Everything from the art style to the storyline is fairly simple, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Even though we ran into the occasional bug (nothing that couldn’t be fixed by rebooting), this is a fun game if you just want to relax with something nice and easy.

It all looks gorgeous, moves smoothly, and sounds exuberant as ever. We'd say that for Monkey Ball fanatics this is a bit of a must, but then said fanatics are the ones who will notice the cracks more than anyone else. So we're not sure, ultimately, who this is for. Newcomers may find themselves wondering what all the fuss is about.

The story is slight, the acting is rubbish, and the special effects are merely effects. The synthwave soundtrack is actually really good. It lasts an hour and change which, like most Wales Interactive movie-games, is absolutely perfect. You probably already know if you think you're going to like this, and if you do you're probably right. We liked it, but mainly for the wrong reasons.

The slight input lag and dark visuals are disappointing, but Pinball FX has so much content that pinball fans will struggle not to find the fun here. The biggest problem with this package is its messy monetisation: the developer can’t decide whether to lean on its subscription-style Pinball Pass or traditional DLC, and its hybrid approach is neither here nor there really. When you consider that no previously purchased content carries across, it’s hard to recommend reinvesting so heavily here – especially when, even with all the bells and whistles, the core nuts-and-bolts of playing many of these tables remains the same as in past games.

Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition doesn’t solve the core gunplay issues that plagued the release’s original outing, but this is still a fine upgrade for those merely looking for some rotten flesh to fire at.

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 is more enjoyable as a visual and auditory experience than it is to actually play. Even with new modes and a smooth 60fps mode the new Enhanced edition provides, the Ninja Theory sequel fails on two fronts: bad puzzles and repetitive combat. Despite that, you’ll never play anything else quite like Hellblade 2; the game’s very unique approach to the sensory side of video games is exquisite. It just about warrants playing entirely because of that.

A Hat in Time excels with an overwhelming charm in its writing and art direction that overcomes any missteps in these areas. Its core, smooth mechanics also benefit from promising ideas, but none of them prevent the game from being pulled into a wormhole of mediocre level design and objectives. The potential for phenomenal platforming and exploration is here, but for every positive, there seems to be a negative in A Hat in Time.

The mission structure of the game devolves into going to a place, doing a trick or route, strung along by forgettable story dialogue. The missions have a habit of being poorly explained, furthered by being unable to re-read text boxes explaining what you need to do. And rarely do the inputs needed for specific moves get shown during these prompts. For better or worse, Session is a game for the hardcore skater. While its dedication to realism is impressive, the frustration in the early hours is likely to turn most off.

Those looking for a title with engaging gameplay will be sorely disappointed by the lack of challenge, boring stealth, and hunt the clue investigations. But if you can overlook its shortcomings and throw yourself headlong into the fiction, you might just find a detective yarn with a supernatural twist that’ll keep you engaged until justice is done.

The title’s at its best when you meander through its oversaturated scenes without purpose, but that means that it’s not recommended for everyone.

Assassin's Creed Odyssey: The Fate of Atlantis - Episode 1 has its moments, but as a whole, it feels like a missed opportunity. With better storytelling this could have been a truly intriguing player-driven tale, but inconsistent characters and unclear consequences keep things from clicking. Elsewhere, the modern day stuff just doesn't gel, and although the DLC's new location is absolutely stunning, it immediately lacks the life that makes Odyssey's open world so engrossing. All in all, this is an okay start to the Eagle-Bearer's endgame adventure, and we do want to see what Episode 2 brings, but we expected more from such a fantastical outing.

The 3D environments just don't have the same magic, either. Beyond a Steel Sky's visuals are basic, and its locations are all a bit sterile. And that's a shame, because at its core, this is a heartfelt and often charming video game. If you're an adventure fan, Foster's second foray into Union City is fun enough while it lasts — but it struggles to be anywhere near as memorable as the classic titles that it draws from.

UFO Robot Grendizer: The Feast of the Wolves is a heartfelt tribute to the giant robot genre. It's clearly a lower budget title, and technical issues certainly sour the experience somewhat, but there's good, straightforward fun to be found if you're a fan of classic anime.

Like its predecessor, Prototype 2 is an enjoyable distraction rather than a must-play affair. Its varied combat and satisfying traversal mechanics provide the title with a surprisingly solid basis, but a lacklustre plot and dreary setting prevent it from competing with the very best in the open-world genre. There's certainly fun to be had here, but it's of the disappointingly dispensable kind.

Our multilayer story really is the perfect analogy for what kind of game Bombing Busters is. Nothing about it is memorable, but if you're not paying attention to the details, you may just enjoy yourself with this Bomberman duplicate. Of course, that doesn't mean that it's anywhere near the echelon of the classic maze-based strategy game, but that doesn't stop it from being fun to play.

Ellen Page is excellent throughout and the presentation is staggering on the PS4 – it's just best to know what you're getting into before venturing headfirst into the Infraworld.

Memories of Marl Kingdom improves on its predecessor's weaknesses. Battles offer up a challenge and need to actually be thought about. The chapters in the game are set before, during, and after the events of the first two Rhapsody games, giving a deeper insight into the stories. Again, injected with musical intermissions, it’s an all-round better experience than Ballad of the Little Princess, albeit a much briefer one.

Scribblenauts Showdown is an agreeable party game that applies the playful vocabulary-stretching gameplay well enough to entertain you and some friends for a while. Unfortunately, the numerous minigames are all pretty shallow, the Showdown mode can grow tiresome, and the appeal of the Sandbox levels only lasts for so long. This will certainly make for an amusing evening with family and friends, but it's not likely to be a title you'll come back to more than a couple of times.

Unfortunately, the game's issues run a bit deeper. Like the 2016 version, the gameplay is stiff, slow, and rather dull, and sometimes it's unclear precisely how to proceed. Inventory space is a near constant headache. Building up your town is hard work, which is probably intentional but isn't very fun — especially when giant monsters unceremoniously wander over and destroy your buildings. Fighting back can feel futile and isn't particularly satisfying, either. It's tough, because there's great potential in its collaborative, common goal nature, and Phoenix Edition really does make many improvements to the overall experience, but its cold, repetitive core holds it back.

At the end of the day, this is a neat experiment that fans of the film will enjoy, but overall it fails to measure up to the source material.

The gameplay mechanics are simple: you collect a pill-shaped McGuffin and then take it to the exit door. Stages include all kinds of challenges, such as platforms that appear and disappear when you jump, robots that chase you down, and Pong balls that bounce around. The gameplay is a little floaty, but it generally feels okay. And this means that you’ll have to put any errors down to your own poor judgment rather than the title’s hellish difficulty curve. It demands obscene levels of patience, but it’s moreish and satisfying once you find the “zone”. A decent soundtrack accompanies the action, while a Hardcore mode challenges you to beat as many levels as you can with one life.

While it's great to see The Sinking City return to PlayStation consoles, the PS5 version does little to make this worth an additional purchase for existing owners. DualSense support and shorter load times are nice additions, but performance and gameplay are still on the rough side. For newcomers, the lack of direction in particular can turn the engaging story into a backtracking slog very quickly. There's a great and engaging detective game buried here, but there are much better offerings out there to scratch your itch.

There’s an enjoyable core gameplay loop at the heart of nDreams’ latest VR outing, but there simply isn’t enough content here to allow you to delve any deeper than the surface level. We certainly had fun with Shooty Fruity, but with only enough levels to support four hours of fun, you may want to look a bit more upmarket with your next grocery shop.

While the console edition of Football Manager 2024 is admirable and certainly serviceable for those who can't play on PC, it's tough to recommend thanks to how stripped back it is by comparison. Entire features are missing, and navigating through menus is a slow, frustrating chore. This is a subpar port that's fine as a gateway experience, but it's hard to look past its flaws — especially when the grass seems so much greener across the way.

Demon Slayer: The Hinokami Chronicles is carried by its fantastic presentation, which expertly captures the look and feel of the anime. Bombastic boss fights and some stunning cutscenes are enough to sell the otherwise short-lived story mode, but outside of that, this is a rather barebones package. Battles can be flashy and fun, but the combat system doesn't have the necessary depth to hook anyone who isn't a Demon Slayer super fan. If this is just the first step in a new series from CyberConnect2, then it's a solid debut that'll no doubt form the basis for a much meatier sequel.

Claws of Awaji is a decent expansion, but outside of some cool story moments, it never really elevates itself beyond the base game. There was room for improvement here, in Shadows' stunted combat and stealth mechanics, and its open world structure, but ultimately, the DLC plays it very safe — for better or worse.

The foundations of a fast-paced and well worked action RPG are alive and well in this post-apocalyptic wasteland, but Earth's Dawn is let down by repetition and difficulty spikes.

This mashup of shooter, stealth, and RPG wears its influences proudly but rarely matches them. Its alt-history setting is interesting and there are plenty of ways to approach the robot-killing, but these elements are at odds with messy storytelling and characterisation.