A disappointingly direct copy of Journey that offers an incredible audio and visual treat, but lacks the deeper meaning of the original.

A disappointing start to what should be a potential rich concept, with an overfamiliar storyline and bland presentation.

More than just a tech demo, but still far from a defining VR experience – especially given the plain visuals and unfocused story and gameplay.

One of the best hacking-themed video games ever, and a clever puzzler with some surprisingly successful storytelling elements.

Beautiful presentation and an intriguing open world environment, but the misjudged difficultly level is just too punishing – even with co-op.

What starts as a fine homage to Super Metroid and ‘70s style sci-fi ends as a disappointing waste of both story and gameplay potential.

Without virtual reality support to increase the novelty this this would-be walking sim proves a disappointingly bland experience.

The best Lemmings game since the Amiga days, except with flesh-eating zombies instead of mindless mammals.

An inspired mix of real science, sandbox gameplay, and space simulation – that is both a lot more entertaining and a lot more accessible than you’d expect.

A well-crafted homage to Chrono Trigger, which isn’t scared to add its own ideas – ensuring this is far more than just a nostalgic novelty.

Whatever controversy there might be about the movie, there can be little argument that this spiritless cash-in is one of the worst video games of 2016.

An interesting attempt to cross Dark Souls with a roguelike, but it’s not a very well mixed cocktail and the ingredients really needed to be chosen with more care.

The best Monster Hunter yet, with some useful improvements in terms of combat variety and accessibility for new players – even if it still falls short of the series’ full potential.

The best Kinect-only game ever, and if nothing else that proves that an inspired developer can make a great game with even the most unpromising of hardware.

A different take on the usual Metroidvania formula, but while the story and setting are charming the puzzles are rarely anything other than frustrating.

A great simulation game that works impressively well on consoles. Although at times it almost feels like a psychology study of the player rather than the inmates.

Another failed attempt to revive a franchise whose time seems long since passed, especially given how frustrating and unrewarding this reboot is to play.

An unusual mixture of influences, that builds a pleasingly unique strategy role-player out of otherwise very familiar components.

More a new episode than a full-blown sequel, but the clever blend of strategic, tactical, and moral decision-making is as compelling as ever.

Old school to a fault, the worst thing about this Japanese role-player is it doesn’t seem to have any idea just how clichéd and outdated it really is.

Considering it’s half broken and patently unfinished this doesn’t deserve to be called a video game at all, just an unpromising work in progress.

A highly successful remake that fixes the technical and design flaws of the original and turns it into one of the year’s best looking action role-players.

Much like the film, this is more a testament to what worked before than a genuinely new experience, but it makes the best of its voice cast and an obvious love for Star Wars.

A successful conclusion to one of the most underrated storytelling franchises in gaming, even if some of the presentational changes are too ambitious for their own good.

Visually though this is one of the most impressive games of the year, with the subtle animation and sparing use of colour telling you all you need to know about the situation without a word of dialogue. Inside isn’t a fun video game, but it is a clever and intelligent one. And despite how long it’s been since Limbo it’s telling that nobody has managed to perfect that formula as well as Playdead.

A bad idea poorly realised, it’s hard to argue that Kick Off has any place in the modern world and this badly made revival seems to prove it.

It feels more like an indie team’s first prototype than a new entry in a blockbuster franchise, but the truth is there have still been a lot worse Resident Evil games than this.

A crossover between Persona and Fire Emblem proves to be just as peculiar as it sounds, but this is a surprisingly fun mash-up for Japanese role-playing fans.