A tight, calibrated tactical shooter that harks back to the genre’s best days.

Another unadulterated dose of raw arcade-style gameplay, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4 follows in the wake of THPS 1 + 2, delivering another duo of reverent remakes brimming with secrets, skateparks, and new things. Soundtrack shortcomings aside, this is cracking stuff.

I wish I could report that Zockrates Laboratories served up a playground of emergent sparks, but with such a promising trick I couldn’t help but hunger for more.

Strange Scaffold has made another lethal, high-calibre riff on an established genre.

Nightdive has done its level best to make System Shock 2 sleek and fast, in the hope that a little of the revolutionary might leak out.

An enormously enjoyable and rewarding dose of reverse bullet hell, Soulstone Survivors tips its hat to Vampire Survivors with chaotic roguelite action, a gratifying sense of progression, and masses of variety.

Hades in a half-shell, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate is a fine roguelike action game that comes alive in co-op, but can grow quite repetitive when played alone.

Sloclap has delivered nice, crunchy mechanics like it did with Absolver and Sifu, making Rematch an immediate, accessible, and above all enjoyable arcade-style football game. It’s Rocket League without the rocket cars. But whether you'll be playing it this time next year, I'm not entirely convinced.

Bithell Games assumes your passion for Tron, but what is here stands on its own, though it doesn't truly succeed on its own.

Its inevitable sections where you're beating a frantic escape are frustrating tests of trial and error, and, while developer The Chinese Room conjures some memorable sights and dreamlike weirdness, anyone expecting something on a par with the main story in Still Wakes the Deep will come away bitterly disappointed. Sadly, Still Wakes the Deep: Siren's Rest ends up feeling like an inconsequential two hours or so, failing to really add anything to Caz McLeary and co.'s surreal and superb journey. And those answers you’re looking for? Frustratingly, they never come. But, then, maybe that’s the point.

A remarkable feat, Final Fantasy XVI looks incredible and plays like a wonderful dream, the combat in particular being exemplary. There are some moments when the action lulls, but this does little to detract from a game that veers close to being a masterwork. Two years on, the game shines on Xbox.

The multiplayer Control spin-off you didn't know you needed, FBC: Firebreak is an engaging and moreish shooter with interesting mechanics, an abundance of supernatural weirdness, and ample co-op fun. You'll never look at a sticky note the same way again.

While we would have liked to see the Gex Trilogy scale up the resolution and bring the gameplay more up to date, it's nice to be able to play Gex, Gex: Enter the Gecko, and Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko on modern platforms, with some neat refinements for good measure.

Ambitious in scope and scale, Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon is an enormously ambitious and remarkably deep Oblivion-inspired RPG. But in shooting for such a high bar, its technical shortcomings unfortunately hamper the overall experience.

Elden Ring Nightreign is yet another playful slice of experimentation, with breezy movement and rich multiplayer mechanics.

With the welcome return of Braking Point and some substantial improvements to My Team mode, EA Sports F1 25 emerges as another fantastic instalment in Codies' racing series.

If Blades of Fire manages to strike a chord, it won't be for its narrative, nor its world, but its violence.

Deserving of its remaster treatment, Onimusha 2: Samurai's Destiny is well worth revisiting (or, indeed, playing for the first time), especially, if, like me, you're excited for the arrival of Onimusha: Way of the Sword next year.

Yet another sensational compendium of classic arcade fighters, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 brings together eight seminal classics, and although there are a couple of omissions, what's here is great. For anyone who whiled away hours in the arcades back in the 1990s and 2000s, you need to get on this.

Where The Precinct succeeds is out in Averno, coaxing us into fine police work. Fallen Tree has found its niche.

A hefty slab of pure FPS gameplay, DOOM: The Dark Ages nails just about everything, balancing brutal combat and a spot of open exploration beautifully. Crucially, playing as the Slayer makes you feel like an unstoppable beast - it’s fantastic.

As comprehensive as MotoGP 24 was, MotoGP25 outstrips last year's game with the addition of the Arcade Experience and three Race Off disciplines to master. New and returning features make this feel like a worthwhile update, and a must for all bike fans.

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.

Still crazy after all these years, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered takes the 2006 classic and burnishes it with meaningful visual upgrades, refined combat, and other modern touches. And it retains all of its original charm, that unique eccentric spirit left entirely intact.

A cult Saturn game comes alive, in a well presented blast of mech action.

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage marks developer Don't Nod returning to its Life is Strange pinnacle, delivering a coherent and compelling yarn that expertly flits between an evocative 1995 and a friend's reunion in 2022. Bring on the sequel.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is probably one of the most impressive $40/£40 games I’ve ever played and puts a lot of full price games to shame. Thanks to some really unique battle systems and combat variety, Expedition 33 is a turn-based RPG to remember. It’s bloody gorgeous too! Oof!

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.