If you’re looking for a different take on an Alien video game or even just a solid squad-based tactics game, then Dark Descent is worth playing. Taking your squad on missions and slowly exploring the environments is great fun, especially when the game leans into its strengths and gives you a hostile maze of Xenomorphs to navigate. However, most things surrounding that gameplay fall flat, and you’ll want to simply rush through them to get back on the field.

Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life is one of the best farming games ever made, remade, with quality-of-life features that it desperately needed. It’s beautifully faithful to the original, sparking nostalgia in all the right places, while refining the experience. This is the most relaxing game since Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and is essential for fans of farming and life-sim RPGs.

Final Fantasy 16 is an uneven game. There were moments – like the Platinum Games-tinged Eikon fight against Titan – where I was convinced that this was one of the best things I’ve ever played, but for every section as good as that, there are hours of drudgery. If you don’t think MMO-style fetch quests are the pinnacle of game design, you’re probably going to feel the same way.

If you never bought Sonic Origins, then Sonic Origins Plus is an essential addition to your gaming library, and proof that some games are timeless. You don’t have to have nostalgia for the originals to enjoy these four games, it is almost impossible not to enjoy yourself while running through the zones. My issue is that the additions don’t give much more than the Premium Sonic Origins, and that Premium content should have been included from the start.

Park Beyond is a fabulous theme park builder with vibrant aesthetics, rock-solid controls and UI, and satisfying mechanics – and thanks to the power of impossification, the game has a much longer staying power and more variety than many other representatives of its genre. The game does exactly what it promises: It lets you build your wildest dreams.

In conclusion, F1 23 has few standout innovations compared to last year’s game, and is lucky enough to come along with a genuine revolution in the sport.

It doesn’t help that my PC struggled to keep a consistent frame rate and no amount of fiddling with the settings really helped. This, admittedly, isn’t super uncommon with pre-release games on PC, but it seems like some of the Steam reviews have said the same thing, so it may need just a little bit more time in the oven.

What’s left is a game with a weird amount of dodgy fan service, an almost nonexistent story, a SRPG battle system that feels largely hollow, and a dicey frame rate on Switch. I’m sure, somewhere, there’s somebody for whom this is the perfect game, but that somebody is certainly not me.

It’s clear from the outset that Double Stallion, the developer behind Convergence, has a lot of passion for Ekko and the League of Legends world at large. Every moment, story beat, and line of dialogue is carefully crafted, and with an art style as gorgeous as this, it makes for an experience that will please just about any League of Legends fan.

Planet of Lana does many things right, and there are certainly parts you’ll remember, it just doesn’t do too much different. It needed something more to subvert your expectations, but when the inspiration already did this, it’s harder to take it further. Still if you haven’t played these three games, you’ll definitely enjoy your time, or even be wowed by what you find.

A whimsical soundtrack, interesting style, and fun world, can’t pull Ravenlok out of the category of ‘not fun to play’.

These minor niggles aside, it really is an excellent story. It’s tightly woven with clues to the eventual conclusion woven throughout from the very beginning. I thought there were glaring plot holes at first, but these are well wrapped up by the time the epilogue comes around. If you like games that challenge you with twists and turns then I can’t recommend it enough. It uses the interactive elements well, but could have tightened up how right and wrong answers are handled.

It doesn’t do anything special, but it is a solid story that will keep you intrigued with some tense decision-making. I captured my imagination enough that I wanted to see all six routes, with not only the good but the bad endings too. It’s a cliche, but Otome fans will enjoy this one, though it doesn’t have enough of a mystery to attract those outside the genre.

Diablo 4 treads familiar ground in its story and characters, but its combat and gameplay systems shine where prior games fell short. I wish its single-player experience was a little less hostile, and I worry for its longevity in its current state, but even at its lowest lows, it manages to match or outpace its predecessors in almost every conceivable way. [Review in Progress]

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.

Showgunners doesn’t let a clutter of subsystems distract it from its main focus, which is to deliver a series of intense and varied turn-based battles in an atmosphere that neatly fits the genre – it’s not revolutionary and you won’t find yourself replaying the game again and again. Those looking for exactly that, however – a well-defined and very competent experience – will get their money’s worth.

Despite my complaints, I would happily blast through Warhammer 40k: Boltgun all over again. There may be moments of frustration, but it doesn’t undermine the sheer joy of ripping through fast-paced levels with weapons that gods fear and metal music in the background.

Miasma Chronicles skillfully merges intense turn-based tactical combat, stealth mechanics, and rewarding exploration, dresses them up in a compelling world and narrative, and makes the result accessible to a broad audience.

Peridot may find its fan base of Tamagotchi nostalgists, but as it stands the technical issues are too much for me to recommend it to anyone. Until Niantic changes these fundamental issues, there is no way for people to play Peridot in the way the company envisions. And it could be good. The general gameplay of raising and playing with your virtual pet is one that has been successful in the past. I’m just not sure how the breeding aspect will sit with fans.

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.

Personally, I’d rather play a co-op shooter that’s flawed and interesting than the third iteration of a hyper-polished template – Far Cry 2 will always be more interesting than Far Cry 6 and the Breaking Bad man can’t even change that. Redfall has a personality all of its own. If Arkane stands in front of a mirror and takes stock, it will probably see all the scars and imperfections, too, but it’s better than seeing no reflection at all.

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.

DNF Duel is a great fighting game, and works uniquely well on Nintendo Switch, even if the characters do appear to be a tad low-res at times. Well worth your time if you want either a casual fight on the go, or a way to practice away from your setup.

Live A Live is a piece of JRPG history, and the remake is the best way to play it. While there are a few obtuse puzzle and pacing issues, these are more indicative of the time it was originally released than the remake. If you don’t have a stomach for heavy story, maybe leave this one, but it's one of the better narratives you can enjoy.

The story is told wordlessly giving it a powerful punch for those who take the time with it. It’s worth checking out if you are proficient at 2D games, but beginners to the genre will likely only be met with frustration.

If I’m making it sound like a mess, it’s not. Great care has been taken to make all of these systems work together beautifully, pulling the best elements of each system into a game that is very challenging, yet satisfying to play. Gameplay has a nice sense of momentum that stops you from getting bogged down in drawn-out strategies, but there’s still plenty of room for careful planning and clever tactics.

The keyword of Age of Wonders 4 is “choice” – the game provides a lot of it, expressed in all of its mechanics. Lending itself to near unlimited replayability, especially once the ambitious plans for expansions and new content are realized, Age of Wonders 4 is a natural evolution of the series’ classic formula and will have min-maxers and role-players alike suffer from a severe bout of one-more-turn fever.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is an improvement on Fallen Order, and while the highs are high, much of the game can feel monotonous or unsatisfying. One thing is certain: Respawn is inching closer than ever to making an excellent Star Wars game.