Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond offers a fun and lengthy single player campaign with lots of replayability alongside a full featured suite of multiplayer modes. I did, however, find the general tone to be somewhat at odds with the respectful presentation, lacking a connection with real history and feeling more like a Wolfenstein game at times. There are also some issues still to be patched, which Respawn are working on, and the multiplayer lacks players right now. Overall, this is a tour of duty that is rewarding but not essential.

Although a big target, Sephiroth is a lighter character than expected and when facing him that can be exploited. This, along with the delay following a lot of his moves are the main ways to defeat the One-Winged Angel himself. When playing as him, he's a fun and powerful character who can dole out dangerous attacks from a distance and has a lot of combo potential. The other elements of the DLC have drastically improved the last time we saw Final Fantasy VII represented in the game and even though the stage is a bit dull, this Challenger Pack was a pleasant surprise that will bring us all as much happiness as Sephiroth will likely bring despair to the Super Smash Bros roster.

Like the characters in the game, Shady Part of Me is elegant, but troubled. At its core, the game is a well-designed puzzle game about a girl who has to cooperate with herself to overcome her mental health condition. Between this and the moody, melancholy aesthetic, the game hits home in all the right ways, which is why it’s such a shame that the ending just doesn’t stick the landing.

YesterMorrow is an entirely competent and mostly sound platformer. Sure, there's some issues around the occasionally finicky controls, but these are mostly balanced out through the exemplary level design. The main issue here is that the gameplay experience is so very hum-drum. YesterMorrow is a mish-mash of many other better games that we've all played before. As such it struggles to build its own identity and never becomes a compelling experience.

Visage is close to being of the best horror games of recent years, but it's held back by some annoying aspects. The inventory controls are awkward, there were still a few bugs that prevented me from interacting with the environment, and the chapters are far too uneven, with the third being particularly bad. That being said, if you are prepared to work through these issues there is a lot of spooky fun to be found here and it is more than just jump scares for streamers (although there are plenty of those). With a little more polish and a better third chapter, this could have been an essential purchase. Instead, Visage is somewhat haunted by the spectre of what might have been.

WWE Undefeated is ok. For a free to play mobile game, it has quite a good fighting system which definitely serves as a good base to build on, but it’s very light on content and needs more development to add some other basic functions.

Batbarian wades into the Metroidvania genre with enjoyable exploration, tricky and inventive puzzle mechanics, and an array of impressive accessibility options. A more helpful map that included signposting would make this a real Metroidvania highlight, but it still comes highly recommended for fans of the genre.

Empire of Sin is a promising strategy game but one that feels woefully incomplete. I can't recommend it, but I can recommend following it's hopeful transition into something genuinely wonderful.

Haven is an uplifting and positive tale of a young couple setting out to make an alien planet their home. Yu and Kay are a likeable pair as you watch their relationship strengthen, the world of Source is a gorgeous place to explore, and the soundtrack is great as well. While the overarching story could be deeper and battles could be streamlined further, Haven is a game that offers a chilled out escape.

Doom Eternal is one of my favourite games of this year, and Panic Button has outdone themselves in bringing this unforgettable FPS to the Nintendo Switch. There are some awkward nags like the clunky Joy-Con sticks and playing at 30fps that bring the experience down a bit, but I'm still beside myself over the fact that Doom Eternal manages to work on a Nintendo Switch. Is this the ultimate version of the game? Not by a long shot. But if you only have access to a Switch or you've been dying to bring this game on the go, you'll still have the time of your life.

If you're coming to Fitness Boxing 2 fresh-faced and don't own the first game, then it might be worth picking up. However, if you played the first one or if you own Ring Fit Adventure, it's incredibly hard to recommend it unless you're really into thirsting over the instructors, all of whom you can still rather creepily dress-up and customise.

Alba is the kind of game that all young people should play. Not only is it a heart-warming romp where you get to look at animals, it’s educational and empowering, inspiring and beautiful. Not only have ustwo created a world that is stunning to look at, but they’ve crafted a narrative that boldly shouts that this girl can. Never underestimate the power of an 11-year-old girl — especially one on a mission to do right by the world around her.

Even without the original’s VR elements, Chronos: Before the Ashes’ compelling and somewhat challenging combat is still its main draw, in which you have to attack, dodge and parry your way, with refined precision, towards victory. Its aging system also adds an interesting twist to combat, imbuing your battles with a sense of prudence. That said, it doesn’t offer anything new to the genre. Just watch out for its clumsy camera angles and you’ll do fine.

You can have the most advanced drone piloting physics in the world, but if the tutorial is dull, the career structure nondescript and the racing lacklustre, I’m afraid the combined package does not enthral. A pity.

I persevered with Battle Hunters and finished it (admittedly after dropping the difficulty down) but there wasn’t really a point where I actually enjoyed my experience. The most frustrating thing is that there were moments when it nearly came together in tactical combat, but it was continually held back by the need to rest characters and not sharing XP to non-party members. As a result, this is one adventure in which too many heroes spoil the game.

Does The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV have a great story that's a worthy capstone to a ten-year JRPG saga? No, it doesn't. As a standalone experience, it's an impenetrable mess of fizzled out character arcs and bloated cutscenes. Despite all that, Trails of Cold Steel IV has addictive gameplay, dope music, and gorgeous character designs. If you want a fun and grind-heavy JRPG with a wild amount of options and battles, but don't mind turning your brain off to ignore the story and glaze over poorly-written cutscenes, then this is one's for you.

Unto The End is a challenging game, but not overwhelmingly so. Each combat scenario is unique which keeps things fresh, while the world itself looks nice and hints at a wider world that cares little of your character's adventure. A handful of fights are frustrating and will hold you up, but Unto The End does not overstay its welcome and is easy to recommend to those who enjoy tough fighting challenges.

The Wild Eight is an accessible and rewarding survival game that works on so many levels. Considering that I'm not a fan of survival games, the fact that I enjoyed my time with The Wild Eight is high praise indeed. If only the combat wasn't such a bore, then I'd have no hesitating in giving it two thumbs up. As it is, one thumb and a pinkie will have to suffice. Or a seven if you prefer your scores out of ten.

Call of the Sea's original setting, narrative, and overall feel totally hooked me – even when I wasn’t playing I found myself working over the puzzles in my head. If you’re a fan of emotional stories and challenging logical puzzles then you should dive straight into this adventure.

Although purists may balk at Worms Rumble, I found Team17’s reinvention to be a welcome change in direction for the series. Real-time action wrapped around the battle royale genre works a treat here when combined with the zany, explosive world of Worms, but in order to become a multiple mainstay it needs more depth both in terms of strategy and player progression.

Submerged is a wonderful, melancholic exploration game, that builds a more defined and evocative world than many AAA games do.

Not needing to reinvent the wheel, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 delivers the same fun and brilliant mash-up of two of the best drop-puzzle games ever with a healthy dollop of content, both classic and new. The jury's still out on whether the new Skill Battles will change things up, but regardless, this is a great puzzle package for parties or pros, and hopefully a great jumping off point for newcomers to discover the marvel and skill of competitive puzzle battles.

Happy Ray Games succeeded in what they were aiming for with Ikenfell, I just wish they aimed a bit higher. The story doesn’t pick up for a long portion at the beginning of the game, and the battle system is interesting but nothing groundbreaking. There is still some enjoyment to be had with Ikenfell, but it feels like it’s missing some magic.

Morbid: The Seven Acolytes is a great top-down Soulslike with the right mix of challenge and reward. It makes good use of the systems and mechanics it borrows from the genre staples and combines this with a darkly beautiful aesthetic and some memorable boss fights. It's not always clear how or the best way to progress, but if you’ve got a hankering for a bloody good time then you won’t go too far wrong with Morbid.

A compelling take on a Martian colonisation and terraforming project, Per Aspera also comes with a gripping mystery to unravel as you fight to survive and thrive. There's some muddled pacing and it's not always how you can proceed, but this is a thoroughly enjoyable sci fi planetary sim.

Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla effortlessly plants its banner as the best open world RPG available for the new consoles. This Viking epic flexes its gore-soaked, tattooed muscles when it comes to world-building, and medieval England wows with its enchanting untamed vistas. It’s also portioned out at a steady pace and, if not for the repetitive, limited combat, Valhalla could have ranked even higher among our favourite games in the series.

Partisans 1941 is an enjoyable take on the real time tactics genre, but too often your perfect ambush is then undone moments later by hyper-alert enemies spotting your squad. There's some balance issues (which will hopefully be improved with patches), but there's a solid tactical game here with an enjoyable story and some gameplay mechanics that we’ve not previously seen in the genre.

I really, really wanted to love Phogs!, but I simply couldn't. It really is a lovely idea, set in a lovely world and there's a simple joy to the game's opening. It's clear just how much love went into this game, right down to the Hollywood Bowl carpet at the bowling alley, but the execution just leaves you wanting. Between the repetition and the bugs, there’s just too much to get frustrated with, making the game, at times, an uphill struggle.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos proves that visual novels can work surprisingly well in virtual reality. The ways in which your mode of interaction are worked into the setting are clever and really help to increase the sense of immersion. It might not feel like many of your choices have an effect on the story, with most branches being a result of clear binary choices at set points, but I have enjoyed my time in the world of Lieutenant Chloe and will delve back in to seek out the last couple of alternative endings.

A handful of excellent new units, a much needed faction rework for the Wood Elves, Drycha's campaign, and a host of quality of life changes make The Twisted and the Twilight's lacklustre Vortex campaigns much easier to overlook.

Chicken Police is far better than I'd expected it to be, due in no small part to the way it nails the noir aesthetic. It's clearly had a lot of care and attention put into it, with puns, jokes and background information tucked behind every corner and in every bit of dialogue. It's a surprise, but Chicken Police is excellent and comes highly recommended to anyone whose egg it pickles.

Twin Mirror is in many ways the natural evolution of the Dontnod narrative adventure. It combines the reconstruction aspect from their debut, Remember Me, with the cinematic and narrative focus of Life is Strange. It is a very polished game, but it left me wanting more in a few areas and I didn't feel like I was having a true impact on the story's outcome. It will definitely appeal to genre fans but it never quite develops its own clear identity. Ironically enough, it feels like a hazy reflection of what it could have been.

Crimzon Clover: World EXplosion is a rare entry within the genre that manages to be inviting to shmup rookies, while also giving the hardcore veterans plenty of challenge to chew on thanks to its carefully considered mechanics and swathe of options.

Putting the obvious parallels to one side, Immortals Fenyx Rising is a thoroughly enjoyable game. The main character is very likeable, and the humour between the characters is great, while the Golden Isle looks fantastic and is filled with content without also feeling overwhelming. It takes a while for the combat to grow, and the end portion of the game drags on, but if you want a fun and compact open world game then Immortals Fenyx Rising is well worth playing.

Shut In is a short experience with a price to match and it's one that I mostly enjoyed. That said, I do have a particularly dark sense of humour and was able to separate the game from my own mental health struggles. The tone here is so mocking that it won’t be for everyone and I’m still in two minds as to whether it is hoping to raise awareness or simply using mental suffering for entertainment. I’m inclined to give it the benefit of the doubt, but your mileage may vary. Unlike our current situation, this is one period of isolation that isn’t mandatory.

We'd struggle to recommend Damsel: there's definitely fun to be found in its score-chasing gameplay though you have to take the good with the bad, grappling with its vexing mini-games, boring story, and grating level designs.

Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory could have easily been a simple rhythm game with nothing but a huge set of Kingdom Hearts songs going for it. The fact that it goes out of its way to emulate the visuals of the series and recaps major story moments elevates it to something more. It's a shame that the new story elements of the game are held off until the very end, and that Kairi isn't even a playable character despite being on the cover of the dang game. Those issues alongside a surprising amount of missing Kingdom Hearts 3 music and a tacked-on item system add some awkward wrinkles to an otherwise magical, musical, melodic nostalgia trip for Kingdom Hearts die-hards.

Tenderfoot Tactics’ uncompromising design and freeform structure might feel alienating to some, but persevere, and you’ll find a deeply thoughtful, nigh on meditative experience layered with creative, confident turn-based combat.

There's a lot to like about PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay, particularly when it comes to how accessible it is for its target audience. This is a game that even the most novice of gamers can pick-up, play and enjoy. It also looks great, my son delighting in seeing all the pups and their vehicles. On initial play my son declared he "super loved" it and gave the game two thumbs up, but over the course of only a couple of sessions, the game's obvious flaws began to dampen both his, and my, enthusiasm. Far too soon, this latest Paw Patrol video game had been entirely forgotten about as we've gone back to playing with Lego instead.

Being a visual novel, If Found… won’t be for everyone, but those willing to give it a try will find a beautiful and endearing story of self-acceptance. The gorgeous hand-drawn art and the story coming directly from a diary really give the impression of an insight to someone’s life, and the gameplay idea of actually erasing history and identity creates an intensely emotional experience.

The Signifier is almost an essential experience for anybody looking for a sophisticated and complex meditation on the effects of technological progress on the nature of humanity but as a game it doesn’t quite hang together. Even more frustrating is the fact that its short running time means that it ends just as it's starting to find its feet. As a result it’s a title that I am really glad that I have played but can’t fully commit to recommending it.

Shadow Fight Arena is another case of a perfectly good game that would be better if it wasn't free to play and loaded microtransactions. In spite of this though, you can quite easily ignore them and play the game, you'll just progress and unlock fighters much more slowly. The combat gameplay is still really enjoyable though. Carefully dodging a few attacks and responding with a perfectly timed blow to finish a match will never get dull.

Beyond Light isn't going to change anyone's mind about Destiny 2. Either you love the weekly grind, the increasingly complex lore, and pushing your mates off a ledge in a Raid, or you don't. For those who do, there's a lot to discover and plenty to grind for with the added benefit of the reworked game engine. They, like myself, will no doubt be sinking hundreds of hours into this over the next year. A solid, well executed update to Destiny 2, with even more content on the horizon.

Was Uppers worth the years-long wait to be able to play it in English? Probably not. Even as a fan of the titles Honey Parade Studios puts out, there's something disappointing about the way Uppers is too scared to fully commit to the gritty, hot-blooded front that it puts up. By having one foot in there and another firmly planted in the same-old T&A antics of the studio, it fails at truly capturing either aesthetic successfully. It's still a fun brawler with satisfying combat, and it looks amazing on PC, but there are plenty of areas where it could be improved on.

Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga is a very nostalgic game, but not in the way you might think. It's not that it's a beat 'em up, nor that it's based on an ageing franchise, or even because it looks like it should be able to run on a Sega Saturn. No, it's nostalgic because this a licensed video game that is fairly terrible, using its branding as a smokescreen to hide a multitude of problems from an unwitting buyer until it's far too late. It's just like the good old days. If this was 1991 then Cobra Kai would have been published by Ocean Software.

An unforgiving, unrelenting classic reborn for a new generation, Demon's Souls is no more accessible now than it was back in 2010 (though the frame rate is much better). If you've ever been the slightest bit curious about the Souls series then you can revisit ground zero in all its glory, making for one of the best PlayStation launch titles of all time.

As a single player game Bubble Bobble 4 Friends is utterly pedestrian, lacking the frantic pace of the original. Most of the repurposed features such as power ups and jumping on bubbles detract rather than enhance the experience, but add in some friends and it's still fun, especially if you want to be devious and sabotage the other players.

I didn’t expect Cardpocalypse to resonate with me as much as it did. It's a cute, clever and charming little homage to what CCG life used to be like. Sure, we didn’t have supernatural big bads running around the playground, but the excitement of opening a booster pack or getting a new rare to put in your deck really shines through. If you’re a CCG fan, or even if you just think back to your Pokémon cards with a sense of nostalgia, definitely give Cardpocalypse a look.

Oceanhorn 2's debt of inspiration to the Legend of Zelda series is hard to avoid, but it would be a shame to dismiss this as a simply copy or clone when it's a thoroughly enjoyable experience in and of itself. Given the more expansive, survival-based turn that Zelda took with Breath of the Wild, there is actually a real niche for the oldschool dungeon approach and Oceanhorn 2 fills this with aplomb. It may be I Can’t Believe It’s Not Zelda, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Observer: System Redux is well worth playing if you enjoy psychological thrillers, a dash of cyberpunk, and noir detective fiction, and it all looks fantastic on the new consoles. The story has many layers to it, exploring the nature of parent child relationships, corporate domination, human augmentation, and mental health.

Age of Calamity is, for all intents and purposes, a prequel to Breath of the Wild. It might be a spin-off in a separate genre, but it’s clearly a labour of love, and the result is a thoroughly enjoyable romp through one of the most interesting periods of Hyrule. If the first game was a love letter to the Zelda series, this not only improves on this concept in every way, but stands as one of the best Zelda games, period.

Another incredibly impressive port, Sniper Elite 4 hides the cutbacks that have been needed to squeeze the game onto Nintendo Switch very well. I'd love to see more finesse to the motion controls, and the DLC pricing does feel a bit dear at this point, but Rebellion have outdone themselves with this effort.

It takes a while for Godfall’s combat to truly open up and when it does, you’ll revel in its beefy ballet of well-timed blows and counters. That said, it’s hard to ignore the flimsy scaffolding that keeps this PS5 launch title standing, the lack of matchmaking, and a loot system you’ll quickly lose interest in. Although still great fun in short bursts, this isn’t the rousing next-gen RPG experience you’ve been searching for.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is a decent entry in the series, but it feels like it doesn't quite know what it wants to be. The campaign is full of underused ideas, while the multiplayer misses some of the magical charm of Modern Warfare, opting for faster paced aggressive battles which just don’t feel as satisfying. While still enjoyable, Black Ops Cold War fails to recapture the magic of Black Ops 1 and 2.

NBA 2K21 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S is a big step forward for the franchise and easily the best version of this year’s basketball franchise. There might be the feeling that features were shorn from the current gen release to give it more impact, but from the inclusivity of featuring the WNBA in MyPlayer, to the sprawling The City online hub and the stunning graphics and gameplay improvements, this will keep you and your new console happy well into 2022.

Perhaps not quite as transcendental as it is in VR, Tetris Effect: Connected remains an incredible, visionary piece of work, that you can now experience with others. With its arrival on Xbox Series X, it can be a game for a new generation.

Some games demand a remaster, to be brought bang up to date for an entirely new audience to find and enjoy. Asterix & Obelix XXL is not one of those games. In 2003 it was a solid, if unremarkable, effort. Now, seventeen years later, it just feels entirely unnecessary, with drab combat, pointless collectables and frustrating challenges. If you really need an Asterix and Obelix fix, best just go back and reread the comics I'd say.

Rune II: Decapitation Edition is an entirely new game rather than just an update of last year’s release. It may look like it’s competing with Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla for your Viking gaming time but it is a very different experience. At its best in co-operative multiplayer, Rune II is a throwback to the chaotic and brutal combat of early third person ARPGs and offers a blood-soaked alternative to the clinical and focus-grouped approach of many games. So gather a band of your most loyal friends and prepare to set sail – this Ragnarok isn’t going to end itself.

A confident, creative approach to the RTS genre that falters in its structure and progression systems.

I honestly didn't know what to expect when I sat down to play Monster Prom XXL, what is a high school multiplayer monster dating sim anyway? The answer is: a whole lot of fun with some big laughs to be had. How long that fun will last with such a repetitive structure is up for debate however. One thing's for certain though: Monster Prom XXL is the best high school multiplayer monster dating sim I've every played.

You owe it to yourself to play No More Heroes, and if you do, it needs to be on the Nintendo Switch.

Sackboy: A Big Adventure starts off slow, feeling like a hollow reflection of the franchise, but eventually grows into its new 3D platforming elements. It's at its best when it blends the new with the old, when there's power-ups, side-scrolling and a meaningful challenge, but it takes a bit too long to get it together.

I realise that my complaints could easily be dismissed as an old man complaining about the whole rave experience but, if anything, I wanted Strobophagia to be more of a sensory overload than it turned out to be. Everything just feels like it’s been dialled down a few notches, and consequently it doesn’t engage you as much as it should. With some fine-tuning and, more crucially, some better music, this still has a lot of potential to offer up an original and effective horror experience. It just isn’t quite there yet.

Gears Tactics gets a no-nonsense port to Xbox One and Series X|S, feeling at home on console and looking great on Series X in particular. Jack's wide-ranging buffs and abilities give a helping hand through the Jacked campaign, but in either mode, this is a slick turn-based tactical game that should appeal to XCOM and Gears fans alike.

Joy, wonder and engrossing park management come together to spectacular effect in Planet Coaster: Console Edition. Frontier are masters of the park building art, and as we enter a new console generation that's never been clearer.

A larger more ambitious game from Giant Squid that shares influences with Breath of the Wild only to subvert it in clever ways: retooling a bow as an ingenious mode of traversal and puzzle solving, an open world with no map, and a shooter where you don’t have to aim. It’s an accessible and streamlined approach making for an unmissable adventure to lose yourself in.

Bright Memory is a rare good-bad game that's enjoyable partly because of its oddities and flaws, but there's signs that its sequel Bright Memory Infinite could actually just be good.

Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin has a lot going for it, from a fun and quirky protagonist to snappy combat and gorgeous visuals. Above all else, though, it's one of the most immersive and rewarding farming experiences in gaming. To slowly toil through each step of the process and eventually reap your rewards is a delight, and even if the combat encounters can sometimes become a frustrating chore, the slow process of cultivating the rice harvest is always a treat.

DMC5 Special Edition for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S builds on the excellence of the original release. It's not the most essential purchase, since you will soon be able to buy Vergil as DLC for the original release, but with some new game modes like Legendary Dark Knight difficulty and the new graphical options making the game smoother/prettier than ever before, it's sure to be tempting for fans of the series. Our original review score follows.

Bugsnax is a unique and wonderful experience, and a must-play for anyone who can get their hands on it. If you’re lucky enough to have secured a PS5, make sure you make the most of PlayStation Plus and pick up your free copy while it lasts. If not, this game is still well worth your hard-earned cash.

We’ve been primarily reviewing the game on PlayStation 4, twiddling and tapping with our thumbs while patiently waiting for the ability to upgrade to the PlayStation 5 version of the game, but have also had access on Xbox Series X. While it looks as good as you’d expect from the recent series on PS4 Pro and performs nicely, there’s a healthy step forward for resolution and frame rate with the next-gen console. Load times are shorter, shrinking down to around 10 seconds of Eivor standing in a watery void, while the world is crisp and sharp at 4K and runs with a 60fps target. The only real blemishes are some light, but noticeable environmental pop-in, and ripples of screentearing down the screen that seem to occur more commonly during cutscenes, but can also happen during regular gameplay at times.

DIRT 5 strips away the more serious elements of the franchise and puts all its eggs in one, arcade cabinet shaped, basket. At times a riot, in other areas a little repetitive and lacking in finesse, it nevertheless delivers on the concept of an adrenaline-fueled off-road racer. It’s a game that makes you sit forward in your seat and savour the joys of jumping a Dakar Rally Peugeot 3008 over a ravine.

If you are looking for a charming little puzzler and hidden object game then you cannot go wrong with I Am Dead. The story experience can be swept through in a few hours, and they will pass quite quickly, but it's an unforgettable journey.

Need for Speed Hot Pursuit Remastered is the perfect reminder of what Criterion brought to the franchise, with a blisteringly fast arcade racer that’s made all the better if you’ve got the ability to play it at 60fps. The main downside is that your Autolog wall is more likely to splashed with your solitary achievements, rather than the consistent flow of competition you experienced a decade ago.

Astro cements himself as the PlayStation 5's mascot with a celebration of all things PlayStation that also showcases the full potential of the immersive new DualSense controller. Astro's Playroom is the first thing you should play on PlayStation 5.

There are also multiplayer and co-op online modes as well as weekly challenges where you can share your mixes online. Although you still use the same set of tracks and instruments they are scored quite differently, but as the game has not yet launched I could not find anyone to play against, hence this is a review in progress. We will update this review with a score once I’ve had a good stab at the online modes, but for the moment, despite my DJ diva heckles being raised to the highest point, I can say it’s pretty good.

I find myself a little perplexed by The Falconeer. I still thoroughly enjoyed my time with the game, but it almost felt like I was doing so in spite of how I felt about the gameplay. I do think The Falconeer is going to find an audience that loves it wholeheartedly, but also that there will be plenty of others for whom this falls a bit flat too.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales feels like more of a sequel than it is a stopgap, entangling players within its web of cleverly refined mechanics while delivering some familiar web-slinging thrills. A heroic technical showcase for PS5 owners picking up their consoles on day one, this meaty side story in the Spider-Man saga has us even more excited than before to see what Insomniac Games have planned next.

Cloudpunk delivers the look and feel of a cyberpunk city, it just doesn't fill the city with anything of interest. The story is okay and there's some side conversations to keep you amused, but once the novelty of driving around Nivalis wears off, you'll recognise that this is a game made entirely of fetch quests. The city looks gorgeous, it's just a shame it doesn't have more attractions.

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? stays faithful to the show's traditional format, packing in thousands of questions and several modes for both local and online multiplayer – the battle royale mode is a pretty good idea. There can be some odd difficulty spikes though, not to mention the need to grind to unlock more question packs and the player avatar and host doing little more than taking up space. A practical recreation that lacks any sort of soul.

Yakuza Like a Dragon is an enjoyable new twist on the series, although it’s not hard to imagine that many long-time fans of the series will be put off by its slow pace. In a day and age where video game companies rarely take risks, Like a Dragon is a refreshing change of pace for a series that risked starting to feel stale. [Review in Progress]

Supraland is an absolute joy to play and deserves to do well on consoles. Don’t judge this book by its cover and expect a simplistic kid’s game, because Supraland is a magnificent fusion of gaming’s most legendary series, all wrapped up in a narrative and aesthetic that skewers some of mainstream gaming’s worst excesses. Not all the jokes land, some of the puzzles may have you searching for hints, but you owe it to yourself to drop the dreary space marines and depressing post-apocalyptic worlds and surrender to the colourful wonders of Supraland.

Jurassic World Evolution: Complete Edition offers a huge wealth of content, and all of the dinosaur park building you could ever want, but the drop in visual quality to squeeze it onto the Switch will prove too much for some people.

Commander ’85 will go down as an interesting curio that fulfil its promise and is held back by bugs and glitches. It's difficult to recommend more than maybe checking out a Let’s Play of this unsatisfying game. Commander ’85 is another example of why we sometimes should leave the past in the past.

Silent Hill by way of Japanese horror, Re:Turn makes a more than decent attempt at inciting fear in the player. It might be handled in a way that comes across a little hammy at times, but the fantastic atmosphere incited by the visual and sound design more than make up for this. Sprinkle in some excellent puzzles and an engrossing story and you’ve got one hell of a reason to turn up those headphones and turn down those lights.

Wingspan is a serene, blissful, drop-dead gorgeous digital board game. While its turn-based engine-building gameplay may not be for everyone, it’s the ideal game to unwind with alongside a mug of cocoa after a long day. Multiple play modes make this a great purchase for players of any age that enjoy strategy and a healthy dose of animal facts.

If there was ever a time to sit down with some friends and play a scary game, it's Halloween 2020. Little Hope fits the bill perfectly. The annoyances found in Man of Medan have been almost completely removed leaving a spooky tale with jump scares to giggle about, heart racing action, and tonnes of atmosphere. For £25 Little Hope is an absolute steal and highly recommended.

ScourgeBringer has a mostly enjoyable flow to it and some great visuals, if you can see them in the chaos. However, it’s joining the cavalcade of roguelites around at the moment, and brings little new to the table, outside of some often burdensome bullet hell elements. If you’ve got an itch for recurring death and frustration, this will definitely satisfy for a time, but there are far better examples of the genre out there.

Pacer is a magnificent anti-grav racer that’s more than capable of filling the Wipeout-sized hole in your life.

Watch Dogs Legion is a different type of sequel to Watch Dogs 2, contrasting in its approach to creating a hackable open world playground, but with no less impressive results. Playing as any citizen in London leads to some less-than-engaging story moments, but the web of relationships and activities that crop up as a result of the systemic design is mind-blowing. I rarely did the same thing twice in Watch Dogs Legion, and if I did, I wasn't doing it the same way twice. Watch Dogs Legion truly feels like a living, breathing world, and it's a world that I plan to revisit often, even though I've seen the credits on the main story roll.

Nintendo continues to revive what some might call their lost generation of games. Pikmin 3 Deluxe is yet another Wii U transplant though one that slots seamlessly into Switch’s first party line-up. Although unwieldy and slow to start, Nintendo’s charming inventiveness has produced an intriguing, if not excellent, entry in the strategy genre.

Frankly, Double Pug Switch is just not a fun game. It's meant to be challenging, but the worst of this comes from sticky controls and a buggy game. Coupled with the intentional disregard for the safety of cute things, this is a game which ends up infuriating. Maybe it plays better on the PC or other consoles, but I cannot in good faith recommend it for Switch.

If you didn’t get a chance to play this as a kid or take the opportunity to play the remake, I’d strongly recommend giving it a go before Abe Soulstorm — the reimagining of the game’s sequel — arrives on the PS5 next year. Though the humour is juvenile at best, with Abe often communicating in chuckles and farts, it is a perfect example of someone finding light and hope in utter darkness. We could all do with a bit of that right now, couldn't we?

Family is an exceptional narrative-based puzzle game which successfully encourages players to make their own logical conclusions using the information available on screen. If you consider yourself an indie music fan, I can’t recommend Family enough.

Ghostrunner answers the age old question of “What if the combat was actually good in Mirror’s Edge?” It perfectly pairs parkour style free-running with frantic, but precise combat to create movie-like action sequences. This is all backed up by a fun narrative that drives the gameplay forward at a blistering pace. Ghostrunner is honestly a must-have for PC players and the most fun I’ve had reviewing a game this year.

9 Monkeys of Shaolin is so close to being a really good side-scrolling brawler that it physically hurts. Hurts worse than a rolling cartwheel kick to the soft and delicates. There's a truly brilliant, satisfying, fun and deep combat system here, but whether you can see it beneath the shadows, silhouettes, staircases and stupid Green Tea meters is another thing entirely.

There is some fun to be had in G.I. Joe Operation Blackout. The story is great but there is an over reliance on making you defend a position while wave upon wave on enemies attack. It's lower priced than most new releases but even taking that into account I can only really recommend this to die hard Joe fans.

Pumpkin Jack is a fun and nostalgic title that is perfectly placed to be your Halloween game this year. Highly recommended for any fans of old school platforming adventures, but also worth checking out for the spookier sorts too. It doesn’t revolutionise anything, but it also doesn’t outstay its welcome, and the fact that it is the work of a solo developer makes it even more impressive. This particular pumpkin deserves to carve out some of your seasonal gaming time.