The spirit of the arcade will never die thanks to games like this, as Vlambeer demonstrate their mastery of minimalist action.

Probably the most satisfying video games crossover ever made, and one that plays with the conventions of both franchises and still delivers a funny and touching story.

A brief but entertaining prologue that is marred by the question of value for money and an empty story that has no resolution unless you buy the next game.

A superb remake of two flawed but still interesting entries in the Final Fantasy canon – and certainly far better games than any of the last three.

As bland and unmemorable as 3D platforming gets, and clearly not a Pac-Man game at all – just a cynical piece of tie-in merchandise.

About as new as a fossilised dinosaur egg and just about as fast and exciting, this is a depressingly poor degradation of a once great original.

Not a very good argument for why Nintendo shouldn’t make smartphone games, but an imaginative and enjoyable take on Candy Crush Saga and its ilk.

An expansion that improves on almost every aspect of the original, fixing obvious flaws and adding a much greater sense of variety to what is now one of the best retro role-players around.

A carefully considered sequel that avoids upsetting existing fans and offers an olive branch to newcomers – all the while retaining its position as one of the most challenging, and rewarding, video games of modern times.

It could do with a few more ancillary options, and a more interesting backstory, but in terms of online gameplay Titanfall is now the game to beat this gen.

An excellent conversion of the original iOS hit, and a wonderfully disturbing horror story that innovates in terms of everything from visuals and interface to its macabre narrative.

Never mind the sexism, the awful gameplay is the primary reason you should be avoiding this shockingly poor beat ‘em-up.

Roguelike fans will appreciate the persistence needed to get anywhere but this is a mediocre example of the genre and not nearly as much fun as it could’ve been.

A slight improvement on the first episode, but still basically just plot set-up for a story that too often feels out of your hands.

Still the same lacklustre combination of Left 4 Dead with a twin-stick shooter, where only the status of PlayStation Plus freebie prevents further criticism.

A good, solid action role-player and a fantastic South Park tie-in, with the same caustic wit and an unashamed embrace of video game and role-playing obsessions.

Still one of the best action games ever made and although this is technically the best-looking version it still doesn’t really feel like the definitive one.

An excellent hybrid of role-playing staples that although it lacks new ideas of its own is able to use existing ones in a variety of entertaining ways – except when it comes to the story.

An almost complete tour of Pac-Man’s more than 30 year history, but the problem is that the only missing piece is the most important.

Another amusing look behind the veil of role-playing conventions, although it’s a shame the experience feels so slight and insubstantial.

The least brown shooter ever made, with the colourful graphics and accessible controls supported by an imaginative and surprisingly well-crafted online experience.

Lords Of Shadow 2 waddles on for 20-odd hours and would’ve been twice the game if it was half the length, with the all the unwanted padding and repetition taken out. It’s such a shame because the first game, and MercurySteam, showed such promise. But this is a huge backwards step and we fear the undead charms of Castlevania may finally have been killed off once and for all.

Series fans may view it as a disaster but the problem is that Thief isn’t even interesting enough to get angry about, despite the well hewn stealth gameplay.

Not nearly as awful as it first appears and a surprisingly effective movie adaptation, that channels much of the same mindless energy as the first two sequels.

Far Cry is a series that’s gone on to much better things since the flawed original, and revisiting it 10 years later almost feels like pointing and laughing at the afflicted.

Treasure’s cult 2D shooter remains as uniquely entertaining as always, and surprisingly well adapted for a modern PC.

Don’t let the name or presentation put you off: this is an impressive piece of interactive storytelling that gets more right than most other games with 10 times its budget.

No longer the Deadly Premonition of action games, just an outdated, half-broken, shooter that offers only glimpses of what it could’ve been.