Super Mario Maker 2 is all that the original was and more. The Story Mode feels like a proper campaign, demoing all of the old and new feature and barmy possibilities found in the intuitive level creator. It's a shame that it features some typical Nintendo online stumbles, but it shouldn't be long before that's forgotten in the face of the boundless creativity of the Super Mario Maker community.

Slay the Spire takes the best parts of roguelites, dungeon crawlers, and card games, and mixes them together into an unholy, but absurdly enjoyable game. It’s the kind of game that gets under your skin and uses it like a tent, just camping out and reminding you that you aren’t playing it. It’s the kind of game that you can jump in for one quick run and suddenly realise that you've been playing for five hours and should really be asleep. It’s the kind of game that is easy to play, hard to master, and impossible to put down. What more could you want?

A fantastic game and although the progression may be similar to the first, the action feels a lot fresher.

Monster Hunter Rise is an incredible game. While it may not feel quite as ground-breaking for the series as World did, it boasts a stronger and distinctly Japanese identity, and the changes and streamlined gameplay simply focus on the franchise’s true stars – the monsters. Rise is easily one of the best games for the Nintendo Switch, and one of the finest Monster Hunters ever.

Fire Emblem Fates: Revelation offers more of the same fantastic gameplay found in Birthright and Conquest. Fans of the series will be well served by the extra campaign, and for anyone that’s already played through at least one of the other storylines, it’s an essential addendum to one of the 3DS’ finest titles.

Civilization VI is my new favourite addiction that I honestly can’t really fault. Each of the gameplay changes provides a fresh challenge, but they were well worth undertaking once they clicked. It’s packed full of the stuff that made the previous games great, but also has a crisp style that makes things clear enough when the game gets extremely busy.

Operations mode is the standout addition to the multiplayer, bringing together the behemoths, the destruction, the hellish screams of people charging into the fight. I do wish that the single player had been able to push on and draw more from that excellent opening, but stepping back to the First World War helps to give Battlefield 1 a refreshing and invigorating veneer to the game, and it’s lost none of the series’ explosive gameplay in the process.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is a wonderful remake of a GameCube classic. Now in a modern game engine, but with all the quirkiness and charm of the original story and characters, and with a return to the original Paper Mario combat style, it's great for Mario RPG fans and newcomers alike.

Separate Ways is a fantastic addition to Resident Evil 4 Remake and really cements its place as one of the series’ best. Add in some unexpected nods to wider aspects of Resident Evil lore and you have a DLC that works both as extra content to the main game and wider fan service too. If you enjoyed the RE4 Remake then this DLC is pretty much an essential purchase.

Monster Hunter World on PC offers the same awesome experience that console gamers have been enjoying, and brings one of the best games of recent times to a slightly different audience. With the right kit you’ll be able to push the game further than anywhere else, and with the promise of future updates it’s likely to become the definitive version, even if it’s not quite there yet.

Diablo III Eternal Collection is the best version of a classic game, and on Nintendo Switch it makes more sense than ever, whether playing alone or with others.

Dave the Diver is a bountiful feast of sushi prep, fish hunting, and store management. The Nintendo Switch version, however, hampers what would otherwise be the most rewarding and feature-rich management game of the year.

We're not saying that the story mode here is any worse (or better) than previous titles in the series – it's easily on par, but it's also rather stoic in its mechanics and a few more diversions would have elevated it beyond its PS3 contemporaries. But as a platform for your own imagination (and one generously compatible with much of LittleBigPlanet 2′s DLC) it's unmatched, and as limitless as you'd want it to be.

A genuine joy of a game and one which is simultaneously approachable and impossibly deep, Deadfire is a fantastic sequel and one which you will be thinking even when you are away from its world.

Nex Machina is the pinnacle of all things Housemarque, with concepts and ideas that have been refined over many games in their purest form. That’s both its strength and its weakness, as there is nothing you haven’t seen before in one of their previous games. If you are a fan of the Finnish developer’s game, this is still an essential purchase, but if you’re a newcomer, this is the best place to join the party.

By taking some inspiration from others, Team Ninja do prove with a rich combat system and solid foundation that they have the ability to surprise and innovate. The vast majority of the game is a pleasure to play, despite the fact that death is around every corner. There’s a lot I’ve not even touched upon in this review, simply because it’s better experienced than told. For Koei Tecmo at least, all the effort was well worth it.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 continues to fulfil the uncompromising vision of the first game. It weaves together a world of lords, knights, peasants and bandits in medieval Europe, with poor Henry of Skalitz caught somewhere in the middle just trying to cope. It's grand in scale whilst being full of fine details and it sometimes gets in its own way a little bit, but if this is your kind of game it'll be one that you don't want to end because there's nothing else quite like it.

Nostalgic, lovingly crafted, moving, and surprising, Omori is a remarkable achievement. Earthbound and Undertale are easy comparisons, but Omori stands out as it's own, highly personal piece of storytelling.

Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection gives PC gamers their first taste of Nathan Drake’s amazing adventures. It would be nice to have the original trilogy remasters on PC as well, but this is still a great chance to experience two of the best action games of the last decade.

Paradise is a wonderful game: it's inventive, confident and brilliantly produced and just shows what's possible when developers make the PS3 the lead console. If you're even remotely into racing games, this is one you can't afford to miss out on.

Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is the gold standard of JRPG remakes - a perfect blend of the charm and nostalgia of the original with all the right elements of a modern-day masterpiece.

A brilliant, hugely enjoyable racer - certainly the best on the PS3 so far - and one that we reckon no fan of the genre can afford to miss. It's deep, involving, fun to drive and an absolute blast with mates.

Hideaki Itsuno, my hat goes off to you and your crew. It's only March, and yet Devil May Cry 5 is another clear Game of the Year contender. The silly arguments on whether the original DMC or DmC is better can stop now, because DMC5 is here and it’s bloody brilliant. This is a proper return to form for the series, something that fans of both can get behind.

Persona 3 Reload is a dream come true for Persona fans. With far more than just a visual uplift, this is very much the best possible edition of the game, even if it can’t quite be called ‘definitive’.

Injustice 2 has built upon the original in every way and then added a whole host of content on top, setting a new standard for fighting games.

Unique, divisive, and fiendishly clever, there are bound to be those who love it and those who absolutely hate it. Then there are those, like myself, who fall somewhere in between, able to appreciate Thekla’s achievements but frustrated at how The Witness continues to build a wall around itself, as if guarding a secret from its players.

Doom is a truly spectacular bit of ultraviolence, but it’s deceptively smart in how it goes about it. It knows that all you want to do is blow stuff up in increasingly more brutal ways, leading to a single player that is probably the best FPS campaign since Wolfenstein: The New Order. While multiplayer is almost a damp squib, Snapmap allows for those with creative minds to unleash their creativity with an easy-to-learn map editor. To describe Doom in two words: Bloody brilliant!

BlazBlue is a wonderfully presented game which should appeal to the more casual audience thanks to its easy and accessible control system. It also looks absolutely fantastic and is a blast to play. If you’re after a 2D fighter then you will certainly not go wrong with this one. Outstanding stuff.