There are huge stretches in between these fights that will leave you wanting for something other than walking to the right. This is somewhat remedied by the “shred” button, where you can play your guitar as you walk everywhere, but fun as that may be, it’s ultimately not a sufficient replacement for proper gameplay. The adventure does ultimately end up being a worthwhile one, with interesting characters, an incredible art style, and great music. But if there were more to the gameplay, the game – and its world – could have offered so much more.

Rainbow Six: Extraction's core gameplay is decent, and its level variety is great, but the game definitely has some blind spots. While a zombie title focused on stealth and tactics makes for an interesting experience, anytime the game strays from that, it’s less successful. It draws extra attention to weak spots, like unimpressive AI and an obnoxious RNG progression system. Go in with a couple of friends, though, and you will get some fun out of this. All the levels are visually distinct and interesting to look at, and three squad members stealthing their way through a field of enemies can be immensely rewarding. It’s just unlikely to hold your attention in the long term.

Windjammers 2 is an almost perfect revival of a classic 90s franchise. The sequel strikes an immaculate balance between new and old ideas, and presents the classic sports gameplay so vibrantly that it’s hard not to be captivated by it all. There could, admittedly, be more meat on its bones – but it’s online, with the gameplay’s high skill ceiling, where the longevity will be found. We still want to spend a little more time testing this component, but our early impressions of the rollback netcode are positive to say the least.

If you yearn for the days of, say, Camelot’s Mario Golf on the Game Boy Color, then the fusion of sports and statistics may hold your attention here. But it’s best enjoyed in short bursts, as the tedium sets in quick, and will take a slice at your interest.

If you're looking for your next co-op addiction, Deep Rock Galactic could well be it. Brilliantly balanced character classes and engaging, emergent missions make for highly enjoyable underground antics, particularly with pals. Some networking issues and perhaps overly complex design decisions could frustrate, but it's a game worth sticking with for the moments where it all comes together. With replay value through the roof and satisfying gameplay at its core, this is one rock solid game to dig into.

We're not sure every Amalur fan will appreciate Fatesworn's central storyline. It's nothing crazy — Fate, meet Chaos! — but you could argue that the developer is a little sloppy in its handling of the game's established cast and lore. But for what it's worth, we do think Fatesworn is heartfelt — a genuine homage to a game that would have been undeservedly forgotten, had it not been for THQ and Kaiko's efforts.

Not all of the gameplay translates perfectly to the DualSense, as it’s clearly been designed around either touchscreens or mouse-and-keyboards. It’s not a big deal, though, and once you find a good lobby with a friendly group this is one of the better party games you’ll find on the PS5. It’s just finding said people can be a bit of an exercise in trial-and-error, so be aware that you will be at the mercy of the release’s unchecked community unless you have a guaranteed group of pals to play with.

There’s an absolute treasure trove of licensed content, spanning both men’s and women’s teams, with only the lucrative Indian Premier League the notable omission. However, a robust creation suite means fans will be able to create any missing players or clubs and share them online, which should plug any small gaps that do exist...The biggest downside, then, is just the underlying lack of budget: cricket is popular enough, but it’s not baseball, and it’s clear that Big Ant Studios just didn’t have the resources to nail key gameplay mechanics, like fielding, which feels flat and unrealistic due to the limited selection of animation cycles in its library.

The survival mechanics feel remarkably similar to Breath of the Wild, with item management and weapon degradation taking centre stage. These are reasonably well implemented, but are at odds with the otherwise minimal nature of the game. The devs would have perhaps been wise to focus more on polishing up the boss battles, as these are the true stars of the show.

The main draw here is getting to spend time with Kyle Reese, and this standalone adventure does indeed succeed in rounding him out as a character. This being Terminator: Resistance, though, expect to see lots more Easter eggs sprinkled in. That’s why, much like before, Annihilation Line delivers another ho-hum FPS experience that only true franchise veterans will fully have fun with.

Ultimately, although there’s a distinct feeling of déjà vu when playing Aeterna Noctis thanks to its unmistakable similarities to Hollow Knight, it thankfully manages to nail the most important elements in a Metroidvania: exploration and combat.

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 fitfully fun and well designed, Sam 4 disappoints as both a sequel and a next-gen product. While it wasn’t particularly optimised on PC it still represents a low for PS5 performance. A compromised port of a game that’s only slightly above average in the first place. A serious shame.

There’s not significant variety across these extra modes — and no online multiplayer is unfortunate — though when the core gameplay is this good, it's not a major detractor. Yacht Club Games and VINE ultimately provide an excellent puzzle spin-off, one that’s accessible for all players that'll appeal to existing fans. You won’t necessarily be here for a long time, but it’s an addictive experience that’ll keep you coming back for more.

James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley, and Willem Dafoe do an absolutely fantastic job at bringing the three main characters to life but even they can’t lift the frustration and tedium of having to repeat the same actions over and over again. Unfortunately, by the time you finally figure out how to change the outcome of the loop, the ending will make you wonder if it was even worth it.

Push past this, and you'll find a cleverly designed set of challenges that shine best in co-op. While things can quickly spiral if you're careless, completing objectives feels like a real triumph, and each mission scales things up, providing new ideas along the way. Once you have your head wrapped around it, Heavenly Bodies offers up wonderfully tactile puzzles, and the DualSense is really put through its paces. The game is rather short, but it does give you more to do after beating each mission. We should also mention there are three levels of control available, with the easiest allowing you to "swim" through the air (or lack of). While we do think there's a good time to be had here, be aware you'll need some patience to find the fun.

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.

Although the basic storyline may be largely nonsensical, you'll come across a nice selection of characters to assist on your travels, all of whom are fully voice acted with their own minor backstories. Nara and Forsaken often exchange pleasantries, but their conversations can sometimes come across a bit clinical, and would have benefited greatly from a bit of added humour.

Solar Ash pushes for a sense of momentum and fluidity with its take on 3D platforming, and it does work very well indeed. Rei's controls and abilities give the game a sense of ease, making it feel very gratifying simply moving through the game's world. While the main quest doesn't really evolve the challenge, and the picturesque environments can feel somewhat empty, the traversal at the heart of everything does about enough to carry you through to a satisfying conclusion. It's an ambitious second effort from Heart Machine that mostly sticks the landing.

There’s no question this is one of the better strategy games you’ll find on console. The controls mostly map well and the systems pair well with a stellar concept. With melodramatic, James Bond-esque music and some entertaining voiceover work, this is a tycoon-turned-strategy title that tests your grey matter and allows you to be the villain for once. Being bad never felt so good.

Tight controls, clever level design, and rewarding combat make Death's Door a joy to play. It's a ten-hour adventure that never outstays its welcome, and its overall quality is clear. A polished, quirky, and often challenging title that charms from start to finish.

Farming Simulator 22 massively expands upon the management aspect of past games, giving greater importance to your crops once you’ve harvested them. Building supply chains is immensely rewarding, even if it can take what feels like an eternity to get your business up and running the way you want to. Interesting new crops, like grapes and olives, add gameplay variety to the tried and tested loop, while an abundance of licensed machinery gives you a wealth of vehicles and tools to work with. It’s the best entry in Giants Software’s series yet, but like a popular British yeast extract, you’ll either love it or hate it.

All three mainline GTA games from the PS2 era are seminal pieces, and they still hold up to modern scrutiny – the outstanding GTA San Andreas especially. But as remasters these are weak: they chug on modern hardware and are undone by questionable artistic decisions. Rockstar built its reputation on attention to detail, and while all three of these games still come highly recommended, this disappointing compilation will go down as a stain on the label’s record.

Battlefield 2042 is disjointed and incomplete at launch, but it's impossible to deny it still has that magic spark that made past entries thrive. There aren't enough maps and one too many bugs and glitches get in the way of the fun. However, with the excellent Portal mode to bolster it, Battlefield 2042 does just enough to get us on board. While we wish so many things were better, nothing else does it quite like Battlefield.

Ultimately, the extra bits draped around the core experience are the real star, offering up a helping of charm and wit that help sell the title as a cosy little experience worth your time, even if you might not have much cause to return to it once you’re done.

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One should, on paper, be the best game out of Frogwares yet. It brings back all those satisfying detective features of the past and couples them with new mechanics and interactions. However, many of them are either surplus or frustrating enough to where they sometimes detract from the overall experience. And with a lifeless open world that doesn't run particularly well at even the best of times, it's not an easy recommendation. What fans loved from past Sherlock Holmes instalments is still there, but you'll need to do a bit of overtime to find it.

Is this One-Shot Adventure an essential replay? Absolutely not, but as a nice primer for the upcoming leap into Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, this chaotic dose of cell-shaded action-fantasy is well worth the short return trip.

So Skyrim's still Skyrim, but what does Anniversary Edition actually bring to the table? Well, with Anniversary Edition, you get complete access to the Creation Club. In a nutshell, the Creation Club started life as a poorly judged official mod shop, essentially offering DLC packs for premium currency. It took years for the Creation Club to stock up on any worthwhile content, but if you add it all together now, you're getting significant bang for your buck. Anniversary Edition comes with 74 'Creations' — from new quests and locations to weapons, armour, and player homes. If all you've ever known is Skyrim on consoles, then this avalanche of new stuff will refresh the experience to a surprising extent.