Horizon: Zero Dawn is a bit of a slow burn, but there's more to Guerrilla Games' latest than just its staggeringly pretty graphics. The story surprises as it takes several twists and turns and explores the past, but the games beating heart is with its excellently tense and engaging robotic monster hunting.

Inkulinati is a fantastic strategy game and one that is refreshingly accessible to players not immersed in that genre. The sheer charm of the whole aesthetic is clear to see and the units all have a huge amount of personality. The range of skills and possible approaches ensure that the battles remain enjoyable throughout whilst mechanics like the boredom stat encourage you to mix things up as you go. All in all, this is one of the best strategy games I’ve played in a while and you should definitely be prepared to get medieval.

Evil West is an old-school banger, a reminder of the quick and sharp fun that action games can deliver. It has some flaws here and there, but the meat of the game is fast-paced and endlessly entertaining combat. Smacking vampires into clouds of red mist with a giant lightning gauntlet is something that every video game needs.

Ara: History Untold is another distinctive take on the historical 4X strategy genre, putting a real emphasis on furthering your nation, managing supply chains and resources, and shifting the focus away from warring mentality it's so easy to sink into. There's room to grow, but this is a strong contender.

But for a dash of repetition, both in gameplay after a long period and the slightly disappointing variety of enemies, Mothergunship is really a great game. The story takes a back seat to the gameplay, so if you’re looking for a story focused experience you’re in the wrong place. However if an FPS rogue-lite with gameplay in the vein of Quake and the ability to create a gun that shoots both lightning and floating grenades is your thing, you could do a lot worse than Mothergunship.

Multiverses may be overdone in moviedom, but they've provided some fresh and very welcome ideas in Trinity Fusion. As such, this is one of the most enjoyable rogue-lites I’ve played all year. Add to that the responsive controls and engaging combat and this is easily Angry Mob Games' best release yet.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is a fantastic piece of storytelling, and it gives you a compelling world, people and lore for you to delve into. While it labours in some areas, you can put your own personality and feelings into this largely linear adventure, making this a game and a tale that deserves to be experienced.

For every person who hates the board game World Tour concept, there will be someone who loves it and will be cursing this review.

Spiritfarer has a soft, caring, bittersweet tone that I've rarely encountered in video games. For a game all about death and dying, I only ever felt calm and relaxed when playing it. The management gameplay is varied and engaging, and even though the scope if it leads to the game getting a bit too long in the tooth, it helps connect the incredibly emotional story beats together so well. Mix that up with its beautiful art style and enchanting music, and you've got one of the most emotional management games I've ever played.

Charting the series’ progress since that 2016 Paris debut has been a fascinating journey. IO have learned a lot over the past five years and that really shows in Hitman 3. It’s a flashier, more fluid evolution of IO’s original template - a rewarding conclusion to one of the most unique video game franchises around, and one we’ll continue playing for many weeks and months to come.

L.A. Noire: Case Files cleverly recycles one of the most intriguing games of the decade. Team Bondi’s meticulous meticulous world-building and technical achievements still live on, clicking seamlessly with VR, even if Case Files doesn’t exactly break new ground.

You may have seen a lot of what Darksiders brings to the table elsewhere, but it’s all combined in such a way with sprinkles of new ideas that keeps the game fresh and innovative.

If you can’t get behind the Anime-like over-dramatisation and occasional bit of weirdness, chances are you’ll switch off within five minutes...For those who have the patience, however, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a visual novel as consistent on PlayStation Vita.

inFamous 2 takes the flawed brilliance of its predecessor and improves upon almost every aspect. Missions are slightly more varied and characters are much more rounded. It breeds empathy and it encourages experimentation in the ways supporting characters play off the protagonist and each other.

If you like charming platformers then Wuppo may just be for you. The game offers a fun, though at times frustrating experience with a number of challenges to overcome. The world of Wuppo is quite unlike any other and filled with a lot of neat little touches, and though the story may be predictable it is well-told, likeable and easy to pick up.

Budget Cuts 2: Mission Insolvency is an excellent addition to the Budget Cuts universe, one which well and truly builds on the original in every way. The new tools add in plenty of new strategies and the stealth gameplay is just as good as it was in the first game. The levels have a bit more variety now too, which should be a nice change for anyone who works in an office in real life. It could have done with a slightly longer tutorial for brand-new players, but aside from that, it's a great addition to anyone's VR library.

There’s certainly enough here to whet anyone’s appetite, allowing IO to turn present future updates as mini-events, maintaining a constant buzz among fans throughout the year. That said, there are some minor imperfections that bring Hitman down a peg or two.

Without a doubt, Dynasty Warriors 7 is Omega Force's finest game to date. Long-time fans of the series will fall in love almost instantaneously, the redesigned gameplay being just as welcoming to new players.

So is the game worth buying? If you are a Transformers fan, skip to Option A, if you are not, Option B is for you.

I genuinely feel that, while it’s not a perfect representation of drawing/painting, Art Academy: Atelier does an excellent job of teaching you the process of creating a piece of art.

It is survival horror right down to the limited effectiveness of your pistol and the scarcity of resources and manages to be thoroughly unnerving despite its low pixel density. The storyline has you questioning everything – even your own character – throughout and is the thing that will keep you coming back if you can bear the incredible tension the game’s atmosphere creates.

Greed Corp is a wonderful little title which is highly addictive and quite original in its style of play. It is a tricky game to start with, however if you stick with it then you will begin to appreciate what a great little game it is.

Anyone that remembers the shopping mall (with the mannequins) in Condemned will take great delight in knowing that Bloodshot has it's own uber-scary environment for you this time around too - in fact we'd happily say that the sequel ups the fear factor considerably throughout. If you like to play your videogames with white knuckles, this is a great ride.

Blue Reflection: Second Light is an improvement over the original in every way. It's a brilliant blend of action and storytelling, where both side complement each other perfectly. Some of the side systems like stealth and facility building are a bit flawed, but the meat of the game is divine – incredible combat, memorable characters, and a stunning soundtrack make this a must-play for any JRPG enthusiast.

White Knight Chronicles is a very good game. What you get out of it really depends on what you’re going to put in. It’ll be over in a few days if you just plow through the story, but if you get into the meat of the game and start developing your town and binding new items together to take on those tricky online group quests and grind up your guild rank, this is going to suck up a lot of your time.

It's priced well (at around £25), offers lots of gameplay and a couple of real gems.

The Binding of Isaac: Repentance is an incredible achievement that goes beyond just being a DLC expansion. This is another load of thread connecting yet more pieces to the potential of the already brilliant base game. With all of these plates spinning, it's impossible to know how well a run is going to go at any given time, but it remains incredibly fun trying to figure that out.

Managing a racing team is a pretty niche topic for a video game, but if you have a curious nature when it comes to odd fringe sims, there’s definitely enough depth and customisability here to give you a unique gaming experience.

This is another case of same-but-better for EA.

Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV takes the beloved boardgame series to new heights, emphasising the Switch 2's focus on social play while making the most of the new camera and the Joy Con 2’s great mouse controls. Not all of the DLC's content are essential, relying on gimmicks that you’ll quickly tire of, but as a whole package, this is a great next step for Mario Party.

Planet Zoo: Console Edition offers the same enjoyable park building as its PC forerunner, and though it’s a slightly slower experience, Frontier have done an excellent job translating the detailed park building to controller.

Lost Eidolons: Veil of the Witch offers up compelling tactics and enjoyable storytelling, while the Roguelike elements work startlingly well. If you’re a fan of the genre, this is one of the year’s essential entries.

This is a playful and enjoyable piece of Legend of Zelda lore, and one that will be essential for fans of the series, but it doesn’t break the same ground as Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom, or even Age of Calamity.

The Sims 4: Paranormal Stuff is a great example of a Pack, it includes some classic Sims dark humour, and increases the challenge of the game by a fair bit if you let it. It doesn’t come cheap, but for the amount of content and the sheer silliness introduced it may just be worth it. The items are maybe my favourite so far with their witchy charm, and the return of Bonehilda is a welcome one. It is a lot of fun, but may be best suited to spooky Sims with a high libido…

TEVI blends the soul of Metroidvanias with the heart of a bullet hell, and the result is unforgettable. Despite a lacklustre soundtrack and some repetitive enemy encounters, this is a rich, feature-filled adventure packed with fun characters and sweat-inducing boss fights that you owe it to yourself to play.

Donkey Kong Bananza is an intoxicating cacophony of brawling, digging and platforming. It's a new style of 3D platformer from Nintendo that, for better and for worse, embraces the destructive chaos of letting players tunnel through and deform the world.

Archangel is a game that shows a lot of promise from Skydance Interactive. There’s flaws with checkpoints and lip syncing, but the game’s presentation on the whole is great and none of that matters when you’re piloting the mech. You feel incredibly powerful as you easily brush aside smaller tanks and drones, while battling with larger enemies feel like a proper fight.

Genshin Impact needs to be played to be believed. This is an addictive open-world adventure with gorgeous art and unique combat...and it's free! The character designs are sharp and beautiful, while the pastel-style world itself is full of jaw-dropping colour and natural vistas...and it's free! Sure, there's the admittedly stingy gacha system, but if you just want an immersive and peaceful world to climb and fly around in for hours, then Genshin Impact is for you.

Killer Queen Black is just an insanely good party game. If you're looking for something to play solo, then this isn’t really for you. This is a game best enjoyed with friends where frantic communication and the lightning quick gameplay will have you all rolling around with laughter as you compete to see who has the best Hive.

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is exactly the kind of single player game we had originally hoped to see when EA and Disney joined forces. Even if you strip away the license, you’re left with a super satisfying mix or combat, story, and exploration, deftly crafted by a studio best known for spearheading an entirely different genre.

There are still issues with animations, ball physics and AI but nothing that isn't easily forgiven as a quirk of the game. There is one week between the release dates of FIFA and Pro Evo and while it's not yet clear who will be touring the city in an open topped bus, at last PES has earned its place in the final.

Unpacking is real gem that deserves a wide audience. It is short, but the sheer love and care put into the entire game shines through at every turn and the careful balance achieved between freedom and restriction ensures satisfaction without frustration. Add in a wonderfully realised and intimate narrative that makes brilliant use of the values we place upon objects and you have an indie game that should find a place in your collection.

As the only real first person shooter on PSVR, Rigs is fantastic. So long as you’re not affected too heavily by motion sickness, and aren’t put off by the price to content ratio, you’ll find a fast and fluid multiplayer shooter that gets the best out of PSVR.

Mekazoo is a familiar platforming experience that’s immensely fun. Zooming through the levels is a good time on your own, but really the game is designed for playing with a friend next to you. If you’re looking for an evening or two’s worth of entertainment for platformer fans, then Mekazoo is well worth the price of admission.

The premiere episode in Telltale’s Game of Thrones series does a lot of things right. Certainly, it manages to capture the political overtones as well as the high fantasy setting of the series it is based on, and it does them justice, bringing in new characters and plots not adapted from the book series. That’s an achievement in itself, and while it doesn’t stray too much from Telltale’s formula, it adapts an excellent property to something which we’ve seen hit the mark time and time again.

Cuphead was well worth waiting for. It provided exactly what Studio MDHR said it would be – a boss rush with plenty of well-designed bosses and gorgeous presentation that mimics the Fleisher brothers’ art style. Depending on how used to 2D platformers with difficult bosses you are, there’s a decent amount on offer, though with limited side attractions beyond the bosses, it could all be done before you know it. It’s a swell ol’ time though.

Middle-earth: Shadow of War is massive, yet at the same time a prime example of a sequel that’s bigger, but not necessarily any better than the original. Once again the Nemesis system shines, allowing players to forge their own unique stories, even if the game tries to do too much with it at times. Getting caught in its tangle of new systems and features can be frustrating, but there’s still a great open world game here.

Tumble VR builds on the successful formula found in the original PlayStation Move title, with virtual reality greatly adding to the experience.

It might not have the most imaginative of plots and the delivery of that narrative is just okay but it’s not supposed to be anything too deep – it’s a summer blockbuster. In those terms, Splinter Cell: Blacklist succeeds at every turn thanks to Ubisoft Toronto’s impressive balancing of stealth and action that is, as yet, unmatched in this genre.

Despite its simplistic setup, Kingdom Eighties will hoover up hour after hour of your time. There’s a captivating quality to its pure, focused strategy, and combined with its more narrative-driven focus Kingdom Eighties is a must-play game in 2023.

The Videokid is one of those arcade titles that can easily eat away at your time if you let. The simplistic but addictive gameplay means you’ll want to keep going back until you’ve beaten the course. Combine it with the colourful voxel art and the humour that permeates the game and you have a verified fun experience on your hands. The Videokid isn’t just an homage to Paperboy, it’s a successor.

Evil Genius 2 is a worthy return to the world stage for the classic lair builder formula. While there's certain areas that could be improved in the presentation or the game balance, building up your 60s spy villain lair and defeating the seemingly endless string of agents trying to foil your plans is immensely satisfying and engaging.

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is a fitting finale for the game series and for fans of the anime. With a great range of content, a huge roster, and spectacular visuals, this is certain to be a hit with those who have a history with the franchise. Unfortunately for outsiders though it’s likely to remain a beautiful yet incomprehensible brawler.

Having the original Lumines soundtrack on modern consoles is a nostalgia trip for fans of the 14-year-old PSP puzzler, but the core block-dropping gameplay hasn’t aged a day. It’s still just as addictive now as it was back then, but it’s a shame that as a remaster it ignores some of the game modes introduced in later games. As remasters go, Lumines is impeccable, but then it was always going to be.

Simply a great game, and it’s a shame that it’s taken this long for it to make it to the West. As a PS4 release, its simplistic graphics are unlikely to wow anybody, but the fast-paced combat, enjoyable characters and compelling crafting make for an experience you’ll want to come back to time and time again.

Once Upon a Jester is surprising game for me and I do recommend it, especially if you are looking for something comedic and that is only a few hours long. It might be over rather quickly, but will stay with you for quite a while.

Following a short hiatus, we’ll no doubt see a second season of missions crop up, and this excites me. Hitman may have its shortcomings, but with a few smart revisions this could easily become one of the best game series to appear on current consoles.

The key to Folklore's quality is that the game is endlessly rewarding - there's a constant supply of new Folks, quests and the ever evolving story is as good as it gets in video games; there isn't a stage in the game that we didn't enjoy playing through, and the difficulty curve is perfectly balanced.

Quantum of Solace is hugely enjoyable, and a complete surprise.

If its aesthetics appeal and the gameplay style grabs you, then Loop Hero will take over your gaming life until you finish it or are drag yourself away. It reminded me strangely of the allure of Football Manager but with a more fantasy setting. The combination of auto combat and strategic choices, with resource management and settlement development on top, makes this a unique and captivating indie game.

EA UFC 3 is a good representation of the sport franchise, offering a well put together fighting game that represents the different styles and weight classes found in MMA. The action in the octagon mimics reality very well, with a decent career mode helping people to learn the ropes. On the online front, there’s a divide between Ultimate Team and standard online divisions with the latter winning out in both accessibility and fairness. If you’re a UFC fan in general, then this is a good game to pick up.

Anodyne 2: Return to Dust is an unusually captivating experience. The way the developers mix and match various gaming tropes shouldn’t work, and yet the absurd narrative and overall aesthetic binds perfectly. If you’re looking for something completely different, make sure you check out Anodyne 2.

Whilst the story may only clock in at around three to four hours, it still feels worthwhile and, in all honest, probably isn't what's going to draw most into a fighting game anyway. The arcade mode may be disappointing, but there's enough in general (particularly with the online) to keep pretty much any fighting fan happily occupied.

Wanderlust: Travel Stories is a different experience from your run-of-the-mill video game, and should appeal to anyone who is an avid traveler or wants to explore some unknown parts of the world from home. The stories are engaging and presented nicely, having enough of an impact on me to start downloading travel apps and plan trips. It may have the same effect on you.

Brainpipe is difficult to grasp and will almost certainly not appeal to everyone, but it is completely and utterly original and unbelievable addictive.

With its distinctive new style, challenging combat and well-designed puzzles, Sorry, We're Closed is a game I would highly recommend it to any survival horror fan.

Steelrising's Parisian setting and tireless robotic enemies help it to stand out from the growing Soulslike crowd, though its mechanical heart still ticks with the same carefully crafted and unforgiving style of combat. If you want a Soulslike with a bit of a difference, or maybe one that's got an assist mode to help ease you into the genre, Steelrising is well worth considering.

Boomerang X is the 2AM food truck run of arena shooters. You're in and out before you know it, but holy shit is it amazing. The boomerang abilities that form the core of the gameplay are unique and insanely addicting, but there's always new foes and features constantly revealing themselves as the game progresses. It's a brief experience, maybe too brief, but it's still an unforgettable one.

FIFA 23 is the most expansive game in the series' long history; women's football has never been better represented, there's fun new activities like Volta Arcade, and there's still all of the classic modes. Still where FIFA 23 takes steps forward in some areas, it could still be better in others. The action on the pitch is fun and engaging, but the user interface can be clunky, and modes like player career mode feels like an afterthought with largely superficial changes, compared to the investment in Ultimate Team. FIFA 23 is the end of an era and goes out on a high, but still has the hallmarks of the series' gradual yearly evolution.

It seems to add just enough to make it worthwhile for owners of last year's game, while still feeling very familiar. The Pins, Country Clubs and Legacy mode are all welcome additions, although they offer differing levels of appeal.

Despite a few technical problems and design missteps, the variety, and thoughtfulness, of the myriad mechanics make it a pleasure, as you advance through each world exploring every nook and cranny.

Every part of the game has been reconsidered to create a more uniformly rewarding and engaging experience, from the main story and planetary activities to the Nightfall strike and beyond. It has left some of the returning activities feel less rewarding for time spent, and the smaller scale Crucible multiplayer scratches a different, more competitive itch than in the original game, but these are things that Bungie can and will address over time. Destiny 2 is a fantastic new beginning for one of the most popular online shooters out there, and I can’t wait to see how it grows and evolves over the coming months and years.

Ibb & Obb is a game that’s really at its best when playing with a friend and exploring the game’s collage of elements, as you try to puzzle your way through the obstacles and challenges ahead.

Ghostwire: Tokyo was not the game I was expecting from Tango Gameworks, but I definitely enjoyed it. Blending magic-filled FPS action with Japanese mythology and an open world Tokyo that reminds me of the Yakuza series, it stands out from the crowd even if it’s not truly groundbreaking. Ghostwire has a lot of potential as a new franchise and I’m looking forward to seeing what Tango Gameworks does with it next.

Max Mustard is easy to recommend for a 5-7 hours of cutesy VR platforming fun. It's lacking a little originality though, wearing its many platforming influences proudly, so whilst it's fun and has some great moments, they fail to elevate it to the status of the games that have inspired it.

Lunar Silver Star Story Complete pulls together two classic RPGs that are as endearing and enjoyable as they were two decades ago.

My time with Omno was pleasant, and while I don't think it's a life-changing experience by any means, it does have a certain life-affirming quality to it. Simply put, Omno is an enjoyable journey through a magical world, where so many other games would fill such a setting with chaos.

The Knightling is one of the most characterful adventures of the year, with Twirlbound crafting a large, bright, engaging fantasy world, and giving you the tools to truly enjoy it. You won't regret picking this one up.

GRIS is a wonderful artistic achievement, with a simply sublime visual style and soundtrack that grows and evolves through the course of an emotional story.

Override: Mech City Brawl is an indie mech arena brawler that gets a lot of things right. The single player is often a little on the easy side, but the great character designs and weighty combat help to make up for it, with local multiplayer proving to be a hell of a lot of fun. It’s perfect for fans of giant mechs and kaiju brawling, and easily one of the best additions to the genre in a while.

Mario Tennis Fever is another highly polished and enjoyable entry in the series that is well worth picking up for fans and newcomers. I’m not sure it renders its Switch predecessor Aces completely redundant, given the Switch 2's backward compatibility, but anyone who is after a new approach will find much to enjoy here. Assuming that the netcode is solid post-launch, then you should have a lot of fun with Mario and his friends.

Layers of Fear sits somewhere between the pejoratively classified ‘walking simulators’ and a full game experience, as for the most part you are simply wandering around and solving the odd puzzle.

The story is a bit shallow, but missions are well written and exceptionally designed, leading to an endgame built around tons of content and a deep loot system.

Revenge of the Savage Planet is a fitting follow-up to the excellent original. Its impact is mildly diminished by being a little too forgiving, and it’s a surprisingly chilled experience despite everything wanting to murder you, but one thing is for certain; Revenge of the Savage Planet is a great time, and I want to see more from the Savage Planet franchise.

Shredders is a breath of chilly mountain air in the face of snowboarding fans everywhere. If you miss the genre's heyday of Cool Boarders, 1080 Snowboarding, and Amped, then it's definitely time to strap on a new pair of digital bindings.

The graphics are rather typical for a game of this style, the controls are a bit iffy when you’re trying to navigate towards a specific tile with just the d-pad, but it’s nice to have a mahjong game readily available on the XMB and this is as good as you’ll need.

There are a few oddities, like the online play requirement, and it would be nice to know if and when Nintendo plan to add more levels to the game, but Super Mario Run is a fantastic mobile debut for Nintendo’s most enduring and best known character.

Dead of Darkness is a great 2D Resident Evil tribute that brings plenty of its own ideas to the table. There could have been less reliance on instakills late in the game and the attempts to feed in some Eternal Darkness style sanity effects are underdone, but the core gameplay, the puzzles, and the twisting narrative are all well worth the price of entry.

Humour is a tough aspect for games to get right, but Super Daryl Deluxe nails its dry, surrealist American-indie tone. Despite the inherent repetition of the RPGvania match-up, the writing, graphical style, and imagination that Dan & Gary Games have packed in here mark it out as a wonderfully weird indie gem.

NASCAR 25 has proven to be a very welcome surprise, giving you a rendition of the sport that absolutely shines on track. Some of the supporting elements could do with a tune-up, but if you’re looking for heart-pounding racing action, NASCAR 25 delivers.

An incredibly fun RTS game that deserves to find an audience to help popularise its multiplayer mode. The campaign is a decent length and draws you in with its fun story, though there are a few dips.

A triumph. A shining example of what the PSP can do in the right hands and is actually an improvement on the PS3 version.

Pokkén Tournament doesn’t quite know where to hang its hat – accessible fighter for kids, or serious online brawler – but somehow it manages to pull both off. Spectacular combat, beloved characters, and fun gameplay make for a fighter that anyone can enjoy, but as with all of the best genre entries, and indeed the Pokémon series as a whole, it truly comes into its own against a real-life opponent.

Observation is a sci-fi thriller that puts you in a situation quite unlike any other. You never quite know what to expect, but the writing is solid enough to make sense even at its most unbelievable, and the characters of Sam and Emma really grow on you. A few niggly navigational hiccups and a couple of dull puzzles can break the immersion a bit, but even so any sci-fi fan should have a look at Observation.

Infinity Ward was never going to recapture the magic of the original Modern Warfare, but this is still their most memorable Call of Duty game of the past decade. This is a bold new spin that’s uneven in places, but proves there is still room for innovation within that core template.

The Bridge Constructor series gets a lot out of being combined with Portal, resulting in a quirky and engaging new twist on this physics-based puzzler. It could have gone further, whether upping the challenge you can aim for or actually giving you the portals to play with, but what’s here is pleasingly inventive and has more than few tricky brain teasers.

Horizon Shift '81 is simple, stellar fun. The arcade shooter inspired gameplay puts a fun twist on the classic genre that provides hours of pure, flashy entertainment. Boss fights bring a fun, modern twist to the game, but could have used some sound effects in order to make them even stronger. Overall, if you've got a Switch and have the itch for some old-school arcade blast-em-up fun, Horizon Shift '81 is a great way to feed that craving.

Dead Secret lasts for just a few sittings, but it’s a game you’ll walk away from satisfied. As bigger studios keep fumbling around for a VR blockbuster blueprint, indies like Robot Invader continue to fill in the gaps with smaller, more experimental games.