In the swapping gun, there is a fantastic idea that begs for a game to be built around it. But Swapshot isn’t slick enough, nor clever enough, to truly get the most out of it.

You may well applaud the basic story setup and retro visuals in Diorama Dungeoncrawl - Master of the Living Castle. But the gameplay loop gets too frustrating at times, more annoying than anything as we are left to repeat levels.

If you want a good solid FMV that is clever, brilliantly filmed, and has enough twists and turns to keep you interested then you should definitely give She Sees Red on Xbox One a go. However, if you after gameplay, or anything more than some action-orientated choices every eight minutes or so, then this isn't the game for you.

If you want a mental or physical workout, Catana is more like a fidget spinner: it might keep you occupied, but you’re not going to feel any better, or more tested, for playing it.

Lost Grimoires 3 is extremely safe, keeping you on a short leash as you explore, giving you few items and fewer places to use them. And while it starts from a new place, giving you the rule of a city and chucking you into a siege, it backtracks quickly to its traditional formula of running after magical beings and their MacGuffins.

Railway Islands – Puzzle goes full steam ahead with delivering great circuit based puzzles, but issues keep slamming on the brakes.

Overall and Rugby 18 is a game for die hard rugby fans who know every move and have the patience for the slow gameplay.

For all the collision weirdnesses and lack of treats for racing well, there’s a sturdy racer in Final Apex. It feels fast, it drifts well, and there’s surprising heft to the cars. Some driving games would give a front axle to control as well as Final Apex does; we just wish there were more satisfying things to do when you’re in the car.

A local two player run isn’t going to save 8DAYS from the mid table mediocrity that it’ll find itself in for the vast majority of gamers. If it wasn’t so damn annoying and completely irritating, then I’d happily be gifting it a bigger, better score, but the truth of the matter is that many will find too much they dislike for it to ever be a fun little title...And that’s a shame, because it could well have been pretty damn neat.

On one hand, I had an absolute blast with Immortals Fenyx Rising, so the promise of more of the same should be a good thing. But when so much is copied and pasted into Myths of the Eastern Realm on Xbox, it quickly becomes a shallow expansion.

Even though it is not as polished and original as some of its rivals, Windscape has a certain charm that is impossible to ignore. That said, it’s a bit of a slow burner, which may put some off, but should you get through those opening stages will find a a solid adventure game in its own right.

Crimson Spires is a visual novel shrouded in mystery; one which contains a plethora of intriguing plot points but ultimately fails to satisfy by not delivering answers to too many questions.

If you like a good puzzler, then Dying: Reborn is the champion of the conundrum, with twists and brain scratchers that will keep you occupied throughout. The controls are clumsy and don’t quite work right and the soundtrack when combined with the voice over is just plain annoying. But all that said, if you like the idea of being stuck in an escape room and like cerebral horror, then this could be for you.

TowerFall is certainly a very good local multiplayer game that a group of friends can enjoy night after night, honing their skills with the virtual bow and arrow. So it’s difficult then to say the rest of the game, and the price, lets it down. But it does.

Uncharted Tides: Port Royal on Xbox One is a real mixed bag on the whole. Focusing on the positives though and the visuals are lovely, switching characters every so often allows their skills to be used in a selection of enjoyable puzzles, and the mini-games are fairly varied. Unfortunately, there are a few mini-games that cause irritation and that’s not ideal for an otherwise relaxing game.

Burger Chef Tycoon is a bit like me in the kitchen: there are a few meals that I’m good at, so I make the same thing over and over. Burger Chef Tycoon’s menu is equally narrow. Once you’ve made the few dishes it has to offer, you’re going to want to go elsewhere for the next meal. Would sir like Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3?!, perhaps?

Ultimately, Light Up the Room takes a potentially infuriating premise - platforming in the dark - and finds a way to make it work.

Tap Wizard 2 is one of those rare idle games that actually requires more effort than might be expected. After early confusion with too much going on, there are some cool ideas to explore and the fact that you’re constantly making progress scratches the old ‘one more go’ itch. That said, the gameplay loop becomes repetitive once you figure out the purpose of everything and, just like that bloody cursor, it starts to grind on you.

There’s a fantastic premise at the core of Die With Glory on the Xbox. Rather than striving for victory, you’re looking to die spectacularly. But that premise never quite gets realised: the deaths are never outlandish, and the quests to get to them are too simplistic.

Dreamwalker: Never Fall Asleep on the Xbox One is the latest in a long line of Artifex Mundi titles that have attracted a cult following in recent years due to their revitalisation of point and click and generally easy achievements. Dreamwalker is no exception but feels a more run-of-the-mill offering this time around, rather than being a standout title.

It’s not a big game, or particularly clever, but what it does have is that gaming X-Factor; that hook that keeps you playing every time you accidentally blow a survivor up or get pogo'd by a punk zombie. With only three levels to go at, it’s not going to be hugely long-lasting, but you will have fun while it lasts.

Don’t expect to be amazed by anything you find, and make sure you switch the music off in an instant, but for the price, if you have the patience of a Saint, then you may as well head underground and help young Lily tread the footsteps of her grandfather.

Mad Tower Tycoon on Xbox is an entertaining and addictive sim game that can well be enjoyable for a good few hours, particularly once you get to grips with the control system. However, the asking price may well place it out of reach of many, and I would suggest sim fans give this a go when it drops in price a little.

If you’re a fan of design, engineering, or sim games, then you should have a lot of fun with Tin Can. The lack of a campaign or story may affect matters, but the methodical workings as you tackle problems feels brilliant; an original piece of addictive gameplay.

Fall of Porcupine has loads of brilliant stuff about it. It attempts to deal with a large-scale issue like health care and well-being with a game that features cute animals. The writing is good too, but it does get a bit overwhelming at times; what with the many different characters. But it's the pacing that is the biggest issue - Fall of Porcupine seems to drag at times, hindered by constant loading screens.

Anna’s Quest is a shrug of a graphic adventure. It goes to familiar fairy tale places for familiar fairy tale stories, but without the wit or edge to make it worth the re-telling. Not even a strong ending and a couple of high-concept digressions can pull it out of its safe rut.

When Tetraminos - Xbox Series X|S sticks to delivering Tetris on a budget, it’s an acceptable alternative. Four-player Tetris, alongside three single-player game modes, is a healthy bundle of stuff. Where it comes undone is when it remixes the formula.

Birdcakes is an alright game with an awful grind that drains the excitement away, but the price point could be enough to tempt you in to killing a load of flies and having a little fun along the way.