35 years after its original release, 'Alex Kidd in Miracle World' is being re-released in a polished version that feels wonderfully nostalgic. Aside from some additional dialogue, levels and modified boss battles, it's still essentially the same game as it was in 1986. While we praise the way the player can now seamlessly switch between the new and original graphics, it feels like a missed opportunity not to change some of the basics. The controls are still as clunky as they were back then, and the unforgiving difficulty level still causes a lot of frustration today. Fortunately, there is the ability to use infinite lives, otherwise many controllers would perish.

What really makes this game innovative is undoubtedly the graphical aspect. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart had to show what the PS5 is capable of and it succeeds wonderfully. The planets, the characters, the use of color, it all looks breathtaking. As if you've landed in an interactive animated film. If we have to mention one drawback, it's that the creators perhaps want to show a little too much of what's possible, which makes the game a bit chaotic at times.

Bigger is better. It might suit a bag of chips - Lay's salt and pepper, please - but not a computer game. Or at least not for Days Gone for PC, which combines the same large open world of the PS4 game with an overwhelming number of missions. Do we think Days Gone is a bad game? No, absolutely not. But to go back to the comparison with potato chips - one of our areas of expertise next to computer games - the bag is big, the content is weak.

A decent game, but as memorable as its successor - 2017's brilliant NieR: Automata - NieR Replicant is not. The captivating story and the creative use of camera angles that allows different game genres to blend seamlessly show its potential, but the game cannot hide the fact that it is already more than a decade old.

First the good news: Doom 3 VR edition differs little from the original, and the sinister atmosphere in the dark space base looks sublime even through a virtual reality headset. The bad news? Doom 3 VR edition differs little from the original. The graphics are hopelessly outdated 17 years after its original release, the cutscenes are suddenly no longer in 3D, and a loading screen appears every so often, causing everything to stall and taking you completely out of the game experience.

And so I set out again. I see a Pidgeot grab a Magikarp from the air as it jumps out of the water. Unfortunately, I am just too late to get it right in the picture because I am a bit startled by my childish enthusiasm. Maybe it's because of the vacation spirit I missed. Or maybe because New Pokémon Snap is just really fun to play. I think mostly the latter.

The good news first: the games received a graphical update, making them look visually up to date. Oddly enough, this improvement also has a downside: the unique atmosphere that characterized the first part of the series is gone. The dark menace is completely gone, and gloomy surroundings suddenly look like sunny vacation resorts - if you think away the skewered inhabitants. So are we disappointed with this Remastered Edition? Not at all. The battles remain fantastic: is a sniper hiding behind a wall? Let one of your (computer-controlled) allies throw him into the air and then practice the better clay-pigeon shooting. All this action is embedded in an epic story that can compete with the better Star Trek movie, where the painful choices are made by you.

Resident Evil: Village suffers from the same defect as many horror films: after a while we dare to open our eyes, the chips and coke are finished and we wait somewhat bored for the end of the film. So too in Village. As soon as the novelty wears off, the game deteriorates into a kind of slaughterfest that even reminded us a bit of Call of Duty. The tone of the game also changes. Moments of campy horror/humor are interspersed with scenes that are as much seriousness as blood. It seems a bit as if the creators didn't know which way they wanted to go and just took all sides at once. That's a shame for a game in a series that is already a quarter of a century old. These moments are not bad, but the contrast with Village's best bits is huge. Because when everything clicks together, it just crackles.

What sets Outriders apart from genre rivals like Borderlands and Destiny are the RPG elements that allow you - just like in a role-playing game - to shape and build your character so that he (or she) is completely customized to your individual play style. The result is an ambitious and highly enjoyable science fiction game that will keep you busy for several hours on your own, in pairs or in threes.

Returnal masterfully makes use of the technical possibilities of the PS5 and succeeds in creating an immersive gaming experience that has rarely been seen before. The end result is a rock-solid game that is not for the faint-hearted, but has raised the bar just that little bit higher for all the games to come.

In Oddworld: Soulstorm, a reimagining of the 1998 PS1-classic Abe's Exodus, you play as Abe, a friendly do-gooder who reluctantly becomes some sort of messiah after freeing an enslaved people from their industrial overlords. The story could be read as a criticism of neoliberalism, religious fanaticism and is heavy on themes such as environmentalism and capitalism gone wild. Very relevant. Alas the gameplay doesn’t follow suit.

Playing Balan Wonderworld is like looking forward to a virtuous hot shower after a long and hard day of work, only to find that there is only cold water: a big and unfortunate disappointment.

Monster Hunter Rise is the latest Switch crown jewel. It is a great rendition of the longstanding JRPG-series even though the Switch’s screen is smaller, has a lower resolution and scarce computing power. As complex and hard to master as ever, it will take more than a few YouTube-tutorials to really get going. But once past that point of no return players gets sucked in the franchise’s signature gameplay-loop that is deliciously addictive.

Loss, grief and processing. These themes are central to 'Lost words: beyond the page'. Heavy subjects that are beautifully put into words and images, in a way that is also accessible for children. Just don’t expect a great challenge.

Genre remixes often get lost in good intentions, but Disco Elysium pulls it off just fine. The dialogues fit perfectly with the visual style that portrays a world as captivating as it is gloomy. All top notch, but still we'll stick with three stars. Why? Because the console version we tested was plagued by bugs that sometimes even made it impossible to progress further.

New gameplay elements are constantly being introduced in It Takes Two, each requiring you to develop your own skills. And although the story of impending divorce sounds quite sad - and for many undoubtedly recognizable - the 3D platform game uses a lot of humor. You end up in a very original and imaginative world, which continues to surprise even after hours.

Spacebase Startopi’ taught us that aliens are just like people - they're cranky if they don't get a latte in time, tweet about their day and leave a giant pile of trash behind - and that running a space station is damn hard work. The game won't achieve the same cult status as the original, but as a strategic building game that doesn't take itself too seriously, it's good for several hours of solo and multiplayer fun.

Loop Hero is essentially a constant game of risk versus reward that quickly takes hold of you. And once you're in that loop, it's hard to get out again.

Maquette is a clever game with some original game mechanics. Playing around with the scale of objects is challenging but fun, however the game also suffers from some technical issues and can even cause motion sickness. But even if that doesn’t bother you, you will reach the end soon – too soon, even for an indie game.

Glyph is set in the desert, which is a little sour for the ball-shaped main character who is allergic to sand. And just to be clear, it's not a "Is that a pimple on my face?" allergy, but one of the "If I hit sand the whole thing explodes" type. So jump, dive and fly, anything to stay out of the sand and accomplish your mission safely. Nice to spend a quarter or maybe even an hour, not enough to convert us to platforming.

It's remarkable how quickly 'Little Nightmares 2' takes hold of you. The constant sense of unease is excellent, which makes it all the more unfortunate that the game is artificially stretched by puzzles that are unnecessarily drawn out and complex. And so this beautiful nightmare ends in an ordinary dream.

3D platform games are too often intended for kids. Where Mario and co. are a proverbial splash pool, Blue Fire immediately throws the player into an Olympic-sized swimming pool, filled with piranhas and other mischief. The concept of the game is great, unfortunately it is poorly executed.

The emotion that takes over in Ghosts 'n Goblins Resurrection is frustration. While the charm of the series is timeless, the expiration date of the clumsy controls has passed several decades ago. New unlockable skills and the ability to play with two knights at the same time are interesting additions, but don't manage to raise Resurrection to the level of a 21st century game.

Describing Persona 5 as brilliant is not even an exaggeration. The 2016 Japanese game won just about everything there was to win, and is considered one of the best role-playing games ever made. ‘Strikers’ is not simply an expansion that offers more of the same, but a standalone game that adds a new and distinct battle system where the focus is more on action than tactics.

Ys IX: Monstrum Nox offers an engaging story, smooth controls and challenging combat. Unfortunately, the game also suffers from dated graphics. It is a shame that it took two years to be released in our country, as this makes it difficult for the game to compete with more recent games that can draw on the graphical computing power of 2021.

Is it worth spending your hard-earned money on a DLC? In case of Dead Cells: Fatal Falls, the answer is a resounding yes. You get new levels, new weapons and new enemies in this more than decent expansion of an already great game.

The world’s most famous Italian plumber has a problem. Ever since Super Mario Odyssey the bar has been raised to astronomic heights. Can a rerelease from 2013 tip that bar? Of course not. Can Bowser’s fury raise that bar even further? Not quite yet, but it’s close.

In just four hours you're all set, but thanks to the multiplayer mode you can easily add several more hours. For less than 15 euros you can't expect an absolute masterpiece, but you get some carefree entertainment that will catapult you back to the 90s.