Like Cities: Skylines, Planet Coaster gives new life to the management genre, and even if the launch version does little to improve what I’ve played during the beta, this would still be essential for anyone who dreams of packing in their old job and running a theme park.

I adore this. I am so frustrated that it’s very hard to convince people to pick up an RPGMaker game, so I’m also very relieved it has the To The Moon alumni tag that will hopefully convince people to grab it. Grab it you absolutely should. Yes, it’s maudlin in places, and yes, it’s undeniably a bit twee, but it earns the right to be by being just so good.

It does make me wonder, though, if this existentialist aesthetic was chosen for any particular reason or just because story mode necessitates the presence of a story and if you make the story’s theme “stuff sure is confusing” nothing really needs to make sense. As I said earlier, humanity’s puzzle mechanics are extremely strong, with each stage requiring a satisfying blend of intuition and experience to successfully complete. Its stage creation and sharing functions are similarly friendly and effective. The people could just as easily be water flowing through a zen garden or fish swimming through the sea, though, so why aren’t they? The fact that they are people and I am a shiba inu must mean something, right? Right?!

The Case Of The Golden Idol has more of a John Watson vibe – a few steps behind their resident super sleuth, but always in the same ball park, and that's what counts here, I think. This is certainly the closest I've seen another game try and emulate Obra Dinn's grisly murder sketches, and the fact it does them so well, and with such a keen eye for detail and visual flourish, is a credit to Color Gray Games' two-strong dev team. Its gurning cast of ne'er-do-wells may not be quite as nuanced as their nautical rivals, but they'll definitely stick just as long in your little grey cells. And if you've been very close attention, you'll now be able to fill out these blanks right here: The _____ Of The _____ _____ is _____ and I _____ it to bits.

Lost Records is bland, derivative, lacks momentum, does not reward player agency, and it twice made me cringe so hard I had to look away from the screen. I wish it was half as long as it is. I wish it had learned to let go of the ideas that have lost their power, like Sarah does in Labyrinth. I wish it had learned you can tell your coming-of-age story about a teenage girl with energy and originality... like Labyrinth. I am, despite all of that, looking forward to finding out whether any of it pays off when the second and final part releases on April 15th.

More than anything, the feeling that dominated throughout was one of magic. Its impossible logic made so much sense, its undimensional structure somehow coherent, so long as you allow yourself to float between the solving and the unsolving. It is that suspended place, between confusion and understanding, reality and impossibility, that makes Gorogoa so bewitching and enticing. [RPS Recommended]

You’ll lose lives, money, resolve and the marbles of your crew, before you’re back at the hamlet with nothing to show, no further forward, another four bodies resigned to the graveyard. You’ll incessantly tour a ragtag mob of reluctant rookies into foregone conclusions. You’ll laugh at the fact you’ve wound up with a nymphomaniac alcoholic who is barred from both the Tavern and the Brothel. You’ll cry. And cry and cry and cry. But I think you’ll love it.

80 Days is the most human game I’ve ever played. It is also, simply put, one of the best games I’ve ever played.

Nora is wonderful. [RPS Bestest Bests]

I’m not going to confess to you just how bad I am at Enter The Gungeon. But I think it’s testament to the superbly high quality of its construction that I’m not tiring of trying. This is the genre done right, although with an upbeat, uncruel approach that feels atmospherically more reminiscent of Rogue Legacy than, say, Nuclear Throne. It’s very silly in presentation, but very serious in pixel-perfect controls. Goodness knows if it’s good deeper in, but I’m having a brilliant time not finding out.

The Tomb Kings are ultimately a great addition to Warhammer’s perpetually pissed-off factions, but their poor integration into the Vortex campaign suggests that Creative Assembly haven’t quite figured out how to add factions who don’t share the core participants’ objectives. Consider this, then, a slightly more emphatic recommendation if you’ve got access to the Mortal Empires sandbox, where everyone is competing in the same race to conquer the world.

But these complaints are but drops of bumwater in an otherwise tranquil and deeply invigorating guzzle of videogame. Nine Sols simply would not stop delighting me every couple of screens with a new set piece, or some gorgeous background, or a brand new weirdo to chat with, or another revelation about its dark, enchanting world. Or, yes, a blisteringly difficult combat encounter that lets you feel every bit the skillful murder mox. ‘Taopunk’ is how the game describes itself. I’ve always loved such philosophy for how it never purports to have the answers, simply that it’s a toolset to find them yourself - to point the way to the moon without asking you to praise its pointing finger. Nine Sols pointed out the fun in a whole new genre for me, but I suspect I’ll still be thinking fondly of its weird mox paws for some time.

Frostpunk may be one of the most tense, exciting city building survival games on PC, but for a game with such an emphasis on innate justice, and heat, it leaves you surprisingly cold.

Upgrading your car is surprisingly varied. [RPS Bestest Bests]

Housemarque and Eugene Jarvis have created something very special, and I suspect, enduring. [RPS Recommended]

For anyone hoping it would bring a little modern fluidity to a long-stagnant genre, you might have to moonwalk upwards from this one. But for Ragers, it’s a sturdy score-attacking blowout to while away some hours, perfecting your flying knees and enflamed uppercuts, arguing over who deserves the trash salad.

I like the world and the writing, and I especially like how it can click its heels and conjure up a story – as long as you don’t get bogged down in overlong battles. It’s certainly worth keeping an eye on, and if any of this sounds interesting then an early access visit might well be worth your while. Just do your best to forget about how you could be playing Slay The Spire or Monster Train instead. [Early Access Review]

I’m so furious. I’ve ranted about boss fights SO many times, and argh, it’s happened again. A game I was absolutely adoring is now a game I can’t play at all, because of a wildly difficult boss fight.

I should also stress that none of this difficulty tweaking eventually fixed my disappointment about the loss of early levels' sense of fluency. In games like this, where a steady flow is gained by practice, I sometimes wonder: what is the least amount of practice I must invest before I feel that sense of flow? In early sequences, Ragebound asks very little investment: you quickly earn a basic understanding of all the dashing, dodging, slashing, and boinging required to bloodstomp through an average level with a speedrunner's abandon.

The star of the show is Sapienza itself though. It’s a beautiful maze of possibilities, flowing toward the sea with vantage and access points sprinkled throughout. Wherever and whenever you create a disturbance, the ripples spread, causing all of the systems that make the game tick to trigger, and creating thrills and farce as they combine. I’m excited to see new targets and contracts as both the developers and players explore every nook and cranny of the town.

It makes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge a fun - albeit short - romp that's perfect for a night lounging around on the sofa with mates, or in a Discord voice call from your bedrooms. It doesn’t make any big departures from what you might expect, but that simplicity lends itself to a more social gaming experience than I’m used to. I like to imagine it captures the feeling of crowding around the original arcade machine with your pals back in the 80s (even if, as a 00s baby, I’ve never actually done that). That said, Shredder's Revenge wasn't so fun alone, so I'd recommend waiting until you manage to get a group together. There's no rush to play this one, but it'll be a good couple of hours when you can convince friends to hop in.

It's a lavishly made and occasionally engrossing epic, definitely a game you'll relish more if, unlike the average reviewer, you can afford to take your time. But it doesn't have the wackiness and starpower of its most obvious rivals, the Final Fantasy 7 remakes. Its major characters would be bit-parts in Midgar, filling out the crowd at Seventh Heaven. Jill is the lady by the jukebox trying not to get mistaken for a mop. Cid makes for a captivating presence behind the bar, but he's clocking off early tonight. And Clive? Clive is that woebegone regular who's sort of a hit with the ladies but who insists on telling everybody about his domestic quarrels and who just won't sodding leave.

The important questions are whether it replicates the fun of the tabletop game – at least for the rank and file of casual players like me – and whether it’s a good PC game. The answer to both is a resounding yes.

It’s Size Five’s masterpiece. [RPS Bestest Bests]

Despite the tedious introduction of its two main characters, it's filled with strong character moments and ridiculous battles that remind us only nerds and squares bend to gravity's iron rules.

Ultimately, ElecHead is just an absolute treat from start to finish. It's clever, beautifully designed and it's all accompanied by a toe-tapping soundtrack by composer Tsuyomi. It's an essential purchase for puzzle platforming connoisseurs, and an excellent way to spend an evening for less than a tenner. It's not often I say this, but chucking your head against a brick wall has never been so much fun. [RPS Bestest Bests]

As it is, it’s the best way to play Valve’s original design if you haven’t done so before, and it’s a brilliant way to retread those old ventilation shafts, if you have.

And it is a very cool centipede. And next time I’m too burnt out to even exist outside of bed without the effortless structure this game is very good at lending to otherwise dead time, I’m sure I’ll be glad for the additions Vessel Of Hatred makes. It’s just very hard to get excited about, and some real excitement is what Diablo 4 needed. I might well book another ticket the next time a new destination gets added, but I’ll asking for podcast recommendations for the trip.