Pikmin 3 Deluxe is a better version of one of the best games ever made - one of Nintendo's crowning achievements, even. Whether you've played it before, or are lucky enough to experience it for the first time, you owe it to yourself to play this irrevocable environmentalist masterpiece.

By comparison, the presentation of the Nintendo Switch Online games looks like a cheap bootleg, while Double Dragon & Kunio-Kun Retro Brawler Bundle looks like the fitting tribute that some of the best games from the past deserve. Those in charge of Nintendo Switch Online should take note, as this is exactly how older games should be treated.

While you are experiencing a grand journey across an uncompromising depiction of Greek mythology, it is the small moments in Hades 2 that shine brightest. Intimate conversations between old friends or bittersweet reunions with long-lost family members as the moon of Selene hangs daintily overhead. Putting aside slaughtering demons and becoming a witch so powerful that not even titans can stop you, these are what make Hades 2 so special. If Supergiant is now destined to leave this universe behind, it goes out on the highest note possible.

Two Point Campus is a school experience unlike any other. From weird and wonderful courses to quirky clubs, and student stereotypes you’ll find everything you want on a campus and so much more. As you flex your management muscles just make sure to keep your eyes open, these students all have their own style and personalities. Look after them well, and you’ll be rewarded with a lot of hidden puns, animations, and laughs along the way. Education has never been so much fun.

If you've been eagerly awaiting the chance to go to university, you won't be disappointed. This pack combines the very best of previous packs with some new and unique ideas that give a fully-formed and enjoyable gameplay experience - something The Sims 4 desperately needed.

The visuals and audio in combination with the meaningful and positive narrative come together to construct the complete package for a short ride into What Comes After.

While Nuclear Throne might at first appear to be another difficult bullet-hell or punishing roguelike, a little practice quickly reveals a system that is meant to make the game accessible by a broad range of players. Thanks to the procedurally generated levels, weapon drops, and opponents, the game has virtually endless replay value and is an outstanding free game from Epic Games this week.

The game is utterly addicting thanks to its well-executed VR gunplay and bullet-hell mechanics, along with its overall fun-factor.

When I wrapped up my experience with Nier Replicant, I realized it was the most satisfied I’d ever felt after working so hard for a particular ending. Yoko Taro asking me to relive the same experiences again and again wasn’t a repetitive journey, but a more meaningful reflection on a cycle of hate, pain, and trauma. Nier Replicant is Yoko Taro’s best work, brought up to modern standards, and finally delivered in the presentation its tale always deserved.

While it is short in terms of basic playtime, it does still take a good number of hours to explore everything the game has to offer. It's also engaging, humorous, and quirky. The fact that it is LGBTQ+ friendly is a great and much-appreciated bonus, and the puns are legendary.

Murayama and the rest of the fine folks at Rabbit And Bear did it. They've created a masterwork. Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes may have one foot firmly planted in the past, but make no mistake, its other foot is lunging forward into the future.

A fantastic port that is a great addition to the Switch library.

Neva is one of the most beautiful games I’ve ever played, from the watercolour art style to the clever direction. But it surprised me in its mechanical complexity and combat execution; you always need to keep your fingers fast and mind faster. Add a lifelong vulpine companion to the mix, and you’ve got an all-timer on your hands.

It would be easy to say that Forza Horizon 6 is simply the best version of itself so far, and leave it at that, but that undersells what it truly achieves. It is an accumulation of its past five iterations, but somehow remains light on its feet. It’s a game that understands spectacle without becoming hollowed out by it. For a series about driving fast, its real achievement is teaching you to notice what you are passing through and stopping to admire it.

Monolith Soft has crafted a JRPG that is so colossal yet also intricately focused. It delivers an experience that iterates upon everything its predecessors managed to achieve, resulting in a masterpiece that I am utterly enraptured by. Part of me feels like I’m still stewing in a cauldron of hyperbole, but in terms of characters, themes, and a world that I never want to leave behind - this is the series at its very best, and I can’t wait to see where it goes next.

I can easily see Cult of the Lamb becoming one of the next indie darlings, and it would be utterly deserving of the epithet. It’s a blend of elements that, by rights, shouldn’t really work, but Massive Monster executed it with aplomb. The game lures you in with a lush and lurid art style and the promise of action-packing combat, and then indoctrinates you with a gameplay loop that keeps you coming back for more. I, for one, would follow the Lamb to the ends of the earth.

Although the game is a single-player experience, I never felt alone while whipping up drinks and talking with characters who - as odd as it might sound - genuinely felt like my closest of friends.

Super Hiking League shines as a single-player game, and even though the game is only available on PC, it still works as a fun two-player experience as long as you have two D-Pad controllers. With a charming retro soundtrack and graphics that work perfectly with the overall fast-paced gameplay, Super Hiking League is a title that fans of NES-era will fall in love with.

This is the story of a singular man I cannot recommend enough. And who knows, perhaps along the way you might even learn something about yourself.

Bluepoint Games has proved itself once more, nailing Demon’s Souls with a remake on the same level as Shadow of the Colossus. At this point, I’d hand the developer the keys to everything. Let the studio make a 60fps Bloodborne. Give them Metal Gear Solid. Let’s have a Bluepoint Games Ico. Demon’s Souls is the best PS5 game you can play at launch, and I’m sure it will go down in history as one of the best launch titles of all time. The Old One has awoken and I hope this review feeds it more souls. It deserves a full belly.

Yakuza: Like A Dragon is a high point for the genre - and perhaps the highest point it will reach on the PS4 or Xbox One. If this is where JRPGs are starting, going into the next generation of consoles, there's reason to believe that we're in for a decade of riches.

In an age where games are fighting harder than ever just to succeed, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 should not be one to pass you by, as a return to form for the RPG genre. It’s not just a game about history - it’s a game that feels like it’s making history.

Although February has a whole host of excellent games that are all vying for your wallet, I can’t see any of them overtaking how heartfelt, charming, and satisfying to play OlliOlli World is. Sure, it might not have double-jumping horses or robot dinosaurs, but becoming a skate wizard should be your first priority this month.

It's a magnificent thing, and this story will be lingering in my thoughts for quite some time. Pentiment takes Obsidian's expertise in branching narratives, role-playing, and building evocative worlds, then packages it all up in an exciting and unique way. I was devastated when it was over, and I'm still not over that ending. But now I'm looking forward to playing it all over again, this time with another Andreas. Maybe one who speaks Latin, studied law, and spent his wandering years in Switzerland. There are some bad choices and disastrous consequences I'd like to avoid this time too. That's the beauty of being an artist: you can always scrape the parchment clean and start again.

Wasteland 3 attempts to make a world that the player exists in rather than just moves through, and it is a complete success.

Microsoft Flight Simulator was well worth the wait. For enthusiasts of past installments, there is so much to look forward to. For those who might be on the fence about a flight simulator that is virtually an endless sandbox game, the great news is that it has been added to the Xbox Game Pass on PC right from launch, and players can check it out there before making the plunge.

You will be forced to make hard decisions and live with them as Alex Chen, some of which will have an irreversible impact on the narrative. Yet there’s no harrowing conclusion to be uncovered here. Much like real life, each revelation is a punch you must roll with, whether it’s losing a loved one or conjuring up the courage to confess your love to a crush. No matter how trivial or monumental, True Colors makes each moment matter as it forms the identity of a woman I came to care for and relate to in ways that few games have managed to achieve. This brings me back to the sibling bond between Alex and Gabe, and how it feels like a virtual replacement for the bond between myself and the brother I wasn’t able to bid farewell to. I had that chance here, and I can’t describe how much that means to me. Without being overly poetic or needlessly saccharine, I’m glad more games are engaging with how we can learn, grow, and love as human beings, and the rewards that come with accepting such hardships along the way. Life is Strange: True Colors truly is something special.

Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is an absolute delight and comes highly recommended, regardless of whether or not you're a fan of the platforming, RPG, or farming and crafting genres. I have the game for PlayStation 4, but I will most definitely be picking it up for Nintendo Switch as well, as the rice farming process offers up a meditative experience that I’d like to play just for a few minutes before bed to unwind. It’s warm narrative, incredible voice acting talent, stellar soundtrack, and overall gameplay makes Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin a must-buy.