Road 96 is a nice revelation. The slow start gives the wrong impression of a game similar to many recent narrative adventures: well written, but without that peculiar something that can make it shine. Instead, its formula based on the repetition of the paths and on the procedurality of the encounters proved to be a great strength in the long run, capable of adding depth to the game and distinguishing it from its (valid) predecessors. More than this, it's the perfect game for summertime: a good song on the radio, the long road ahead of us, sunglasses on and a future where plenty of choices await.

One of the most intriguing action-platform games of the year. Greak: Memories of Azur is artistically gorgeous and its gameplay is simple but engaging.

Foreclosed manages to condense in a single game a decent shooter, a basic role-playing game and, why not, even a bit of science fiction thriller, which doesn't hurt. The problem, however, is who exactly this game is meant for: it is too light as an FPS, too basic as an RPG, and the puzzles aren’t deep enough for an adventure. It needs someone who wants to simply live a cyberpunk experience, as long as your expectations aren’t set too high.

The underlying gameplay is still so brilliant that it is painful to see it brought it down by obtuse and ancient systems that make the overall experience frustrating.

Hades on PlayStation 5 is the essential masterpiece we all know, embellished by the 4K resolution and a mild use of the DualSense features. A real must-have.

Solid, no-nonsense roguelike with a comparatively rare sci-fi setting. Too bad it doesn’t deliver the badass power fantasy that its inspiring material source (Doom) does so well.

Boomerang X is a frantic and challenging arena shooter made to satisfy the needs of those interested in speedrunning the game or unlocking every single one of its achievements.

Orcs Must Die! 3 does not innovate significantly – some might even call it lazy – but is an effective recollection of everything that made Robot Entertainment’s franchise so great in the past, turned up to eleven.

The Silver Case and The 25th Ward are both testament to the talent of one of the most picturesque, brilliant and punk directors of the videogame scene, capable of amalgamating, no one knows how, a series of themes, influences, styles and characters that in the hands of others would have turned into a disaster.

At a first glance you might think Vesper is something like Limbo with robots, but it's actually a great puzzle platformer with a bit of stealth. Thanks to the generous amount of checkpoints, it can be played as a casual game, a couple of screen at a time, or trying to beat the best time in a speed run, thanks to the embedded stopwatch allowing you to record and publish your game sessions without further editing. Great graphics and sound, with a gentle difficulty curve balanced by achievements not that easy to unlock. A debut with a bang for the guys from Cordens Interactive, who were able to mix a compelling story with a great gameplay.

The Ascent is a fast-paced twin-stick shooter immersed in an impeccably designed cyberpunk world, yet its plot fails to fully take advantage of this wonderful setting. Luckily, the shooting mechanics are quite satisfying, while the many different character customization options guarantee a fair range of approaches to the shootouts. There are also a bunch of technical issues that can be easily circumvented, but are still annoying.

Fuga: Melodies of Steel is a role-playing game focused on storytelling and combat, cutting out usually fundamental elements like exploration: an atypical but successful recipe, drawing strength from a cast of young heroes that are impossible not to love.

Warhammer 40,000: Battlesector is a solid turn-based tactical game, but also quite generic. That's because the developers did almost nothing to differentiate their game from other titles in the same genre. Recommended if you're a WH40K enthusiast, but demanding turn-based tactics fans might want to look somewhere else.

Chernobylite is an interesting game, full of interesting ideas and with a good amount of content to offer; unless you go straight for the ending, it will entertain you for a good twenty hours. It’s not perfect: the AI isn’t brilliant, the horror atmosphere isn’t quite there, and there’s some repetetiveness. But if you’re looking for something to satiate your hunger for trips in the Exclusion Zone, Chernobylite is a solid choice.

Microsoft Flight Simulator confirms itself as a true masterpiece on Xbox Series X as well, regardless if you are a fan of simulators or not.

NEO: The World Ends With You is the worthy sequel to one of the most unique JRPGs created by Square Enix, and takes the strengths of its predecessor reformulating them as needed. The result is a unique game in style, mechanics and setting intended to keep completists busy for over fifty hours within a story full of twists and turns.

Samurai Warriors 5 represents the state of the art of the Musou genre: a game with divisive mechanics, yet refined and ready to give hours of fun to those who can appreciate this long-lived series. The others are unlikely to change their minds, although a demo is available on all platforms that I recommend you try.

The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles is perfect for those who want to take a break from high-paced action games and want to spend a few hours between deductions, clues, evidence and interrogations. Ryunosuke Naruhodo's legal adventures are engaging, boasting excellent writing with imaginative cases (sometimes almost too much), a good dose of twists and great characters. Graphics are alright, but the lack of an Italian localization could make the game almost unplayable for those unfamiliar with the English language.

Although Hell Let Loose can undoubtedly be improved in some aspects, the prerequisites for long-time fun are all there, as long as you’re looking for a war simulator full of immersion, action, strategy and collaboration. Black Matter's WWII is harsh and unforgiving, but also stunning in its depiction of war.

If you liked Schizm and its sequel, you will simply love Nemezis as well. However, 15 years later, we’d expect something more, with a slightly enhanced gameplay, while Nemezis is just a harder, shorter “more of the same” of Schizm 2.

One of the most surprising games of the year, Death's Door delivers a frantic and greatly enjoyable action-adventure experience with an ipnotic noir mood.

F1 2021 incorporates (and improves) all the features of the previous F1 games developed by Codemasters. Driving is fun and can be adapted to suit both newbies and those looking for a sufficiently complex experience, although players who look for a full simulation might be slightly disappointed. Game modes are numerous, varied and well structured. Both those who love to run alone and those who prefer to compete with (or against) other players will find something that will keep them busy for months.

Skyward Sword is still not one of the best Zelda games out there, even after improvements added to this new Switch port, but it deserves to be played thanks to a great cast of characters, a good narrative and some interesting gameplay ideas that Nintendo developed further in Breath of the Wild.

Ys IX: Monstrum Nox is a successful and must-have Japanese RPG for Adol fans, but it's not the decisive step forward that a legendary series like Ys deserves. The Switch version is plagued by too many technical uncertainties.

Monster Hunter Stories 2 turns out to be a good JRPG that will delight fans of the saga, especially those willing to turn a blind eye to its undeniable ease and a narrative held back by avalanches of fetch quests and a disappointing protagonist. Those who have played the first game should keep in mind that this is a more of the same, with all the pros and cons that this entails.

Pulsar: Lost Colony is a bold title, especially for an independent studio that formed it from a Kickstarter project. Leafy Games developers have cleverly decided to embrace the technical limitations of their production, choosing to offer many small moments from a science fiction anthology, with solid management of their spaceship through well-defined and specialized crew roles. The overly spartan graphics and some environments that are too empty risk breaking the immersion, but if you have a couple of good friends to cross the galaxy with, you've found your game.

GreeFall: Gold Edition is an update that offers more defined textures and adds 4K and 60fps support. A good addition to Spiders’ best game yet.

Wildermyth is the best turn based strategy game out in the latest months, and also a great RPG. I would have preferred a unique big campaign rather than small stories that aren't even that tied together, but smaller episodes could be more attractive to a casual audience. Artistically beautiful to the eyes, with a very particular style, capable of keeping you glued to the monitor for a long time, although there isn't that much to do when we aren't engaged in turn-based combat. To be played at a high difficulty level, turning the game into an epic chess battle.