Intense doesn’t even cover it. Nex Machina is every bit as tough, exciting and absorbing as the eighties arcade classics that inspired it.

ARMS is a unique-feeling brawler with a surprising amount of depth. It also looks great, combining a colourful flair with some of the most realistic environments and characters the big N has made for some time. Its motion controls are also a resounding success...Yet, despite everything it does right, this won’t be a game for everyone. Lacking the meaty single-player component of a game like Splatoon, ARMS lives and dies on local and online multiplayer.

While many modern racers attempt to deliver a visual showcase, Dirt 4 instead focuses on what’s going on under the bonnet. Every vehicle – except those damn crosskarts – feels incredible, as if you're trying to tame some naughty mechanical beast. Each shunt deforms your car’s body, each lap cakes it in dirt, and you can see your driver’s head wobbling around as you drive over each bump. It’s super-convincing.

WipEout Omega Collection is a remaster that any fan is going to go loopy over, and there’s a high possibility it'll find a new audience, too. A very slick and well-designed update.

Featuring deceptively deep cooperative gameplay, Bridge Crew is the best virtual reality multiplayer game currently on the market – and it will give Trekkies multiple hours of joy...However, a lack of variety in missions, and the general asshattery of some players in public matchmaking, mean it’s a dish best enjoyed with a team of friends, not randoms.

The Walking Dead’s third season finale does what it has to do to tick all the expected boxes, and while not as high as the series has been, it’s still more than solid.

For those hardcore players there’s plenty to enjoy from the deep, rewarding and varied roster of characters, fully featured and seemingly lag-free online modes, as well as the refinements to the core combat that make Tekken 7 the best since Tekken 3.

While its cutesy aesthetic won't work for all, Portal Knights is a game that capitalises brilliantly on both its RPG and sandbox elements, elevating the merits of both. With seasonal events planned to keep players' attentions and an endless canvas to explore once you've completed the Story mode, this is a worthy challenger to Minecraft's throne.

While it’s reminiscent of Journey, The Wind Waker and Ico, RiME is so much more than a grab-bag of borrowed ideas. Combining art, craftsmanship, enigmatic storytelling and engaging gameplay, it does what the likes of Bound and ABZU couldn’t: wrap a powerful experience inside a compelling game. I’m still working out whether RiME is a masterpiece and, if so, where it sits in the pantheon of greats – but one thing’s for sure: if you love the games it’s inspired by, you’re going to love RiME as well.


Familiar territory but with better graphics, plus a few nice-to-have but non-essential extras...My biggest concern are the controls, since the Switch clearly isn't built for fighting games. The Switch Pro controller is an effective fix, but it's expensive. If you don't already have one and invest in one just for this game, you're looking at £95 – which is quite steep for a game that's nearly 30 years old. This is no reflection on the game itself, however. I had a blast.

For newcomers, Rev 2 is the most complete Guilty Gear game to date – but be warned: this is a game you’ll have to put time into to truly appreciate. It’s a good job, then, that it provides all the tools necessary to do this.

There are good ideas at work in Reservoir Dogs: Bloody Days, but it’s a shame that one of the most intense and shocking indie movies ever made has spawned a game that’s neither. At its best, it’s a tight, engaging twin-stick shooter with an element of strategy and a cool rewind mechanic, but it never manages to be anything more than that.

Disgaea 5 Complete is a great role-playing game for the Nintendo Switch. JRPG fans have hundreds of potential hours of content to dig into here, all of which is brilliantly presented with imaginative, zany characters that seldom disappoint. And you can make your very own curry, who wouldn't love that?

While Injustice 2 may not surprise to any great degree, it’s very well put together and it's a joy for anyone who’s a fan of DC or fighting games in general. If you’ve put any time into Mortal Kombat you know what you’re going to get, but that’s no bad thing. A top series in its own right now, the future's very bright for Batman and friends smacking the hooha out of each other. Happy days…

PSVR is screaming out for another big-hitter to give early adopters something to dive into, but its short and uneventful campaign, weak design and dull visuals mean it won't live long in the memory. We can only hope that future VR shooters take full advantage of the excellent Aim Controller.

Despite its strategic depth and craft, you can’t help but feel that Fire Emblem has had its run on 3DS. This isn't a criticism per se, and it’s more remarkable now than ever that the handheld console with a low-rent screen and barely any processing power is still able to churn out such deep and engrossing experiences. Intelligent Systems is likely looking to Nintendo Switch for its next big strategic adventure – but for now, Shadows of Valentia is great enough to warrant dusting off your indestructible little pocket toy for one last hurrah.

Like Lords of the Fallen, The Surge is another rock-solid souls-a-like, losing a little of its predecessor’s strong storytelling and atmosphere, but gaining from the change from fantasy to sci-fi and the ingenious mech smashing and harvesting upgrade system. It’s not quite on the same level as the Dark Souls trilogy, Bloodborne or Nioh, but that’s more down to the lore and art style than the brilliant gameplay. If you like the sound of a gritty dystopian take on Dark Souls, The Surge is an easy game to recommend.

While other console Minecrafts have it beat on resolution and maximum map size, the Nintendo Switch Edition is the only version to give you all the authentic Minecraft goodness wherever and whenever you want to play...It looks good, plays well and hits all the classic Minecraft buttons, but with the bonus that your Minecraft addiction is a little easier to fit in with normal life. Throw in some of the best themed Minecraft content around and you have a must-have for Switch gamers, albeit not the absolutely best version of the game.

Dreamfall Chapters stays true to the adventure genre it embraced in 1999, but sticking to the same approach in 2017 means it feels a little past its prime.

Arkane has delivered some outstanding gameplay here, but the story is inconsistent. If you read emails and books littered across Talos 1, there's something of intrigue here, but the actual narrative told directly to the player will leave you wanting significantly more...I thoroughly recommend Prey, particularly to those who even remotely enjoyed Dishonored or BioShock – there's plenty here that will attract attention. It's a great game.

If you’re looking for a challenging, retro-style FPS that takes no prisoners, STRAFE has you covered. It has the replayability and difficulty of a perma-death roguelike wrapped in the style and attitude of a classic nineties shooter. Yet where Wolfenstein: The Old Blood and Doom 2016 revived old-school action in a way anyone could enjoy, STRAFE is a hardcore experience, through and through.

Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 offers some of the most satisfying sniping you can imagine, but everything outside of that just feels too drab and lacklustre to truly make it standout.

Dragon Quest Heroes 2 is an acquired taste. It helps if you’ve acquired a taste for either Dragon Quest or the Warriors series previously, preferably both. That said, it’s easily one of the most accessible and enjoyable games Omega Force has produced, and a real joy to play if you already know and love Dragon Quest...Richer, deeper and more varied than the original, it’s also closer to the true nature of Square Enix’s beloved series and a much stronger hybrid than the underwhelming Hyrule Warriors.

At £20 on PS4 it’s brilliant value, but at a stonking £35 on the Switch? I’d argue that it’s still worth the money, but if it was selling for around the £20 mark there’s be another half star on the score.

Outlast 2 takes its original idea and builds on it very well to create a sequel that’s straight up terrifying. A must for those who love nothing more than feeling the fear.

Little Nightmares is truly one of the scariest games you’ll play this year.

There’s still something a little old-school about Dawn of War III’s RTS action, but when it scratches those same old itches so well, there’s very little reason to complain. It’s a game that takes new influences from the MOBA and uses them well, mixing up powerful Elites with tactically interesting units to create great battlefield moments, while spinning an interesting yarn from three different perspectives.

After Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the next Nintendo Switch must-buy. It’s the best the series has ever been, offering one definitive package. With the glorious return of Battle Mode, improved visuals and more content than ever before coupled with more ways to play it than ever thanks to the Nintendo Switch, I don’t think fans could ask for much more.