A superb sequel that improves on every aspect of the already excellent originals, and offers one of the most absorbing and unpredictable strategy experiences ever seen.

Every bit as intelligent and daring as its predecessor, and if you’re prepared to be equally creative while playing it then Dishonored 2 offers almost endless rewards.

An excellent expansion to the already superb original, that cleverly weaves in new features that force you to relearn and adapt everything you thought you knew about Enemy Unknown.

A longer running time helps address one of the few flaws with the original game, and single-handedly makes up for the lack of official new Metroid and Castlevania games.

The best computer role-player of the modern era, whose fantastically complex world and combat works unexpectedly well on consoles.

Probably the best single-player experience ever in a fighting game, on top of being an extremely accessible and highly technical multiplayer brawler.

A compelling story well told, and although it’s still not very interactive the variety and artfulness of the presentation feels like something only a video game could do.

It also fully recreates one of the best AAA games of the last few years on a phone, and while your handset may get a bit warm during play, in the winter months, and provided you’re near a power outlet, that’s almost comforting.

A solid sequel to the crowd-pleasing original, which still doesn’t make enough of its unique setting but manages to add an impressive amount of depth to its combat and side content.

A thoroughly 21st century take on Breakout that may just be a classic in the making, mixing 70s style bat and ball mechanics with a succession of insane power-ups and a deeply interlinked resource generation minigame.

New Pokémon games often introduce minor features like this but they often feel like slim justification for a new game, and are abandoned the instant a new sequel comes out. Most of X and Y’s new ideas are more substantial, or at least more fun, and help to cement this as the definitive Pokémon game of the modern age.

Not quite a misfire but while the action is highly entertaining this time-looping adventure squanders much of its premise on disappointingly straightforward objectives and a curiously tame portrayal of unchecked hedonism.

Gorgeous visuals and some sublime visual storytelling, Ori And The Blind Forest might not do much that is genuinely new but almost everything it does attempt is genuinely great.

Developed by Simogo, whose spine-tingling Year Walk, and expectation subverting Device 6 have rightly become landmarks in mobile gaming, this is another one. It’s a shame it will be denied to Android users, but for Arcade subscribers it’s possibly the first unequivocally essential download.

A glorious, symphonic, jet-powered hover sword exploration of desert landscapes, filled with secrets and infused with riotously colourful sea life and Tony Hawk style tricks.

A perfectly constructed neo-arcade game from genre master Vlambeer, which perfectly marries twin-stick shooters with roguelike punishment.

The difficultly curve and arcane interface and mechanics will still sadly limit the game's appeal, but CD Projekt has never given the impression that they're chasing a mainstream audience. And that's probably the attitude that is needed in order to create one of the few adult video games that doesn't feel like it was made purely for teenagers.

One of the best Metroid games ever made and a thrilling restatement of everything that makes the series, and the genre it inspired, great.

The best episode yet, that ups the ante in terms of not just the zombie threat but how you interact with some of gaming's most convincing characters.

Not just one of the most versatile 2D game creation tools on consoles but the best collection of new Super Mario courses since the 90s.

A perfectly judged comeback that’s full of all the wild invention and stylish mayhem fans demand but proves surprisingly accessible and varied for everyone else.

There might not be any slow motion door breaches but this is the smartest and funniest first person game since Portal, with an interactive script that is as a profound as it is constantly amusing.

Vengeance’s 12 or so hours of entertainment are joyous, and speeding through them with paid upgrades is a fool’s errand. This is still the very pinnacle of the Tower Defense genre and even if you completely ignore its microtransactions, it’s a superb game.

An excellent mix of turn-based dungeon crawler, roguelike, and card game whose perfectly balanced combat will have you constantly coming back for more.

A fantastic tour de force for the Switch and arguably the best Monster Hunter game ever, with a huge range of features and monsters, both new and old, and great co-op gameplay.

One of the best smartphone games of the year, with stunning cartoon visuals and gameplay that's as easy to control as it is to become addicted to.

The best of the Fire Emblem Fates trilogy and one of the best portable strategy games ever made, with a perfect blend of the best elements of the first two chapters.

An excellent sequel, that manages to evolve the series in terms of both accessibility and complexity, and maintain its place as one of the best strategy games of all time.