If you're looking for a small Final Fantasy VII-style fix that will whisk you back to 1997 again before Crisis Core - Final Fantasy VII - Reunion comes out later this year, Jack Move should slot into your gaming library very nicely indeed.

So much of what I enjoyed about Roadwarden was its unknowability. You’re a traveller in the peninsula for a little over a month, and it reflects that. You can’t fix every problem, you can’t make everyone happy, and you can’t know everything there is to know. Instead, you take in as much of it as you can, try to improve people’s lots slightly, and leave with a journal full of questions and sense memories.

Despite the story and side missions being interesting enough to make you want to finish Steelrising (and they are), despite the world being pretty-ugly (and it is), despite the combat having the ingredients to be interesting and cool (and it does), you still might end up annoyed and a bit bored by it all. And it's worse because it's so almost better than that.

Aside from these late-game niggles, Railbound is an absolute charmer. While many of its 150+ puzzles could perhaps be better integrated into its mainline puzzle path, this is still a game where you'll want to explore every nook and cranny to see how it's going to test you next. There's a lot to like in what Afterburn have created here, especially if Dorfromantik's high score tables have left you yearning for a more traditional kind of puzzler in a similarly cosy landscape. With a total journey time of roughly three to four hours, Railbound is one departure you won't want to miss.

I didn't really mind having to a campaign four times over just to get to the end of it, as the thrill of the draw meant each successive run was just as gripping as the last. It's why I've kept coming back to ORX ever since I first clapped eyes on it earlier in the year, and why I'm confident this roguelike-deckbuilding-tower-defence 'em up has a strong future ahead of it. Whatever luck throws its way, I have a feeling ORX is going to come up trumps every time. [Early Access Review]

You can like it for the formidable performances and the unbelievable replications of different periods of cinema, for the sets, the artistry, the surprises, the big thinking and the weirdness hiding just the other side of the curtain, for the attention to detail and the vaulting ambition, for the way it's thoughtful in how it stages certain things. But, for me, Immortality wasn't as thoughtful about other things. Perhaps I've just had enough of Sam Barlow's ideas about women on camera for a little bit. I'd quite like him to have ideas about something else next time.

There's not a lot of depth to Tinykin but that's actually pretty nice. There'd a lot of fun to be had just being a tiny dude in a huge house. With satisfying platforming, cute little critters, and plenty of exploration surprises it’s the perfect bite-sized adventure. With a four-hour run time, I played it in two sittings and it was perfect for some laid-back gaming. It's great to see how Splashteam have taken the core inspiration of what made the Pikmin games so enjoyable and have infinitely improved on it. A solid recommendation.

It's not exactly Saints Row, but it's not exactly its own thing either. It just is, and the lack of creative purpose makes me think it exists almost exclusively for balance sheet reasons, which isn't a nice conclusion to come to. I wish we lived in a world where the people who made the pun food trucks and the big, weird city and conceived the interesting duality of the Idols gang (and their cool helmets) were given a large pot of money and several years to make whatever game they wanted, no strings attached, no legacy series hanging over them. But that's not the world we live in.

Cursed To Golf has plenty of visual charm, and elements taken from its Flash game origins feel like a fun throwback. Unfortunately, though, it’s a bit of a swing and a miss for its roguelike elements.

We Are OFK is not a traditional story that offers closure, which can be frustrating, but in many ways that is We Are OFK’s entire point – life happens to you, whether you want it to or not.

The existence of Spider-Man: Miles Morales is kind of shame in the context of this review. Marvel's Spider-Man is a great game, and this version comes packaged with all the extras. Were it not for the existence of Miles Morales, I'd have no qualms recommending you get this Spider-Man right now. But I am cursed with the knowledge that Miles Morales exists, is a bit tighter, cleaner, and more dynamic, and is coming to PC very soon. I don't think you'd regret getting Marvel's Spider-Man - it is, I must emphasise again, a quality game - but, look. If you can only get one.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it, and I definitely won't be alone in that. Cult Of The Lamb absolutely oozes charisma and excitement at the tiniest opportunity, and it's hard not to be taken in by the loving attention to detail on display while you're playing. The combat aspect may be a little lacking in content, but it's good enough to hold its own and keep me entertained between periods spent carefully taking care of my growing legion of adoring followers. And sacrificing them for my amusement, of course. That bit's important too. [RPS Bestest Bests]

Even if the game’s final moments lacked the emotional wallop, South Of The Circle’s story, presentation, and visual direction hit every mark for me with the biggest surprise being the nuance and the way it handled its themes. It's a shame about the ending - but it’s about the journey, not the destination, right?

All told, I like Hard West 2. It's not as easy to get into as Gears Tactics, and it's obviously a less comprehensive experience than your XCOMs. But its revisions to the familiar tactical formula do ultimately work, giving you the tools to face down some seriously stern opposition in spectacular fashion. Taking a slug of whiskey to heal yourself before bouncing a bullet off the liquor store sign into an enemy's back is a delightful synthesis of mechanics and theme, and when you combine that with a brain-tangling network of moves that leaves every enemy in sight sprawled in pools of viscous scarlet, boy howdy, there ain't no better feeling.

You simply can't knock the game too hard for its chilled out nature, as it's the main reason you're able to approach the game however you want. You get to decide how challenging it is and the pace at which you'd like to chase those star ratings. And it's rare to find a game that's as much of a pleasure to soak in as this one. It has a jolly atmosphere, with fun radio stations and students who look like the spawn of Wallace from Wallace And Gromit. It doesn't take itself too seriously either, with wacky courses and surprising twists that aren’t just about hitting monetary goals. You'd be wise to enroll, I reckon.

If you’re looking for a detective tale to sink your teeth into, you won’t find that here. Instead, I'd suggest one of Frogwares' actual Sherlock Holmes games. But if you're more of a Sherlockian vibes kind of person who just wants to enjoy a jolly good romp, then there's still plenty to admire here. Lord Winklebottom Investigates is a delightfully light snack with a sweet crunch, something that many players will be more than satisfied with. You’ll never feel like you’re solving an actual mystery, but it will certainly chuckle and charm the heck outta you, old boy.

Sadly though, I couldn't find any satisfaction in either the building or the exploring. Everything is just so on the rails. Want to go off and do your own thing? No, silly bear. You're not clever enough to do that. First you need to prove yourself by fetching 10 sprigs of sage. There was none of that satisfying management game feeling where everything was slowly expanding and working and coming together. I longed for the freedom to ignore everything that all the rude asshole characters were demanding of me, and disappear into the wilderness and start a new life. A wilder, more open life where my choices mattered and I couldn't predict what the next day's work would bring. But no. There was no breaking free from the well-intentioned but suffocating bear hug.

Ultimately, a fresh theme isn't enough to get me invested in re-living the early access journey of a pawn management game, no matter how many Scottish highlanders muck themselves in front of their horrified children. I enjoy wallowing in failure, sure. Losing is, as always, fun. But I've already played a more complete, and more colourful version of this game to death. [Early Access Review]

Endling is not the ruthless survival game I was expecting, but it does a great job of creating tension between the caretaking of your cubs and the dangerous world you need to protect them from. The daily routine of finding food, avoiding danger and returning to your den can feel like you're going through the motions sometimes, but the constantly changing landscape and mix of tender and tense story moments conjure a survival tale that’ll be sure to wrench your heartstrings.

Will dog lovers and cat-haters get as much out of Stray as someone who, as we speak, has two stretched out purr machines on the bed behind her? Probably not, in all honesty, as fully inhabiting its feline lead is at least 50% of the appeal here. But even if you're not massively into cats the same way I am, Stray is still a remarkable action adventure game in its own right, and whose naturalistic approach to 3D platforming is among the best I've seen. It proves we don't need condescending slathers of paint to point us in the right direction anymore, and that there are better, more immersive ways of traversing dense and detailed play environments. That's something worth celebrating in my books, so take note Lara Croft, Nathan Drake and every 3D action hero of the last twenty years. A good game of billiards isn't the only thing you'll learn from this four-legged fluffball. [RPS Bestest Bests]

Aside from some glaringly wooden dialogue in the early chapters, As Dusk Falls is a thrilling story that had me hanging on every word. It immediately establishes an incredibly tense situation and I couldn't stop playing until I'd seen it through. While some might stop after one playthrough, the narrative flowchart for each chapter shows that there's much more to experience, and the ability to jump back in at any point of the story is a welcome alternative to doing an entirely new run. As it became apparent that the story was drawing to a close, I found myself desperately hoping for just one more scene so that I didn't have to leave the characters behind so soon. Whether As Dusk Falls gets a direct sequel remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: I can't wait to see what Interior/Night do next.

Gwent: Rogue Mage is a great evolution of an already-satisfying foundation. The roguelike trappings of travelling across an ever-changing board full of shifting events and encounters meld wonderfully into the action of Gwent battles. Some redundant events and bothersome bugs aside, this is a real treat.

Clocking in at the 3–4-hour mark, Time on Frog Island is a bite-sized adventure that doesn't outstay its welcome and could easily be played in a single, cosy sitting.

A fantastic co-op brainteaser that's perfect material for catch-ups and corporate days. Seriously, replace team-bonding sessions with a puzzle-tower and you're golden.

It's not overly complex, doesn't take itself too seriously, and still has plenty of depth for those who just want to hose down a bungalow.

Madison is a little too clever for its own good. For all that it can be a bit ridiculous (in an endearing way, at that) it does some genuinely great things, and really takes advantage of everything the in-game camera can offer. But at least an hour of your six-ish in the hell-house will be you swaggering back and forth angrily interacting with things you already found, until you stumble on the solution you need. This massively undercuts the pacing, to the point that the well-crafted scares and monstrous monsters stop being as effective. I'd still recommend it to a horrorficionado, but the rec isn't as full-throated as it could have been. If the puzzle bits were a little easier, the horror bits of Madison would be able to properly shine.

It's worth sticking around in the forest once you've actually dealt with the witch, too. Like Death Stranding's residents, Witch Strandings' animal folk still need someone to take care of them every day, letting you continually add to your ever-growing point score, but their demeanour and local surroundings also change in tangible, noticeable ways. You start to see the effect your handiwork has had on them more clearly, and the completionist icon-clearer in me does want to see what a completely clean, hex-free forest looks like. So I think I'll be sticking around a little while longer in this strange, haunted woodland. My wrist might not thank me for it, but I'm sure a soft blanket will cure my aching bones.

OWW is all about showing your own artistic vision through curation and building architecture. Its approach to the somewhat stuffy art world is playful while also giving a middle finger to those who wish to keep the enjoyment of art to a certain elite. It's an incredible niche game but has the uncanny ability to suck you in with its breezy building and incredibly creative community, even if you can't tell your Monet from your Manet. [Early Access Review]