Neon City Riders on Xbox One is a refreshing ‘80s neon interpretation of The Legend of Zelda with plenty of inventive ideas, both in its game design and stylistic presentation. It is certainly not an experience for the faint and impatient, but it may be just the thing for players yearning for those brutal gaming experiences from that decade.

If you’re looking for an in-depth survival experience, where deception is the biggest obstacle, then Project Winter is a great game to pick up. Just keep in mind that you’ll want a mic and it may take a couple of games to get into the swing of things.

If Stonefly was an insect, it would be a stinkbug: beautiful to look at, but lets off an unpleasant odour when you start grappling with it.

Who Pressed Mute on Uncle Marcus? is another Wales Interactive FMV game that is hugely enjoyable, especially in the way they have worked with the constraints of filming, inspired by it to give the situation the characters are in some form of context.

Redout 2 may not be for everyone, mostly due to the level of skill required to play, but for fans of the series it will go down like a fine wine… a very fast fine wine.

There is not a dull moment to be found in Evil West’s ten to twelve hour playtime. The storyline has the potential to ensure this could well turn into a massive franchise, and there’s just hope that any sequel may place more focus on cooperative play.

Shoulders of Giants is something of a grind, both in terms of gameplay and structure. Still, at its core there is fun to be had and hopefully potential to evolve in the near future.

#BLUD is a valiant attempt to break the mould of the traditional dungeon crawler but it fails to achieve its target at being more than this. If you are a fan of the genre and are up for a challenge then it is worth a play. Just be warned that it’s not only the vampires that are a pain in the neck.

Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is a very good game, as long as you go into it knowing what to expect. It isn’t a modern gaming experience, despite the new look, and there is no doubt that gaming has moved on a lot in the last couple of decades. Luckily, there is a charm to things that keeps dragging you forward, desperate to see what is going to happen to two characters next, and this is the big draw.

Project Highrise: Architect’s Edition is not quite as addictive as other big hitters in the sim genre, but the game offers an enjoyable experience and a solid challenge with plenty of detailed gameplay to get stuck into. However, things do slow down the further you progress with your building, and can become repetitive which may turn some players away.

If you love the series, there is still worth with Rock of Ages 3, offering up more levels of the same great gameplay. But in all other senses, the rock has been dropped here.

You'll probably find that GYLT is one of those games you'll struggle to put down, ripe for play with the family, particularly as the gameplay rarely challenges. Yes, the story may be dark, but GYLT is not gory and the visuals have a great look to them.

You may miss the straightforward single-player experience of previous Outlast games, but in The Outlast Trials the cooperative multiplayer experience feels original and well thought out. Fun to play with friends, it can be as scary as hell.

Not that it is recommended on a golf course, but EA have knocked it out of the park with EA SPORTS PGA TOUR. It is a welcome return for a series that no longer needs a golfing legend to grace the cover. And long overdue it has been too. The 2K PGA games have had us covered in recent years but there will only be room for one golf franchise going forward. Welcome back to the club, EA.

It may not bring massive changes to the genre table, and it may rely on a tried and tested formula, but there’s no denying that it’s a solid experience that offers a few good hours of fun, plenty of replayability and comes ready for newcomers and veterans alike to get stuck into the madness.

TopSpin 2K25 is a welcome return for the franchise and a solid reboot. The gameplay is strong, fast and fluid and exactly what you would expect from a tennis game. It is easy to pick-up and play but just about deep enough for those wanting to experiment. It is let down by some slightly off character models and is currently just a bit too light in terms of content, needing perhaps a few mini-games or even a doubles career mode to help flesh it out.

Into The Pit is fast paced, repetitive and ever so slightly tactical. It may seem simple at first, but it’s a real blast with hidden depths (quite literally) that keep it from becoming too much of a grind.

You Suck at Parking is a good-looking, cute little racer like no other; one that will have you trying to hone your skills over and over again. But just remember, no matter how good you may get, really you may just suck at parking.

Pinball FX is a pretty good place to begin your collection, but not good enough to duplicate it.

Knock on the Coffin Lid: Complete Edition is a pretty unique proposition in a crowded games market, and this makes it refreshing. The story is only revealed in dribs and drabs, and so you’ll need to keep plugging away to get to the bottom of the mystery, but be warned, this is a hard game, and if the cards run against you, there’s nothing you can do.

Onimusha: Warlords reminds me of simpler times; when games focused on the aspect of fun, instead of pure realism. Hence, the Inabayama Castle is a welcome destination for anyone who longs for the good old times.

I wasn’t expecting much with Monster Energy Supercross 3 on the Xbox One but came out the other end pleasantly surprised. Other sports simulations suffer from annual releases, rushed out on smaller budgets and littered with bugs but this is a very competent game.

Need for Speed Heat is fast, furious, fun, and the best Need for Speed game of recent years.

A Hat in Time is a top piece of work from a developer who embraces all that is great about an old style 3D platformer and then makes it their own with innovative and insightful fresh ideas.

The story is a good one, the twists and turns are surprising, and the change between the past and present is very effective in its concept. The gameplay is very old-school though, and the tracking back is irritating at times, while a chase section in the latter moments is not really needed. Overall though, taking into account the price and the 4 to 5-hour running time, it delivers a decent piece of old-style adventure gaming.

The main issue is the lack of any kind of tactical play in Divine Knockout (DKO). The best of these games have characters that can counter the moves of others, and that is entirely missing here. Just hammer X to win!

Not only is 88 Heroes a brilliant achievement for Bitmap Bureau, but, more than anything else, it is fun to play. Maybe it can be a little frustrating at times, but that comes with the platforming territory. The varied and fun gameplay, the different level areas, the humour, and finally the music (which is a chiptune masterpiece) all add up to make a truly fantastic game.

Even in the presence of so many great options for a Metroidvania experience, the quality of Timespinner is strong enough to warrant interest from not just genre fans, but anyone looking for a consistently engaging and polished 2D adventure epic. Timespinner is definitely worth your time.