Frogwares’ remake of Sherlock Holmes The Awakened successfully blends the otherworldly with the logical in a compelling and well-written adventure that shows a different side of the iconic detective.

Wuchang: Fallen Feathers may not be overly impressive out of the gates, and could at first glance appear like just another Soulsborne ripoff. But persist and the game will open up and demonstrate its true character, with plenty of freedom to build and customise your skillset and exploit some of the unique mechanics at the core of the experience. Some of the level design is a little obtuse for its own good, and a handful of bosses need to calm the fuck down, but this is a competent and mostly confident opening foray from a development outfit that should now firmly be in the gaming’s public eye.

Dros wears its heart and 80s influences on its sleeve, combining elements of past 3D puzzle platform adventure games to craft a unique but familiar experience.

SMT3 Nocturne HD Remaster realises that the less time we can spend with the cobwebs of the past by opting into the new Merciful difficulty, the more time we can enjoy this world and its story anew.

Lean, light, and pleasingly presented, this is a perfect snack on the Switch when travelling on your next exciting adventure.

With a truly spectacular retrofuturistic aesthetic, Routine delivers an immersive sci-fi horror that is incredibly tactile to play, impressively creating tension amongst the silence, but a disappointing ending, frustrating design choices and gameplay repetition stops it from reaching the stars.

Biomutant's weird and wonderful world is a treat to take in, even when its diverse gameplay elements don't always hit the mark. If you're looking for a fresh and furry take on open world RPGs and don't mind a little jank, this might be just the ticket.

Playing in this Western sandbox is a joy when it is rewarding your exploration and moral choices with strange outcomes and interesting characters. A lack of late-game variety brings its flaws to the fore.

Your experience with The Tomorrow Children will vary, especially if you don’t get any players visiting your space. But when everything clicks like a well-oiled machine, there’s a strange sense of appeal here that makes it intriguing enough.

While the gameplay isn’t going to leave much of an impact, the twists and turns of Asya’s dramatic journey through war-torn Europe is surprisingly well told, and is further heightened by its unique aesthetic and satisfying soundtrack.

Dying Light 2 Stay Human could have been one of the highlights of the year, but a disappointing story, some frustrating design choices and performance issues mean it doesn’t cash in on its potential.

The Master’s Pupil gives players an inside view into the artistic eye of Claude Monet. Expect to be delighted by hand painted scenery and challenged in your colour and physics knowledge, as you move through this artist's aesthetic through time.

With its stunning hand-drawn, graphite visuals and meditative tram driving gameplay, Short Trip is the respite we all need from the chaos of our current zeitgeist. If only it offered a deeper experience to fully escape into.

The Crew Motorfest crafts a stunning playground for its refined array of vehicles but never fully realises the potential of its new toys.

A sort and sweet visual novel which gives the player plenty of choice and leverages its source material well, only occasionally stumbling in the writing department.

Bungie has been promising the world to us with Destiny 2: The Final Shape and has proven that competent and cohesive story writing is something that is no longer on the cards for Destiny 2. While the story is quite disappointing, there are at least steps in the right direction in a game design sense to make the game feel better to play.

When Indiana Jones and the Great Circle plays to its strengths it’s a captivating adventure led by Troy Baker's exceptional performances, but sadly some design choices bog it down and stop it from being a generational treasure.

Rosewater combines the Wild West and traditional point-and-click mechanics with relative success, taking players on a road trip that is more about relationship building than the trip’s purpose. Which is both its biggest selling point and frustration. Rosewater is full of well-written and performed characters, but it’s hard to care about all of them when they’re not your headline.

Easily the game with the highest meme potential of 2026, Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream’s combination of zany (if repetitive) writing and player input makes for a memorable time. The open-ended play is balanced with a steady flow of bite-sized activities for structure, and while the game could have used a bit more substance, it’s surprisingly addictive nonetheless.

Open Roads is a journey I’m glad I went on, though the disappointing circumstances of its development do feel as if they loom over its final form. As a complete package there’s something to love, something to respect and admire, with two lead actors elevating the material well beyond what many others might have achieved. It’s just a shame it couldn’t have been bigger, bolder in its impact and exploration of its themes and its mysteries. Maybe it needed something darker, something stranger to lean into, but the results stand as a simple yet effective road trip that’s worth taking for an hour or two.

Oxenfree II: Lost Signals spends a little too much time washed out in white noise to truly deliver on its promise but when tuned just right, it sounds like little else. A coming-of-age story for people who should have already come of age is a beautiful and poignant launching pad and despite getting bogged down in hard rules and lore, Night School Studios still display a grasp on horror aesthetics and storytelling worth the price of admission. The signal is a little fuzzy, this is a game still worth listening out for.

Earth Defence Force is like the conventionally unattractive partner you experimented with in your youth. They were so grateful for your attention, and in turn, really knew how to show their appreciation. A genuine guilty pleasure of the kind that you might be a bit sheepish to introduce to friends because they buck the trend of traditional beauty (and they just sound a bit weird). But goddamn it, you grew from having indulged the relationship with the ugly duckling. It’s great coming back to that partner as I settle into adulthood. They don’t give a shit about how they look, are mostly stable, have a pleasant demeanour, and still aim to please by exploding all over my jorts.

Those who delve into the survival horror genre and Cthulhu enthusiasts will be able to scratch their Cthulhu-shaped itch with the experience Edge of Sanity offers. Despite its predictability, it is an addictive, fun and spooky eldritch horror that will keep you entertained for hours as you endure monsters on each run and manage your resources for survival. It’s safe to say that Edge of Sanity is yet another great addition to the Cthulhu-inspired eldritch horror genre.

There are definitely moments that feel like you’re playing a game that could have come out 10 or more years ago, but the point-and-click genre is one that can accommodate such design choices if the narrative is good enough. In the end, Asylum’s narrative is solid with some great atmosphere that makes it a point-and-click adventure worth checking out if you like games with horror elements.

Aping great co-op shooters like Left 4 Dead but in the VR space, After the Fall provides a fun yet fleeting experience that could do with more to do.

A blast from the past that appeals even in the modern age, It’s easy to be grateful that this experience has not been lost to the sands of time.

South of the Circle beguiles with its polished presentation and top-notch performances but often forgets to make itself a compelling game in the process.

The beating heart of the Call of Duty experience in terms of multiplayer feels like a solid return to the classic formula, but abundant technical issues make this a worrying stumble into a new generation.