Ultimately, playing through Death Stranding 2 was an emotional and utterly enjoyable experience, full of thrills and impossible to put down during its bigger moments. My only negative feeling towards it is also unfortunately a big one, that I wish Kojima Productions went further in evolving this sequel from the original. When the story goes to such an extent to explore new grounds, it's kind of a shame the gameplay feels the need to play it safe.

Like it or not, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora feels like the perfect companion piece to James Cameron’s movies: it’s big but often intimate. Savage but calm. Familiar but charming. Even without playing a single minute of it, you should know whether it’s something you want to play. If you decide to make the jump, I suggest letting go of cheap analogies and using Na’vi instincts first and gamer brain second.

Ubisoft’s USP is location. Sense of place. Beautiful recreations and restorations of ancient cities, buildings, temples, vibes. The Star Wars galaxy absolutely evokes the same sense of wonder, and has been recreated with just as much love and care here. Mos Eisley is no less real in the public consciousness than Rome in the time of the Caesars. At once familiar, but widely open to interpretation. And probably just as dangerous. Star Wars Outlaws won’t win any GOTY awards. But it’ll definitely win a lot of hearts.

Fallen Order is a game whose worst moments are serviceable, and best moments are memorable. It’s worth experiencing by Star Wars fans hungry for an original story that doesn’t settle for trite, and action game players looking for a decent – albeit flawed – combat.

It’s brilliant, and exactly what I hoped it would be.

The most important thing about EA Sports WRC is that I’m pretty sure I’ll get addicted to the moments its recreation of rallying can provide across its plethora of modes. As with Dirt Rally 2.0, it’s those simple, brief moments when you get into a perfect adrenaline-fuelled flow and feel - just for a second - like you are as good as Colin McRae, that’ll keep me coming back for more, no matter how many trees I hit in between them. I'm pleased and relieved to report that post-acquisition Codemasters still understands what makes a good rally game tick.

Back 4 Blood takes an old-school approach where it makes sense, and modernises where it doesn’t. It’s heartening to be engaged by a game purely for its gameplay and variety, and not to pad out a progress bar somewhere.

The Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy is a little less consistent when compared to the two collections that preceded it, but it's still doing the good work of bringing a gem of a series to new platforms and audiences at a time when these games otherwise risk being left behind. Whether its slightly shaky attempts to position itself as a stand-alone trilogy will prove an effective draw for new players remains to be seen, but of course it's an absolute must-play if you're already a fan of the series — and if you were drawn into the franchise through the last two remastered collections and haven't encountered these three games yet, you're in for a particular treat.

It’s illustrative of the broader conflict Far Cry 6 finds itself facing with, well… itself. It wants to spin a more involved narrative, but steps back before things get too serious. Yaran Stories hint at deeper worldbuilding, though adhering to the standard Far Cry and open world structure means staleness creeps into exploration and guerrilla activities. Juan Cortez was more accurate than he realized when he recruited Dani to Libertad. Far Cry 6 prefers playing guerrilla over more serious reflection because “blowing up shit is fun,” and Ubisoft just isn’t quite ready to give that up yet.

Obviously, if you love the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, you’ll love Shredder's Revenge. As hinted at in the intro to this review, it’s built for you! If you’re like me and don’t have that history, you’ll still find a polished, super enjoyable experience here. With up to six player co-op, it’s the perfect game to slap on in the living room with some friends crashing round, plug in a few controllers and have a bash. I did, for important critique-related reasons, order some pizza while I was testing it out. I can confirm that it does, in fact, make the experience that much more enjoyable. Additional toppings aside from cheese were not tested.

Twelve Minutes ultimately presents a compelling, thrilling experience that feels more than worth the price of entry. It has interesting things to say through its looping core conceit, and it’ll tease your brain more than a few times - sometimes genuinely, sometimes through slightly cheap requirements to progress. I also admit I was less of a fan of where the story went in its later stages - but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t hooked. The journey matters more than the destination, after all - and a gripping journey this is.

Everyone’s going in expecting madcap mayhem, and there’s often no one more stony-faced than someone sitting with their arms folded waiting to laugh. But if nothing else, Grasshopper Manufacture’s latest knows how to make you crack a smile.

I hope it isn’t lost amongst the PS5’s bigger, noisier releases, as it’s something different and uplifting. It’s rare to find such tension and threat in a game that’s also so peaceful, but Giant Squid has managed it. In truth we could all do with a bit of light in our lives at the moment.

By offering such a wide variety of experiences to please both handheld and docked players alike, 51 Worldwide Classics ends up a worthy follow-up to the DS Clubhouse Games in spite of its flaws. It quietly becomes another must-own Nintendo Switch title. It’s not a big-budget, mind-expanding adventure – but it’s a fun, generally solidly-constructed collection of eminently playable classics. It’s video game comfort food, and has been a delight to meander through in the present day’s isolation.

I found myself enraptured by this game. Hooked on its combat-cum-strategy and constantly awed by the sights I saw, entertained by the steady flow of upgrades and the structure of the mission layouts. It broadened my horizons a little bit, if a game can do that. That can't be a bad thing, can it?

It’s a strong campaign, then, and one made better when you play with friends – as is always the way – and the suite of features that accompany it will likely keep you busy for some time.

Octopath Traveler 2 is an easy recommendation for old-school Japanese RPG nerds - and might even entice the odd newcomer. I wouldn’t quite recommend it over Live A Live, another 2D-HD gem - but it’s pretty lovely nevertheless.

World of Warcraft went through many changes over the years, for better and for worse. That leaves Classic feeling conflicted, both a rose-tinted dream and a dated mess.

Of the Life is Strange games I've completed (2 is still woefully unfinished for me atm), True Colors is my favorite. It strikes the perfect balance of focus on Alex as a person, the town of Haven Springs as a community, and how the two interact and change each other. While I'm still not sold on the superpowers as a mechanic or narrative device, they're unobtrusive enough to be fine, and do provide more to actually do besides walking around, looking at things and talking to people. If you liked previous entries in the Life is Strange series, you'll probably enjoy this one. It's a tighter, cleaner take on the formula, but at its heart, it's still the balance of magic and mundane that’s become signature to these games.

If you can stomach that pesky cake-carrying elephant, Stellar Blade is well worth your time. It's not perfect - there's room for improvement, sure - but having experienced Shift Up's first venture into a triple-A console release I'm along for the ride from here on out.

The Ascent’s ambition is often the most surprising thing about it. I went in expecting a decent, simple cyberpunk top-down shooter. Instead, I got a compelling action game that feels great to play, and an introduction into a world I can’t wait to see expanded in future sequels. The Ascent is the type of indie superstar game you bring up to prove how much can be accomplished by a small team today.

With a gorgeous presentation and smart and minimalist tweaks, it’s as charming and enjoyable now as it was in the nineties. Let down only by the lackluster dungeon creator and some uneven performance, the design of Link’s Awakening nevertheless holds up brilliantly, which in turn makes the slavishly accurate recreation worthwhile. It’s undeniable proof that the classic Zelda formula still works – and hopefully after Breath of the Wild 2 we can get yet another classic-style Zelda.

Overall, RoadCraft offers a unique enough twist on the established Spintires formula, if a streamlined one, to be worth giving a go. Some series veterans will end up longing for the elements it’s stripped out, especially when the new stuff that’s been drafted in is being more frustrating than fun. But, that central loop of frustration giving way to jubilation as you overcome the environment is still there and regularly just as satisfying.

This is the sort of game that only Nintendo could make, and it’s a follow-up to Wii Fit that feels worthy of that game’s exercise chops while also far more firmly and confidently a video game. Minor hardware issues and a story that’s frivolous to the point of bordering dangerously close to annoying, are small issues in the grand scheme of things. This has quietly arrived as one of the most original games of the year – and better yet, is one of my favorites.

Dying Light 2 is messy and uneven. It’s also unique, exhilarating, and just plain fun to play, with one of the best settings in recent memory – despite the nagging feeling that the game could, and should, be more than what it is. Techland has made great strides forward with the sequel, but it’s clear the future of Dying Light can’t be just about making a bigger city to climb around in. The sequel has given the series some good breadth – now it just needs some proper depth.

I find it difficult to ask more from Nioh 3. It’s a game that proudly announces its goals at the outset, and trusts the player to discover how well it’s going to nail every one them over the course of its 45+ hour runtime. It is the confident result of shaking up Nioh’s near decade-old formula that’s only outshone by Team Ninja’s steady hand in crafting it.

The only thing malfunctioning around here is the economics of game production. And from that struggle, under circumstances that echo those of the original movie’s troubled production, a brilliant piece of work emerges, that somehow nails every part of the brief and finally proves that Robocop can inspire worthy sequels. And if it didn't look a bit ropey sometimes, I doubt it would feel like Robocop: a stop-motion ED-209 falling down some stairs is goofy as hell, after all, but none of the CGI perfect ED-209s in the 2014 remake ever did anything goofy, and it was crap. So. Y'know.

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a smart game that makes you feel even smarter. It’s a Metroidvania that’s learned from the best, but without sacrificing any element of its own personality – for better and for worse. Beneath the gaudy graphics and cheeseball story, there’s a hardcore platforming heart bruised by punishing combat. Middling boss design aside, this is a game that you can sink an easy 30 hours into. And you’ll come away feeling clever, powerful, and dexterous.