The Padre is a game that pains me. It has potential, but gets stuck deciding what it wants to be and falls short of being good or interesting. The basics are there, but it looks like it still has some demons to exorcise to become truly great.

It's not a technical showcase by any means, but The Incredible Hulk is a decent enough game for Marvel fans and we can't deny that we had some fun with the physics; Hulk's later powers can be devastating. But when you've leveled the same building five times and caused 10 car pile-ups the fun wears thin.

Despite having a perfect soundtrack and wonderfully creepy voice-over, Brawl’s single-player misses the mark thanks to its insane difficulty.

For a brief moment of brilliance, Contra: Operation Galuga is the modern interpretation of a 2D run ‘n’ gun that we always wanted. But it's a fleeting moment, and what comes after is a deeply onerous experience that proves a trudge to see through to completion.

A purely basic simulator game. You plant, you cultivate, you harvest, you sell. That is the process over and over, with repetitive missions cropping unless you turn them off. If you’ve ever wanted to run a farm, then this is for you, but other than that there’s no real need for the game on console.

Stellar Wanderer DX isn't the most exciting or engaging example of the space sim genre and suffers from feeling too small and repetitive. Within its own bubble, it does get the basics of space combat and trading right, and fills a gap in this severely neglected genre.

Pikmin Bloom is a fine AR experience, but sadly it’s just not a good game. With the volume (and intensity) of bugs, the lack of things to actually do and a poor economy, Bloom's player base feels likely to wither without significant change. However, the game does already have a core group of players who absolutely love it, so watch this space. With enough bug fixes and quality of life improvement, Pikmin Bloom may well blossom into something worth playing.

You’ll get more out of the game the more you put in, and there’s some challenge here for the dedicated, but if forced I’d rather stick to the iPhone version which is far cheaper.

A dark-fantasy western RPG with a compelling world and an ambitious narrative, Weird West is undermined by awkward combat and micromanagement. Weird West's rotating multi-character perspective will be an acquired taste, but makes sense as a method of world-building. It’s got room to grow, but right now, it’s challenging to build momentum in the early game and to persevere through the mid-game.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood feels like it had the potential to be really good, but even though the combat is very satisfying, the drab interludes and disappointing stealth meant I spent a lot of the time asking when the game was going to be over. To me, that speaks volumes.

Dusk Diver 2 flies too close to the sun - and it isn't even aiming for the sun in it's own solar system. While the original game was a tight and exciting brawler, this sequel tries to pivot into a more methodical character-action style without the tools that make those games so rewarding. The result is a game with repetitive, sluggish combat dominating the entire experience. Fans might find crumbs of narrative intrigue to explore here, but newcomers have little reason to dive in.

But you’ll find that behind the bad animation and dodgy plot is a game that has sound ideas at its core.

It’s simple to just say that Starpoint Gemini 2 isn’t for everyone, but there are fundamental issues that really make this game utterly impenetrable. The presentation is generally of a good standard, and though the performance falters at inconvenient moments, it’s how the game deals with teaching players how things work that’s most disappointing. We’ve seen space simulations that work on consoles, but this particular trade isn’t worth what they’re offering.

The plentiful issues of Sword and Fairy Together Forever make it hard to recommend; lacklustre graphics, eye-numbingly long loading times, and uninspired combat do not a great action RPG make. And yet, and yet, if you can look past the problems you’ll find a charming RPG with fantastic mythology and an intriguing world to explore.

Although barren, its gameplay systems operate well enough, going hand-in-hand with developer Swordtales’ minimalist approach. That said, mechanically, it fails to do anything that truly immerses players any more than the game’s pretty visuals.

Hell as a location feels a bit bland, and without the other Saints to bounce off Kinzie and Gat aren’t that interesting or funny. Combine that with the lack of in-game music and customisation options and this entry is a step backwards for the series.

Panzer Knights has some fun tank combat and a wealth of customisation options, but it's ultimately held back by some frustrating gameplay quirks, and a story that takes itself far too seriously without the rich writing or polished grammar it needs to back it up.

It isn’t a fun puzzle game, and feels like a missed opportunity.

Despite it many flaws, I enjoyed BDSM and will be going back to get the Platinum trophy. It is mindless fun with occasional boobs, but really does need a good hard polish (honk honk) and a decent script editor.

In an industry filled with excellent couch co-op games, it’s really hard to recommend Shakes on a Plane. The gameplay is incredibly simple, offering very little variation outside of the core campaign mode. Unless you’re desperate for a multiplayer game, having finished everything else, this is one flight you can probably miss.

It doesn’t even matter that the gameplay here is so good and delightfully complex. Pox Nora on PlayStation 4 is a failure in execution rather than concept; an excellent card and strategy game that few will likely stick with because of the frankly unacceptable technical issues. Even frame rate issues could be overlooked, but parts of the UI failing part way through matches rendering them unplayable and the usual F2P always online syndrome casts a dark shadow over the rest of the game. Maybe just play it on PC instead.

Rumbral feels like it is just getting going when you hit the credits. There is a sufficiently good atmosphere and decent designs, but the lack of an engaging story to draw you in and some sluggish gameplay elements does let the overall experience down.

Omega Force has decided to experiment here, though it’s an experiment that fails to live up to its full potential. Having sampled some of the genre’s top flight titles, Godseekers’ brand of turn-based strategy feels shallow by comparison. Still, there’s enough here for ardent fans of the franchise to wring some enjoyment out of. For something that feels truly new and innovative, all eyes now turn to Dynasty Warriors 9.

Poison Control has some of my favourite art and character designs from any game this year, but that isn't anywhere near enough to carry the entire experience. The dual-character combat system is a fresh and stylish idea, but it isn't executed very well. Clunky movement and repetitive combat end up holding back this otherwise stylish and unique new game from Nippon Ichi Software.

There are some interesting ideas in War Sails but there’s a good reason why naval warfare was never a core part of the Bannerlord package. Sea battles just aren’t that appealing, lacking any kind of rewarding strategic depth or enjoyability. However, for those wanting a fresh way of tackling the campaign map, War Sails introduces new tactical opportunities and a layer of ship management some Bannerlord players will find themselves engrossed in. In short, this isn’t a must-buy expansion and for new players we’d recommend sticking with the base game.

I love the idea of Hunt: Showdown 1896, but in practise it's mostly abandoned by people either sprinting all the time or camping all the time. It's hard to "get good" in this game because, one; it doesn't tell you how to, so you have to watch youtube videos and read reddit threads to figure things as basic as what UI elements mean in the menus, and two; because everyone else is already good and you die before you can get anything done or learn anything. I've made some progress, but doing so was a frustrating and gruelling experience that wasn't entirely down to my own incompetence. If you're a glutton for punishment this could be the extraction shooter for you, but it's hard to recommend to anyone that isn't already embedded in it.

Whilst fifteen minutes may seem an incredibly short time for a game to last these days, most arcade shoot ’em ups are short and barely last half an hour. There’s nothing really new or exciting in Ghost Blade HD, but it’s a solid entry to a genre that is almost non-existent on current consoles.

Down The Rabbit Hole is a perfect example of a VR game utterly beholden to its format. It builds an incredible vision of Lewis Carroll’s Wonderland, and lets you interact with it, but completely forgets to give you any reason for being there.