The best Mario Party in a very long time, and while it’s shallow and silly it’s also one of the few times casual and core gamers can compete in perfect (dis)harmony.

There’s a disappointing lack of invention in the paper thin story and characters, but the combat and witty dialogue is as good as the series has ever been.

An utterly bizarre mix of influences that tries to squeeze in far more elements than would ever be deemed sensible, but somehow manages to work despite it all.

A relatively original and enjoyably bizarre puzzler, that seems more at home on 3DS than Switch but still offers plenty of seafood-themed fun for everyone.

A little undercooked, but this is still an enjoyable attempt to create a more cerebral shooter.

A great follow-up to The New Order, which cleverly reuses all of its best features and yet still finds time to add plenty of new elements of its own.

A small but worthwhile expansion for one of the year’s best games, that provides a welcome hint of more difficulties to come.

Certainly a career high for Kirby, but he still wilts next to serious platforming competition.

Your mileage will vary greatly in this epic-scale shooter that rewards only the most dedicated.

Fortunately, it’s great fun anyway and avoids some of the frankly exhausting grind of Destiny 2. It’s constantly tempting to drop real cash, but even without giving in to that, there’s lots to explore and do, and a hefty chunk of plot to get your teeth into.

A charming and often inventive mix of Animal Crossing and Zelda, that lacks depth but not ambition.

Its biggest problem is touchscreen controls, the joystick and buttons regularly proving elusive and making precision platform stages just as nightmarish as you’d expect. But get past those moments of finger-slipping, iPad-hurling frustration and you’ll discover an unusually well-made and inventive tour of gameplay from the last three decades.

A little rough around the edges, especially in terms of the storytelling, but the interminable wait for this open world zombie sequel has been worth it.

A successful re-imagining of the classic 90s interactive movie, that retains the characters and setting but adds some fun new puzzles and VR wonderment.

It may not offer any surprises, but with a mountain of modes, options and unlockables this amiable golf sim is another excellent showcase for the PS Vita.

It was probably foolhardy to ever try to bring The Sims 3 to consoles and despite a spirited attempt this is just a shadow of the PC version.

Mercilessly difficult, and unusually complicated, but the best looking and most varied BIT. TRIP yet.

A well constructed tennis game that takes practise to get the hang of, with neat role-playing style player upgrades and a season-based structure that helps prevent monotony.

Microtransactions rear their ugly head once again, but they’re not enough to take the shine off one of the best portable Ridge Racers so far.

Professor Layton may offer a more cerebral challenge but Rhythm Thief has more than enough charm and imagination to waltz its way into your affections.

There are many clever, elegantly-designed puzzles, which escalate in complexity to include multiple light sources. But there are also some nasty bugs in later levels, several of which require you to quit and restart the game.

It all still works on touchscreen, with a few inevitable compromises, making it viable to play while you’re out, before returning to your PC or console.

One of the best arena shooters of recent years, but its high skill requirement and bland characters create an unfortunately high barrier to entry.

There are some issues with game difficultly and length, but this is one of the most successful Kickstarters so far – and an excellent retro style role-player in its own right.

Far Cry Primal is a perfectly entertaining game, but it’s a hard one to get too excited about, especially when it seems as if only a few twists would’ve turned it into something considerably more interesting. As it is though it suffers from needlessly basic storytelling and a general lack of vision. Although it’s no disaster it does feel like a backwards step for Far Cry, and gives no real hint as to what its evolutionary future could or should be.

The longest-running game you've never heard of gets a typically competent but characterless makeover.

A worse game than the already flawed original, whose poorly crafted action is as ineffective as its clichéd attempts at horror.

A downloadable spin-off that, while reasonably good value for money, manages only to underline how shallow and repetitive the combat was from the first game.