Visual Concepts continues to set the benchmark for sports titles with NBA 2K17.

As a recreation it highlights how good the original games were for their time. Challenging, original, addictive and damn fun to play. If you’re in your 30s, it’s absolutely worth a trip down memory lane. If you were born after the original games were released, give it a crack, even if only for the opportunity to experience some quality video game history. You’ll probably find you’ve been working on a perfect line or combo for a few hours before you realise it.

[Horizon Forbidden West] is a game of contrasts. A game about robot dinosaurs where you spend far too much time fighting robot meerkats and boars instead for some reason. One with brilliant voice acting that you begin to hate because some characters won't shut up. Where the side quests are great, but they're so simple as to feel pointless. Where the combat features a complex balance between elemental strengths and weaknesses but you can ignore all that via a rain of explosive spearheads.

That fun sense of progression, coupled with 10-15 minute gameplay runs (that usually end up with you saying, “just one more!”) are enough to make me recommend Ball x Pit to just about anyone. With a $14.99 USD price tag to boot — and access via Xbox Game Pass if you’re not super-angry with Microsoft right now — this one’s not only a no-brainer, but one of the best games of 2025.

Deathloop offers up a highly enjoyable gameplay loop shrouded in mystery.

Ori and the Blind Forest is still an exceptional game, it handles beautifully and the audio/visual presentation is simply stunning.

Metroid Dread has been decades in the making, and if that’s because it wasn’t possible on less powerful handhelds, it’s been well and truly worth the wait.

If you’ve played Super Mario Maker, you already know this Switch sequel is a must-buy. If you’re a Switch owner, Super Mario Maker 2 needs to be part of your collection. Easy as that.

If the clunkiness of Monster Hunter has held you back in the past, Rise could be a good jumping-on point to give the franchise another try.

Overall, it’s impressive that the model works – a branching story that acts as ‘either/or, then both’ could feel like a cash-in quite easily. The fact that each version of Fates manages to offer something unique is an impressive feat. I hope it doesn’t become an ongoing trend in the series, but as an experiment with the formula it feels just right.

With some tweaks under (and over) the hood, I can happily say that building an empire that can stand the test of time has never looked so pretty, nor has been so fun, in Civilization VI.

Battlefield 1 is deeply respectful of shocking, torrid events that occurred more than 100 years ago and irreparably altered the course of history, surprisingly so. The headline multiplayer mode, Operations, encapsulates the essence The Great War; the power play for territory and the desperate bids to reclaim lost ground, and injects it into a game mechanic that incites a genuine sense of achievement arising from the trials and tribulations.

The Thousand-Year Door remake is a triumphant return for Paper Mario. It turns back to an earlier chapter in the series that knows exactly what it’s trying to achieve and does it masterfully.

Legion has one of the best stories in the series to date.

Paired with a well-written story and varied soundtrack, Owlboy does something that a lot of pixel-art games don’t – it elevates the medium from the bare requirements.

For long-time fans, it’s about the complete package, which is epic. It’s inspired me to rewatch the entire franchise — which only further endears the Great Circle — and kept me on the edge of my seat, glued to the expertly weaved story-into-gameplay structure. It’s a great adaptation by building gameplay into an elongated narrative that stays true to the character. The Great Circle is strictly for the fans, in all the right ways.

There’s no denying Nioh is easier than Dark Souls – as evidenced by the fact that I could not only get to bosses, but beat them – and that’s okay. As someone who is constantly frustrated by Bloodborne and Souls, Nioh is, at the very least, accessible.

Mixtape is a warm hug; a nostalgic look at what us oldies would now define as “simpler times”. Set in a sleepy American town, it can work as a parallel for most western childhoods (though Rockford’s Rage shirt certainly reminds this is an Aussie tale, born and bred). It’s grunge and punk, hopeful and foolish, ultra cool and super nerdy, confident and insecure in equal measure. Simply put, this is one you need to experience for yourself.

People come to the franchise for combat and, despite its flaws, that's precisely what Devil May Cry 5 excels at. I personally still prefer Ninja Theory's take on proceedings and hope we'll see a continuation of that world next; I definitely appreciate new ideas and takes on this well established franchise.

Hitman 3 is a fun game — and I enjoyed plotting my way through it — but my hopes of refinement and iteration weren’t met. At its core, the gameplay is still the same as it’s always been. The series hasn’t managed to keep up with the times with the only attempt to shift the gameplay formula up somewhat, Hitman: Absolution, being very poorly received.

Persona 3 Reload is the best kind of remake: it honours the core of what makes the game great, but isn’t afraid to modernise the experience at the same time. It’s nostalgia done well, because it plays onscreen the way the original felt in my memory (without having to squint at a 4-inch PSP screen). It’s honestly a joy to see a game I loved brought to a whole new audience, while still giving me a deluxe version of something I already know I’ll enjoy. While it may not include every ingredient that every version of Persona 3 has ever had, it’s a confident and complete version all its own – and I can’t wait to keep climbing that tower.

All things considered, Final Fantasy 7 Remake is still a polished and worthwhile affair, doing many things for many different people.

While Astral Chain's storyline is filled with anime archetypes and familiar plot tropes, it all works well as an overall experience.

Shin Megami Tensei V Vengeance is all about building a more streamlined and player-friendly experience. While the game’s difficulty hasn’t gone anywhere, it feels like Vengeance is doing its best to make you enjoy that experience and remove as many roadblocks as possible. The new Canon of Vengeance story is big, exciting and entirely unapologetic about taking a different path to the original story – giving returning SMTV players just as much to enjoy as new players. Playing on PS5 rather than the original Switch also let me enjoy the game’s world in much greater fidelity, and Vengeance takes full advantage of that to show just how gorgeous its huge maps are. While its combat is not for the faint of heart, the game’s rich, branching story offers plenty to enjoy over multiple playthroughs.

There’s a huge focus on all the new features, but there is still a lot of nostalgia here. This is the 20th anniversary of Pokémon after all, and Pokémon Sun and Moon celebrates by boldly reinventing the wheel. This will go down as a huge success with returning players and it’s easier than ever for newcomers to enjoy after the success of Pokémon Go. Fans are in for a treat, and if you’re new don’t hesitate. There has never been a better time to play Pokémon.

Shinobi Art of Vengeance is a fantastic start to Sega’s Next Level program, and one that’s easy to recommend. Priced at a budget-conscious $48 AUD and offering around 15 or so hours of gameplay, fans of the franchise or the likes of The Lost Crown will certainly dig this.

Just when you think you’ve done everything, Pikmin 4 is waiting to hand over another fun task for you to spend the next few hours enjoying, on the universe’s most crashed-on planet.

The bundled games are undeniably great, their enhancements solid -- but nonetheless, these are old titles pulled off the shelf and given a fresh coat of varnish, and at an additional cost to those who've already purchased them at that.