It delivers on every front, with great action, deceptive strategic depth, stunning visuals and incredible multiplayer support.

It’s no doubt the most authentic. The biggest problem is how inaccessible it is. As a Brit who understands how the sport works, and who played Madden back in 2000, the game can still be a mind-bending, frustrating exercise in trial and error.

It'll teach you things, broaden your horizons, and give you a damn good time; think of it as the Mrs Robinson to your brawling Benjamin Braddock. As Taokaka might say, meow can you resist?

Hotline Miami is a fair game, as much as it is hard, and you always know why you're dead, even if it was a fickle turn of the controls.

Okay, so the main bulk of it is yet another rendition of a game we all know by now, but it's easily the best rendition of that game that we've seen so far. When you factor in the Music Studio and all the creative doors that it opens, it's clear that this is by far and away the best rhythm game available on the market today.

Multiplayer is Rocket League's priority, and it delivers.

We defy you not to enjoy Pure. In an age where simulation reigns supreme, Pure's over the top arcade fun is a refreshing change of pace. Somehow Black Rock has managed to make a game that is infectious, spreading the joy to all who touch it, even to onlookers who gather around the TV in awe at the incredible visuals.

Some will think the game too short, the gameplay repetitive and the experience too similar to the original to warrant forking out another £20, but those people are heartless grouches who no doubt spend their time scaring children and trampling on daisies. For everyone else, LocoRoco 2 is the most uplifting game available, not only on the title-shy PSP, but on any platform.

A quality MMORPG expansion, no doubt about it. With two new classes, a massive new area to explore and the Legendary Weapons system, there's loads for fans to get stuck into.

Crytek's fourth game is their most confident to date, carefully balancing silliness, seriousness, and spectacle, and despite looking like a laundry list of bad shooter clichés at first glance the end product is surprisingly fresh-faced and triumphant. Switching to New York gives Crytek what it desperately needed: a credible sense of menace to go alongside gorgeous technical fortitude and impressive artistic direction.

In reality, this is a reserved effort from Namco Bandai, and feels almost as if Project Soul has merely dipped its toe in the next-gen water for fear of causing too big a splash. It's gorgeous, and an essential purchase for any fighting game fan who likes aggressive counters and weapon clashes, but it's no fighting game revolution.

Frostpunk 2 is a worthy sequel that ramps up the grit and immersion, but sheds some of the original's magic in the pursuit of innovation.

The developer, Insomniac Games, has a similar storytelling confidence to that of Naughty Dog—a natural cinematic ease, bolstered by money and technology, which gives equal weight to ground-level struggles as to those beyond the rooftops.

Given it's not the most technologically-taxing title in existence means the transition has been made flawlessly; if you want to experience Dennaton Games' debut how it was intended, there's nothing for you to be overly worried about. If anything, especially on the Vita, you'll be pleased with how much sharper it all looks.

In reality, this is a reserved effort from Namco Bandai, and feels almost as if Project Soul has merely dipped its toe in the next-gen water for fear of causing too big a splash. It's gorgeous, and an essential purchase for any fighting game fan who likes aggressive counters and weapon clashes, but it's no fighting game revolution.

I find it easy to ignore Forza Horizon's traditional multiplayer when the single-player is so captivating and enriching.

Batman: Arkham Shadow is a stunning virtual reality game, and a damn-good workout. Yes, you feel like Batman, but the game is more than just a simulator for Dark Knight roleplayers. It’s proof that any game concept can be adapted to a VR platform with enough care and skill, and it’s proof that VR has the sauce many claim it doesn’t. If you have a Quest 3, you need to play Batman. If you like Batman, you need a Quest 3.

Slick, well produced, and involving, and most importantly it is very hard to put down.

More important than all the above is the fact that Football Manager 2011 is a huge time sink that will keep you playing for hours on end for months to come.

The base experience of Monkey Island 2 is still as sharp as ever, though, with some of the wittiest dialogue and intelligent puzzles ever seen in an adventure game. It's just a shame the "special edition" part is a bit of a letdown - it's more of an average 2-disc edition than a deluxe Criterion version.

Both single and multiplayer offerings giving you enough reason to spend hours upon hours simply collecting new uniforms and trophies. The 3DS-exclusive Smash Run offers something different from the rest, too, adding a five minute side-scrolling spree before a four-man brawl.

Some of the new puzzles effectively show off ZeptoLab's creative energy, but for the most part we're being sold another slice of an admittedly entertaining game. Still, it's hard to feel short-changed when considering the weenie price and, more importantly, it's impossible to discount the entertainment derived from its content.

A stunning game that doesn't miss a beat from start to finish and includes one of the most feature packed multiplayer components of any game released this year.

These games still hold up, and this remaster is worth a go if you’re willing to put up with the potentially fatal combination of unskippable cutscenes and that Tidus laugh bit.

Strange refereeing aside, none of those issues are more than oddities and PES 2017 is a wonderful football game that just begs to be played. Give me another 200 hours and I'll tell you definitively how PES 2017 ranks against the series' best, but right now I'm enjoying it an awful lot. Fun yet unfair, thrilling yet at times borderline broken, but it just wouldn't be PES if it was perfect.

A contemplative adventure that won’t set the world on fire, but its logical and tactile climbing mechanics are genuinely fun and present a compelling proposition to keep exploring in spite of its relatively short length.

Silent Hill f is a visually striking evolution of Konami’s beloved horror series, packed with cryptic lore that’s a treat to unpack. While the pace of combat struggles to feel sleek amidst the atmospheric story, macabre enemy designs, and a spine-chilling soundtrack more than make up for what it lacks.

It's a gorgeous fighter with vast depth, but it slightly lacks the tightness and coherence that made Street Fighter 4 such an instant classic.