What may have been a solid experience a few years back feels too stale in 2020. Darksiders Genesis is completely competent in its own right, but it doesn't do enough to differentiate itself from previous iterations despite a change in perspective. Combat is a highlight and the Creature Core system provides some depth, however, they're about the only two features we can muster any enthusiasm for.

It may have taken the better part of a decade to make, but the arrival of Dreams feels significant. It represents a whole new way for people to make things and share them with the world. Media Molecule has made a suite of tools that feels intuitive to use, but more than that, it's built a social platform where players can collaborate and explore the imaginations of others. It's a technical marvel, a creative miracle, and one of the most innovative games in years.

To be fair, the physics are impressive, requiring you to find a rhythm as you hit the undulations in the mud. And there’s a lot to get busy with, including a reasonable if ultimately ignorable track editor. But the reality is that unless you’re already deeply engrossed in supercross as a sport, there’s very little here that’s going to give you the aftereffects of a Monster Energy-induced high.

To be fair, the title does a good job of simulating the territorial battles that occur in real-world rugby matches, but it’s generally clumsy and there’s no real consistency to the way players move. The ball physics can be unpredictable, and the overall experience is glitchy. But it’s strangely moreish in a way that all arcade sports games can be, and its bargain bin adaptation of FIFA Ultimate Team deserves credit for eschewing microtransactions – even if its unlockable players are pooled from the depths of Ireland’s lower leagues.

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.

The atmosphere is perhaps the game's best achievement, though, with an ominous synth soundtrack and creepy environmental storytelling going on around you. It does just enough to keep you curious, but it's held back by some overly tough puzzles and enemies. It's not as smooth a ride as Playdead's efforts, then, but it's absolutely singing from the same hymn sheet. If you're into this brand of weird, wordless narrative adventures, it could be worth wiring up to 7th Sector.

It’s probably the most simplistic 16-bit title you’re going to find on the PS4 and PS Vita, and thus the difficulty options – which include circumventing either the combat or puzzles entirely – make sense. You’re going to find next to no challenge here besides the inexplicable absence of a map, but it’s a bright and breezy romp that will almost certainly keep your kids entertained for a few hours.

Zombie Army 4: Dead War is one of the best co-operative focused games on PS4. Its meaty campaign boasts of impressive level variety, a superb control scheme, and enjoyable gameplay mechanics while a Horde mode tests your abilities to the max. Rebellion has crafted an experience with so much to see and do that it could take a group of players weeks to master everything on offer -- a crowning success for this type of game. Zombie Army 4: Dead War is an absolute riot of a title that is just as cheeky as it is fun to play.

Dawn of Fear is not what you would typically consider a good video game and it most definitely does not perform like one. However, when it works, there hasn’t been anything else quite like it for the best part of two decades. Dawn of Fear is the best and worst tribute to Resident Evil at the same time, and we can't think anything more intriguing than that.

Patapon 2 Remastered makes it easy to fall in love with those adorable eyeball creatures all over again. It follows in the footsteps of the first game's PS4 revival, and in doing so it repeats all the highs and lows. You'll struggle to find a gameplay experience as unique as this, and it remains an addictive time sink, but somewhat obtuse design and hectic battles can easily throw you off. It has its flaws, but it's an eccentric and charming game that will eventually have you dancing to its rhythm.

Even with a downright cavalcade of triumphs, Kentucky Route Zero’s strongest asset is its ability to redefine itself from episode to episode. The deeper your journey goes, the stranger things get, but the more they make sense too. While the game will definitely be a bit too bizarre and densely obtuse for some, this is a game unlike anything you’ve ever played before.

Sisters Royale: Five Sisters Under Fire doesn’t reinvent the shmup rulebook, but it leverages some interesting wrinkles first introduced by the Castle of Shikigami series to excellent effect. The presentation – aside from its epilepsy-inducing patterns – leaves a lot to be desired, but the unique gameplay attributes of its protagonists makes for a surprisingly replayable arcade affair.

Pillars of Eternity II is a 9/10 RPG tragically trapped inside a 7/10 game. The quality of the writing and the world-building is second to none, and the tried and tested combat mechanics are meticulously tuned, but the outrageous loading times and other technical issues are too upsetting to ignore. It's like sitting in a fine Italian restaurant, sipping a glass of wine and nibbling on breadsticks, enjoying your date, and then the waiter comes over and drops a dead dog on the table. Wrong table, mate. I ordered the carbonara. Now get that dead dog out of my sight.

One novel inclusion that helps repalyability is a challenge mode, where you go against a timer to craft as many accurate beverages as you can. As the descriptions get progressively more obtuse, things get harder and we found ourselves really rather enjoying the action.

The title’s as straightforward as side-scrollers come, but its chunky pixel art and biting chiptune soundtrack make it an entertaining distraction for an hour or two. The game’s priced accordingly and competently constructed, so while it’s never going to invoke the passion of a fox hunting debate, there are much worse wares on the PlayStation Store.

The campaign alone is worth playing, but Hardcore Mecha's extras give the package a real boost. Once you're done with the main missions (which can be replayed at any time), you unlock Simulation Mode, which pits you against a never-ending horde of enemies. Shooting them down nets you currency that you can then use to buy upgrades and new mechs for the simulation, resulting in a fiendishly addictive grind. On top of that, there are local and online multiplayer modes. The former can be quite good fun with the right opponent, but we struggled to find other players in the latter.

It might lack some polish, but Journey to the Savage Planet is an enjoyable jaunt across a strange, open-ended landscape. This is a game you play in order to explore its intriguing environment and interact with the wildlife -- combat is fairly dull, attempts at humour rarely land, and the story almost feels like an afterthought at times. If you're looking for an easy-going sci-fi action game, this just about does enough to satisfy.

There are video games designed for the fans, and then there's Kingdom Hearts III Re Mind. The expansion is sure to satisfy die-hard fans as it explores what happens after the events of the game's ending in the most convoluted way possible, leaving its casual audience behind in the process. That appears to be intentional, making way for fanatics to enjoy tough, climactic boss battles they've been waiting years for. It's ridiculously difficult to fully understand, charming in all the right ways, and enjoyable to play in the moment -- there probably never will be anything like Kingdom Hearts.

Unfortunately, the transition to the PlayStation 4 has not been overly kind to this experience, as it lacks the custom music functionality that its Steam-based counterpart includes. The gameplay is straightforward: there’s a highway and you must switch between lanes to dodge obstacles and collect points.

It’s basic puzzling action that has been done time and time again, so it’s perhaps even more disappointing when you take all of its flaws into account. An absolutely atrocious user interface which looks like it has been adopted from a cheap smartphone game slows the experience to a crawl, while the panels you must place throughout the levels take forever to drag and drop. What's more, unintuitive controls make it tough to work out what you’re selecting on-screen in the first place. It turns a title which should be all about pacey movement into something which operates at a snail’s pace, worsened further by the short two-hour run time.

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot's inconsistent quality holds it back from being a great Dragon Ball game, but ultimately, its high points do outweigh its problems -- especially if you're a fan. This is quite easily the most accurate retelling of Dragon Ball Z in a video game, and it's packed full of additional character moments and thoughtful little details. That said, it's difficult not to feel as though the game could have used more time in development or a bigger budget. CyberConnect2's admiration of the source material shines through, but at times, it's hard to ignore all of the corners that have quite clearly been cut. Kakarot's good fun and a decent way to spend 40 anime-soaked hours, but it could have been something more.

Overall, the title is ridiculously restricted, and while there are different endings encouraging multiple playthroughs, you’ll have seen all that it has to offer in hours. The sprites are chunky and the environments pleasant, and there’s some earworm audio to add to the overall presentation, but you’re unlikely to find yourself dreaming of this once you’ve seen the credits roll a couple of times.

The world setting of the Dusk Trilogy is one of the bleakest of all the Atelier games but that doesn’t mean that it’s a depressing story. The enthusiastic and endearing alchemists persevere through this dark world to create a warm uplifting tale that’s sure to put a smile on your face. All three games will see you exploring, crafting, and battling monsters but there are plenty of differences between each game that keep things really engaging and a real pleasure to play though.

The strongest asset at the game’s disposal is its breadth of bite-sized content. A surprisingly solid number of ships with distinct variance complement a whole mess of game modes, including a few local multiplayer options. Most of the game modes take under a minute when you first start, and as you adapt to the game’s rhythms, you’ll start going upwards of five minutes. But ultimately, what you walk away with is a game that delivers enjoyment in small, concise doses at an exceedingly low price point. You probably won’t be thinking about it later this year once all of the big games have released, but it’s still worth a bit of your time.

The ultra-smooth movement and responsive controls make for a deliciously slick gameplay experience. You've plenty of ways to enjoy it as well, with several modes for up to four local players, including competitive variants that are decent fun with friends. Precision platforming isn't for everyone, but it's executed very well with Flat Heroes. If you've ever enjoyed the likes of Super Meat Boy or N++, it's worth giving this stylish action title a try.

AO Tennis 2 is a winner, raising the baseline for all tennis titles on PS4. There are still minor quirks to its gameplay, but it’s well-presented and fun, making its enriched Career mode dangerously addictive. Flourishes such as a basic morality system add identity to the package, while a strong focus on user generated content lessens the impact on missing licenses. While the game doesn’t have the budget to go toe-to-toe with the top sports title FIFA 20 and NBA 2K20, this is an overall polished package that comes recommended to tennis fans – and we’ve been waiting a while to write that sentence.

The set pieces are thrilling, and the music fits brilliantly at driving the gameplay, one example being the energetic tune for Mission 5's snow bike chase. There's even an out of the blue 3D scaling section in Mission 4, which feels like playing Space Harrier in a tunnel. The genre demands epic boss battles and Blazing Chrome delivers, as the final sixth mission stands out as one big, fantastically designed boss level.

Borderlands 3: Moxxi's Heist of the Handsome Jackpot is more of what fans love. Sublime shooting mechanics and inventive loot form the backbone of an assault on Handsome Jack's riches, making for a speedy riot that touches on everything wonderful about the looter shooter. This is Borderlands 3 condensed into eight hours of blistering action, and with an engaging narrative to boot, it makes for an experience that fans would be foolish to skip.