunt for a more traditional horror experience lending more to a slow-burn style of game with a lot of different elements tossed into the mix, from resource management to quests, and mini-games. It's a little unfocused, and while that works for its unique visual stylings, I found myself wishing for more horror than the constant diversions it offered.