A system seller. It's a Nintendo-published game that is rarely seen, and a game that will legitimately make non-Wii U owners jealous. It's everything I want from a hardcore Nintendo title, offering genre-leading combat and eye-popping visual spectacle.

The true beauty of GTA Online is its endlessness. There are bigger worlds, but none as dense and rich with possibility and hilarity. This is a game that will give and give, and that makes its technical hardships mere distant blips on its radar.

It is short, at around 4-6 hours depending on ability and difficulty level, but they are 4-6 hours of intense, taught and finely tuned gameplay the like of which you're unlikely to find in many other games. Once you're ensnared by the charms of Episode One you'll be chafing at the bit for Episode Two to arrive.

Pokémon Sword and Shield is a bold move into a new generation. There are technical hiccups, but those pale in comparison to the bustling Wild Area and the charming Gen 8 additions.

Part puzzle game, part retro experience, part mindfuck, I haven't played anything as engaging and interesting as Pony Island in a long time.

It's not often that I get excited about handheld games, particularly handheld action games, but Chili Con Carnage has completely blown me away and changed my view on what Sony's handheld is capable of...As an action packed shooter it's far and away the best the PSP has to offer.

Pokémon Sword and Shield is a bold move into a new generation. There are technical hiccups, but those pale in comparison to the bustling Wild Area and the charming Gen 8 additions.

Pokémon Sword and Shield is a bold move into a new generation. There are technical hiccups, but those pale in comparison to the bustling Wild Area and the charming Gen 8 additions.

It's painfully addictive, screen-shatteringly frustrating at times but so moreish it's like the computer game equivalent of Chocolate Fingers. The improvements are significant without breaking the fundamentals, and it seems that Sports Interactive has thought long and hard about how it can implement changes that would bring back the disillusioned without enraging the devotees. Roll on FM 13.

A superb second instalment, and one which shows off Hitman's greatest strengths.

Although this sequel could be labelled as Viva Piñata +, in that it more or less builds on the original rather than doing anything drastically different, it's still an absolutely must-own Xbox 360 game.

P3R’s poignant tale of acceptance is bolstered by smart combat refinements, deeper friendships, and a soundtrack you already love.

Minor problems aside, DIRT 2 is everything racing fans will want from an off-road racer. The driving is fast, fun and be tailored to your skill level. Hardcore fans will work hard shaving split seconds off their best times, while novices can still work through the career and have fun with their fiends online.

It is short, basic and ferociously hard, and these are just some of the reasons it is assured a place in the schmup hall of fame.

By yourself there are a few games that provide as much of a thrill, and when playing with friends Guitar Hero II reaches even greater heights, making it a must own game.

One of the finest examples of bringing the essence of arcade gaming to modern consoles and a game no adrenaline junkie should pass up.

It could have done with more franchise crossover moments, but Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is wonderful, warm and fantastic at making you feel clever. Cleverer than you actually are anyway.

In relation to the other titles on the Live Arcade, it's a high price, but this is a game that you'll be coming back to months down the line, making it an essential download.

Capcom’s called it “the best fighting game net code ever created for consoles”. We’re inclined to agree. When all is said and done, if you’re a fighting game fan MvC2 is an essential purchase.

The new lick of paint is nice, but it’s the changes under the hood that make the significant difference.

The best FIFA game ever made. Over to you Konami.

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.

Perhaps the strongest compliment I can pay Eidos Montreal is this: with its grand design, dynamic play and sheer wealth of ideas - not to mention its old-fashioned pre-occupation with air vents - Deus Ex: Human Revolution is reminiscent of the best efforts from the golden era of PC gaming at the end of the 90s. It's a modern release imbued with the finer qualities of an age gone by.

But with one massive, graceful, Welsh-tinged sweep, the combined might of Level-5 and Studio Ghibli has reinstated credibility to a flagging area of gaming. It's taken years of craft and - likely - a hell of a lot of money, but Ni No Kuni is a wonderful, wondrous experience and will keep you captivated and enchanted for dozens of hours.

New Super Mario Bros. treads the retro platformer line beautifully, adding just enough originality and imagination to the mix.

What makes Gunpoint so good, is how it makes the player feel like a genius. Each solution feels like your own. The game hands you a Swiss Army Knife made out of other, smaller Swiss Army knives and lets you loose in the shed, with ALL the wood.

Its simple aim-and-shoot mechanics draws you in for repeated plays and with the short completion times needed to complete levels, you can easily fall prey to ‘Just One More’ Syndrome.

It might not have the jaw-dropping visuals to rival Killzone 2, but it's a hugely satisfying shooter that'll have you clinging onto that controller or mouse throughout its tension-filled campaign. If you like your combat meaty and with a solid dose of supernatural scares, there's every chance this will rank as one of your favourite games of 2009.