Riders Republic on Xbox takes the basic framework of Steep and adds a whole load more to it to create a very fun arcade sports title. The skiing and snowboarding events feel like the SSX games in their heyday, the rocketsuit and wingsuit events are exhilarating, and the bike events ensure you are constantly one wrong move from total disaster.

With Creature in the Well on Xbox One, what could have been a novel and gimmicky take on pinball action is instead one of 2019’s best looking, best feeling indie games.

At its heart, Fishing Sim World is a worthy successor to Euro Fishing. It builds on what its predecessor did right, and expands the range of opportunities in a sympathetic way. It’s not perfect, and immersion breaking glitches are disappointing, but all in all, we have a new champion fishing game.

Fusion Paradox is a twin-stick roguelite that is a little rough around the edges, and its ideas don’t always work. But it’s so full of ideas that it’s hard to stay frustrated at it for long. There’s abundant care in the colour-matching mechanics and huge, rewarding dungeons, and that care wins out over the flaws. Shoulder the shotgun and treat yourself to a few runs.

Football Manager 2024 Console Edition allows you to create a story of your own, dealing with your destiny across one club or many, all as you get to oversee every last detail.

EA Sports UFC 4 on Xbox One is essentially a one-trick pony on the game mode front – the Career – but what a thing of beauty it is. Especially as it’s complemented by the most enjoyable and fluid gameplay to date, providing a real adrenaline rush. The online modes are fine and will keep the best fighters engaged for a little while, however it really could do with just something else bringing added substance for the sake of longevity.

Mr. Shifty is a great game that has a need for some TLC to get it into shape.

This is undoubtedly a Mana game, albeit for the present day. Visions of Mana may not break the mold, but it proves just how magical the series can be.

The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria is a deeply entertaining adventure that will please those who are happy to sink some serious time into exploring the dangerous but delightful Dwarrowdelf.

If you are looking for a casual puzzle-platformer that you can beat in an afternoon, then Overloop is a neat little game to pick up.

Silt is a stunner. It’s not quite able to deliver the same type of immersion that was honed by the Playdead team and their adventure telling, but it really isn’t too far off. This is an underwater playground that is full of mystery and aside from a few little technical issues, is one that fans of visual-led stories should lap up.

Infinity Strash: DRAGON QUEST The Adventure of Dai is one that you will enjoy a lot. Numb feeling combat aside, the way that our heroes grow and evolve as we go is classic Dragon Quest, whilst the finding of the Bond Memories soon becomes an obsession. The presentation of the story using scenes from the anime will draw you into the narrative more than you may expect and so this is most definitely a game worthy of the Dragon Quest moniker.

No Straight Roads is a love letter to the old school. From its rock versus electronic story to its gameplay and characters, this could fit in with any of the classics from the PS2 era and it's all the better for it. It doesn’t just appease this longing for the old, it entirely satiates it.

If you’re the type to be suckered in by a deckbuilder then be warned: Pirates Outlaws is so covered in suckers that it may as well be an octopus. Be prepared to be in its grip for a few months.

Countless Army is the most fun I’ve had in a game this year. There will be games that usurp that title, and those games will be infinitely more lavish and better executed. But for now, this little strategy-game-that-could, this reversed Tower Defence, is attached to me like a limpet. Frankly, I’m fine with that relationship.

Sunseed Island knows what it is, in fact, it relishes in the knowledge it’s a farming sim and never oversteps the mark into being pretentious or overbearing.

I can't fault what Active Neurons 2 has set out to do. It's a delightfully addictive puzzler that does what it needs to do brilliantly, without breaking any boundaries or ever reinventing the wheel.

What this amounts to is a superb story that occasionally dips into the sublime, but doesn’t manage to clasp its fingers around your heart like To The Moon, Gone Home and other similar narrative adventures. A Space For the Unbound deeply wants to be in the same category, but its earliest moments are too wayward, too slow to generate momentum. Regardless, this is a rich yarn with a fantastic ending, so find some space for it if you can.

The main character may need time to grow on you, but the complex narrative and the questions that arise in your mind will guarantee that you’re hooked in for a thrilling ride. Sure, it can occasionally be slow-paced, but nevertheless the puzzling sections keep things ticking over nicely.

King of Meat does a lot of things right, with its fun gameplay and co-op action that provides short, sharp hits of chaotic fun. It's a game that makes you want to keep coming back.

Gaijin Charenji 1: Kiss or Kill is perhaps the most absurdly metaphysical experience in gaming, but even when it dives so deep into abstract art and symbolism, it never forgets to be an addictive video game first and foremost. This is a unique video game experience which invigorates the gamer at their most base instinct, and yet it also creeps into their consciousnesses just as profoundly.

If you are looking for a short puzzle-game, with a nice, classic visual-style, and some satisfying puzzles to beat, then Gardener’s Path is well worth the buy.

If you love Jurassic Park and/or dinosaurs, it’s a no-brainer. And for anyone else, you could certainly do worse than give it a go - after all, the quality of the pinball is rarely in doubt where Zen Studios are concerned.

Got a hankering to return to your old Super Mario World cartridge? Give Armabilly a shot and it might just satisfy that urge.

Kaiju Big Battel: Fighto Fantasy is a worthy entry in the RPG genre. It is so silly and overblown that you can almost hear the voices of the wrestlers coming out of the TV. Knowing what Kaiju Big Battel is all about will increase your appreciation for the in-jokes, but even without that, the game is capable of standing on its own two feet.

As unwelcome as Drop Duchy can be in its mid-game, I have no hesitation in saying that it’s worth it. Tetris is a pretty awesome foundation to build on, and Drop Duchy - Complete Edition stacks resource gathering, roguelike runs and simple strategy on top.

Despite not breaking new ground, Sea Horizon is a thoroughly enjoyable card based strategy game that offers both challenge and adventure.

Ultimate Solitaire Collection might be a little sterile, but it plays well with a pad in your hands, and there are more features and modes than you could possibly exhaust. By rights, a collection this big should have cut corners somewhere, but Ultimate Solitaire Collection only has a few usability nobbles. It’s a modest triumph, then, and while it might not be the sexiest of purchases, it might be one of your most played when you look back in a year’s time.