It might not honour the series’ creator, but Metal Gear itself is paid due homage, in one of the best, and most complete, retro compilations there’s ever been.

An occasionally spectacular follow-up to one of the best action platformers of the last few years, which unfortunately dilutes some of its appeal by shooting for a wider audience.

A visual novel set in the world of Roadwarden that offers some degree of choice, but whose real charm comes from its straightforward prose and troubled, authentic-seeming characters.

The best visual representation of Hellboy outside of the comic books, but an absolutely terrible video game, whose shallowness and lack of variety is matched only by its constant repetition.

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.

A fantastic 2D platformer that immediately takes its place amongst the pantheon of Nintendo’s very best titles, with such a constant stream of new and surreal ideas you want to stand up and applaud it by the end of it.

The best Spider-Man game ever and probably the best use of Venom in any medium outside of comics, with the stunning visuals and slick gameplay overcoming a certain overfamiliarity.

It’s no Sonic Mania, but this is still one of the better attempts to create a modern day 2D Sonic The Hedgehog, with impressive visuals but boring boss battles.

A Total War game proves not to be the best way to explore one of the most fascinating periods in ancient history, with boring real-time battles dragging down positive changes to the grand strategy elements.

There’s a lot to do, with quests and hunts coming thick and fast, as it once again strongly incentivises you to get fresh air – since it doesn’t work either indoors or in a moving car. While early days, indicators are that this could have the longevity recent Niantic games have lacked.

From its glorious art style to the amusingly European callouts of Zok! and Shunt! as damage gets inflicted on enemies, it’s a lovingly crafted modern take on the genre.

A charming, if basic, detective game is transformed into a patronisingly simplistic visual novel for only the youngest of Pokémon fans.

It’s not the world’s most radical sequel but Train Sim World 4 is a sizeable update for the virtual train set, with plenty to please new fans and old.

The debt to Advance Wars still overshadows it, but despite a relative lack of new features this is a solid sequel to one of the best indie strategy games of the last few years.

Assassin’s Creed gets back-to-basics with a shorter, more focused – if slightly less polished -campaign, and a return to an impossibly beautiful looking early-era Middle East.

A fabulously detailed racing game with a huge car roster and engrossing single-player modes, slightly marred by forcefully encouraging you to perform practise laps before races.

A wordless and atmospheric puzzle game that’s just as ingenious and inventive as Limbo and Inside, but with more substantial gameplay and perfect pacing.

The slickest, smoothest and most technologically advanced not-FIFA game ever made, that makes an encouragingly positive start to a new era of football video games.

Despite having had a decade to come up with new ideas and heists this is a disappointingly hollow sequel that offers too few reasons for not just sticking with the last game.

An affectionately crafted prequel to The Expanse which, while worthwhile for fans, fails to evolve Telltale’s tired gameplay design in any meaningful manner.

A very welcome slice of DLC that is just as enjoyable as the main game and helps flesh out a fan favourite character with their own unique abilities and agenda.

Technical problems and a lack of difficulty balancing spoil what would’ve been a neat slice of DLC, with some surprisingly good storytelling.

A competent facsimile of Bloodborne, but one so completely lacking in new ideas that it can only ever come across as a pale imitation.

A taut, characterful headrush of an expansion that completes Cyberpunk 2077’s redemption and re-establishes it as one of the great open world adventures of the generation.

The story campaign and, arguably, the fighting are the best they’ve ever been for Mortal Kombat, although there’s currently a lack of other modes and Invasion is a disappointment.

Impressively well produced and extremely playable, but there are few changes from last year and the microtransactions are still obnoxious.

A pub band cover version of Forza Horizon 5, that despite a few unique ideas doesn’t come close to the fun and variety of its inspiration.

A disappointingly low-tech space exploration game that relies too much on the legacy of Skyrim and Fallout and lacks the innovation and imagination to do its concept justice.