Grey Goo is a symphony of strategy games. The rhythm of base building roots your spine with the amazing soundtrack and visuals providing a solid melody from the wind instruments. Sharp, aggressive strings scream into life with the combat as epic units crescendo in the brass section’s apocalyptic fury.

Headlander had me hooked during my nine hours with it. The game oozes with charm through its off-the-wall and eccentric gameplay mechanics, and its humorous characters and fictional world. Though the checkpoint system may feel a little too ‘hardcore’ for some, and the game seems to struggle under the pressure of some of its more demanding moments, those who are after a Metroidvania-style side-scroller could do a lot worse than this.

Toukiden 2 feels like it takes a lot of what made the earlier games feel a bit flat and fixes it up.

Zenless Zone Zero is without doubt the new best gacha action RPG out there, beating Wuthering Waves, Genshin, Tower of Fantasy, and the like by a mile. Its immersive world, unique mechanics, engaging gameplay, and compelling story have set a new standard of what a good ARPG should look like and are bound to appeal to almost everyone.

If you have a few hours to spend and want to play something that is unlike anything else this year, then Solar Ash is absolutely worth checking out. Anyone who is a fan of the action-adventure genre will no doubt enjoy this memorable experience.

SaGa Frontier Remastered is a good remaster of a classic JRPG. No one will argue that it does its job admirably, and adds in features which help the better aspects of the original game shine. However, there’s only so much it can do to make up for elements of the original game which have aged terribly. Those who aren’t established fans of the original, or who haven’t learned how to navigate older JRPGs, should be prepared for a fair number of headaches if they want to experience this title’s strengths.

For newcomers, if you can push past the awful touch controls, The World Ends With You provides a gripping tale that will consume you from start to finish.

If you're a fan of the genre, you'll probably have some fun with this, but it's hardly the revelation that the decision-based, narrative-driven genre feels like it so desperately needs.

As a first step into game development, Game Builder Garage represents a fun and engaging way of dipping your toes. It is not overly convoluted, and is approachable when it comes to creating polished experiences with a little bit of work. The software educates, guides, and makes the creator’s enjoyment a key part of the process. If only Nintendo would fix the online and community gaps, then it will truly be a playground of creativity.

If you hadn’t previously been enticed by the quartet of Genesis classics, you are unlikely to be swayed now. In a vacuum, this is fun and gratifying DLC for a certain breed of loyal hedgehog fan, whereas the remainder of consumers may be decidedly non-plussed.

Bravely Default II can get frustrating at times, but it more than makes up for that by being endlessly charming and endearing, and remains a joy to play through from start to finish.

Worms W.M.D. is a return to the classic recipe and it never tasted so sweet, but you can’t help but feel as though it wouldn’t be as effective had the series not been messed around with as much as it has.

The Enemy Within starts off strong, even if it does stumble a little here and there. Thankfully, the new story arc seems a lot less bloated and self-involved than the one we got last season, and the new characters are rather well-written, too.

While it’s not the new Kingdom Hearts game that many may have wanted, it’s much more than just a simple collection of old titles or some cheap cash-in. It’s a bridge to what awaits, and I can’t help but feel excited after watching the credits roll for the umpteenth time.

Depending on your taste, Disgaea 1 Complete can offer hours upon hours of gameplay filled with team building and grinding. With its gorgeous graphics and updated animations, this is hands down the best and “complete” version of the first game.

If you’re in the market for a fascinating narrative and an intriguing space station to lose yourself in, you could do a heck of a lot worse than Tacoma.

The beauty of Gundam Breaker is that you don't need to be a fan of the larger Gundam franchise to get plenty of enjoyment out of it. It scratches the itch of an action game and a loot game all in one, and I can't seem to get enough. At heart, it's still a game all about making the wackiest robot you can that still absolutely shreds through enemies, and I think that's amazing.

Tchia is easily one of the most exciting games of the year. Its vast open world and spot-on physics-based gameplay are immediately immersive and utterly addictive. It reminds me of an approachable, family-friendly version of huge games like Skyrim and Assassin’s Creed.

Fans of the series will still be able to glean some enjoyment from seeing a classic title brought into the modern age, but everyone else won’t have much reason to dive into this flawed remake.

Dancing All Night looks like it’s set to be the final game before we have to say goodbye to our favorite cast of characters in Persona 4, and I’m perfectly fine with that. The Investigation Team solves one more mystery, and they’ve once again reminded us never to lose sight of our ‘true selves’. I’d say that’s a job well done.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage is proof that Ubisoft doesn’t need an expansive open-world to create a compelling Assassin’s Creed game. I don’t need a laundry list of neverending chores to knock out, or endless quests and question mark icons to explore in order to level up. All I need is my hidden blade, a cool hoodie and some darts, and I’m good to go. Mirage is Ubisoft’s most focused Assassin’s Creed game in six years, and a much-needed revitalization of the series.

Its messages certainly resonated with me but its gameplay lacked the variety to truly keep me hooked for lengthier sessions. If you're looking for a chill experience and can overlook any performance issues that aren't quite resolved by the time you pick it up, then Sable will deliver. I just can't help shake the feeling of missed potential here.

Wizard of Legend succeeds in creating a setting that’s just full of so much mystery and awe. It’s hard not to feel so completely enthralled by the game’s charm and delightful magical spells.

Golf – and therefore EA Sports PGA Tour – is not a simple game, but my feelings towards it can be expressed simply. It feels like playing the sport, and it’s hard to ask for much more than that.

Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is exactly what you’d want from a remastered Wii game. It gives the visuals the contemporary sheen worthy of its unique art style, adds important control improvements to make it palatable to modern audiences, and also knows when to let the gameplay speak for itself.

What could have been just a run-of-the-mill Metroidvania is transformed into a tale of growth and resilience in Tales of Kenzera: ZAU that is well worth the investment. With Kenzera being an utterly beautiful place full of mysteries and wonders, joining Zau and Kalunga as they fight and platform their way across delightful biomes in a bid to let go and move on became a therapeutic journey that I never knew I needed. We don't need actual loss to remind ourselves that things can be difficult, but having a reminder goes a long way in keeping us all on the right track of focusing on joy instead of grief.

Embrace the jokes, revel in the puns, and do all you can in order to stop Starro’s horrifying plot while keeping Superman’s annoyance to a minimum. Heck, maybe even do all that in the order its written. Above all else, enjoy your stay in Happy Harbor. In a world that always strives to go bigger, it’s more of an escape to remember when superheroes got to be silly too.

What Imperator: Rome does, it does impeccably well. Like Paradox games have been doing for years now, it will devour hours and whole days of your life, and you will give them willingly. But you will have to work for it, learn it like a foreign language. But it is worth it, and the more time you put into learning it, the more you will come to appreciate it. Even Rome wasn’t built in a day.