After playing the modern Star Wars Battlefront and its sequel I had some high hopes for Star Wars: Squadrons. I enjoyed the story, and playing both Empire and Rebel sides gave great additional context to proceedings. It’s also a stunning looking affair, the first person viewpoint showcasing lots of fine detail in the little switches and dials all immersing you in the experience. I’m not a big fan of first person aerial combat and would have liked a 3rd person option (especially as we don’t get a VR option on Xbox) though. Also managing some of the elements of the ship is tricky as I needed to constantly flick between the analogue stick and d-pad to adjust energy flow.

Remothered: Broken Porcelain might be the new horror story driven game this Halloween! With high end visuals and continual story to boot we can only hope new and greater things will come of the series. Remothered deserves to sit along some of the genres best, and Broken Porcelain makes for a fine sequel – here’s hoping the wait isn’t too long for the next entry!

I came away from Re:Turn – One Way Trip having had a great time. I really dug the 2D, 32-bit aesthetic that managed to get a good, creepy atmosphere across without relying on all the usual flash and pomp we’d expected of a horror title. The story is constantly engaging and well written, complimented by some great audio work. Some minor niggles in the constant back tracking and lack of helpful direction can lead to some frustration, especially if played across a few nights, but it doesn’t take too long to get back into the swing of things really. If you’re after a solid start to the Halloween season, this comes highly recommended.

Chances are that you’ll already know what you’re getting into with FIFA 21; while it may be broadly similar to last years effort in its game feel, with a few good tweaks and subtle changes, that’s kind of to be expected with an annualised sports franchise. The improvements that have been made across some of the modes are welcome, and offer up new ways to enjoy the series. It’s also rather lovely to look at, and should be a fine showcase for the upcoming Series X|S come launch day!

I really enjoyed playing through the challenging puzzles that continued to evolve with difficulty as I progressed through each area. If it weren’t for the hints however, I probably would have been discouraged to push through. Fortunately, Ratalaika has another easy game out there now for achievement and puzzle lovers. Reflection of Mine was quite average, but fun for being a puzzle game.

I came into The Survivalists with high hopes, being such a fan of The Escapists. Sadly I came away from my time with it underwhelmed. There’s certainly fun to be had, and the feel of Escapists is here is parts, but some of the elements, such as the lack of storage space when out exploring, kept bringing my experience further down the longer I played. Here’s hoping Team 17 can bring me back in with the eventual (please) Escapists 3.

Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix is obviously a game aimed directly at children. To be fair though that shouldn’t be taken into account when deciding my verdict on the title. At times the game can seem fairly simple, but at others be a frustrating mess considering all the items and abilities that can screw you over in a race. It just doesn’t have that racing vibe that I’m used to seeing in racing games. It feels more hectic and chaotic more than anything. Without a doubt in my mind, my younger self would probably love this game and everything it has to offer. Taking off my nostalgia goggles Kart Racers 2 just isn’t the game for me and that’s OK. I know that the target audience would get a kick out of it and play it for hours on end. I’ll stick to Mario Kart 8 for now.

All in all Forgone has been super fun for me. Sure, I could nit-pick at some very minor changes but what Big Blue Bubble has made is something awesome and that all platforming fans should give it a look. I think it provides the right amount of challenge for all gamers approaching it.

I can’t deny that the dev’s clearly wanted to put some heart into the game, but almost none of it pays off in any positive way. The character controls awfully, the powers are nonsensically strewn about, the Fourth wall-breaking jokes just highlight the poor game design instead of compliment it, and even those looking for an easy 1000g will likely be put off before they can reach it. While the aim may be to get to Earth, I’d suggest giving it a wide berth upon it landing.

Despite these niggles I had a lot of fun with Neighbours Back From Hell. It’s a simple premise, but one that is executed with a good sense of humour and nicely devised set ups. There are a ton of levels to work through and while the repetition across them can add up there’s enough charm to help us carry on making Mr. Rottweiler’s life a misery.

Torchlight III has come a long way from the original game. The graphics stay true to the series but look a lot more refined. The options for characters have been compacted, but the introduction of relics allows you to mix and match for variety without suffering from choice overload. It stands shoulder to shoulder with games like Diablo as a fair alternative, but I feel playing with friends is a must as you may lose interest just playing solo.

Space Crew is a challenging simulation game at first but with enough practice and time out into it can turn into an enjoyable experience. It’s an in-depth strategy concept will actually take some time to get use too. Dedicate enough time into it and it will pay off.

9 Monkeys of Shaolin is an enjoyable beat-em-up and it gets a lot of things right in this day and age. The shorter levels, variety of enemies and the variety of attacks make for a fun experience. It is better played with a friend and you can tweak the difficulty to increase the challenge. The game is quite short though however and may not be something you would come back to, but it is still a decent beat-em-up.

While it might not be quite the same as the real thing Monster Truck Championship does a pretty good job of replicating the fun. There’s plenty to keep players coming back in the career mode, with loads of challenges to try, and parts and upgrades to unlock. The stunt modes can feel a little too easy to cheese a way to victory but the standard and drag races more than make up for any disappointment here. And plus, who doesn’t love Monster Trucks?

Mafia: Definitive Edition is how a remake should be done. By taking and meticulously remoulding the original game, Mafia: Definitive Edition sings with a deliciously authentic 1930’s gangster shooter experience that’s enriched to no end by a chapter-based story that keeps the focus on the story and its characters. The aiming and target reticule aren’t ideal, and the Free Ride mode is a missed opportunity, but when the smoke clears and all you want is a classy hard-boiled gangster shooter there are few better options available.

Orangeblood certainly has the style to draw players in but it sadly lacks the engagement of gameplay to keep us there. Fans of JRPG’s might be more willing to put up with it’s nonsense, but even then I suspect many will expect better these days. Mid level saving would have gone a long way to improving the experience, but confusing menus, boring and random-luck based combat and a story that fell straight out of a teenagers sketchbook all add up to an underwhelming finished product.

With a great combination of retro graphics and sound Jet Set Knights makes for a fantastic reminder of the good old days. The gameplay is solid and very fun to play either solo or co-op. There are elements that could do with a little polish but that’s more of a nit pick than anything. I had tonnes of fun with Jet Set Knights and look forward to the developers next title!

All in all Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time is a stellar game and I have enjoyed and will continue to enjoy every minute of it. Despite being tough as nails at times, the brutal challenges are optional so newcomers or those with lesser skills can still enjoy the great storyline and main set of levels.

The combination of different ways to finish levels gives Birthday of Midnight a fair amount of replayability but I’m now starting to find this all little repetitive without a story to keep me immersed in the world. There are 70 plus levels to complete and this will definitely not hold my attention for that long. This is worth a play if you need a palette cleanser, however if you have GamePass you have many, more engaging choices.

Inertial Drift is a fun arcade racer that brings a unique mechanic to drifting that works very well. While the tracks can be a little hard to read at times, after a few plays this becomes much less of an issue. There are plenty of cars to unlock and try, twenty tracks to learn and a decent story mode to help with learning the intricacies of the controls and modes. There are better overall arcade racers out there, but Inertial Drift definitely deserves a look if you fancy something a little different.

Going Under: Internships Are Heck isn’t your standard roguelike, it carries more charisma and playfulness than you’ll find in many of examples of the genre. No Going Under doesn’t breathe new life into the roguelike nor does it give you anything outside of a rinse and repeat formula of clearing dungeons over and over, but the sense of humour and vibrancy on display makes up for its shortcomings and you will feel as though it’s a worthwhile internship while it lasts.

Nexomon: Extinction is amazing and I have been playing it non-stop. As a big Pokemon fan I was a bit sceptical about trying something different, but oh my God I am so glad I did. It was glorious, so much fun and I can’t wait to dive back into it. For anyone who has been recently let down by Pokemon Shield/Sword like I was, I can’t recommend this enough.

WWE 2K Battlegrounds is the WWE’s big release for the year, but it’s taken a new direction after last years effort and is a decent arcade alternative to the previous WWE games. The gameplay is fair and different, but you always expect a decent storyline to play through as well. The comic strip idea is OK but with no voice acting anywhere it just feels a bit weak.

Projection: First Light is a tough one to recommend then. On the one hand it has a lovely visual and audio style that draws us in, and the idea of the core mechanic is great. In practice though it’s too fiddly and unreliable to sustain a several hour+ title, and it likely won’t hold the attention though to its conclusion.

Bartlow’s Dread Machine is in all matters intriguing, from its old style mechanical arcade box feel, to its limited movement along rail shooter gameplay. There are a lot of positives to enjoy here, but I worry it may not last longer than a single play through. It is a good dual stick shooter to enjoy with a friend though, so should provide at least an evening or two of fun in that department.

Trollhunters: Defenders of Arcadia is a game that knows it audience and caters to it. It stays true to the story and delivers an okay yet shorter experience that I’m sure kids and fans of the show will enjoy.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning is the safe Fable and Oblivion fusion we remember from all those years ago, but it is a little too familiar, and inexplicably has numerous game-breaking bugs and technical hang-ups, despite the lack of truly awe-inspiring presentation or technical requirements. Nevertheless, it is a fun but safe RPG with wonderful combat, great crafting, and repetitive staple RPG quests and gameplay loops. But ultimately, if you still have the original and your Xbox 360, it is not worth it.

While the brick breaker genre is about as old as gaming itself, Twin Breaker: A Sacred Symbols Adventure still brings fresh ideas to the fold, making it an enjoyable, challenging time. That there is so much time and effort invested in the story in commendable, though I didn’t get as invested in that as it seems Colin would like players to be. There are plenty of levels to try and best, with high score challenges, a new game+ mode, and several alternate modes as well to supplement the 3 hour or so main game. Fans of Colin, and Sacred Symbols especially, will enjoy the various references dotted though out as well.