The Jackbox Party Pack 2 is pretty much essential if you have family or friends to entertain. It's one of very few games in which everyone can join in, providing hours of fun and laughter. One to dig out for social gatherings then.

A good solid slab of real-time strategy, Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Realms of Ruin will please ardent fans of the Games Workshop fantasy universe, while keeping those well-versed in the genre well occupied. If you love goblins and all that other stuff, you'll be loving this.

Two of the best Ace Attorney games are given their due with another beautifully remastered collection that's every bit as essential as the rest of the series. Ace Attorney Investigations Collection is simply fantastic. There's no arguing with that.

While not a particularly significant leap over its predecessor, EA Sports UFC 5 nonetheless tightens up and improves the series' fighting mechanics, while offering an expansive roster of fighters, and a nice selection of modes. Punchy.

Playing this game was a pleasant surprise, especially due to the fact I’d never followed the series or really enjoyed fighting games as a whole. The missions may start to get repetitive after a while but the story more than makes up for it and the online modes can keep you occupied long after you’ve finished the game. It’s mainly for fans but give it a go and you may be shocked at how much fun you have.

If you need additional proof that developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is a master of its craft, then look no further. Though slightly flawed in places, Lost Judgment is, nonetheless, yet another deeply compelling detective story, brimming with murder, mystery, intrigue, and more twists than a bag of pretzels.

F1 Manager 2022 succeeds in being an engaging experience, immersing you in the various intricacies and minutiae of running a constructor, while determining the ideal race strategy – you can't help but feel fully invested.F1 Manager 2022 succeeds in being an engaging experience, immersing you in the various intricacies and minutiae of running a constructor, while determining the ideal race strategy – you can't help but feel fully invested.

CoD's return to World War II seems like its been a long time coming, but nine years on from World at War, Call of Duty: WWII proves that there are still stories to be told based on history's most deadly conflict. It's also proof positive that Call of Duty can still deliver an edge-of-the-seat FPS experience.

NBA 2K20 is so similar to last year's game that it's hard to wholeheartedly recommend it like we normally would. If you haven't bought an NBA 2K game in a while, then by all means, don't hesitate to dive right in. But if you're still happily playing NBA 2K19, there's really no reason to make the switch. Major, sweeping changes are clearly in order, and we hope to see big things happening for NBA 2K21.

Ramping up practically every facet of what made the first game such infectious co-op party fun, Moving Out 2 is a sheer unadulterated joy, and the most fun you can have dragging a bulky sofa around. As William Shakespeare once said, don't forget to lift with your spine.

While the puzzles in Keeper never properly challenge, you’re won over by the easy pace and the sheer oddity of the visuals and story.

Drivatar is a brilliant innovation, but where's the weather, night racing and improved damage model? Turn 10 has a lot of room to improve with the next Forza Motorsport game. For now, Forza Motorsport 5 will do.

Hitman: Absolution is the sequel to Blood Money that fans have been itching for. In terms of game mechanics it's the best Hitman that IO Interactive has ever created, although the lack of inherently unique settings is a disappointment. That said, IO has more than made up for that with the brilliant asynchronous Contracts mode, adding replayability to a single-player game in the most smart and stylish way.

Lacking in some departments it might be, but KOF XV is nonetheless a superlative fighting game, which only makes it all the more upsetting that it's missing features that have been a series staple for ages. Should you not care about such things, then SNK's latest King of Fighters outing will undoubtedly scratch any face-pounding itch, its various systems proving deep yet intuitive, resulting in bouts that are almost invariably close-fought and thrilling.

With a campaign chapter lasting about an hour, and only two of the eight Mercenaries Reunion characters available with it, Lost in Nightmares feels like a paper thin package. Truth be told, Mercenaries fans may find enough to love this DLC, but gamers looking solely for a good story mission will feel short-changed.

Starting to feel like a case of diminishing returns, Far Cry 6 retreads the same formula that's stood the series in good stead for a while, but it's a formula that's starting to wear a bit thin. Still, there's some fun to be had here, despite there being little that's new or innovative.

A fun game that is let down by dubious vehicle controls and a design system that soon becomes tiresome. There is plenty to see and do though and the variety of challenges, for those that stick around, will keep you happily entertained.

EA Sports MMA is well-made, impeccably presented and could in time threaten UFC's title, just not yet. Fight fans would do well to give EA Sports MMA a whirl though. You won't be disappointed.

Despite contriving its fair share of unsettling moments, Little Nightmares II is a disappointing follow-up to one of 2017's most pleasant surprises. It might be a bigger game than its forebear, but it certainly isn't better.

Expertly revamped and updated for the modern RPG fan, Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is a great way to discover one of the most beloved entries in the series, with gorgeous sprites, lush environments, and all of the features you'd expect from a game released in 2024.

A throwback to survival horror's heyday, The Evil Within's story is daft and convoluted, featuring a mad scientist who might as well be Krieger from Archer. Frustrating and entertaining in equal measure, The Evil Within falls short of offering any proper scares.

Sorry We're Closed is a cool game and a bit of a one-off. Ostensibly, it's a survival horror experience inspired by PS1-era examples, but there's more to it than that. It's also about relationships and love, in all their various forms. It's wonderfully weird, and we're here for it.

New content there may be, but there's little in Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties that's genuinely fresh, and the combat mechanics are beginning to feel slightly old hat. But this is a Yakuza game, and is therefore inherently good fun, balancing substory silliness and levity with a gritty crime narrative. It's also a good, solid remake that's well worth playing.

There is a great selection of games here and a lot of replay value. For the value ($30 retail) it really can't be beat.

LEGO Batman 2 is the best LEGO title to date and one that uses all of the source material on offer to wonderful effect. Tightly constructed levels interplay brilliantly with the freedom of roaming the Gotham streets and that usual attitude of snagging all the studs, bricks and characters has never been so alluring.

Once again, WWE 2K26 delivers yet another fine bout of grappling, with a huge selection of modes and a colossal roster of Superstars, alongside a handful of meaningful refinements. The new reversal system might not be to everyone's taste, but there's no denying this remains an eminently playable wrestling experience.

EA seems to be the master at adding subtle changes to their yearly updates while never straying too far away from their tried and tested formula. The few tweaks do make Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters a more well rounded game, and one that is great for newcomers, but most golf fans will have seen this formula time and time again. If you like the Masters, and bucket loads of DLC, then give this a shot.

Supreme fan service, an epic sense of scale and plenty of gameplay variety ensure that Transformers: Fall of Cybertron is not only an unreservedly brilliant sequel, but is inarguably the best Transformers game we've played.

A sequel that eclipses its forebear in just about every department, Revenge of the Savage Planet is an immensely enjoyable platforming adventure with a lovely vein of slapstick comedy and daft satire lampooning unchecked corporate avarice.

In placing a lone hero at the centre of its historical Three Kingdoms story, Dynasty Warriors: Origins emerges as a much more focussed affair. Marry that to some stellar combat mechanics, and it's almost impossible not to get swept up in the overblown 1 vs. 1000 action. This is an unbelievably fun game, and certainly the best Dynasty Warriors game I've ever played.

Something of a disappointment then, consisting of a half-baked story that suffers from a lack of context or character, some pretty poor mission checkpoints, samey objectives and a surprising dearth of futuristic technology.

Fun and accessible, yet deep and detailed, Evil Genius 2: World Domination is pure fantasy fulfilment for anyone who has ever quite fancied being Ernst Stavro Blofeld or Hank Scorpio, and holding the globe to ransom.

Fostering an all-pervading tension from beginning to end, Routine succeeds as an efficient jolt of sci-fi horror, delivering rich environmental storytelling and complex puzzles. The lack of help might turn some players off, but for those willing to stick with it, you'll find a rewarding and immersive experience.

Dead Rising 2 is everything you'd want from the zombie-smashing, free-roaming sequel and although many were after an upgraded save system, the tweaks it's seen are relatively minor. Adding co-op and a hugely original multiplayer have definitely made this a must buy for zombie fanatics the world over, but the painfully long load times, the odd frame-rate issues and retreading the same ground after we've died umpteen times, really holds the game back from the dizzy 90s.

For Honor can take some time to gel, but once you understand the ebb and flow of its combat, mastering its various subtleties, you'll discover a uniquely gratifying, exciting and often brilliantly brutal game of swords, axes, shields and spears. For Honor is almost like playing Game of Thrones' 'Battle of the Bastards' sequence; and if that sounds like a hearty recommendation, that's because it is. Ubisoft Montreal's game certainly has its flaws, but they pale into insignificance against the myriad things it manages to get right. All in all, For Honor is a triumph.

A hardcore heavy-metal shooter boasting a side order of rhythm with its brutal ultra-violence, Metal: Hellsinger is good fun, but you'll probably get a lot more out of it if you actually enjoy the music.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty sets itself apart from Nioh, Team Ninja’s other soulslike series, with plenty of inventive mechanics that thrust you into the midst of a war. But by spreading the action out over various disparate battlefields in second century China, with plenty of chatty characters to meet along the way, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty loses a little bit of its magic in the process.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 isn't a full blown return to the classic Final Fantasy games many people know and love, but it is certainly a step in the right direction and offers a great deal more invention, exploration and good, old fashioned fun than its predecessor. The story and characters are a little weak in places but it is hard not to get swept along by the charm of it all.

The best LEGO game in quite some time, and one of the best family titles this year. The obvious sequel will hopefully build on the successful foundations here, although the major issues of similarity and simplicity that make it into all of the games is hardly likely to go away – which is probably for the best as that would rob the games of their inherent charm.

An essential collection you simply must own on Xbox One, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy is about as good as it gets where remakes are concerned, and a more than welcome comeback for a true icon.

A definite improvement over Steep, thanks to the Mass Races and the new bike discipline, but Ubisoft Annecy has still got a lot of work to do if it wants to break into upper echelons of gaming. It should look to Playground Games and how they craft an elite open-world sports game if they want to reach that next-level, then maybe they too could be mentioned in the same breath as SSX Tricky. Fingers crossed, the potential is definitely there!

Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series is a great collection for fans of 2D platformers, whether you’ve played these games before or not. Klonoa 2 is the standout title here, but both games are well worth playing, and should hopefully create a new generation of Klonoa fans. They certainly did with me, anyway - where’s Klonoa 3, Bandai Namco?

The Devil in Me is the most assured entry yet in The Dark Pictures Anthology, even if it doesn't produce quite enough scares during its seven hour runtime.

Offering more vehicles, new environments, a story mode, and a raft of new features, Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged takes what worked in the first game, and turns up the heat. As far as knockabout, fun arcade racing is concerned, this is about as good as it gets.

A '90s-style movie tie-in you might have seen in an arcade back then, had it actually existed, Terminator 2D: No Fate is a love letter to retro games and a sci-fi classic that might be short, but it's oh-so sweet. Hasta la vista, baby.

Unique, original, beautiful and innovative ... What else can you ask for?

The dedication to translating the finest qualities of the Ghostbusters franchise into a great video game shows through in every facet of the game, making it easily one of the best licensed games to arrive in years.

Delivering another strong outing, FIFA 20 proves once more that it's a football game truly to be reckoned with. There are issues, but few are serious enough to really mar the overall experience. Ultimately, FIFA 20 is fantastic, its new VOLTA Football mode being a particular joy, while FUT proves endlessly compelling yet again.

FIFA 23 is the best FIFA game that you can play right now. But unless you’re an Ultimate Team diehard, FIFA 23 might not do enough to convince you to upgrade from the mechanically similar FIFA 22.

Move over KOF. Fatal Fury is back with a vengeance, and it's great. Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is an attractive, immediate, and enjoyable fighting game with a lot going on. And, yet, it's easy to pick up and play, but tough to master, rewarding practice and perseverance. It's well worth putting in the time to get good.

While Battlefield 4’s next-gen outing offers something new and exciting in terms of multiplayer – 64-players – and in visuals – it looks fantastic and runs at 60 frames per second – the current gen version is more of the same, with no real evolution aside from a few instances of "levolution." A great game if you’re sticking around on current-gen for the foreseeable future, but worth waiting for if the next-gen of consoles is on your horizon.

MachineGames has done the series the due service it deserves, delivering a thrilling and immensely entertaining Nazi smashing shooter that demands to be played and savoured.

Manages to be the same great epic as its forebear in terms of sheer scale and ambition, while packing in superior visuals, improved gameplay and a stronger grasp on its own unique identity.

The graphics are a little under what I'd hoped and the story isn't as fresh as I'd have liked, but the battle system and the overall execution are excellent.

A triumphant combination of SimCity and Dungeon Keeper-style gameplay makes SteamWorld Build not only an excellent game, but a comfortable and immediately gratifying experience that should be savoured.

Once again, Codemasters has proved that it deserves a place in the grand pantheon of racing game developers with GRID. Alongside the DiRT games and F1 series, GRID is another exemplary racer that will scratch the itch of even the most demanding racing game player.

We love Katamari, and you should too. Like Katamari Damacy Reroll before it, We Love Katamari Reroll+ Royal Reverie is a damn fine remaster, brimming with colour and verve. If it's a pure shot of fun you crave, then you can't really do much better than this.

Conscript may not be a true survival horror, but it taps into that legacy and roots it in fertile soil.

Burnout Paradise Remastered represents a more than welcome comeback for a series that's been away for far too long. Given a lustrous new coat of paint, Burnout Paradise still looks the business then, but now it's got us yearning for a whole new Burnout.

Another smart entry into the interactive narrative adventure/walking sim genre, Tacoma is a sci-fi story that's engaging from beginning to end. To state the obvious, if you dig this kind of game, then you're going to love Tacoma too.

Despite the almost fractured feeling that Gears of War: Judgment carries, it’s still a fine package and a must have for Gears fans. Two great campaigns, some innovative new modes and plenty of Locust stomping action. It’s just a shame Epic and PCF had to take away features from the title to add new ones.

The mechanics aren’t dumbed down - rather, they’re streamlined into something understandable and accessible without losing the depth that makes RTS games so damn satisfying to play.

A triumphant return for PES this year, after spending many years rotting away in the lower leagues. While PES 2015 might not match EA and FIFA’s spending power in terms of licenses and what not, where it matters, on the pitch, this ageing superstar is getting a recall to the first eleven.

Tiger Woods 11 is yet another fairly successful fine tune from EA. The game certainly does not break the mould or truly push the envelope in terms of creativity, but there are enough good ideas here to make it a worthwhile purchase, especially if you have given the last few titles the cold shoulder.

A relatively short side-story it may be, but Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is a blistering chapter in Kiryu's journey, a Yakuza 6 epilogue that brilliantly tees up what's next, while delivering on the unadulterated fun and weirdness the series is celebrated for.

Furnishing Jack with a pretty significant upgrade, Ghostrunner 2 is a more refined, leaner, and more sophisticated game than its predecessor – bigger, better, and badder. Badder as in gooder.

Victor Vran: Overkill Edition is a robust, enjoyable dungeon crawler with satisfying combat mechanics, marred only by a single, albeit quite major bug on Xbox One. This issue aside, Victor Vran is genuinely excellent.

In attempting to start over and give PES its most substantial revamp in a long time, Konami has given the franchise a much-need shot in the arm. There's a lot more to like here than previous, but PES 2011 still feels like an also-ran that's still in dire need of some additional refinement and some of that old fluid magic that once made PES sheer footballing alchemy.

A remarkably lovely and unapologetically cosy story of life in vinyl retail, Wax Heads has heart to spare, a diverse soundtrack, an inviting art style, and a unique record-recommending gameplay hook. Groovy.

It's pole position once again for Codemasters' F1, despite a lack of any real, meaningful changes over F1 2012 beyond the addition of F1 Classics. F1 2013 is still a superb racer, but we're expecting big things for next year.

A more than welcome return for a seminal crime classic, Mafia: Definitive Edition has all of the attributes you could possibly want from a great remake – fresh visuals, overhauled gameplay, and a reverence for its source material.

If you've been wondering what all the fuss surrounding the Yakuza series' foray into Japanese history is about, then wonder no more. Like a Dragon: Ishin! is a superlative localisation of a compelling samurai story, that is every bit as good as the series' other best outings. Brilliant.

I'll admit that my interest in Telltale's well-worn adventure formula was starting to wane, but The Walking Dead: A New Frontier's opening episodes are proof positive that there's still plenty of life in it, as Ties That Bind Part 1 and 2 are both barnstorming episodes. Essential for any self-respecting The Walking Dead fan, regardless of whether you played seasons one and two in Telltale's series.

This War of Mine: The Littles ones is a powerful, affecting game that covers an aspect of warfare not typically touched by the medium. Telling the stories of normal civilians caught in the middle of a war, it asks: what you would do to survive? The disturbing answer is: anything you have to.

Replaced is a decent mood piece, with punchy combat, an underwhelming story and platforming, and striking visuals.

As far as vertical shmups hauled out of the arcades and ported to home consoles are concerned, Raiden IV x MIKADO remix is just about as good as it gets. Nonetheless, this is really one for the die-hard fans of bullet hell.

Not exactly a huge leap over last year's game, F1 Manager 2023 is nonetheless an impressively deep, all-encompassing motorsport management sim, with an enjoyable new Race Replay mode. Just don't expect any huge, sweeping changes.

Crimson Desert's rich and detailed open world is a remarkable achievement, and the crunchy combat is fun, but poorly explained game mechanics, performance issues, and a muddled, rather dull story tarnish what could have otherwise been a rather special RPG experience.

A fun game with very few major flaws, but by the same token it brings absolutely nothing new to the table other than the welcome online community option and enhanced player traits and consistency. That aside you will be playing the same old Madden and on that front, Madden NFL 12 just doesn't do enough to hold your interest for very long.

The story is simply awesome and very detailed. The world is actually quite small compared to some RPGs, mostly because you can't explore the world map that much. For most of the game, you simply select a town and go.

As an opening gambit and statement of intent from Blumhouse Games, Fear the Spotlight gets things off to a strong start, delivering a 3D retro horror experience that, while in thrall to its '90s influences, also manages to carve out an identity of its own.

A great addition to anyone's collection, especially for sandbox fans. Without being a direct superhero game, it takes the best parts of X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, throws them in a blender with a unique story and out comes a game that goes down smooth.

A compelling and absorbing action game free of handholding, Hell is Us pulls you in with a gritty narrative and setting, then holds your attention with smart puzzles, solid combat, and a dark, dystopian story.

A tough, terrifying and ultimate thrilling game that’s defiantly old-school in its approach. The result is one of the best survival horror games in recent memory.

Wearing its VHS horror influences on its sleeve, The Quarry is an engaging and immensely entertaining choice-driven adventure with a killer cast and a fun, knowingly silly storyline.

Another deep and compelling chunk of dinosaur wrangling, Jurassic World Evolution 3 also happens to be remarkably welcoming, though not at the expense of its detail and complexity. It also looks pretty slick, and it's got loads of Jeff Goldblum in it. That’s a win in my book.

FIFA 22 offers a slower, more deliberate game of football on the pitch, and that's a good thing. But with minimal investment in new modes or updates to existing ones, this is a good upgrade, rather than an essential one.

If you're in the market for simple, viscera-packed thrills, then you could do a lot worse than Shadow Warrior 2. Yes, it's a bit repetitive (it's getting repetitive writing the word 'repetitive'), but it's also a lot of fun.

Blackwood Crossing might be short but sweet, yet it's clearly an experience that's been made as a labour of love, and as such, it has a magical, almost ethereal quality that's impossible to forget.

I'll admit that my interest in Telltale's well-worn adventure formula was starting to wane, but The Walking Dead: A New Frontier's opening episodes are proof positive that there's still plenty of life in it, as Ties That Bind Part 1 and 2 are both barnstorming episodes. Essential for any self-respecting The Walking Dead fan, regardless of whether you played seasons one and two in Telltale's series.

Battlefield V builds upon its predecessor in meaningful ways, DICE stripping away practically every one of the series' fripperies to get to the nub of what truly makes the series tick. This is Battlefield at its most undiluted and raw, and it's all the better for it.

EA Sports FC 26 is a matter of refinement over revolution in all facets of the game. It’s a slight change in course rather than EA Vancouver plotting a completely new course, and while it’s probably the best iteration of FC yet, a lot maybe put off by the price of admission for what is essentially a fresh lick of paint.

After the disastrous launch of WWE 2K20, 2K and Visual Concepts really faced something of a turning point, an uphill struggle, and after a lengthy hiatus, WWE 2K22 emerges as the best entry in the series for years. As per the game's tagline, it really does 'hit different'.

While many of the Street Fighter and Darkstalkers games included here are already available in previous collections, Capcom Arcade 2nd Stadium still includes a plethora of arcade classics, and you're bound to discover, or indeed, rediscover, something well worth playing.

Heading Out does the visual novel stuff perfectly well, but it fails to nail the breezy sense of freedom that should come with cruising the open roads of America. Flighty vehicle handling makes the driving part of the game an annoyance rather than something to revel in and enjoy.

Chorus might ostensibly look like any other space shooter, but, discounting a few annoyances, it has some cool ideas of its own, and frenetic action that will pull you right in like a tractor beam.

A party game that transforms a horribly mundane activity into something uniquely pleasurable – especially with friends – Moving Out provides co-op furniture shifting that will in all probability ruin relationships, just like Overcooked did. And that's got to count for something.

Despite a few puzzling design decisions and an almost glacial start to the campaign, Watch Dogs is worthy of your time. There’s no doubt about that.