Despite its issues, Niffelheim stands as a very competent hardcore survival game that players will be engaged with for hours on end.

Forza Motorsport (2023) isn't just a new beginning for the legendary simulation racing franchise, it also represents a previously unreached peak for the series. Turn 10 Studios have done an incredible job delivering one of the best core driving experiences of any game, but not everything has been properly rebuilt from the ground up.

In this most unusual of years MotoGP 20 has arrived at just the right time for motorcycle racing fans with a long, deep career mode, a ton of challenge and customizations galore.

The Escapists 2 wraps superb gameplay up with a retro art style and energetic soundtrack to deliver an addicting, tense, and challenging prison escape simulator that unfortunately is marred by a lack of polish and some overwhelming tendencies in the latter stages of levels. Nevertheless, for $19.99, it's one of the best new indie games on the market.

If you enjoyed Assassin's Creed IV's naval combat and Assassin Creed Origins' shift to an RPG-like progression system, Odyssey is a match made in Elysium. Odyssey does not revolutionize the franchise, but it's a capable entry that will satisfy fans for dozens and dozens of hours.

Gear Gauntlet starts as a slow burner, and plays as though it suddenly got doused in gasoline.

Letter Quest's Xbox One Achievements actually make it a better game by providing so many goals to work toward. If you want to play on the big screen, you can't do better than the Xbox version.

FUGA: Melodies of Steel cuts through the bleakness of its setting with heartwarming characters and childlike optimism, although its punishing turn-based tactical play may force you into gut-wrenching perma-death situations. FUGA is an underrated gem, and deserves the attention of JRPG fans everywhere.

Between the intuitive crafting and strong gameplay design, Mothergunship's successes heavily outweigh its problems. It's definitely worth checking out.

The Flame In The Flood punches far above its humble Kickstarter origins, bringing accessibility with its checkpointed story campaign and an unforgiving challenge in its roguelite Endless mode. The way The Flame In The Flood's crafting system interacts with its creatures and upgrades is wonderfully purposeful, creating emergent drama without the need for scripted cut-scenes. When combined with The Flame In The Flood's incredible ambience and wonderful sound track, your journey downriver will be unforgettable — and unique to you.

It's immediately and obviously clear why Rocket League has enjoyed the success it has on PC and PS4. It's just a fun game. Even though tournaments are commonplace, it doesn't ever feel like it's taking itself too seriously. Enjoying yourself is front and center, and it's a refreshing change of pace to many other titles available today.

It's a shame that it suffers from so much tearing. It's admirable that Codemasters wanted to keep a high frame rate going, and that much is fact. But it's hard to deny how horribly distracting they are when they come...Everywhere else, F1 2017 is a thoroughly enjoyable, deeply engrossing experience that both fans and newcomers will enjoy.

Primal is not just a brilliant game, it dramatically and triumphantly reinvigorates the Far Cry franchise.

Garden Warfare 2 makes up for most of its predecessor's shortcomings. With Solo Quests, solo and split-screen support for more modes, new characters, and the expansive Backyard Battlegrounds hub world, this sequel feels like the full-sized game that fans always wanted.

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is a fun RPG with stellar writing that truly captures the dark future of eternal war. Choices and options aplenty never detract from or feel ill-suited to the setting, and a clever layout makes this a solid entry point for any Warhammer newcomers. There are a number of bugs to be wary of, with progression issues popping up from time to time.

I had a really fun time with this game. With how in-depth the story of Suicide Squad and the Justice League is, Kill the Justice League encapsulates the basis of what the comics portray in a bite-size journey. The game and the comics are not the same, and there are chaotic points during boss battles where I experienced FPS drops and freezes. With all this in mind, I'm eager to see more meat brought to the game with future DLC's and content.

While both the difficulty and frame-rate issues hold Lichtspeer back from a perfect score, it's still a fantastic title that all indie players should play at least once.

Botany Manor is a lovely little puzzle game that's relaxing, engaging, beautiful, and approachable. It's a great first game from Balloon Studios with a lot of charm, but it's not perfect, and it's even shorter than I expected. Being a day-one addition to Xbox Game Pass, though, makes it stupendously easy to recommend Botany Manor for an afternoon of fun.

XCOM 2 is easily one of the best strategy games currently available on console. It's got a stellar story, with plenty of gameplay elements to keep you intrigued and wanting more. While the game does have a heavy learning curve, and can be quite frustrating at times, it doesn't overly punish you for your mistakes.

An intermission from the main entries in the series that's worth visiting. Especially at a price point that comes in well below the next title. Kazuma Kiryu strikes with maximum strength in the return of the Dragon of Dojima.

The only major flaws holding this game back are that there only two playable factions and only one faction gets their own single-player campaign. But aside from that, Warhammer 40,000: Battlesector is a great, addictive strategy game that wonderfully translates the rules and action of the tabletop into a video game format.

The controls are smoother on the PC, but the new version offers everything you could want from a Pathfinder video game.

Rise of Iron is a solid expansion to Destiny that may bring back even the most jaded fans. It's a great addition to a good game, that is fun for both new players and those who've been a Guardian for three years.

Diablo III's Necromancer plugs a hole in the heart of long-time fans of the franchise, who wished for the return of the Diablo II staple. It brings a huge amount of versatility, allowing for solo play, ranged damage, support, and melee, with beautifully rendered armor sets to compensate. The voice acting is well realized, and the Necromancer is just so damn fun to play and learn.

The game looks gorgeous and runs like a dream on Xbox One X at 4K 60 FPS.

For the first time, EA has brought a full Sims experience to console, with all of its features intact – even cheats. The Sims 4 doesn't always feel at home on Xbox, though, with clunky menus, confusing controls, tiny text, and a mess of tutorials. But if you prefer to game on console rather than PC, The Sims 4 is still worth the time and effort. The character creation, building, and social interactions are engaging enough to keep simulation-minded players busy for years.

Life is Strange: True Colors struggles to justify some of its earlier chapters, but makes up for it with strong characters and a fun LARP session to mix up the gameplay. Though it doesn't quite live up to the mystery and intrigue of the original game, True Colors still shines on its own.

Ninja Gaiden 4 hardly re-writes the rules on what these kinds of games should look like, but fans who have been awaiting the return of the franchise may prefer this first re-entry takes things back to basics to some degree. Built in partnership between Koei, Microsoft, Team Ninja, and Platinum Games, Ninja Gaiden 4 has emerged a surprisingly coherent and confident product. Stunning and stylish hack n' slash gameplay could've been backed up with more compelling characters and story beats, but for those who simply want to carve a bloody path through endless enemies — Ninja Gaiden 4 is up there with the best of them.