The Darkest Files is a touching crime adventure with a real historical background and an important take on the Nazi era. Even with some of the conclusions seeming a little far fetched, the mesmerizing feeling of slowly unraveling a real mystery prevails.

The First Berserker: Khazan is an interesting Soulslike that focuses on dark anime, high difficulty and playful freedom. But the wow effect fails to materialize.

Atomfall thinks smaller than Fallout on many levels. The merciless mission between detective thriller and fight for survival is the highlight of the game, but it quickly melts through the core. Because after a wave of euphoria, Atomfall remains a soulless game that hints at a lot but contains hardly anything - apart from repetition.

Assassin's Creed Shadows breathes new life into the stagnating series and, despite its immense running time, remains entertaining without a dull moment. It's an extremely successful blend of fiction and historical fact with a great deal of respect for Japanese culture.

Wanderstop questions the classic ingredients of cozy games. To truly heal emotionally, much more is needed than relaxing gardening and tea making.

Colossal co-op entertainment: The action-adventure Split Fiction ignites a veritable firework of gameplay in breathtakingly beautiful game worlds - and tells a touching story along the way.

Two Point remains witty, fun and true to itself: players can spend hours building the museum of their dreams. While the various themed worlds are always good for a smile, the grind game runs out of steam at the end. The way we know it, the way we love it.

While not as innovative as previous installments, Monster Hunter Wilds successfully builds upon their ideas to create one of the franchise's most robust experiences. A perfect starting point for potential new hunters without diluting what makes it so appealing to veterans.

A chaotic yet charming pirate adventure that blends Like A Dragon-style madness with engaging seafaring gameplay. The start of the game however is a bit slow, before the story gets interesting.

Avowed is an old-school RPG at heart, allowing you to shape your character and the world around you with your choices while still providing a very modern and action packed open world to explore.

Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is an epic, beautiful and authentic medieval adventure full of fun, love, cruelty and war. Warhorse Studios tell a dramatic and twist-filled tale of friendship, loyalty, betrayal and politics that fills at least 65 hours of playtime. The depiction of late medieval statehood is just as captivating as the small sidequests and stories with their strong and authentic characters from sheperds to sword masters. In addition, there is a picturesque world, with probably the most impressive medieval city depiction I've ever seen in a video game. But not everything is perfect. The game design is annoying with forced stealth on top of a frustrating save system. That's especially true for some of the longer story missions. On top of this, the combat mechanics are extremely inaccessible and, with their mercilessness, put far too many obstacles in the way of the players, especially at the beginning. Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 is nevertheless an utterly unique, ambitious and, in large parts, very good adventure. But it's also a video game that misses important points a little too often in the gameplay details and does not respect the player's time in certain places.

Even if it has great looks: the interior of the latest instalment of the Civilization series is not very inspiring. Some good ideas are counterbalanced by a lot of bad ones. The biggest problem: it no longer feels like a Civilization-Game! Here, the developers have definitely made too many radical changes.

Foundation is a cozy and beginner-friendly city builder, which is particularly suited for those who like shaping beautiful settlements. Even with a lack of challenge and long-term motivation in between, the organic and aesthetically pleasing building style draws us back into the game time and time again.

Man, machine or both? Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector tells the story of its protagonist with great linguistic skill and an ingenious dice mechanic.

Batman: Arkham Shadow is a fully-fledged Arkham adventure through and through, and not to be missed if you have any affection for the Caped Crusader. It adds its own strengths to the famous action series and, aside from the template, is also a showcase title for virtual reality.

Dynasty Warriors: Origins is the reboot the series needed - a successful mix of over-the-top wuxia action, a bit of strategy and really massive armies.

The shortcomings of Behemoth are numerous and sometimes frustratingly severe. Many design decisions, bugs and technical flaws make the game a test of patience. What began as an ambitious VR project with a great concept ends up as an unfinished and chaotic experience that often leaves players with more frustration than joy.

Flint: Treasure of Oblivion tells its pirate tale using very cool comic strips and offers eight to ten hours of tactical, turn-based battles fought with sabers, flintlock pistols and a bit of luck with the dice. Lacking tutorials, the absence of difficulty settings and unintuitive game mechanics make this game difficult to approach for inexperienced would-be freebooters.

Alien: Rogue Incursion does a lot of things right. It skillfully transfers the claustrophobic atmosphere of the first Alien films to VR: the alternation of light and darkness, the nested corridors and rooms and the omnipresent Xenomorphs ensure that you are constantly on edge – even when you get into a certain routine in fighting the Alien. The disadvantage compared to other survival horror games is that there is essentially only one type of enemy here – and not, as in Doom and Co., a wide range of creeps. But the intense moments of the game, when Zula just reaches the safety of the Panic Room or wins a fight with the literally last bullet, make up for that. The setting with the rescue mission is somewhat generic, but Survios has put a lot of effort into the dialogue and dubbing. The game definitely fulfills the most important criterion: it feels like a real alien adventure.

A solid remaster mostly focused on improving the first Soul Reaver. It leaves the weaker sequel further behind, resulting in an uneven package.

A cool story with lots of nice cinematic vibes, but the imprecise controls and stupid opponents tarnish the otherwise good impression.

Despite its gacha elements, Infinity Nikki is a delightful open-world adventure with a unique focus on fashion, charming world, and relaxing atmosphere.

A fantastic metroidvania offering one of the genre's most interesting combat systems and surprisingly human characters set in a brutal world.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is a game that, in my opinion, is all too rare in this form. GSC Game World has managed to create an incredibly atmospheric combination of survival, horror and end time in a fascinating environment. Despite all the shooter weaknesses, the wooden dialogues, the incredibly annoying anomalies over time and some dubious technical problems, I fell in love with this zone. You won't find that much freedom and mystery anywhere else. Added to this is a story that takes its time to get it going, but then surprises with cool factions and robust characters. This excursion to Chernobyl requires patience and stamina, but rewards you with spectacular views, fierce battles and an expressive end time.

Empire of the Ants is a beautiful and ambitious ant adventure that illustrates the universe at our feet in fantastic quality. Beyond its insect simulator, however, the real-time strategy falls a little short. There is too little variety in the missions, the controls offer too few tactical options and are a little too confusing when building the nests. In addition, there are strange exploration missions that contribute little to the plot, but are more annoying than enriching with their game mechanics. At least there is a multiplayer mode, but this also suffers from a lack of variety in the armies.

While Metro: Awakening delivers an immersive VR experience with innovative controls and atmospheric environments, technical shortcomings in graphics and sound design prevent it from reaching its full potential, especially when it comes to the realization of the fascinating world of the novels.

Slitterhead is a divisive horror game that will either fascinate or frustrate players. Its unique blend of action, body horror, and surreal storytelling, coupled with a haunting soundtrack by Akira Yamaoka, creates an unforgettable, albeit flawed, experience.

The high level of variety and flexibility of the missions makes Black Ops 6 the best Call of Duty campaign in many, many years. Added to that is a strong multiplayer and entertaining zombie action.

A compelling return for Max Caulfield with a gripping story and emotional depth, held back by technical issues and repetitive environments.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard clearly wants to put epic action above all and sprinkles it with deeply emotional moments. Instead of choices and slow, tactical combat, the focus is clearly on a pre-composed story and powerful, action-packed battles. But if you engage with it, BioWare delivers one of the most thrilling role-playing games of recent years.

A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead is a quite good mid-price title. Don't expect technical or gameplay innovations, but fans of the movie franchise should get their fix out of it.

Bloober Team has succeeded in creating a good remake of a horror classic that respects the original in the most important aspects, but expands it where it makes sense and doesn't change the core ideas.

Sonic X Shadow Generations is a neat combination of remaster and brand new game that can get a little frantic at times, but always stays perfectly playable.

Starship Troopers: Extermination is a wonderfully straightforward and refreshingly blunt horde shooter whose biggest stars are its gigantic alien hordes. Numerous unlockables, reasonably varied classes, diverse locations and at least four game modes provide enough motivation to get that extra round in. The typical Starship Troopers tone, the iconic bug design and the brutal action are certainly convincing, even if the direct competition Helldivers 2 is the recognizably better game in all respects. Nevertheless, Starship Troopers: Extermination is fun - also because the base-building with a slight tower defense twist is a good addition to the simple but solid game principle. Extermination's biggest problems are the server-side performance and the numerous game bugs, which get on your nerves over time.

Unknown 9: Awakening is not inherently bad, but it's not really good, either. The fun seems to be caught in the rift between worlds.

Dying is part of DeathSprint 66. If you're not careful, a race can quickly become overwhelming. And that's exactly what makes it so appealing. The laps are incredibly exciting and leave you with sweaty hands afterwards. Good reactions are necessary here, and in more than a few races, I really felt my adrenaline kick in. Added to this are the different movement options and the over-the-top items. DeathSprint's fast-paced style of play encourages you to complete the race as perfectly as possible without dying (too many times) and cross the finish line as the winner. And although the game does a lot right, you can't ignore the elephant in the room. DeathSprint 66 is struggling with its player numbers and if Sumo Newcastle doesn't do something quickly, you'll soon be sprinting alone across the deadly race tracks. At least the multiplayer mode can be filled up with bots and the pure PvE mode is entertaining, but the most fun is still racing against real players.

Metaphor: ReFantazio is an excellent combination of Persona's time management and classic Japanese fantasy RPG structure.

Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero revives the old Tenkaichi series and, in addition to a huge character package, offers straightforward brawler fun like in the anime.

In regards to its content, The War Within is the best expansion for WoW to date. The story is fantastic, the music incredible, and on top of the group-based content fans have come to expect, from raids to battlegrounds to arena battles and mythic dungeons, the new Delves finally offer a great opportunity for smaller teams, lone wolves and casual players to make meaningful progress, get stronger, master their class and receive powerful gear. Warbands make powering up and gearing new characters easier than ever. Granted, these are all features, which other MMOs have been offering for years in some form or another, but if your heart beats for Azeroth, you may not be interested in any alternatives. Issues such as deleted guild banks and balancing problems with the crafting system, classes, hero talents and delves are a source of frustration. Still, now is a great time to go on a(nother) trip to Azeroth, even or especially when you don't have as much time to play as you did 20 years ago.

Ara: History Untold doesn't really do anything new, but it takes good ideas from so many games and combines them in a meaningful way that fans of Civ, Millennia or Humankind will definitely have fun with. However, some of the many systems – such as diplomacy or combat – aren't really polished. The game certainly has the potential to patch itself up, but at release it's not enough.

A lovingly and carefully ported collection of classic fighting games that are still worth playing today, with new life breathed into them through online functionalities. Video game history is successfully preserved here.

Frostpunk 2 combines a city builder with complex management, politics and storytelling, giving weight to every decision. Even though we are often overwhelmed at times due to unclear communication, we want to get our end-time civilization through the winter at all costs.

I'm not normally the type for “artsyfartsy” indie games, I mainly like fast-paced, hard action. But The Plucky Spire interested me because of its innovative game mechanics and its proximity to the classic The Legend of Zelda games. Apart from the fast-paced, hard action, this is one of my only weaknesses. And I couldn't forgive myself for not taking the plunge. Sure, the challenge is different, and you could probably play through most of the game with a blindfold on. But the overall experience is just so incredibly endearing and refreshing that I simply couldn't stop playing. The only point of criticism for me as a person without any sense of rhythm: the boss battles against the giant eagle, who throws objects that you have to catch with drumsticks as Krass, almost drove me to despair. But I'm sure it's a piece of cake for more musically gifted people.

UFO 50 is an impressive achievement with a strong love for the medium while also understanding numerous genres on a deep level. A true masterpiece and resounding success on every level.

Charming and disarmingly cheerful 3D platformer with cute characters that focuses on accessibility and a gigantic grab bag of creative ideas.

Epic, detailed and brutal: Space Marine 2 is a true ode to the 40k universe! But as entertaining and technically impressive as the bloody battles against endless hordes of enemies are: Titus' campaign against the Tyranids and Thousands Sons could have used a little more variety. Nevertheless: Space Marine 2 is a new must-have for every 40k fan.

Good action platformer with charm and stylistically confident direction, which is consciously orientated towards comparable games of the PS2 era, but unfortunately stumbles over its unbalanced collection of side tasks. Sidekick Shipset is also a bit of a dick, which won't please everyone.

Visions of Mana brings the world and creatures of the Mana games to life in ways much better and more beautiful than ever before. The world is more accessible and freely explorable, there is more to discover, the five playable characters can be upgraded and customised through many advanced classes. A weak PC port and some storytelling and gameplay lengths make the game less enjoyable than it could be.

Star Wars: Outlaws is an action adventure that captivates with its story and an open world to freely conquer and explore. It exudes Star Wars atmosphere from every pore and shows us new, surprising aspects of the galaxy. Even though the mix of fighting, stealth and exploration is quite fun in itself from a gameplay perspective, Outlaws tends to stumble over its own ambitions and clunky controls there.

A solid successor that provides more accessibility with many convenient functions and carefully adds mechanics. The new engine also lets the battles shine in a new light. Great effects, nice lighting and beautiful backgrounds create a real sci-fi flair. However, the pure focus on destroying the enemy makes for very uniform games with somewhat too static space battles. In addition, mechanics such as culture, secondary factions or mobile orbits play too small a role compared to the mass production of gigantic fleets.

Likeable characters, a well-developed scenario and exciting mysteries - Dustborn is a very well-written and, above all, excellently voiced adventure game in which I wanted to know how the story would continue right up to the end credits. Unfortunately, the interspersed action scenes don't keep up this level.

World of Goo 2 is a lot of fun - precisely because it is "easy to learn and hard to master". With every puzzle solved and every stable construction, you learn something new - and gradually develop problem-solving skills that are extremely helpful as the game progresses. Of course, every now and then you come to a bottleneck where it seems you can't go any further, but here too, persistent trial and error helps. If you get really stuck, you can skip the level in question - only the final levels of each game section have to be solved in any case. Various liquids, new types of balls and multi-stage puzzles make World of Goo 2 a must-play for puzzle fans.

Dungeons of Hinterberg skilfully combines the social aspects of Persona with linear Zelda dungeons, leveraging the strengths of its cultural influences.

Capcom has succeeded in revitalising the tower defense genre in a surprising way thanks to the setting with Japanese mythology and lots of variety. Thanks to the many upgrades, different unit and monster types, a satisfying progression system and great boss battles, I spent many hours mesmerised by the extremely atmospheric campaign. The reward after battles is that I experience scenes of peace and harmony afterwards. In this way, the game even conveys something of the Japanese philosophy of life. And what tower defense game can you say that about?

The creative platformer Schim impresses using puzzles and jumping passages with innovative shadow mechanics and a surprisingly touching story. Even with many elements becoming repetitive at some point, it remains an unusual, fun experience.

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree adds loads of cool new weapons, armors, spells and summons to the game. The new areas are breath-taking, the new bosses are presented in spectacular fashion. On the other hand, there is too many overused, recycled content, a difficulty level that's even tougher than the base game, outdated technology and an upgrade system for player characters, which makes thorough exploration of the open world absolutely mandatory.

Still Wakes the Deep is a very intensely orchestrated remote horror. However, its effect is heavily dependent on whether you find the setting of a remote oil rig terrifying or not. Are you afraid of underwater steel structures, metallic liminal spaces or the open sea? Then this game is your perfect nightmare, with grotesque monsters included! Otherwise, you may find the game's very linear gameplay and relatively reduced mechanics to be a negative.

Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin offers one of the best turn based combat systems and is only held back by its lackluster storytelling.

Monster Hunter Stories Remaster succeeds at bringing the 3DS original to new platforms. The combat system remains simple while offering deeper customization. Sadly, both the game's difficulty and story execution hold it back from achieving greatness.

Paper Trail is a clever puzzle adventure game that lets you change whole levels while using the art of origami folding to solve puzzles. This is exciting and fun at first, but wears a little thin over time, especially during long sessions.

Fabledom is a relaxed and pretty building experience that is perfect for beginners. However, the game also runs out of steam quite quickly.

Capes offers solid turn-based strategy with cool skill synergy and a nice hero design. However, Spitfire Interactive's debut suffers from clear weaknesses in terms of staging, overview and character depth.

Animal Well is an extraordinary Metroidvania with a dense atmosphere, as well as creative puzzles and platformer passages that often lure players out of their comfort zone.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II tells a story, which is spectacular in its presentation and comes with unbelievably life-like characters and facial animations. On top of that, you get breathtaking scenery and graphical effects. Senua's inner voices and the horrific tricks her mind plays on her, create a harrowing atmosphere and psychological horror. The story is emotional and gripping, and Senua's followers are a great new feature over its predecessor. However, this is not a game for fans of non-stop action. Hellblade II frequently turns into a walking simulator. Combat, while incredibly well-animated, is very shallow. The accessible part of the game world is often very limited, and puzzles are relatively easy. Like its predecessor, Hellblade II is a wonderful game, which was not made to appeal to a broad audience.

The cute retro look of Crow Country is deceptive: the atmosphere is dense, the plot gripping and the horror sometimes surprisingly cruel. A wolf in sheep's clothing that knows how to disturb at important moments. And how much fun this survival horror is! From now on, I will mention the game in the same breath as titles such as Tormented Souls, Alisa or Signalis, which also helped to revive a genre that was thought to be dead. Crow Country is not only a declaration of love to classic survival horror, but also a good object of study for balanced, well thought-out game design.

Indika is first and foremost an arthouse project and a political statement, rather than a classic game that is purely for entertainment. In terms of visual design, it is often related to Eastern European film classics, such as those by Andrey Tarkovsky or Béla Tarr. Personally, this is worth a lot to me and I look forward to analysing, discussing and interpreting aspects of the game with other players. This makes it easier for me to forgive the stumbling blocks in the gameplay. They make the experience of this remarkable game unnecessarily bumpy. Indika is a diamond in the rough that will sparkle all the brighter if you have a knack for Eastern European art. Everyone else may be left irritated or even bored.)

Sand Land is a visually stunning adaptation of Akira Toriyama's cult hit manga. Though it showcases some interesting gameplay concepts, the game ultimately suffers from repetitive mission structures as well as bloated crafting systems.

The mixture of philosophical science fiction, horror creatures and angelic heroine hits my nerve exactly - and also that of a very specific target group. They will be able to ignore a few criticisms of the pacing and the somewhat restrained storytelling. Furthermore, Eve not only divides monsters, but also the community with her erotic outfits. For me personally, however, the game is still one of the action RPG highlights of the year, and I found myself humming the wonderful soundtrack long after the credits had rolled.

Phantom Fury refers to itself as a road movie and claims to be inspired by games like Half-Life. You should ignore these flowery descriptions, if you are hoping to get any fun out of this retro shooter. This game offers an interactive world with plenty of shootouts and a bunch of puzzles. However, technical issues, weak sound design and weaker weapon impacts, as well as uninteresting storytelling get in the way of enjoying this title. Its 12 to 15 hours of play time make this game feel too long. Elements such as pass codes hidden in terminals or blocked passages, which you need to clear up with a swivelling crane, repeat and lose their novelty, as does the small selection of enemies. It’s still entertaining in short sessions, but it doesn’t offer enough variety for anything more than that.

Tales of Kenzera: ZAU offers a fresh scenario with the African realm of the dead, which the action platformer combines with an emotional story, dynamic battles and challenging jumping passages. However, Tales of Kenzera occasionally stumbles when it comes to the learning curve and controls, and the story could use a little more subtlety sometimes.

Harold Halibut is a work of art in many ways: it has a quirky sense of humour, lots of personality and a scurrilous charm that doesn't care whether it appeals to a wide audience or not. If you appreciate that and the analogue stop-motion style, you won't be able to get enough of the game. But if you expect more than an interactive film, you might not be satisfied.

Bears in Space and its colourful visuals, weird gags and minigames, as well as its retro sci-fi setting, goes in a direction similar to High on Life. However, the jokes are a little more on the family friendly side. There's no blood, you only spill the oil of hordes of robots. The game options allow you to tweak everything from incoming and outgoing damage to aim assist settings to the amount of challenge you want to put up with in platforming sections. This makes the game more accessible to younger and less experienced space adventurers. With a good 15 hours of play time, Bears in Space can feel almost a little too long.

Here comes a heavyweight of a 4X game, but at the moment it can't hold a candle to the primus Civilization 6. Compared to the last challenger Humankind, Millennia is already ahead of the game: more new ideas, more well thought-out strategies, more possibilities. Even if the balancing is still in its infancy.

Bulwark is an aesthetic and very impressive one-man project full of simple, elegant game systems. It's easy to lose yourself in the moment and simply watch the attractive settlement grow and flourish. However, there is a lack of challenge and variety for real long-term gameplay motivation.

First and foremost, Dragon's Dogma 2 is for players, who simply want more Dragon's Dogma. There is a new playable race, some playable vocations have changed, and a new biome has been added. Apart from that, it plays pretty much exactly like its predecessor. The story is nothing to write home about, side missions are very generic, the pawns have zero personality and can get annoying with their endless, repetitive chatter. On the plus side, the combat is more over the top than ever and motivates players to try out all vocations, skills and spells. The endless amounts of battles and low enemy variety, however, will feel stale after some time.

Even if this reinterpretation of Alone in the Dark occasionally stumbles a little in technical terms, you can feel the love for the original and the horror genre in every fibre of the game. It's a great conundrum of mysterious characters, supernatural forces and classic gothic horror.

Outcast: A New Beginning offers an alien open world full of small, interesting stories. Too Little innovation and a humor that takes some getting used to, are contrasted by surprisingly fun and dynamic battles, entertaining missions and a pleasant flow when it comes to exploring the captivating alien world.

Contra: Operation Galuga tries above all to impress with nostalgia, but this cannot conceal the sterile graphics and the sometimes irritating collision detection. Indie homages have now overtaken the arcade forefather, even if it can be a lot of fun in 4-player co-op.

The Thaumaturge combines an unusual setting in 20th century Poland with tactical turn-based battles and a supernatural plot revolving around hidden demons, sometimes exciting decisions and tricky (social) problems. However, the plot and characters tend to get in their own way and stumble over the stiff presentation.

Last Epoch convinces despite a weak story with its action-packed time travel and diverse skill system.

A strong, emotional story, a good, if not outstanding, combat system and plenty to do in terms of exploration and collecting: Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden should come as a positive surprise to most gamers, and certainly not many had it on their radar as a spring highlight.

Lysfanga combines action-packed hack & slay battles with a clever puzzle mechanic that allows you to solve arenas full of opponents in co-op with yourself thanks to the time loop. However, the idea only really shines if you like to challenge yourself, find the optimal build and keep chasing a better time.

Granblue Fantasy Relink consists mainly of battles and offers absolute sensory overload. Behind the crazy storm of effects, however, there is a sophisticated combat system that is a lot of fun alone or in online co-op. Despite the very likeable characters, the plot remains rather thin and I would have liked more interesting levels to explore. Nevertheless, I can say that Granblue Fantasy Relink is already one of the best action JRPGs of the year.