A dark and twisted fantasy RPG which uses elements of survival games to great effect, Smoke and Sacrifice is a beautiful piece of indie software. Tonally and physically challenging, the artistry on display sets it apart from its peers, creating a foreboding world that’s well worth being drawn into.

Ys IX: Monstrum Nox is the most ambitious Ys game to date, delivering a larger focus on narrative and a much more involved and organic world to explore. The game stumbles under its ambitions a bit, with a slow opening chapter and a consistently struggling framerate. Despite those issues, though, this is easily one of the best entries in the long-running franchise, and while veteran fans will get a lot out of the callbacks sprinkled throughout the game, newcomers are still in for one of the best action RPGs of the year.

The Collider 2 is an excellent game when you just want to pick up and play something for a small amount of time, but investing longer stretches of time can lead to a build up of frustration, as you crash again and again.

The Last Clockwinder is a delightfully charming puzzle game suitable for all ages. With almost unlimited solutions to the puzzles and no time limits it's rather relaxing. It may not have the wow factor of some the other games in the PSVR 2 launch line up, but it's well worth a look.

It’s not the best Halo game I’ve ever played, but it is good, delivering most of the Halo essentials without compromise.

If we ever try to colonise our red neighbour, it’s going to be one of the greatest challenges that mankind will ever undertake. Though Surviving Mars makes a game out of it, Haemimont have brilliantly kept that hard edge, as it constantly pushes and tests your ability to plan with survival in mind, especially with the unpredictability of the Mysteries of Mars. There’s plenty of ways to improve it and put more colony control in the hands of the player, but the first landing is already off to a great start.

It provides enough entertainment and while it won’t be considered a classic it scratches the itch when you want to play something for a couple of minutes.

Cotton Fantasy is a beautiful love-letter to the best parts of an iconic, decades-old shoot-em-up franchise. The characters are cuter than ever, the shooting is funner than ever, and the wide variety of play styles and bonus stages to master makes this a game worth returning to plenty of times over.

Guilty Gear -Strive- excels in all the areas you’d expect it to – the music is sick, the characters look crazy, the fighting is fun, and May players deserve nothing. It’s an old dog that's been taught new tricks, and all of those tricks are rad as hell. At the same time, it feels like it can be so much more. The story mode is clunky and the Online Mode can use some work, but I’m sure as post-launch support ramps up we’ll see stellar improvements to both those fronts.

Despite its shortcomings in multiplayer, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time is a jam-packed experience that I still don't want to put down. It so easily lulls you into a loop of adventure and exploration and gathering, and just when you start to tire out from your adventure, you're reminded of three other things you could also be doing for a change of pace. I don't know if I'll stop playing it any time soon.

A fairly straightforward sequel to one of the Wii U's best games, Splatoon 2's unique take on the online multiplayer shooter is as fresh as ever on Switch. Nintendo still have one foot in the past with online functionality, stubbornly sticking to their (paint) guns when they should be learning from others, but these flaws are easily covered up once you get into a game. At its heart, Splatoon 2 is a second helping of one of the most inventive shooters of the last decade.

Fun, quickfire game modes and solid multiplayer shooting help steer Concord through an asteroid field of scepticism and unhinged vitriol but the space odyssey doesn't end here. Like any live service, Concord's ongoing vitality and potential appeal to new fans will hinge on its post-launch support, content roadmap, and building on Firewalk's exciting foundation.

A fantastic sci-fi game that’s well worth playing no matter how old you are. The physical toys are attractive enough to adorn any shelf, and robust enough to actually be played with, while a large collection of ships isn’t essential for completing the game, and there’s even an option not to use them at all. It’s a shame then that the story doesn’t quite live up to rest of the game’s promise, but you might be having too much fun to notice.

My Hero One’s Justice sees Bandai at their property-managing best, bringing a hugely enjoyable fighting game experience to the My Hero Academia franchise. The Switch version has a few rough edges, but ultimately the colourful anime brawling feels perfectly at home on Nintendo’s continually surprising handheld.

You won’t want to start every game of Three Kingdoms at 200 CE, but it’s a perfect place to jump headfirst into a tense, dramatic conflict already in play. Battles are even grander, and new additions make the strategy layer more interesting than ever.

If Where's Wally is your kind of jam, Hidden Through Time is a lovely digital recreation of that genre. With a cute aesthetic and pleasing creation and sharing tools, there's a lot here to keep the whole family entertained.

If you’re looking for a new local multiplayer game for you and your friends, then Paperbound might just be the right one, with its fresh take on the genre and brilliantly inspired aesthetic.

Golem Gates is a great strategy title that blends CCG and RTS elements into an enjoyable combat-heavy form, while offering a world and soundscape that I immediately fell in love with.

Astral Chain boasts the same winning elements of Platinum’s finest work – exhilarating combat, characterful visuals, and a compelling story – but it loses a bit of personality. Where Bayonetta and 2B provided an emotional centre point for the fantastical storytelling, Astral Chain’s unnecessarily silent protagonist is a charmless creation saved by an utterly charming world.

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.

New additions and returning favourites make Discover University a very strong offering, despite being the eighth expansion pack for The Sims 4. It improves on previous university-themed expansions but doesn't quite achieve the lively atmosphere of other DLC packs available for a similar price. A strong recommendation for hardcore Sims fans, but not a must-buy.

Capcom Arcade Stadium is a perfume soaked and kiss covered love letter to the arcade. Capcom really has set the benchmark for how iconic publishers should preserve their work for future generations. The pitch-perfect emulation is notable, but it’s the courage to make the necessary changes to classic games and ensure accessibility for all that is truly genius. Sure, having to buy everything in packs is a pain but you’re bound to uncover a few unexpected gems in the process. Now, how about that Rival Schools: United by Fate, eh Capcom?

Super Mega Baseball 3 is a good upgrade over its predecessor. The new franchise mode and player traits add depth, but it's still built around accessible baseball fun. If you want a sports game to enjoy with friends, something a bit less hardcore than MLB The Show, then Super Mega Baseball 3 is a great shout.

When you then add in the cute pixel art style, and the astoundingly good chiptune soundtrack, Monster Sanctuary not only blurs the lines between genres, but also between modern and old-school games. The story is a little light, but the gameplay is almost perfect, and this is an excellent monster-taming adventure and Metroidvania game all rolled into one.

With this latest batch of DLC, Frontier have taken Jurassic World Evolution to its natural conclusion. All that budding dinosaur park owners ever really wanted to do was create their own Jurassic Park and now they can, buoyed along by the deeply welcome return of the franchise’s most recognisable stars.

With a swish of the sword and a bit of improvisation, En Garde! is a fantastically fun action-packed adventure with a distinctive flair. Sure, it's a little bit short, but that doesn't make it any less sweet.

It’s a slightly more active, engaging iteration on the traditional Final Fantasy experience and one that works well, even away from its native platform. If you’ve been avoiding the series for a good few years then Type-0 is a great place to pick up the thread once again.

Dungeon Drafters is the Mystery Dungeon-Phantom Dust hybrid I never knew I needed in my life. It has all the excitement and challenge of a dungeon-diving adventure, bundled together with the one-more-pack thrill of a card-collecting game.