As a budget Diablo III clone, Torchlight II delivers a solid chunk of hacky, slashy, looty gameplay and gets better as the game gets harder. However, it doesn't offer any real innovations and seems creatively unambitious even by the standards of a sub-genre that already struggles to break away from its conventions.

Playstation 4 owners can finally rejoice that Destroy All Humans! 2: Reprobed is theirs to own. Despite the ageing hardware, not a great deal of compromise has been shown, aside from the exclusion of multiplayer. Technically, it still holds up with the game's cheeky charm remaining in good form. I enjoyed going back to this and, whilst some design shows its age, the remake does modernise the 2006 game in some smart ways. The world is bright and detailed whilst the missions contain a variety that keeps things feeling relatively fresh.

Whilst this could've ended up another run-of-the-mill combat platformer, Saga of Sins does well with its setting and premise. Using the sins as a backdrop for levels helps keep the platforming varied and gives them license to experiment with a couple of neat tricks. I think the presentation is handled well but the voice acting can fall flat for a couple of characters. Despite this, I enjoyed this medieval morality tale and will be interested in seeing what Bonus Level Entertainment do next.

Lost Grimoires 2: Shard of Mystery is another solid entry into the hidden object genre. The story is maybe a little weaker than in other Artifex Mundi games, but there is a decent range of puzzles and activities on display here. If you’re a fan of the genre, like us, then you’ll be happy to go along with the ride, and despite this being a sequel it is a perfect jumping on point. If, however, you dislike these games this entry will do nothing to change your opinion.

Alfred Hitchcock - Vertigo is an unexpected adaptation of the 1958 film with a nice line in looming dread throughout. Perhaps a bit QTE heavy for some, but we enjoyed it despite a couple of rough edges. You should watch the film too. That's ace.

Read Only Memories: Neurodiver is a good VN that follows on from 2064: Read Only Memories, but worked just as well for us in isolation having not played the first game. As visual novels go, it is one of the better ones we played, due to the decent voice acting and well done plot. It’s not massively long, but that may come as welcome relief to the trophy hunters that want low hanging fruit.

Super Woden GP II is a fair isometric racer that apes Gran Turismo in terms of structure, though the margin of error for winning races is minimal. If you crash, you’re generally out of luck but there’s still plenty of fun to be had.

Dexed is exactly the sort of game you'd expect at this stage of PSVR's development. An on-rails shooter with nods to Rez and Ikaruga where the VR gimmick carries the game. It's too short for sure, but we're suckers for its floaty charms.

Lost Wing is a decent into-the-screen avoid 'em up that looks slick and cultivates a real 'just one more go' addictiveness. Minor niggles around performance and variety spoil the party a little but at this price it is easy to forgive any small failings it has.

Sudden Strike 4 makes a fair attempt at bringing a more realistic real-time strategy game to the PS4. The controls aren't perfect but do a decent job, it's the specific way levels need to be approached that may put off players. If you treat levels as a puzzle that needs to be solved then you'll find a, sometimes frustrating, rewarding experience.

Surf World Series manages to pull together a decent surfing game and looks pretty gorgeous while doing it. It does a lot right and is an easy game to play and chill out with. The way each wave feels different from the last is a huge plus point here, but at the end of the day you’re just riding waves. Treat this game as a palette cleanser between more weighty titles and you could have some fun, but as a title to sink hours into, it can get a bit repetitive.

Foregone is a more linear take on the Metroidvania formula, with plenty of loot and skills to unlock along the way. Once you have all those skills it becomes a lot of fun to run, jump and dash through the attractive environments, defeating enemies with your range of weapons and skills as you go.

El Hijo is a western themed stealth-em-up. Very much a game to concentrate on, but once you hit your stride you'll have fun. The juxtaposition between the two player characters and their interlocking storylines is well done.

A wonderfully relaxing way to spend a few hours but falls down a little in terms of game mechanics. Could well be called an interactive art installation.

Bassmaster Fishing 2022 is a glimpse into the pro bass fishing world. Slightly shonky implementation and other issues mar the experience a little bit but it's a solid fishing game otherwise. We can't stop playing despite that.

Neighbours Back From Hell is a remake that no-one asked for but ended up being a pleasant surprise. An accessible puzzler with engaging stealth elements that likes a laugh and doesn't drag on. That's how we like them.

Demon's Tier+ is a cleverly designed twin-stick shooting rogue-like that isn't perfect but is compelling and addictive once you understand its clever upgrade system.

Exit the Gungeon is an enjoyable, run based rogue-lite. Things can get busy on the screen but runs are short enough and rewards plentiful enough that you'll get a feel for it as you have just one more go.

Super Soccer Blast is the best budget football game on the system and one that offers some old-school footballing fun for those of us who remember the pre-FIFA days fondly but a lack of finish, and some technical issues, spoil the party a little.

Monark has some good ideas and systems in place but the low budget presentation and enforced grinding stop this from being more than an interesting experience.

Beyond a Steel Sky is a modern sequel to a classic point and click and although the mechanics and systems have been updated that original feel is still present. That's great news for fans whilst those who didn't enjoy the genre's more obscure puzzles or slower paced gameplay will find similar troubles here. Lucky for me, I'm a fan.

I find the horror falls flat but Amnesia: The Bunker delivers a surprisingly open experience full of experimentation. It's freeing to be given the opportunity to blow a door wide open or circumvent challenges in an ingenious way. It visually shows its age and I feel the storytelling is bland but the atmosphere remains taught and tense. The monster doesn't quite hold a threat but the ticking time pressures and compromised nature of your tools did make for an interesting game. It's short but there's definitely room to replay with a different approach.

XPOSED isn’t much more complex or complicated than its spiritual grandaddy, the mighty Qix. Thankfully, it doesn’t need to be. It just offers some old-school arcade action that has the power to frustrate you but never pushes it too far.

It's not big and it's not clever but if VR is going to be mainly used for this type of shooting gallery game, we're glad to see it being used for games like Shooty Fruity that put the fun first and have one or two good ideas that we've not seen before.

As an utterly original take on both the Dungeon Crawler and Pinball genre’s, Creature in the Well is a fascinating adventure with stark visuals and soundtrack to match. A few minor details such as the sparse story and repetition do not take away from what is a unique experience, but these aspects may leave you wanting more than what is on offer.

Powerhoof have managed to tweak and refine a game that executes on an intriguing premise. It can be a little hard to follow but, with a group of friends, it’s difficult not to buy into the chaos. The hard turns are what this game seems to deliver well and, whilst the AI can provide some capable sparring partners, this game is best served in the company of others.

Statik offers an immersive experience with some very tricky puzzles. It’s not particularly long but its lack of hand holding makes it all the more rewarding when you make progress.

Alone in the Dark is a surprisingly competent effort that looks back at its own legacy more than towards where the genre has gone. There's less of a focus on combat and survival with the mystery of Derceto taking up the majority of my attention. The performances from Comer and Harbour add some gravitas to a tale that can occasionally stray into theatrics but there's a solid sense of atmosphere and good foundation for whatever comes next. I do wonder about longevity with the two campaigns sadly mirroring one another. Combat, whilst not front and centre, does seem to lack menace. I'd still recommend it, for anyone curious.