Madden NFL 21 is stagnant, and while football fans will find things to enjoy, it’s not like there’s an alternative option available. The Yard is a genuinely promising addition, and we’re looking forward to seeing how it evolves over the course of this season – and future games. But an embarrassing story and an untouched Franchise mode mean that it’s the only real reason to upgrade. And while Madden Ultimate Team continues to be a time sink, the stale state of the on-field simulation means that this year’s game fails to find its intended receiver.

Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is a bit like when you fancy watching a game of footy but there's only the Scottish league on the telly. Sure, it looks like football to the untrained eye, and yes, occasionally it's entertaining just like real football, but you're mainly there hoping that someone is going to get chinned.

There's still a memorable, charming adventure to be had in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Remastered Edition, but the complete lack of local co-op cripples the game's original vision. Playing together online is always an option, but even that's poorly implemented, with convoluted invite systems and host-only story progression. As a mostly solo experience, Crystal Chronicles is a decent, if somewhat repetitive dungeon crawler -- but this remaster should have been so much more.

Project CARS 3 marks a significant departure for the series, abandoning most of its sim heritage in favour of arcade racing. Offering a variety of different cars and tracks, there’s plenty of content on offer, making for a fun distraction, but it lacks the excitement we expect from wheel-to-wheel racing. It takes inspiration from all over the place, but it’s perhaps most closely aligned with Sony’s own DriveClub. It would seem, then, that the PS4 cycle is ending the way it began. We’re just not sure we’d pick this over what’s come before.

The game's main issue is that it's just awkward to play on a DualShock 4. It's not unplayable by any means, but squeezing mouse and keyboard functionality onto a controller will always end up fiddly. There's absolutely fun to be had here, though, and those looking for something different should try it regardless.

Unfortunately, everything surrounding these boss fights feels a little half-baked. The light exploration we mentioned is basically a dozen small areas, with one or two for each boss. There are collectibles and secrets around, but the in-game rewards for finding these things doesn’t feel worth it. This is particularly problematic as many of the secrets need late-level unlocks to access, and the threshold to reach them requires massive amounts of grinding.

Train Sim World 2 is unquestionably an acquired taste, but even if you’re not a railway enthusiast, there’s a relaxing release here that we recommend. Once you get to grips with how to operate the various locomotives, there’s a tangible satisfaction to kicking back for 60 minutes with the hum of the engine in the background, as you travel cross-country through urban and rural routes. We’ve already lost dozens of hours to this title, and with the base package merely representing the beginning of its journey, we suspect we’ll be spending a lot more time behind the controls of some of the world's most famous trains.

Descenders is a solid experience if you’re looking for a time waster that you’ll return to over and over. While constant screen tearing issues hamper its presentation quite a bit, the game has solid controls, as well as simple though endlessly entertaining mechanics. While the controls aren’t the tightest we’ve seen, they do everything adequately and contribute to the fun. Add in the wide range of biomes to race through, including some more wacky ones towards the end of the game, and it makes for one fun package. And that’s to say nothing of the fun little gimmicks, like the first-person mode and the trials-style courses. Descenders has everything you could possibly want in a downhill cycling roguelite.

Spiritfarer is a game with a lot of moving parts, but most of its elements are well handled. Progression comes at a good pace as you upgrade Stella's ship, her abilities, and build relationships with a colourful crew. The crafting minigames are a weak spot, and the writing doesn't always land, but there's a lot to like about this maritime management title.

Ultimately, this isn't the Samurai Jack game of your dreams. But despite its flaws, this is a good action game that will please fans, and its simplistic nature may even introduce the property to a younger audience.

New Super Lucky's Tale is the sort of game that gives you a nostalgic feeling even though you've never played it before. It's like a Sunday afternoon movie, the kind that provides enough smiles and action to entertain but won't ever require you to engage your brain in a manner that would ruin your lazy weekend. It's a delightful, jolly, collectathon platformer, and if it keeps your kids off Fortnite for a day or two then you can't say fairer than that.

PGA Tour 2K21 is the best simulation golf game on the PS4, and it represents a real evolution for The Golf Club franchise as a whole. While it retains many of the features from previous instalments, it’s much better presented than ever before, and it finally includes a career mode that’s worth your time and attention. There are still improvements to be made here – the licensed courses lack character and the visuals are static – but if this were a long par five tee shot it’d comfortably find the fairway.

Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is a strategy game that requires very little strategy for much of its short running time. While it does eventually present a little more challenge in the closing chapters, the hum-drum narrative and bargain-basement cut-scenes won't provide you with much incentive to persevere through the duller moments which make up most of the game. If you're a massive fan of the show waiting for the next season, then you're probably better off just forming your own gang while talking in a comedy Brummie accent.

The star of the Manifold Garden show is far and away its presentation, and witnessing it in motion is worth the asking price alone. It's just a shame the puzzles themselves can't quite hit those same levels of spectacularity.

Originally a duo of mobile games, The Alto Collection brings two beautiful endless runners to PlayStation 4. There are more words in this game's title than there are buttons to learn; press X to jump, hold it to backflip, and that's it. These ultra-simple controls will see you shredding snow or surfing sand as you slide forever downhill, racking up points, collecting coins, and pushing for a new distance record.

EA Sports UFC 4 is not a massive departure from its predecessor, but it’s a significantly better game. EA Vancouver has successfully recognised the way fans want to play, and with its array of arcade-inspired options and emphasis on Career mode, it will appeal to casual fans of the sport as well as MMA obsessives alike. While the ground game still needs work, it’s much more approachable now, and we really like the fast-paced Blitz Battles as an accompaniment to the more traditional online ranked matches. The presentation has stagnated somewhat, but combat still feels appropriately crunchy, and with rotating challenges to hold your attention, we can see ourselves sticking with this brawler for some time.

With beautiful environments and plenty to discover, Mortal Shell is a compelling world to explore. After a steep learning curve, its combat is challenging but fascinating, and with a great sense of reward once you master it. It might be a little too similar to Dark Souls in terms of overall tone and style, but it brings enough new ideas functionally to make it stand out from the crowd. Ultimately, this is a great entry into a demanding sub-genre that fans won't want to miss.

Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS. Maxiboost ON is the ultimate Gundam Versus experience on consoles. The series' steep learning curve remains, but once you've broken through that initial barrier, there's a massive amount of metal-mashing fun to be found. As both a comprehensive gameplay package, and as a celebration of all things Gundam, it's very, very hard to fault.

The rote hack and slash combat only really hits its stride hours into the campaign, as you begin to unlock additional skills and off-screen party members who fly into battle with special attacks on your command. Infinite Combate does get better as you sink more time into it, but its low points will likely test your patience. In particular, quests with strict time limits can often feel unfair, and grinding out tasks purely to improve your relationship with different characters is a slog.

How Fast & Furious Crossroads wound up as a full-price release will forever remain a mystery. It is lacking in every department possible, from shallow and repetitive gameplay through to abysmal visuals that belong on the previous generation of consoles. Not even the most committed Fast & Furious fans should subject themselves to this monstrosity. That is unless you want to have a good laugh alongside Vin Diesel.

Once you overcome Skater XL’s learning curve there’s some fun board-based entertainment to be had here. But this is a lightweight package with subpar presentation, and unless you’re so deep into skater culture that you absolutely need a simulation for your PS4, we’d recommend either waiting for this to be updated – or pre-ordering Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 instead.

Fall Guys is the Battle Royale game for those who don't like Battle Royale games. This is enjoyment and positivity in its purest form with a long list of events that are primed to put a smile across your face, no matter whether you're playing alone or with friends. Your family will catch you chuckling, your buddies won't forget that time you cried with laughter, and you'll do it all over again because there’s nothing else like it. Fall Guys is just the best.

Relicta tries to strike a balance between narrative and gameplay, but that balance ends up hurting the final experience by making the game a slog to go through and puzzles becoming infuriatingly complex in the second half. The story and excellent voice acting are a nice differentiator and the level of detail in the environments is impressive, but Relicta is a game that is hard to stick with in its second half if you don't have a guide.

Pistol Whip is a transcendent experience. This brilliant rails shooter has the trappings of a rhythm game which helps to make an already sublime experience stand out that much further. With a vibrant world and a variety of tracks to test your mettle with, the game offers a solid package right out of the gate. And that’s to say nothing of the upcoming content that will further expand what Pistol Whip has to offer.

What continues to be a source of frustration though is the camera, particularly during boss battles. It tries to take a page out of Crash Bandicoot's book by having Skully run at the camera, except it gets in the way more often than not. And that's all there really is to the game. The younger generation is sure to extract some enjoyment out of Skully, but it proves all too basic for those getting on in their years.

Cuphead might be a tough cookie, but it charms with superlative art and music. For every time you might be frustrated by a tough section, you'll be delighted by some wonderful animation or new attack. It isn't perfect; the Run and Gun levels don't live up to the bosses, and a lack of feedback can make fights feel futile. Overall, though, the game succeeds in what it sets out to do -- just be prepared for a real challenge.

There's also a social element to the game as you can level up social ranks between characters once they’ve been on enough missions together, leading to unlocking new skills which can be used in battle or more bonuses for those characters. Fairy Tail carries on going even when the storyline is done; there's plenty to upgrade in the guild, and a multitude of characters to rank up, unlocking new content and cutscenes. That, combined with an enjoyable battle system, makes Gust's latest a solid experience for anime fans.

Maid of Sker may be this developer's best attempt at horror yet, but it still falls short of something actually worth playing. A tightly-designed breathing mechanic proves there's potential to be realised and an engrossing setting could have been the cherry on top. However, Maid of Sker is let down by monotonous gameplay and enemies that aren’t even close to being scary. And that's probably the worst thing a game that claims to belong in the horror genre could do.