Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy is a significant shift for the series, being the first-ever direct sequel with a returning protagonist in all of Atelier. While this isn't a perfect entry point for newcomers, Atelier Ryza 2 builds on every aspect of the previous game flawlessly. Even with some minor hiccups, the immersive exploration systems and addictive combat are top-notch. The gorgeous visuals and comfy music are just as much of a delight, but the best piece of the puzzle is the relatable narrative about growth and friendship that I won't soon forget. A highlight of the Atelier series, and an absolute must-play.

Stellar Blade is a pretty enjoyable game to swing your hairband sword at, so long as you don't mind the obvious sexualisation. There's a few rough areas, but nothing to spoil things overall and there’s plenty of interesting story to uncover as you fight your way through giant monsters with circular saws for heads and weird tentacles for legs.

Steins;Gate 0 is phenomenal. Every part of it is bigger and better than the game that came before it.

Redout is an ambitious attempt to recapture the glory of futuristic racing games, while paying homage to WipEout. The game’s controls and responsiveness have been fine-tuned to make the hardest of tracks very interesting and engaging to race across at supersonic speeds. Redout is an example of a game that’s given and old formula another coat of paint, but it could also mean the beginning of another futuristic racer franchise, in the absence of a true contemporary from Sony.

From the big marquee features to the small touches and hidden modes, Black Ops 3 features an awful lot of content, and every aspect of it is designed with cooperative play in mind. It can feel a bit disjointed in places, but it’s a broad and expansive game with plenty to enjoy, especially so when playing with friends.

Sifu is a game that I wanted to love. I had high hopes for it being one of my game of the year contenders, but it left me feeling intensely deflated instead. It's a game that confuses the precise mechanical difficulty of Sekiro with a forced difficulty brought on by simply giving bosses armour. I find myself irrationally angry with Sifu. Sifu is a game that had exceptional potential, but squandered it on the wrong lessons.

Anyone who is a turn based strategy game fan should be checking out Antihero, which deserves to find an audience so that its multiplayer base can flourish. This is a game that is easy to learn with a campaign that teaches you all the basics, but it can then throw a number of challenging scenarios at you. Antihero is a game that offers something a little different in the strategy genre, that’s easy to learn before throwing some challenging scenarios at you, and is genuinely fun to play.

Horace is one of the most pleasant gaming surprises in years. I'm clearly a key part of its target demographic, having lived through the 1980s and early 90s that so heavily influenced it, but my enjoyment and engagement went past such an identification. I was completely absorbed throughout, and fully intend to return to collect the remaining pieces of junk. It may not be as immediately impressive as the latest AAA blockbuster, but Horace is essential for fans of retro games or hard platformers and a real contender for Indie Game of the Year.

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.

Full of cute and cuddly jellybean dude bumbling into each other in a race for the crown, Fall Guys is just about the most wholesome battle royale imaginable, and a whole lot of fun.

On the surface, Void Bastards may just seem like another FPS, but there’s an element of strategy layered in which sets it aside from the rest. It takes a bit of the old, mixes it with the new, splashes it with a comic style aesthetic to make a truly wonderful experience that will challenge you to make good decisions, enable you to play how you want and you get to be called a Void bastard, which is brilliant. It feels like a breath of fresh air in a sea of FPS games that all do the same thing.

With driving that is now on par with the competition, WRC 9 will keep sucking rally fans back in for more. Elements around the core rallying action could still do with some added finesse, but when the basic premise is so solid, those issues fade into the background. At last, Kylotonn has delivered on the promise of authentic driving experience, and for a rallying game, I think that is the single most important element.

Black Myth: Wukong is a stunning game to look at, but the exploration is lacking, and the fighting is just sort of fine for the most part. It's just a bit uninspiring, and isn't a game that I'm expecting to stick with me for any length of time now that I'm done with it.

BoxBoy! + BoxGirl! is another quirky, charming puzzle platformer from HAL. It might not have quite as outlandish box types as Bye-Bye BoxBoy!, but it makes up for that as a welcoming entry on Switch for newcomers, stacks and stacks of bitesized puzzles and a new co-op mode to boot.

It’s a game that Wii U owners simply need to experience, and one which other developers need to take note of when creating software for Nintendo’s unique console.

With the big push that Nintendo has given to Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past, it’s a shame that this is the black sheep of the main series. It’s not that it’s bad, far from it, and ArtePiazza have exceeded the original version in every way. Yet as much as I love the work they’ve done, the plodding nature of the game makes this the longest game in the series, for not necessarily the most compelling of reasons. A lovingly crafted game, and a dramatic improvement on the original, but not the best entry point to the franchise.

Just like its forbear, Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is an oppressive, powerful and haunting example of the power of video games, and one that sets its own parameters for what a digital experience can be. It is a game that must be experienced, not least because, there’s nothing else quite like it. [Review in Progress]

Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a great palette cleanser, not just in terms of tone but the way it's carefully designed. Well-paced and beautiful to behold with plenty to see and do, Ember Lab has well and truly captured the spirit of the 3D platformers many of us grew up adoring.

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.

One of the best point and click adventure titles to be released, and stands as an example of what the genre has to offer. I would easily place it in the company of revered adventure titles like Grim Fandango or Tales Of Monkey Island, perhaps even surpassing them as it takes what made those titles great and expands upon them.

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 might not be as much of an evolutionary leap forward as Super Street Fighter IV was to Street Fighter IV, but it's a step in the right direction.

There’s a sense that this is Splash Damage and The Coalition playing to the crowd with Gears Tactics. It undoubtedly captures the look and feel of the Gears universe, squeezing it into a slick turn-based tactical game, but while I can see a few genre fans attracted to its more cerebral form of warfare, it’s the series fans who are going to get the most out of it.

Trails Of Cold Steel II feels less like a sequel, and more like the second half of an incredibly rich JRPG experience. There’s a lot to take in between both these titles, and it can feel like a slog at times, especially with the first game. Cold Steel II does a great job of making that slog worth it, and delivers with an action packed story and a consistently challenging gameplay experience. It’s a hard sell for anyone who wouldn’t normally play a JRPG, but for fans of the genre it’s a cut above a lot of other modern examples, and for fans of Cold Steel I, it’s a must-buy.

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes is another enjoyable slice of Musou action, even if it does little to advance either franchise. Fans of Fire Emblem will adore chatting to the huge cast of returning characters as much as going into battle with them.

Every area of the game feels polished and complete.

Despite being a very blatant homage to Fire Emblem, Dark Deity consistently new layers to both the combat, the strategy, and the characters themselves to keep things feeling fresh. While I don't think the story is quite up to the same standard as its inspiration, I almost prefer the combat here along with the way classes work. Dark Deity is a must-play for fans of strategy RPGs like Fire Emblem, and I'm confident I'll be coming back to it regularly for a long time.

While I didn’t really engage with the characters and narrative as much this time around, the action and sheer wealth of content more than made up for it.

The Last Campfire is a delightful little game that succeeds on both an emotional and a mechanical level, combining tried and tested environmental puzzles with an intimate and personal story. It represents a huge departure from the title that made Hello Games (in)famous but is a perfectly formed experience that continues to entertain throughout its well-judged duration. Probably the best thing to happen to campfires since toasted marshmallows.