A beautifully crafted survival horror game that knowingly harkens back to the original Resident Evil, while adding in some sympathetically designed modern touches.

A deep, funny, and systemically complex role-playing game, built around wry satire and a far-reaching sense of consequence, where conversation is at least as important as combat.

Yet another entirely unnecessary sequel to a classic game that should never have got any follow-ups at all. But if you want even more of the same old thing there are few small sparks of imagination here and there.

A parkour and puzzle game that is not quite as action-packed as its marketing suggests but still represents a superior VR experience, that wouldn’t be nearly as captivating on a flat screen.

The best and most versatile Jurassic World Evolution title yet, even if it’s only a compsognathus sized step up from its predecessor, rather than a brachiosaurus length stride.

Not only a return to form for Ninja Gaiden but for PlatinumGames as well, in a game that may lack in innovation, but makes up for it in mechanical complexity.

A nostalgia trip with a distinctly British flavour, that blends various brands of platform gaming with references to 1980s games, films, and TV shows – and despite some frustrations keeps it accessible for every age of gamer.

A laudable achievement in terms of visual design and general ambience but the complete lack of challenge, and short length, reduces its overall impact.

In gameplay terms it has little to do with the original Bloodlines, and it’s not really a role-playing game either, but this is an enjoyable and atmospheric action adventure that stands on its merits.

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.

It’s still as embarrassingly low-tech as ever but this is easily the best of the 3D games, with a surprising amount of ambition and invention, not to mention real-time combat that actually works.

A very peculiar platformer, whose wonky mechanics never fully deliver on the fever dream promise of its ambience, but at least it plays better on more modern formats.

A refined but unadventurous restart for the Battlefield series, which returns to the thrilling spectacle of the classic entries, even if it doesn’t do very much that is new.

A fun roguelike beat ’em-up that manages to expand the genre beyond its arcade roots, with relatively deep combat, excellent animation, and four very different playable characters.

The new developer perfectly recreates the art direction and atmosphere of the originals, but there’s a lack of innovation and variety in this otherwise enjoyable quasi-horror sequel.

An extremely insubstantial Star Wars pod racing themed VR and mixed reality experience, that is technically competent but whose greatest value is in demonstrating the limitations of AR as a concept.

It’s atrocious, failing both as a tactical combat game and a whodunnit, instead settling for charging you to win more frequently via its paid battle pass.

A multiplayer driven dungeon crawler with flashes of comical entertainment, but which neither excels as a party game or as a captivating solo grind.

The quintessential tactical role-playing game is revived for a new generation and while it still has its flaws, the bedrock of both the gameplay and the narrative remain as solid as ever.

Both games are not only Nintendo at their peak (as good as Odyssey is, we consider both Galaxy games to be superior) but the whole art of video games. The creativity, the craft, and the bond between your simple control inputs and the magic happening on-screen has never been bettered. A decade and a half ago, Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 stood as two of the best video games ever made and that is absolutely still the case now.

A well-meaning Zero Escape expy that’s too simple for puzzle fiends and too shallow for anyone looking for a nuanced examination of dealing with one’s trauma.

A decently tweaked iteration of EA’s domineering football sim, but while the changes might not be seismic they are all positive.

One of the best-looking open world games ever but the formula is beginning to feel increasingly outdated, despite the cool visuals, fun samurai gear, and surprisingly good plot.

A beautiful, meditative Lego-based puzzle game for two, that emphasises playful fun over challenge, although to such a degree that it’s all over a bit too soon.

A solid roguelike with a fun and well-balanced challenge, but it does little to move the formula forward and in certain respects is actually inferior to its predecessor.

An excellent extension to an already large and polished game, with welcome new gameplay additions and a whole new island to explore.

Disturbing yet thought-provoking survival horror sequel, that stumbles slightly in terms of the repetitive combat but is easily the best new entry in the series since the PS2 era.

In its current early access state, Skate is a contradiction. It tows the line between giving just enough of what we asked for by bringing the Flick-It system to modern platforms, while also being something of a storefront on wheels. It has the mechanics to last forever, being an outright hoot with friends, but the infrastructure could vanish overnight. 15 years on, EA has delivered a game that captures the joy of skating, but whether it can capture the heart of skateboarding remains very much in question. [Early Access Review]