Dynasty Warriors: Origins offers the familiar gameplay the series is known for, while also making drastic changes in other areas. Longtime fans of the series will feel at home slaughtering countless enemies by themselves, but the approach to storytelling with the Wanderer character helps make things feel new again. It's interesting to watch the Wanderer's story unfold over the familiar events during the beginning of the Three Kingdoms area. The time period of which the game covers is shorter than previous games, but this allows for greater depth for both the Wanderer's story and the Three Kingdoms. This makes Dynasty Warriors: Origins a good starting point for those who are unfamiliar with the series, as many of the historically-based events will be explained throughout the game, and also a good title for longtime fans who thought Dynasty Warriors was running out of steam. Dynasty Warriors: Origins hits the right balance of familiar gameplay with new ideas, making it a great attempt at revitalizing the franchise.

If you’ve somehow managed to stay away from the phenomenon this entire time, then Ultra Street Fighter IV is the perfect gateway to becoming a World Warrior.

Virtue's Last Reward follows up on 999 wonderfully and delivers everything you'd want in a sequel. It's got the same kind of creepy soundtrack and cerebral gameplay 999's fans will love, but done far better. Part of that is due to it being more user-friendly, making VLR an easy recommendation for anyone who missed out on 999. Everything about how VLR plays is improved, resulting in a better experience in every way imaginable.

Her Story is a tough act to follow, and unfortunately, Telling Lies does not hit the same emotional highs that Barlow’s previous game did. Opting to use the same barebones video player both does not make sense for this storyline and introduces an annoyance that players are forced to deal with. The story is still intriguing, but not to a binge-worthy degree. Telling Lies is worth playing for Her Story fans, but can’t quite hit those same high notes despite its best efforts.

The second episode of Hitman is a satisfying adventure that’s once again dragged down by technical issues. Looking past the extensive load times and online connectivity issues, there’s a fantastic episode here, with even more options than ever before.

BioShock: The Collection successfully brings three of the best games from the last-generation to the current-generation, but not without a few hiccups. Everything you loved, or hated, about the originals is still intact. The gameplay, art style, engrossing plots and the wondrous cities continue to provide plenty of incentive to give back into the ocean or fly into the skies. While Blind Squirrel Games has done a good job remastering the original BioShock for a new generation, it is disappointing to see the effort put into each entry decline.

We cannot recommend Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 enough to those who played the first title and hope those who haven’t consider giving the series a much-deserved once over as it’s one of the most satisfying turn-based challenges to date.

Cry Wolf serves as a satisfying conclusion to The Wolf Among Us, delivering on all the promise that previous episodes held.

Crow Country is a tribute to retro survival horror games, inviting players to embark on a nostalgic adventure that will keep players asking questions and investigating everything the atmosphere has to offer. SFB Games did a wonderful job emulating what had made the classic survival horror games truly special. The puzzles aren’t amazing or innovative, but they're still solid and provide enough information for anyone to solve on their own. Crow Country is relatively easy, but the developer does have a roadmap planning the inclusion of a Hard mode to hopefully add a significant challenge to it. While it is somewhat flawed, Crow Country is a solid and compelling experience for those who enjoy the genre, and it was a blast exploring and learning about the world SFB Games has created.

While it’s not without its problems, the first season of Hitman is jam-packed with delectable content that leaves us champing at the bit for more.

Leo’s Fortune is conceptually, stylistically and mechanically one of the best iOS games on the market.

Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a tough, but fair NES-inspired Metroidvania that tests your mettle and makes it worthwhile. Each of the three playable characters is fun to use and the gradual difficulty curve makes it easy to learn from trial and error and succeed more with each new run. It controls wonderfully, looks great, and has impressive sound design too. Beyond just a killer chiptune soundtrack, there are subtle touches to the sound design that help put this above a lot of NES-inspired games on the market over the past decade. Astalon: Tears of the Earth is a must-play for anyone with a love for 8-bit gaming, or Metroidvanias.

GRIS is, simply put, one of this year’s masterpieces. Both in the sense that it looks like a work of art and plays like an absolute dream.

FIFA continues to show no signs of slowing down its dominance, as this year’s title further enhances the consistently enjoyable gameplay thanks to improvements to the on-field animations and varied, but realistic presentation. The core modes could have been better off with a similar amount of enhancements, particularly FUT and Career’s reliance on an unnecessarily complex menu system, but as a whole, FIFA 18 will once again reign supreme as one of this year’s most accessible and crowd-pleasing titles both in and outside of its genre.

Super Mario RPG was one of the best titles of its era, and based on the Switch remake, is just as good today. The remade graphics maintain all the charm of the original while transforming a decades-old game into one of the better-looking titles on Switch. The quality-of-life improvements such as splash damage from timed hits are fun additions, though some may criticize that this makes a game with a rather low challenge level even easier. Aside from those additions talked about earlier, this is the same game players loved back in 1996 with a fresh coat of paint. Super Mario RPG succeeds at invoking feelings of nostalgia for the 16-bit era while looking good enough to pass for a modern game. It’s short and simple compared to many RPGs, but while the time with it may brief, there are no wasted hours.

Oh Katamari, what a vibrant collection of randomness you are. From a funky soundtrack to colorfully-vibrant aesthetics and even its irreverent humor, it’s a game that’s never boring with all the objectives and secrets it offers. We Love Katamari Reroll + Royal Reverie is a great remaster of its original title, while still bringing something new to the game. Fresh secrets and collectibles entice players to roll around over and over for completion. Updated sound and visuals keep Katamari as vibrant as ever, while also looking better than ever. Newly-implemented UI elements that help you navigate the world create an ease of access for play. It’s now a nice assistance to see objective indicators appear when time is running low instead of having to waste precious seconds searching the map. These changes in addition to the Royal Reverie training missions elevates the title to be more than just a repeat of Katamari Damacy. While limited options in multiplayer and eternal modes hinder the variety, it doesn’t make Katamari any less addicting in its chaotic absurdity.

There’s a strong variety of unique puzzles, and with the gorgeous world that can be taken-in, Trine 2 ends up being a luscious adventure. If you haven’t had the chance to pick it up on the many platforms it has been released on, then now is the best time.

A year later, its still hard to say bad things about this compilation. Final Fantasy X is still one of the best installments in the franchise, and the fresh coat of paint is a delightful treat.

Dark Souls Remastered is a good reminder how far we’ve come in the last seven years. This is almost all nostalgia, with the potential to grab newer players and show them where the series more or less started. It’s beginning to feel a little dated, with adjustments to combat and movement from newer games not being implemented, but there’s still the sense of overwhelming gratification when playing, not to mention intense strategy.

Wherever it takes you, Genshin Impact is a more-than-convincing proposition, not least for those adamant on never spending a single cent in-game. The grind to get there may not always feel wholly natural or that players are genuinely being left to wander without restraint, but Genshin Impact‘s meticulous approach to environment design above all pulls through in many wonderful ways. Crafting one of the year’s more immersive and surprisingly rich open-world RPGs.

Ravenswatch is a solid tried and true roguelike with many different ways to play through the options of heroes available to players. It's difficult and rewarding for solo or co-op parties and does its best to be an interesting experience. With the diverse cast of heroes and challenging side quests, it's hard not to queue up several runs a day. Every character we have was given the care of a compelling story on why and how their tale took a darker turn. We see the developer taking something old and making it new for us once again. It's truly awesome to see old stories given new life to become something else altogether.

From its gripping story, tactically-grounded combat, vast ensemble of well-written characters not to mention the sheer amount of side content to conquer and smile at, and the most graphically-impressive game in the franchise to date thanks to the Xbox Series X, Yakuza: Like a Dragon is no less than a brilliant reinvention for the Yakuza series and one of 2020’s best, most complete experiences.

Even as a relative newcomer to the sim game space, I found myself enjoying my time with Two Point Hospital. Minor bugs and functionality wishes aside, one can do pretty much everything they need to in order to succeed here. Information is easy to find for the most part; construction is easy to learn and handle, and there’s plenty of optional depth here for those who want it. Put it all together with a pleasing art style and entertaining comedic stylings, and the result is a simulation game that just about anyone can have fun with.

SuperHot VR is one of the best games VR has seen yet. It’s a little bit short and on rare occasions the AI goes a bit loopy, but during the 99% of the time when everything is trying to kill you, it’s an incredible rush.

While the fluid and highly enjoyable combat remain intact, the restructuring of collectibles and scenarios such as the final boss tarnish the experience. That’s not to mention that the Definitive Edition doesn’t hold a candle to the two year old PC version from a visual standpoint as there’s a lack of anisotropic filtering and a shinier gloss to Dante’s skin.

All in all, the line on the graph that is PES’ progression as a series has gone up with Pro Evolution Soccer 2018. A game that might have ran the risk of deterring its loyal fan-base, the improved physicality to player animations and actions only adds another layer to the series’ already layered strategy that feels genuinely entertaining to watch as it is to play, regardless of the outcome. But while this year’s improvements are at the forefront more than 2017‘s showing, the return of series-old issues both on and off the pitch prevent this year’s iteration from reaching the same champion-level heights the likes of PES 2016 so wonderfully claimed. But it says something when even a fair handful of criticisms do little to detract from the pleasure of the core gameplay. Cliche as it may sound in the context of the sport, but it’s what happens on the pitch that matters and PES 2018 proves once again it’s the king of football titles.

Doom: The Dark Ages is AAA gaming at its best, with huge set pieces and memorable moments around every corner of the beautiful environments that only add to the highly-polished and heavily-addicting gameplay. Id Software hasn't held back any punches in creating one of the most grandiose and large-scale games in recent memory, utilizing their big-budget funding to create a 100% user-focused experience that makes the player feel immensely powerful without forgoing a sense of challenge or difficulty. The classic Doom formula has been deconstructed and reformed into a techno-medieval bloodbath, with gaming's original one-man army going on an unbridled rampage of demon-slaying destruction that somehow tops the scale of the iconic franchise yet again.

The battle royale mode is slick, tense and the most exciting addition to Call of Duty in years. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is a solid entry in the franchise thanks to Blackout and Zombies, and though multiplayer may not having any exciting new features, there’s still plenty of fun on offer. This Call of Duty can safely be declassified.