Fire Emblem: Three Houses features some of the most refined and enjoyable battle mechanics the series has seen since its successful renaissance with Awakening. But the renewed focus on support relationships gets in the way of what some may have valued most from the franchise – the strength of its strategic design and the battles themselves. Regardless, it’s hard to argue that Three Houses is the best Fire Emblem since Awakening, so it’s still worth your time, even if you’ll have to spend it wisely.

Auteur designer Yoko Taro successfully blends his oddball knack for storytelling, defying typical video game conventions in doing so. This leads to an unforgettable story, but how it's told and demands repeat playthroughs is bound to be lost on some part of NieR: Automata's audience. Regardless, NieR: Automata blends intense action and RPG components into an atmosphere and game that's well worth experiencing, even on the Nintendo Switch.

Death Stranding 2: On The Beach does everything it can to eclipse the original in practically every way, improving on the systems surrounding the already solid core of the original. The result is a livelier world to explore, an engaging story to experience and an overall much better paced adventure through Australia that I struggled to put down. It's well worth your time and more respectful of it too.

Infinite Wealth is a stellar follow-up to Yakuza: Like a Dragon in just about every way. It's bigger, bolder and with some smart tweaks to combat it's a significantly better turn-based RPG. Series fans have a ton to look forward to in the larger-than-life story and emotional character moments, and though there are some glaring issues with its dungeons and post-game offerings, the end result is the franchise's best entry yet.

For Cuphead fans, The Delicious Last Course is an essential add-on adventure that more than delivers enough content for the price of admission. The art is sumptuous, the fights are fanciful, and there’s effort crammed into every nook. I expect some might say The Delicious Last Course under delivers considering the time between drinks, but I’m a cup half full kind of guy.

Resident Evil Requiem is inarguably a brilliant game with an awkward identity. At its best, especially as Grace, it nails the dense, atmospheric survival horror experience that defined the series, pairing smart level design with tense decision-making and combat that feels weighty and brutal. But as the story shifts the focus to Leon and pivots towards action, it becomes a weaker echo of Resident Evil 4. Ultimately, while Resident Evil Requiem is a blast from beginning to end, it also can't decide what it wants to be, and that is bound to be divisive.

Courtesy of an excellent, funny, and heartfelt superhero story that peeks at life behind the mask, Dispatch has made a late charge at the year’s top gong with a scintillating and near flawless eight-episode run, all the while bettering even Telltale’s hallowed best.

Split Fiction is a masterclass of game design, and is yet another instant classic from a team who have, across a span of three games, rewritten the handbook on how to develop fun and insanely inventive stories that’ll be remembered for one thing, among others: spotlighting the power of friendship.

On the back of Phantom Liberty, along with a really substantial rebuild of all of the game’s core systems, Cyberpunk 2077 manages to wash its hands of its past failures and emerges as the genuine article. At last, it’s the intoxicating escape I once thought it was and stands out, to me, as the premiere role-playing resort in what might very well be a modern golden age for the genre.

Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition pulls out all the stops to give players enough reason to come back. The loading is insanely fast, the ray-tracing is absolutely delicious and the frame rates are buttery smooth. If you've previously struggled to get into Devil May Cry, this won't necessarily appeal to you any more than previous games have. But if you're looking for a killer app to show off either your precious new hardware or television, then you should look no further.

The Last of Us Part I is, for all intents and purposes, the same The Last of Us that you know. It doesn’t take liberties to completely reshape the experience and nor should it. It does, however, smartly enhance the original’s combat through A.I. advancements, and drags the original’s production values over the line to create a product that can stand unified with its more polished sequel. The Last Of Us: Part I is without doubt the most definitive version of The Last of Us on the market.

Monster Hunter Wilds is more proof that Monster Hunter is one of CAPCOM's biggest franchises. Despite its sheer size, both in popularity and legacy, CAPCOM aren't afraid to jump head-first into new ideas. Wilds is a different kind of Monster Hunter that feels like a natural evolution of the formula. I have no doubts it'll go down as one of the best games in the series, and of 2025.

Immortality ambitiously succeeds at evolving the formats introduced in Her Story and Telling Lies to offer some of Sam Barlow’s best work yet and one of gaming’s most well-justified open-world experiences. Bolstered by some fantastic performances and a compelling mystery to uncover, it’s engrossing and engaging from beginning to end. While it might assume some prior knowledge in telling it’s underlying story, Immortality is an experience that’s not to be missed and one that I’ll never stop thinking about. It is truly fantastic and well worth your time.

Lorelei and the Laser Eyes is a wonderfully intricate, amazing piece of game design. It's intimidating and challenging, but it rewards all the effort you put into it. One of the best games of 2024 so far.

Cocoon’s focus on recursive exploration, which sees you peel back the filmic overlay of several coexisting realities to writhe in the depth of their fathoms-deep trickery, is incredibly intelligent in its design and is truly the most technically impressive puzzle game I’ve played since perhaps Portal. And it achieves all of this whilst sharing clear genetics with its forerunners.

Although the story of Cody and May doesn’t meet the standards set by the game’s varied gameplay, It Takes Two sees the continued form of Josef Fares and his team at Hazelight in crafting wonderfully creative and engaging worlds for players to share and collaborate in. It Takes Two is a co-op experience that’s second to none, which offers more ways than you can imagine to experience these larger than life play spaces.

Some minor missed opportunities aside this Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart is an unforgettable, unbelievably gorgeous and downright addictive game and easily the best entry in the fan-favourite franchise. For all of its jaw-dropping visuals, industry-leading design and writing packed with heart and humour it succeeds on first and foremost being a really good time. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is the most fun I've had with a DualSense in my hand and it stands as the best current reason to own a PS5.

Doom Eternal is a bigger and better sequel in practically every way. It has fast and frenetic combat, an unrelenting horde of enemies and some truly epic moments throughout its well-paced campaign. It’s everything a sequel should be and easily one of the best shooters I’ve ever played. Make no mistakes, Doom Eternal is Doom at its best.

Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is almost a tale of two games; the original holds up extremely well gameplay-wise, while is obviously let down by its dated graphics, while the remaster feels almost like a new game with its quality of life improvements. This definitely isn’t a half-baked package and is well worth it for original fans and newcomers alike - with the depth of the tactical RPG system that Square built many years ago, you’ll be obsessing over the best way to win a battle even when you’re not playing.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 is a one-way ticket to the turn of the millennium. It's a complete, beautiful love letter to not only Tony Hawk himself as an icon but to a time when both the series and the sport of skateboarding itself were most pure and fun. As a bundle, and with the multiplayer providing even more longevity, this game offers unrivalled value.

Horizon Forbidden West is an exceedingly clever sequel, a deep and addictive action RPG, a dense world that unfolds with an impeccable sense of pace, a visual tour de force and the masterful delivery of a promising concept. Somehow, by some sheer creative force a big, blockbuster open world game about post-apocalyptic tribal warriors with AR headsets fighting robot dinosaurs works even better the second time around. If you have access to a PlayStation you owe it to yourself to play this right away.

Mullet Mad Jack is a blistering, balls-to-the-wall throwback to 90s anime and violent, dystopian sci-fi that marries boomer shooters with speedrunning and roguelike aspirations to form an absolutely intoxicating brew. It's short, and there's not much to keep you invested even with infinite floors to climb, but you'll be having a good fucking time while you're in it.

It’s not an easy thing Arkane has done here in serving up a genuinely fresh take on one of the medium’s most enduring genres. Deathloop redefines what a shooter can be, and the developer has used their entire toolkit to get there. Satisfying action, world-building that’s second-to-none, style and substance, and a genuinely enthralling riddle at the centre, Deathloop delivers it all. And it’s through these triumphs that Deathloop earns its place in the first-person shooter pantheon, and puts its hand up during Game of the Year talks.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales web-slings on to PC with ease. Packed with a great array of graphics options, a fun story and fantastic gameplay, this is an excellent way to experience an Insomniac classic.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II effortlessly builds upon the original game to offer a true open world in every sense of the concept. While some obtuse systems and unforgiving design choices may put some players off, Deliverance II feels like a game that better achieves all the potential that the original game had. It's engaging, exciting, and a lot more inviting. And for that, it's a truly successful sequel.

Metroid Dread feels like a celebration of 2D Metroid. It manages to stay true to the original games, whilst also introducing some new elements that keeps things feeling fresh. The game is held back by some questionable level design, the E.M.M.I feeling repetitive and a definite knowledge barrier for series newcomers.

Super Mario Maker 2 is a breath of fresh air. The story mode is fantastic, the online multiplayer additions are more than welcome and the new items and game modes are absolutely fantastic.

Monster Hunter Rise is nothing short of brilliant. It builds off of the solid foundations of World and Iceborne in ways that feel meaningful and add more depth to an already staggeringly deep gameplay loop and progression system. Despite a few minor shortcomings, Rise is another rip-roaring success for both CAPCOM and Monster Hunter as a franchise, that demands the attention of fans and anyone interested by its ever-lasting appeal.