A serious game for serious minds or a fun and surprisingly accessible stealth shooter. Just as it should be, the choice is always yours.

Still one of the most beautiful video games ever created, not to mention the best Zelda game that never was.

Still one of the best stealth games of recent years and an accomplished 2D platformer in its own right, with a near perfect balance of depth, accessibility, and bloodshed.

Patients’ stories are hilarious, as are the songs that pepper the game, and the appalling medical advice you offer based on observation of the zodiac. Even more bizarrely, it’s based on the life of real Elizabethan astrologer, Simon Forman, albeit jazzed up considerably for the game.

A surprisingly iterative sequel that’s nonetheless superior to its predecessor and despite some dull moment, and an incoherent narrative, this is still the best Metal Gear game in a decade.

Another perfectly constructed neo-arcade game from the makers of Luftrausers, which perfectly marries twin stick shooters with roguelike punishment.

A successful evolution of Yakuza: Like A Dragon, which makes great use of its Hawaiian setting and an almost endless array of distractions and mini-games.

The most entertaining new Resident Evil game in over two decades, with fantastic combat, amazing graphics, effective scares, and the most enjoyably bad one-liners in the business.

The spirit of Telltale Games lives on, in this interactive superhero animation, with cynical humour, excellent voice acting, and decisions that give at least the illusion of consequence.

Purely from a gameplay perspective, it’s the best first person battle royale title out there, and well worth dipping into a year on. It’s disappointing that Titanfall 3 seems further away than ever, but for now Apex Legends will do just as well.

The definitive version of one of the best video games of the last 10 years, as well as a perfect example of downloadable content done right.

A typically awful boxed set for such an influential series, but the games themselves work well in HD and this is still a useful primer for the series.

For a start, it’s the only current gen-only game available at launch. And while that’s not a particularly good indication of the Switch 2’s power, given that Split Fiction isn’t a very graphically demanding game, it’s still impressive that it works as well as it does. It’s capped at 30fps when docked but it looks almost indistinguishable from the PlayStation 5 version.

Some of the best multiplayer action ever seen on the PC, although not without its issues - as well as a deeply disappointing single-player campaign.

An improvement on the original but only in the details, not as a result of any big new ideas. Genre-starved survival horror fans should be well satisfied though.

Giving everyone the ability to create video games is a wonderful thing and Dreams is far easier to use, and adapt to your own requirements, than you might imagine. Although the one thing that it teaches above all is that no matter how easy the physical act of video game creation becomes, making a game that is enjoyable to play is something else entirely. That shouldn’t put anyone off though, but instead inspire you with the knowledge that, thanks to Dreams, all that is stopping you from becoming a world-renowned video game creator is hard graft and a vivid imagination.

A dream come true for Beatles fans, but viewed purely as a game it's not a patch on Rock Band 2.

One of the best and most original driving experiences on the iPhone, especially given the price and the instantly addictive multiplayer.

Considerably more depth and variety than the original, and with even more stunning visuals - this is as good as smartphone and tablet gaming gets.

Easily the best detective game of the modern era, with challenging and rewarding gameplay combined with some of the most evocative visuals of the year.

A stunning technical achievement but also an evolutionarily leap in adult storytelling and intelligent action gameplay.

A stripped-down, glorious-looking remake that updates the original two games in just the right way to make them feel fresh and exciting again.

A peculiar sequel that at times seems to be purposefully undermining the best elements of the original, but it still gets just enough right to please both existing fans and potential newcomers.

Only the limiting nature of the PSP holds back the most ambitious and fully-featured Metal Gear ever.

A major update to the intricately plotted and highly detailed RPG, that gives players more of what they loved in the original release and the same amount of what they didn’t.

State-of-the-art visuals help create one of gaming’s most entertaining open worlds, even if the gameplay doesn’t quite reach the same standards.

An incredibly assured attempt to rewrite the rules of modern gaming, where even the smallest mistake can cost you dear but the tiniest victory seems like an epic achievement.

It might not change anything fundamental, but this special edition not only looks and plays better but has an impressive amount of new content too.