Ratalaika's port has the helpful inclusion of cheats to retain weapons, and the advantageous option of infinite magic — so you can hold two buttons for double firepower of regular shots, alongside experimental magic attacks like the Energy Ball or Thunderbolt. This allows greater customisability of the original's steep difficulty curve.

While it demands a high level of investment, Deception IV: Blood Ties is still a decent game.

Strength of the Sword 3 is a tough game. You’ll flit frequently from God-sent knight to obscenity-hurling peasant, and it won’t always be your fault. It’s certainly an impressive effort from a two-man team, and by no means an average game, but it fails to step away from the pervading notion that it's little more than a series of challenging boss fights.

My Memory of Us is an exciting and emotional trip through a dark period of human history. Its bittersweet story mixes well with its tense stealth-based gameplay, while clever puzzles flesh things out. Fittingly for a game about memories, we won't forget our time with Juggler Games' project for quite a while.

Assassin's Creed Odyssey: Legacy of the First Blade - Episode 1: Hunted is a solid starting point for what could turn out to be an interesting story. While the DLC doesn't bring anything new to the table in terms of gameplay variation, it does provide a well made slice of open world adventuring, complete with some thoughtful character moments. It goes without saying, but if you're a fan of Odyssey, then you're going to enjoy Hunted.

Criminal Girls 2: Party Favors is a niche release for sure, but it's also a solid RPG experience which is ideally suited to the Vita. If you've got Sony's handheld device and an open mind regarding how female fighters should be motivated, then this is a slice of good quality JPRG that can provide many hours of battling pleasure. Just take our advice and try not to play it in public.

Do Not Fall is a challenging and thoroughly enjoyable puzzle platformer that will easily swallow hours of your time. It does get a little bit repetitive in places, but it's not hard to fall for the title's quirky presentation and thoughtful design.

Gotham Knights is the type of game you so dearly want to love, but time and time again it gives you a reason not to. What Warner Bros. Games Montreal has here is an excellent story with top-notch cutscene direction and a fun combat system, with too many needless and confusing mechanics bolted on top. If you can look past them, there's a genuinely great game here. We recommend trying your best to do so; you'll find a compelling narrative on the other side.

The game does a fantastic job of immersing you in this terrifying and deadly world, especially with the live mic feature that captures your audio as you play, which can alert the creatures. There's a fantastic set of features and foundation here that we'd love to see built upon in a sequel, as the A Quiet Place franchise is a great fit with games.

While Nights of Azure is an enjoyable enough ride, it doesn't really possess anything that makes it worth investing a large amount of time in.

This isn’t the Worms game that the Vita deserves, but as we wait for one to be built from the ground up for the handheld, it'll have to do.

KickBeat is definitely on rhythm, and will consume hours of your time with its beat-matching brawling as a consequence.

Some minor iffy moments aside, How We Soar is a beautifully relaxing game, with tight presentation and some sound controls. A lovely concept that's really well executed, this is another wonderful example of why virtual reality gaming represents the way forward, and you should certainly check it out if you haven't done so already.

Batman: The Enemy Within – Episode Two: The Pact is one of the best Telltale episodes in a long time. Going behind enemy lines with some of Gotham’s greatest gangsters makes for a brilliantly tense dynamic, as you wrestle with socially awkward situations in order to keep everyone on-side. With so many different plot threads dangling, it was only a matter of time before a certain kitten came out to play – and the return of Catwoman sets up a third episode that we can’t wait to experience.

Port Royale 4's gameplay consists almost entirely of all of the bits in other strategy games that you'd normally set to "Automate" because they're fiddly and boring. It's a game set in the era of pirates with nary a hint of swashing nor buckling. It's like if Pirates of the Caribbean 6 was just three hours of Captain Jack Sparrow filing his tax returns. Yes, we know that somebody, somewhere, must have been filling in the paperwork back in those days, but we just don't want it to be us.

Co-op is where Can’t Drive This truly shines. Bringing some frantic entertainment, cross-generation multiplayer, and adaptive feedback for acceleration – the only major PS5 upgrade — we just wish there was more to it. It’s also incredibly bare, and there isn’t huge variation between these modes. Unlocking new customisation options isn’t enough to keep you coming back, and though you’ll have a fun time with friends, you won’t be here for a long time.

Since it's confined to two player local co-op, it's not as exhilarating as the six player online chaos in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge. It also lacks the consistently updated polish of Streets of Rage 4, yet Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons adds roguelite progression, which makes it a strikingly replayable contribution to the modern side-scrolling beat-'em-up resurgence.

Those willing to spend their time slowly crawling into position, waiting for that perfect shot, will find an engaging experience that encourages experimentation through its enormous levels.

The Town of Light is a powerful experience that highlights a fascinating, if chilling, chapter in human history. The heavy atmosphere is achieved through the very real setting of Volterra, and Renée’s unfortunate tale of life inside its walls that represents the woes of many real people. The story meanders a little too far into obscurity and can become confusing, and some long load times scupper things further. While you won’t necessarily have fun in the traditional sense, it’s worth playing if you’re at all interested, as it contains some striking sequences that will stay with you long after you finish.

Milestone's latest is a fun romp through a variety of off-road locations, offering both quantity and variety in terms of tracks, cards, and modes. It's not the most ambitious racer ever, but the non-serious style of the flagship Off-Road Masters mode will be very appealing to those wanting an enjoyable arcade experience.

White Day: A Labyrinth Named School may not be the king of fear and terror anymore, but it could still be a worthwhile experience for horror fanatics. This blast from the past certainly brings with it a lot of baggage such as the clunky puzzles and glitchy AI, but it has enough intrigue to it that we’re still left pondering its story and themes long after the credits rolled. White Day is most definitely not a remake for everyone, but those wanting to take a trip down memory lane may leave somewhat satisfied.

The Bradwell Conspiracy wants to reach the same heights as Gone Home and What Remains of Edith Finch, but thanks to woeful performance on PlayStation 4 and clunky, unreliable mechanics, it goes in the opposite direction.

The LEGO NINJAGO Movie Video Game is another good entry in the LEGO series of games. The increased focus on combat pays off with a fleshed out system that makes each character feel unique, while the free-running provides enough safety nets to keep you from getting frustrated. Despite a couple of technical hiccups and a poorly thought out ending, LEGO NINJAGO has so much going for it that the overall experience isn't dampened.

NASCAR ’14 will bump away at more casual players’ patience, but fans will have the fortitude to see each full race day through. A steep learning curve means that you’ll need to commit to get anything out of this stock racing experience, but your efforts will definitely be rewarded in time – especially if you’re a fan of real life motorsport.

Marvel's Avengers' least advertised aspect turns out to be its greatest asset, and it's exactly what hardcore fans were craving the most. The story and everything that comes with it is a real highlight, allowing the exceptional Kamala Khan to take the lead and bring with her enjoyable combat systems and fun parkour. The shocking framerate, along with bugs and glitches, should be fixed in the near future, but it's what the game has you do after the credits roll that quickly becomes its biggest downfall. Marvel's Avengers has a single player campaign that thoroughly excites, surprises, and delights. What follows brings it crashing back down to Earth.

Landing itself somewhere between a twin-stick shooter and a rhythm game, Soundfall feels like it's not really doing one or other of these particularly successfully. Saved by an incredible soundtrack, Soundfall has the potential to be a really incredible game with an exciting concept, but is let down by repetitive gameplay and a weak story.

Considering its low asking price, Magical Beat is a fantastic and bold puzzle game that only skips a few beats.

Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends Complete Edition still holds the portable Warriors crown, then, but the soul of a great PS4 musou title can still be found alive and well here.