The developer didn’t turn a blind eye to the shortcomings of its predecessor, Returnal. Saros has kept the best parts—the controls are wonderfully responsive, your character runs and jumps at a brisk pace, and the atmosphere is delightfully dark—and made adjustments where necessary. Still, you’ll inevitably die while playing; that’s just part of the genre. But with every session, you get better and stronger, and you’re better equipped for your next run. The dopamine rush this creates makes the game—at least for us—incredibly addictive. Saros plays it safe and, while challenging, is perhaps less daring and revolutionary than Returnal, but that makes the game more accessible to a wider audience.

The result is a fun whodunit, but really, the mystery is just a side note. Life is Strange: Reunion is above all a beautiful character study—one that could have easily gone on a bit longer. Our advice: make sure you’ve played the previous games first. Only then will you truly appreciate how beautifully Max and Chloe’s farewell is handled.

There are some games that make you think, “How come no one thought of this before?” Well, Pokémon Pokopia is one of those games. It’s a cozy game like Animal Crossing, with a touch of Minecraft—all mixed in with Pokémon. It’s cute, relaxing, and surprisingly deep. Pokémon Pokopia is a cozy game of rare quality. It almost evokes nostalgic feelings of a time when the world stood still and we all escaped en masse to a video game island for hundreds of hours.

Destiny of the Railforged adds a new playable faction to Monster Train 2, along with a new game mode that further extends the game’s lifespan: Monster Train 2 has always been about making your units stronger, and now you can take that to absurd extremes. All in all, we’ve easily spent over a hundred hours exploring new combinations between the factions and the cards. For ten euros—for the expansion; the base game costs around 25 euros—that’s a very nice return on investment.

A lot has changed under the beautiful hood, and the threshold has been significantly lowered. The original was an epic that you could easily spend a hundred hours on, but where you spent a large part of that time grinding: defeating the same enemies over and over again to slowly become stronger. That has been greatly reduced. Now you can defeat weak monsters with a single push of a button. Sacrilege? Perhaps, but the result is a streamlined game that respects your time and has a much faster pace.

Eighteen (!) years after its predecessor, Metroid Prime 3, and a console generation later, we can finally play Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. This game is once again brimming with the sci-fi, spooky, space shooter action that gave this iconic series its status, but where the developers try to innovate, they fall short.

They know their classics at Square Enix, that much is clear. Final Fantasy Tactics shines like never before. But whether this polished gem will reach a new audience beyond diehard RPG fans is something we dare to doubt.

News Tower is an original addition to the management genre, full of atmosphere and surprisingly addictive. Dutch developer Sparrow Night has made a clever debut with this game. Be prepared for some red numbers in the beginning, because the entry threshold is quite high. Apparently, it's not as easy as we thought to create a high-quality, profitable newspaper. Respect for our bosses.

The mini-games deserve a special mention. These are probably the most in-depth and complex we have encountered in our career. And it is precisely these that make the game so controversial. What is usually just an interlude becomes almost a craft that you have to learn and perfect. It is incredibly immersive and exemplary of the level of detail in the game. But the general public usually doesn't have the patience to immerse themselves endlessly in, say, medieval crafts. That excellent immersion slows down the pace of the outstanding game, making it seem reserved only for history buffs as passionate as the creators themselves.

If you ask us, we would place Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 in the same category as generational games such as Final Fantasy VII (1997) and Chrono Trigger (1995). It is in good company, as both games are classics and belong to the cream of the crop of role-playing games. Memorable games that still resonate with an entire generation of players years, even decades later. Fans of the genre, enjoy this. Because a debut game with these qualities, showered with superlatives, is a rare occurrence.

The first Powerwash Simulator was my guilty pleasure. I spent many hours playing it on the Nintendo Switch. I was so hooked that it almost convinced me that such a job would be something for me in real life. Until I borrowed my in-laws' pressure washer and realized that the simulation is more fun after all. Fortunately, the game now has a formidable successor. The fun of Powerwash Simulator 2 lies in the simplicity of the game. This game is surprisingly satisfying and, above all, a great way to relax. Unfortunately, the sequel is not available on “older consoles” such as the first Nintendo Switch. That's a shame.

Five years ago, Ghost of Tsushima pushed the PS4 to its limits and left a lasting impression with its historically inspired open-world epic. Visually, narratively, and in terms of gameplay, this interactive love letter to the work of director Akira Kurosawa, the grand master of the samurai genre, was so good that it rightly earned the status of “classic.” There were some flaws—perhaps inherent to the open-world genre—but the result was an open-world game that you'll happily lose yourself in for 100 hours. For Ghost of Yotei, all of the above still holds true, but you'll want to put 200 hours into it. It sounds disrespectful, but Ghost of Yotei is a sequel by the book and therefore, in essence, more Ghost of Tsushima, but ‘better’: with more weapons, more variety of enemies, and even more beautiful grass – because what an incredibly beautiful game this is.

After previous hits such as Bastion, Transistor, and of course Hades, Supergiant Games has perfected its tried-and-tested formula. Hades II is a triumph that is both funny and accessible, yet brutally difficult and complex. Honestly, we wouldn't want to be in the developers' shoes. How on earth do you top this?

A lot of thought has clearly gone into the tracks —after all, they are the most important part of a racing game. A casino, a ghost ship, or a valley full of dinosaurs, they make an impression. There are quite a few paths that you only discover after a few games. Sometimes there is so much going on that it is difficult to stay focused on driving. Apart from the classic coins, you can also search for five red coins. These small additions keep you playing longer. Designing your cars and ‘unlocking’ all the soundtracks will keep you entertained for hours.

Battlefield 6 means a bit of a return to basics. The code word for its predecessor, Battlefield 2042, was ‘big’, but the latest installment is more intimate—as far as that's possible in a world war. Whereas Battlefield 2042 was solely a multiplayer game with no fewer than 128 players at a time, Battlefield 6 usually has 64 players competing against each other in the many different modes. The campaign also makes a comeback. This high-stakes power struggle plays out like a blockbuster movie, complete with explosions, cliffhangers, and a rousing soundtrack that amplifies the epic battle of your elite unit. We still have to wait a little over a month for the latest Call of Duty, but as far as we're concerned, Battlefield 6 currently has more than a few advantages.

EA Sports FC 26 is a step up from FC 25: everything runs more smoothly, especially dribbling, tackling, and heading. Otherwise, little has changed: Ultimate Team still overwhelms you with challenges and rewards. Career Mode has received a little more attention and is once again worth investing time in. So if you ask us whether FC 26 is different enough from its older siblings to justify spending $70 on it, for the first time in years we say: yes, we think it is.

Borderlands 4 is bigger and grander than its predecessors. But with the addition of new ways to move around, an extensive system to make your character stronger, and challenging boss fights that require more than just button mashing, it's also the best Borderlands game to date. Essentially, it remains the king of all looter-shooters: you blast enemies to get better equipment, which allows you to shoot enemies even more efficiently. A highly addictive and satisfying gameplay loop that you gradually get caught up in.

What if you combined the work of James Ensor with "Where's Wally?" The answer: one of the most entertaining puzzle games of recent years. Now the game—made in Belgium!—is also available for the Nintendo Switch.

Hollow Knight: Silksong is, just like its predecessor, relentless. It's not a gentle adventure for beginners. Although this can make it frustrating at times, the game is exactly what fans had hoped for. Exhausting, yes, but also incredibly atmospheric. The game exudes mystery. The creators took their time making this sequel and worked out every detail meticulously. And my god, their world is beautifully designed. Hollow Knight: Silksong is a big challenge for a small price. It was well worth the long wait. But let me say it one more time: this game is not for everyone.

Admittedly, we were rather skeptical when we started playing the game. We associated publisher Nacon with annual sports games (Tour de France, Pro Cycling Manager, WRC) or gaming-related peripherals, and developer Rogue Factor had only two smaller Warhammer games in its portfolio until now. But with the intriguing ‘Hell is Us’, they have together released one of the most surprising games of the year.

Don't expect profound dialogues or a layered story. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance relies on its challenging mix of fighting game and platformer. It is a successful homage to the series and to the 80s and 90s, when ninjas, just like today's superheroes, were omnipresent in popular culture.

Thanks to Donkey Kong Bananza the Switch 2 has landed its first five-star game. Adding new layers on top of the 3D platformer genre (only to tear them down again) this games proves to be a better selling point for the Switch 2 than launch title Mario Kart World.

The action is not the only point in which Death Stranding 2 surpasses its predecessor. For one, the story is a lot easier to follow (thanks to the new Corpus feature where you can easily catch up on reading), and the world looks much more diverse. Last time you wandered for hours through a barren moonscape, but now you encounter forests, snowy mountain peaks, beaches and other environments. Originality and good stories seem quietly in danger of extinction in the gaming world, which seems to be more and more about profits and shareholders. But as long as the occasional game like Death Stranding 2 passes, stubbornly doing its own thing, there is hope.

F1 25 is a fine racing game, worthy of the queen class of motorsports. But as you often see with sports games, not that much changes from year to year. So do you already have a version from, say, 2024 or 2023? Unless you really care about being able to race against newcomers like Kimi Antonelli, or necessarily want to see Lewis Hamilton shine for his new patron Ferrari, feel free to skip this one. Next year, quite a few rules of play are changing in Formula One, and hopefully it will also inspire Codemasters to innovate a bit more. Because just as an F1 team must constantly innovate to keep up, standing still here equals going backwards.

Whereas in previous Mario Kart games - as befits the genre - you raced around tracks, in Mario Kart World you can drive so-called Knockout Tours. These are rallies through the open world with checkpoints where a few racers drop out each time. This game mode is not a reinvention of the wheel, but it is a welcome twist. It proves that in its genre - the arcade racer - Mario Kart remains in a league of its own. And this is the best Mario Kart Nintendo ever made.

Visually, everything looks top notch, the environments are stunning and the accompanying heavy metal adds another layer of hell. Although there is also sad news: you cannot play against others. Fortunately, this is not a huge loss, as the campaign lasts more than 20 hours and there is a lot of variety. You can even fly on dragons - though we think those are the weakest parts of the game. The game also feels different from the 2016 reboot and Doom Eternal: the environments are wider and you're a little less mobile. We can imagine that some fans might be turned off by that, but not us: Doom: The Dark Ages is a lovingly made game with a lot of new elements, and we can heartily recommend it for anyone who wants to fight demons from time to time.

Nightreign uses the same stone-good foundation, plays smoothly and puts its own twist on the modern classic. And yet it lacks a touch of the magic that makes Elden ring Elden ring. An overarching storyline is completely absent, the fantastically designed environments full of lighting and gold details have been replaced with murky fantasy environments of thirteen-in-a-dozen variety, and the sense of being able to explore at your own pace is completely gone due to the ever-shrinking game world. Beforehand, however, we never thought we would keep returning to Nightreign. Despite its many misgivings, the cyclical structure and fast-paced attempts to make your character stronger is still intriguing enough to make us want to start it over and over again. After Elden ring, expansion Shadow of the erdtree and now Nightreign, the conclusion is: more Elden ring is always good.

Admittedly, ideally we wouldn't write this review. Blue prince is a game best experienced without any prior knowledge. Unfortunately, we don't get paid for blank pages, and honestly: this is a masterpiece we can't and won't shut up about. Underneath the seemingly simple concept lies one of the most intriguing, clever, surprising, frustrating but at the same time best games of recent months.

Rest assured: this museum never gets boring or stuffy. Like its predecessors, Two Point Museum does not take itself too seriously, and is full of corky humor and absurd mayhem. After Hospital and Campus, Museum takes the Two Point series to new heights. It is not only original and funny, but at the same time a fine, strategic management game.

Although Shadows gives the Assassin's Creed formula a much-needed update, it continues to falter in some areas. The long cutscenes and dialogues are still present, and you encounter so many enemies that the battles get boring at times. We know that sounds crazy in a game where you play an assassin, but sometimes you just want to achieve your goal instead of killing one guard after another. Those two shortcomings are especially noticeable at the beginning of the game, which is a shame, because it kind of took away our desire to continue playing. Fortunately, we bit through, because the further we progressed, the more Shadows blossomed. There is an enormous amount to experience, and Ubisoft clearly invested where it was needed: in the storyline. It is vastly expanded and rarely bores.

The expectations for Split Fiction were already high, and that has everything to do with the previous game developed by Hazelight Studios: It Takes Two (2021). The game - also playable exclusively in pairs - sold more than twenty million copies worldwide and at the time won the Game Award for game of the year. A juggernaut that received a perfect score from us. Split Fiction falls just short of that mark. The secret of It Takes Two was a unique combination of working together and challenging each other, of originality and humor. Split Fiction is also highly original and fun, but is just that little bit less surprising than its predecessor.

It looks like a game for kids, but make no mistake: the difficulty level is very tough. There were many moments when we almost threw our controller across the living room, moments when we had to take a break. Especially the levels in which you are in a mine cart are often impossible to complete on the first try, but this difficulty makes the euphoria all the greater when you finally succeed.

Despite the many bugs, we enjoyed our hours in 'the zone'. The beautiful landscapes, the constant threat, the balancing of factions and the challenging battles make Heart of Chornobyl one of the better shooters of 2024. Unfortunately, you have to take the bugs with it - unless you have the patience to delay your purchase for a few updates, but then you have a stronger character than we do.

In just three days, 10 million copies were sold, making it one of the fastest-selling games ever. A game about Chinese mythology may not be so accessible in Western countries, but Black myth: Wukong is simply a rock-solid action game. So flashy and simply beautiful that you'll happily forgive its minor shortcomings.

Metaphor: Refantazio is the latest addition from the stable of Atlus, the developer that previously brought us award-winning series such as Shin megami tensei and Persona. Atlus is pretty much considered the hallmark for Japanese RPGs and delivers perhaps its best work with this one. Japanese RPGs like this are not for everyone, but fans have a masterpiece with Metaphor: Refantazio.

The result is a surprisingly layered and extremely addictive game, with pixelated retro graphics. Cleverly designed too, as all the bleeps and effects constantly provide little shots of dopamine, much like a jackpot, slot machine or coin toss from the luna park. The addition of jokers and bonus cards made available seemingly at random make each game different, and replayability almost endless.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is not a so-called nextgen gaming experience that completely blows your socks off and adds plenty of innovative features. No, it's a tribute to Indiana Jones, brimming with details that ooze love for the original trilogy, in a medium that allows for so much more interaction and immersion. Once the adventure gets going, there is so much to do and experience that it's hard to put the controller down.

'Satisfactory' is a strange beast. The idea behind it is simple: you are dropped on an alien planet and must then build a factory from scratch. What's the fun in that? We didn't really understand that either, because it's surprisingly similar to work. The game is also not perfect: it has disturbing graphical glitches, the alien fauna and flora get boring quickly, and we also noticed that after a while our PC was toiling as hard as our factory. Still, we have to admit that these minus points cannot spoil the fun: Satisfactory turns out to be a wonderful game that we will be enjoying for a very long time.

It must have been from caramel and sea salt that two opposites went together so deliciously. This game combines the spectacle and beautiful setting of Horizon with the pure fun of Lego. If it is done with such love every time, may even more games get the Lego treatment.

Super Mario party jamboree is a very fun game, which is a little more extensive and varied than its predecessors. But you have to be able to stand your losses and your friends' teasing. So play at your own risk.

If we do have one point of criticism, it is that there is no option to play the game in pairs. Games with such a co-op option are scarce these days, but it could have completed the experience completely. Still, as far as we are concerned, this space adventure deserves all the stars. All in all, Astro Bot is a very fun, accessible game. In fact, we dare say more: in this game, Astro rivals Mario as a platform king. Sorry, Nintendo.

This DLC does not aim to win over new fans, because Shadow of the Erdtree is in essence - and we say this with the utmost respect - just more Elden Ring. Somehow that was the expectation, but no one saw an expansion on this scale coming. It is getting a bit ridiculous with these superlatives that keep falling short. It's simple: all those who enjoyed Elden Ring should play this right now.

Those with somewhat gaming experience will have finished the story in less than ten hours. That's pretty short to shell out close to 60 euros for it. Still, that certainly doesn't mean you can't enjoy it as an adult. If you are looking for a game that does not demand too much energy, then this is game for you. For children, the game is definitely recommended.

Flashy graphics, familiar characters and innovative gameplay are great assets, but not always necessary to make a game a winner. As dusk falls proves that you can also score with just a great story.

A psychedelic trip of about ten hours. Perfectly legal and without any mind-altering or narcotic drugs involved. Welcome to the delightfully bizarre world of ‘Ultros’, whose smooth and surprisingly layered gameplay, atmospheric soundtrack and eccentric graphics make it an instant cult classic.

How do you handle the reworking of one of the greatest classical works in history? With great patience, skill and respect. With video games, it's no different than with other art forms. 'Final Fantasy VII' was not just restored, but completely remade. 'Rebirth' is not a sacrilege, but the finest tribute this classic could ever receive.

Every once in a while a game comes along that is so special that you can't help but admire it. And when it turns out to be a solo project, the appreciation only increases. In an hour this artful game is finished, but for something that is completely free, that is no shame at all.

Whether you escape or fail, you end up back at the beginning each time. The trick is to do your round again and again through the bank that changes layouts each time. It sounds simple, but is surprisingly challenging and great fun to play.

No, we were not waiting for a remaster of ‘The Last of Us Part II’, now less than four years old. But this new version adds so much to the original that it is by far the best possible way to experience this epic game.

'Street Fighter,' 'Mortal Kombat' or just 'Tekken' after all: the battle for the title of best fighting game is as old as the genre itself, but with 'Tekken 8' it has been settled: 'The King of Iron Fist Tournament' knocks out the competition. Stop what you are doing and go play this game.

The game is archly difficult and merciless, but heaps of fun. Solving puzzles by building a rhythm and racing through different levels in the flow is incredibly satisfying. The small upgrades in gameplay and additions like a motorcycle to add even more speed make the eight to 10 hours it takes you to reach the end go by in no time. The sublime soundtrack full of synthwave and beats are the icing on the cake. A rather short play time for a full-fledged game, but then again, the game is on sale for a softer price.

A Japanese game about an Italian plumber who eats mushrooms to get bigger. Mario games have always been trippy by design, but with "Super Mario Wonder," Nintendo puts the turbo on the psychedelics. Every time you pick up one of the new Wonder Flowers, the world is figuratively - sometimes literally - turned upside down. Time after time, it's a sweeping and engaging change to the laws of physics (of the game, admittedly) that make your inner child coo.

The so-called fatalities, deadly attacks after you have knocked your opponent half unconscious, are of course also part of the game. Although, unlike before, you don't have to press a difficult and perfectly timed button combination to do so. A few keys can suffice, making it both more accessible, more grotesque and more gory. The threshold to death and destruction is now completely non-existent. The result is an intriguing and smooth-playing fighting game, but one that is definitely not suitable for children.

Solving puzzles together. Learning new skills. A little bit of fighting. We were big fans of the first two "Trine" games. Until the creators missed the mark with the third game. But with "Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy," the mistakes of the past have been forgiven.

Don't expect meaningful choices that affect the rest of the game, dialogue options that push the story in a different direction, or the ultimate freedom to create a character and explore a vast universe. It's a blockbuster of the best kind. A popcorn movie where you follow an established storyline, but which is so addictive that you lose track of time. True to Marvel tradition, there is a scene in the middle and at the end of the (admittedly interminable) credits that paves the way for another sequel. Although it will be difficult for any sequel to top this game.

Whether it's called FIFA or not, EA Sports FC 24 is the traditional, annual soccer game that every fan looks forward to. It's not a revolution, but exactly what you can expect if you've played the previous years. Although it does seem that the break with the World Soccer Federation has been virtuous. The graphical interface is less garish and there is more hierarchy and structure in the menus so you can find your way around more easily. The players' movements have also become just that little bit more natural, making play seem more fluid and realistic than ever. Although the attackers are still favored over the defenders, making it easier to score than to stop goal attempts.

Skeptics who open up and allow themselves to be immersed will thus experience over time what a masterpiece Baldur's Gate 3 has become. The graphics are stunning, the dialogues just make sense and the decisions you make effectively have lasting consequences - no matter how painful they may be at times. It is these subtleties that bring the world of Baldur's Gate 3 to life. This is not just Belgian excellence, but simply world class.

Armored Core VI is a modern classic and quite literally: this is 'just' a rock-solid action game. No open world, no endless stream of side missions or other ballast, and that is very refreshing in 2023. Although there is a steep learning curve.

Pikmin has secretly belonged to the pantheon of Nintendo series for more than two decades. Secretly, because it never managed to reach the general public like Mario, Zelda and Pokémon. Volume four proves once again what a shame that is. The great level design, the colorful world, refined gameplay and the many innovations are the epitome of Dandori: the quickest and most efficient way to fun.

The space epic, in which you could imagine yourself in Star Wars, Firefly or Dune, is one of the most hyped games of the year but it also lives up to the sky-high expectations. The scale, the freedom and the possibilities in the game are almost unprecedented. It's hard enough to excel at any of these components, let alone do it all well and combine it into one rock-solid game, the best Xbox game in years.

Bayonetta 3 excels in over-the-top madness. In the best possible way. But the story with wacky characters across parallel universes, is just the canvas for the real highlight of Bayonetta 3: the action. The titular witch's lightning-fast attacks are complemented her own magical powers, but you can now also temporarily take control of several enormous creatures, the "Demon Slaves”.

In this brand-new adventure, you step into the shoes of Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael or Michelangelo, sensei Splinter or reporter April O'Neil and must save the world from the main villain Shredder. You do this entirely in the style of the beat 'em ups of yesteryear. It is a brawling game with wonderfully pixelated retro graphics and a pumping soundtrack, in which just about all the locations, characters and enemies of the past pass by in rapid succession.

This Limited edition is a physical edition with a lot of goodies, but it mainly bundles the excellent base game in which you play with Cuphead and little brother Mugman, and the expansion The delicious last course. In addition to a new play environment and new challenges, this one brings with Ms. Chalice - it stays after a cup, mug and now a chalice in the theme of china - also a new playable character. Together they are good for at least 15 hours of proverbial self-mutilation of the funniest kind.

The new American backers of motorsport's king class know damn well what they're doing. After the documentary series Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix brought a touch of drama to the paddock, winning heaps of new souls for the sport, F1 23 does it again nicely. With Braking point 2, the story mode in the new game, even gamers who previously had little with F1 have something to lick their thumbs and fingers at.

No, you don't have to have played the previous fifteen games to understand this story. And yes, FFXVI is an excellent entry point to get to know this long-running series of Japanese role-playing games. Purists denounce how "Final Fantasy" has become less and less "role-playing game" and more and more "action game," but they err. This is a winner.

Land of the Morning Light is a gorgeous and engaging love song to ancient Korea. However, it suffers from the same problems as genre rivals. You don’t just catch up with almost nine years of previous history, and the amount of data to process is almost intimidating.

Diablo IV stays mostly true to its roots. Think isometric perspective, bleak environments and wave after wave of hordes of demons. But at the same time, the game has received a much-needed update in the form of stunning graphics, fluent gameplay and an impressive opening scene that immediately takes the you to your macabre playing field for the next twenty to fifty hours - or more.

Another box ticked on the list. After recent remakes of Resident evil 2 and 3, it was time for Capcom to give the fourth installment in their acclaimed game series a makeover. The bar was set high, as 2005's Resident Evil 4 is considered by many to be the best survival horror game ever. Contrary to what the crosses on the list suggested, they did not deliver a tire job but a new masterpiece.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is a textbook example of what a sequel should be. Bigger, better and flashier than its predecessor. The action will titillate any gaming Star Wars-fan and so will the excellent (Star Wars) story. Yet the enthralling Jedi fantasy this game offers is sometimes bogged down by lackluster performance.

Game makers: take note. Metroid Prime Remastered is a masterclass in how to modernize a masterpiece. Twenty years after the series made the transition to 3D, this remains a classic that has stood the test of time. The updated visuals prove that with some optimization and visual tricks, the Switch is really capable of delivering great games. In fact, this is one of prettier – if not the prettiest –Switch games to date.

Thanks to the addition of the Ultrahand ability, Tears of the Kingdom becomes a kind of all-round friend to every kind of gamer. Those who want to can create, puzzle, cook, unwind and enjoy the scenery. But just as well experience adventures, fight and encounter pretty tough challenges that will take even the most seasoned gamer quite a while. It is highly exceptional for a single game to personify the desiderata of all these personas.

Where Odyssey takes the top spot are the turn-based battles. The familiar skills of the Straw Hats are put to full use in a simple but highly effective system of rock, scissors, paper. Luffy's Gum Gum attacks, Nico Robin's many arms, Usopp's hilarious weapons and Franky's blinding nipples, they rarely looked so stunning and never get boring.

With Engage, another top title is added to the Fire Emblem series. Unfortunately, the characters are not as noteworthy as the heroes that the game's Emblem rings pull from under the dust. But what Three Houses did for the story, Engage does for the action: raise the bar.

Why play this remake? Audio visually, the game is rock solid. The story remains largely true to the original, but in terms of gameplay, minor and major tweaks have been made. The game is more challenging due to new puzzles and there is an extra layer of unpredictability on top that keeps you constantly nervous and alert. If we may offer one tip: don't play this game too late at night if you still want a good night's sleep.

After a good seven hours, you reach the end. Short for a game that will be on sale at full price, but long enough for an already exhausting VR adventure. At times, Horizon Call of the Mountain feels like a technical demo meant to show what the PS VR2 can do. But as a very first game, the result is promising, and does bode well for what the PS VR2 will bring in the coming months and years.

Warner Bros. announced this game with much fanfare a long time ago, but Hogwarts Legacy lives up to all expectations. You can lose yourself for hours in the world where years later Harry Potter will also have his adventures. If we could take two weeks off just for this game, we would do it in a heartbeat. Hogwarts Legacy has us spellbound and we never want to go back to the Muggle world.

Not too difficult, not too long, not too expensive. With ‘Trifox’, Belgian studio Glowfish Interactive has developed a first game that is very accessible – and fun - on several levels.

God of War Ragnarök is bigger and grander than its predecessor in every way. More destinations, more enemies, vaster environments, more difficult puzzles and bigger stakes. Predecessor ‘God of War’, however, set the bar so immeasurably high for itself. 'Ragnarök' is a rock-solid game and highly recommended, only we're quietly getting used to sequels like this from Sony.

A shooting game, but kid-friendly and, above all, rock-solid. Those last two adjectives have been Nintendo's USP since the late 1980s, and Splatoon 3 is brimming with that DNA. A breath of fresh air for those tired of the Call of duty's and Overwatches of this world for a while.

Even if at first glance it doesn't seem like a new game, the new environments and small and larger adjustments immediately make Overwatch 2 one of the most fun shooters of the moment. The fact that the game is free - except for battle passes and cosmetic tweaks for the various characters that you can buy with real money - and that it doesn't matter what platform you play on, are only additional arguments to quickly get the download up and running.

Those who get their kicks not from the numbers and tables of a management game, but from phenomenal speeds on the track should choose ‘F1 22’. The annual release of this racing game consistently ranks among the top and has recently received an update that added even more content.

The game looks like crap, is absurd at times and essentially shitty. And yet, we had a great time with indie game Betrayal at Club Low. Don't expect flashy action, but pointed dialogue and a whole lot of absurdity. Or how about characters who rise to the sky like a rocket with both middle fingers in the air when you've convinced them to give up their seats? After about two hours of this nonsense, you reach the end, but there are multiple possible outcomes that invite you to play again and again. With the funky beats of the soundtrack, this is by no means a punishment.

The world's first trombone game is a viral hit, and rightfully so. Trombone Champ is maddening, maddening and maddening fun. The worse you play, the more fun the game becomes. Clearly this humdinger simulator doesn't take itself or the instrument too seriously, but beyond all that hilarity, lurks a very solid and challenging music game.

Naughty Dog is by no means a one trick pony. With ‘The Last of Us’ and ‘Uncharted’, it is responsible for two of the best game series of recent years. It is also far from being the only developer to spread the same game at full price over three console generations. Consider, for example, Rockstar, which also wants to market ‘Grand Theft Auto V’ to as many gamers as it can in the same way. For a game of this exceptionally high level, that's not even a bad thing, although we'd rather see their focus shift to ‘GTA VI’ or, who knows, ‘The Last of Us: Part III’.

Neon White immediately puts you in a flow from which it is difficult to escape, in the quest to be just a tenth of a second faster and thus achieve the highest medal. The attractive graphic style finishes it off, making Neon White one of the sleeper hits of this summer and perhaps all year.

It sounds ridiculous. And maybe it is. But the first ten minutes of Stray broke our heart. We’re a soft-boiled egg when it comes to animals, even when they're completely fictional. A cat who loses his friends and then gets hurt? Enough for an intense feeling of sadness and pity. It is not the challenge, but the experience that is key in this game. You really play Stray for the atmosphere. And that's exactly right.

It's big, bigger, biggest for Xenoblade chronicles 3. It's all the more galling that the game manages to captivate from start to finish. An unadulterated epic adventure.

"The best new game you've never heard of." That's how ‘Eternal threads’ was pitched by our bright local PR rep. Normally we put our defenses up even more than usual upon hearing a similar statement. But after only a few minutes of playing, it was already clear: he was simply right.

Kirby and the forgotten land' is a shot of pure fun. A dose of merriment that can thaw even the most soured heart. It is a moment of carefree enjoyment, perhaps a little too carefree thanks to the low difficulty.

All too often racing games follow the standard formula. Throw some fast cars and a bunch of tracks together, and gamers will probably enjoy themselves in silence. But when developers step off the beaten path, something magical can happen. This is the case with GRID Legends. Despite its shortcomings – the low difficulty, to name just one thing - it is one of the more enjoyable racing games of the moment.

GT7 is a stunning racing game that hardly has its match. But what starts as a paean to praise, we want to nuance. Despite the many positive elements, it is far from a perfect game. Perhaps its biggest flaw - and it's very bizarre to have to say this about a racing game - is its lack of pace. Don't get us wrong, the track feel while racing is fantastic. But once off the track, the game does everything it can to slow things down.

A series so influential it becomes its own genre. That alone is FromSoft’s crowning achievement. For Elden Ring, the most recent iteration of that series, all superlatives fall short. This game is a timeless masterpiece that will go down in history as a milestone, not only for the genre and developer From Software, but for gaming as a whole.

It's remarkable how much a game series that largely revolves around creatures evolving has little concern for change. For 25 years, the concept of Pokémon games has been virtually unchanged. But then there's Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which breaks with tradition. Hopefully, in doing so, it lays the foundation for the next generation of Pokémon titles. Because after playing Pokémon Legends: Arceus, we don’t want to go back.

It sounds contradictory, but the new storyline is both the ultimate asset and the great weakness of the game. After all, Endwalker builds on a story that has been going on for eight years. To fully understand and experience everything, you need all that background. Endwalker is the pinnacle for existing players of Final Fantasy XIV, but not so accessible for new players who only now want to catch up. And that gets in the way of an absolute top score.

Along the way, many mutated creatures cross your path. These include not only the classic slow undead, but whole hordes of super-fast and agile, bloodthirsty zombies - called ridden in the game - to gigantic monstrosities that can send you to oblivion with a single punch. Those nine different types of opponents provide enough variety in the challenges to keep the game engaging for hours.

The story is entertaining, and it features characters from the Marvel universe that haven't yet surfaced in the movies, such as Fin Fang Foom, Lady Hellbender and the Nova Corps. Add in the requisite humor and self-deprecation and an eclectic killer soundtrack, and you get one of the most enjoyable games of the year.

Besides the player group that you can put together yourself at one of the 127 clubs and the tactical instructions that you give to your team, there are now also meetings, pep talks and press conferences that require your input. Unfortunately, this is done in such a crooked Dutch that it is disturbing. This is also about the only reason why this niche game does not receive an absolute top score.

In terms of gameplay, Riders Republic is an arcade-style racing game. Not necessarily realistic, but very fun, fast and over the top. It's perfect for fans of Tony Hawk, SSX and even (for those slightly older readers) Cool boarders. It's not overly technical, but it's not dulled either. It's also clever how Ubisoft has managed to make every discipline on point. Whether you're doing tricks on a snowboard or flying through a ravine in a wingsuit, all the disciplines are incredibly fun.