Astro Bot has set a new benchmark that all 3D platformers now have to reach, and I’ll be waiting excitedly while they try.

Aside from all this romance games live and die on the cast, and there is an excellent cast of characters to choose from. No matter who you choose, you get to know everyone around you, and they bond together throughout the year independent of you. Each piece moves like fully formed people adding to that perfect feeling that what is happening is real. Jack Jeanne is the pinnacle, and evolution of the genre beyond simple dialogue trees. It’s a turning point for romance games, and we are unlikely to see a change so drastic for a long time.

Lorelei moves into your brain and gets comfortable. I found myself mentally rifling through my collection of documents with as-yet unsolved riddles in the middle of the day or thinking about a puzzle that stumped me while working on another project. I also expected a letdown in the end. With that level of absorption and hours of narrative setup, it’d be easy to fumble the finale and disappoint expectation, leaving you with little more than the sad feeling you get from seeing unfulfilled potential.

It’s not clear what the future holds for the Xenoblade series, but the director, Tetsuya Takahashi has confirmed that the story that started in the first game is officially finished with this DLC. Whether it will go the route of starting a brand new story in the same universe – like what Kingdom Hearts 4 appears to be doing – remains to be seen, but if this did happen to be the final thing we ever got in the Xenoblade franchise, I would be thoroughly satisfied. Future Redeemed is the perfect end to a perfect story.

Once again, it’s a testament to the quality of Baldur’s Gate 3 that, through the bugs, difficulty level, and awkward UX, my friends keep coming back, and we all still can’t wait for the next lengthy, multi-hour session which will inevitably end with another dead merchant. It always does, and at this point, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I’ve been playing Phantom Abyss since it first entered early access and I will not be stopping anytime soon now it’s officially launched. The adrenaline-fuelled gameplay gives me so much joy every time I do a run, whether I’m playing it casually or seriously trying to challenge myself. It is a game that will join the likes of FTL and Spulunky as games that are forever in my regular rotation, and for a game like this, I can offer no higher praise.

The Pristine Cut has made one of the best “choices matter” games of all time even better. The new routes weave into the overall narrative perfectly and add more depth to an already excellent game. Black Tabby Games is going back to finish Scarlet Hollow before working on a new game, and I’ve never been so excited to see what’s in the kitchen.

Cyberpunk 2077 has always been good at pulling you into its world, but Phantom Liberty grabs you by the collar and pushes your face right into the grimy, piss-soaked alleyways.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 starts out with the same level of mystique and overwhelming scope that Elden Ring hits you with, but once you understand how this world functions, you become a master of it. It’s daunting, sure, but after you overcome that initial hurdle, it’s incredible. I adored tearing through goblins, shooting ballistae at drakes, clinging to flying dragons, and changing the very fate of the world as the Arisen. Dragon’s Dogma 2 is easily the best action RPG of 2024 so far – and is very unlikely to be dethroned – and manages to go toe-to-toe with FromSoftware’s magnum opus in terms of how impactful and absorbing exploring the world feels. This is what Dragon’s Dogma was always meant to be, and it’s a masterpiece.

Against the Storm is a perfect storm: It’s a unique blend of genres that executes its ideas without any great flaws. Instead of motivating you to play ‘just one more turn,’ it tempts you into building ‘just one more city,’ condensing the thrilling allure of exploration and mechanical intricacy of a city-builder into runs that will fly by as fast as raindrops in a hurricane.

Resident Evil 4 Remake is the legendary game given more than just a new coat of paint. The visuals and sound design are brutally oppressive, the combat is sharper than a knife’s edge, and the world will make you want to uncover every corner. It’s as enticing as it is engaging, and intense as it is exciting. Resident Evil 4 is back, and it’s better than ever.

Taking the Persona formula and putting it in a different setting could’ve crashed and burned, but the team behind Metaphor: ReFantazio understood exactly what needed to change to make it work. The result is a game that has a sense of familiarity in its mechanics, yet innovates in ways that make it a distinct experience. On top of that, it pulls you into this brand-new world which is expertly crafted with larger-than-life personalities that pop off the screen and make for a thrilling adventure. I don’t know if Metaphor is planned to be a one-off or the start of a new series, but either way, it’s something special.

Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is the first true triple-A adventure game we’ve had in ages and one of the best games of 2024. People jumping in expecting it to be Wolfenstein in everything but name might be disappointed, but settle into its pace and you’ll be treated to a whirlwind world tour that only video games can deliver. Actually, cancel that. This is a fash-bashing experience only MachineGames could deliver – an unforgettable adventure that easily outdoes the most recent movies it’s based on.

Shadow of the Erdtree doesn’t do anything particularly surprising for Elden Ring players, but it’s worth the price of admission just to see FromSoftware flex its world design expertise in a more compact playspace. It also fits perfectly into the middle of the main game, which means you can step into the Land of Shadow and return to the main world armed to the teeth with an arsenal of fun and unique new weapons, from hulking katanas to reverse grip swords, beast claws, and poison bottles. Whether you’re here for the lore, the swords, or the vibes, Shadow of the Erdtree bolsters what’s already one of the best games ever made.

From the mechanics to the characters, and even the visual flourishes that adorn every attack, Street Fighter 6 is peak fighting games. This is a traditional, grounded fighter that feels entirely modern and fresh thanks to the Drive Gauge and everything that surrounds it. No mechanic or meter feels wasted, everything in Street Figher 6 has been honed to a fine point. This will be the best fighting game of 2023, and perhaps even of the generation.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is exactly what we’ve been missing and the best game of 2023 so far.

Lost Signals is pretty much more Oxenfree, but better. That might seem disappointing from the sequel to something that promised to revolutionize adventure games, but the refined storytelling, intimate character moments, and creative presentation are, in this case at least, just as good as – if not better than – a brand-new idea.

Shadows Over Loathing is the best possible answer to the question “What if wizards could summon cheese?” It’s a fantastic RPG that is as funny as it is engaging, and it leaves you wanting more every time you play it.

Dawntrail is a strong foundation for Square Enix to build on, one with more opportunities for different kinds of characters and narratives and a better balance between its two often-conflicting pillars of storytelling and action. Sure, a few rough edges could benefit from polish in the upcoming patches, and I hope more opportunities for interactive quests show up as well. If Dawntrail represents the future of FFXIV, then it’s a promising future.

Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is an intensely unwieldy name, but it’s a hearty collection of some of the best arcade games Capcom ever made. If you’re a fighting game fan or an arcade nostalgic, you owe it to yourself to play Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection.

It comes with a lot of fun extras too. It’s nothing game-changing, but if you’re a long-time fan you’ll appreciate the galleries, character profiles, and music selection. Plus, there are a bunch of fun achievements involving little easter eggs of fan in-jokes that all made me smile when I found them.

1000xResist is different to anything else I’ve played and mostly because it’s a narrative-based game that tries as hard as possible to obscure the story from the player. But just like those fans who see the goodness in Iris despite what she shows us, interpreting what you are shown – and what you aren’t – is part of the gameplay. I can’t tell you what 1000xResist is. You’ll just have to see for yourself.

Immortality on PS5 is hampered by the console’s controls – the way you interact with Immortality is of paramount importance – but the game itself, the experience, the acting, the immersion: it’s best-in-class. Immortality is a truly unique game, and even if this isn’t necessarily the best way to play it, I’m glad that more people get to experience it. There’s nothing quite as glamorous and haunting as Immortality.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 won’t do anything that blows you away, but it doesn’t matter when a game plays, looks, and sounds as good as this. It’s an improvement over the first game and proves how polished and slick a sequel can be when the developer is free to revisit and refine on top of solid foundations. Now we just cross our fingers and pray that Insomniac gets an 18-rating for its Wolverine game because it just might pull it off again.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is a lovely way to return to Hyrule, and the echo system revitalizes the experience of exploring this world. From combat to exploration, your approaches will be wildly different from any Zelda game before, and that’s what makes Echoes of Wisdom worth playing. While it’s not quite a Zelda masterpiece, it’s definitely an essential Nintendo Switch game.

It’s already a greatly improved game than what came before it, and it won’t be long until the amount of content is there to match, so this is an easy upgrade for anyone who liked the original game.

As with any good roguelite, there are new pilots and ships to unlock, as well as card sets and modifiers to change what you’re capable of. It’s also injected with some of that Hades magic, with your pilots dropping new hints to the story with each successful run. The story and characters aren’t quite as in-depth as Hades, but it makes up for that by being funny and charming in a way few games can manage.

It was the little things that prevented me from claiming Sea of Stars as perfection. Without spoilers, one character does something VERY naughty, that ends in some very bad things happening, and everyone seems just okie dokie with it after the fact. No one brings up it was their fault, just because they’re good in battle, I guess. However, it is hard to criticize Sea of Stars, as it does what it intends exceptionally well, and it delivers something we’re all familiar with, in a very refreshing way.