It’s hard to write about this game as it’s just not very much fun. It’s a cheap and average run-and-gun side scroller. The music has a nostalgic feel and the achievements are nice and simple. It’s a one hour run and you only need to beat the first 15 stages. It’s a shame the 3 characters don’t have unique abilities and that boss fights aren’t more challenging.

Maid of Sker is a compelling and visually stunning experience for any horror fan and brings true stealth horror with 3D sound against you at it’s core. This may not be the longest game ever, but if this is the future of horror gaming then I welcome it with open arms.

In my opinion, I feel that Destroy All Humans 2 should’ve been remastered instead since it was made and released at a later time period in gaming. While first time players might find it a little stale, bland, and repetitive, old players regardless will have fun with the game as it throws them back into a more simpler time period than the one we’re living in now.

I really quite like Tannenberg. It’s committed to presenting WW1 in a pretty chilling way, yet still manages to be a fun, challenging online multiplayer shooter. The levelling progression menus are a bit confusing, and there’s not all that many people playing it yet, but get a good squad to go into battle with and I think you’ll be won over.

Carrion is one of the best pixel made horrors I’ve ever seen and deserves praise from horror and gaming fans alike. With impressive controls and visuals for a game of this nature, this title is a must for any horror or gaming fan with a thirst for blood and anyone who loved the movie “The Thing”.

I was quite looking forward to a new local multiplayer party game to add to the rotation; sadly, Lunch A Palooza won’t be filling that void. There’s a neat idea here, but the hard to decipher combat, wonky physics and general lack of, well, fun mean that we’re best off warming up some of our leftovers for now.

Distraint might be too simple to a fault at times, but it’s clear that love and attention has been made to make an impactful game where players are positioned to think and relate to its characters rather than soullessly using them as mere portals for spooks and scares. The visuals and soundtrack do a magnificent job of evoking themes and the general ambience is dense and strange, which helps make Distraint 2 stand out from its contemporaries. An impressive effort and a wonderful little indie slice of psycho-horror.

Night Call for me is a really tough game to play through as I prefer more – or even some – action. It should appeal to those who like gritty novels and like to play as a detective. For those who can read between the lines and use clues to solve mysteries, it may be better suited. The game plays more as just reading the book with the occasional dash of strategy. But it does have some interesting stories and themes and should appeal to the right audience.

As I mentioned earlier I’ve played everything Warhammer from the Xbox 360 on and I can recommend most of them, but this is the first title I can recommend for both Warhammer enthusiasts and novices alike, as there’s enough story and lore content and plenty of interesting and challenging gameplay to satisfy both groups.

As debut efforts go, Déjà vu is a great go of it. The puzzle designs are unique and well thought out, and the cloning mechanic adds a great twist to the rule-set that requires forward thinking in ways other titles in the genre haven’t needed before.

I think that the biggest thing that will hurt this game is the versions that came before it. I’m not sure people will spend the money on the latest edition if they’re still having fun on the last few entries. The career mode is worth the jump I think, and the more people that do will ultimately find themselves filling up multiplayer lobbies too. While the base price of the game is $49.99, ten dollars cheaper than most triple A titles, it should be an easy buy if you haven’t played a NASCAR Heat title before. But if you’re still having fun with any of the previous iterations you may choose to wait for a sale.

These minor niggles aside, Radical Rabbit Stew is a fun puzzle game. The central mechanic is easy to grasp, the puzzle design is mostly brilliant and the retro style visual and audio presentation is right up my street.

For the majority of Neversong I was constantly engaged, in awe of the weird and wonderful sights and tales being shown to me. Brush seems to be a master at crafting darkly engaging narratives that not only get you thinking, but leave an impression long after the credits roll. That warning at the start sets expectation perfectly, and while it may not be for everyone right now, you’d do yourself a disservice if this isn’t added to your library at some point down the line.

CrossCode is a fun medley of gaming styles which some can link to the older style Zelda games with its combat and puzzle elements. The RPG side of things does provide a lot of the content of the game, but it does sometimes seem the main focus is all the different puzzling elements, with the combat feeling a little filler to pad out the game until the next puzzling section. The variety of side quests will keep you busy, although some of the fetch quests can be a bit tedious. But the story is interesting, and it is very fun to play through, so I strongly recommend it.

REZ PLZ brings us a unique spin on the co-op puzzle platformer, and it’s one that mostly succeeds. The way it forces players to co-operate using each other – literally – is gruesome, yet hilarious. Graffiti Games managed to come up with some ingenious methods for killing our heroes in the name of progression and with a willing partner there’s a lot of fun to be had here. I’m grateful of the solo mode too, though there’s no denying it’s far from the best way to play. Grab a friend, a few drinks and you’ll no doubt have a blast here.

Aesthetically, Neon Abyss is beautiful – the neon 16-bit retro look takes me to the warm fuzzy feeling of playing SNES as a young boy. The controls very good, though I’m not a big fan of having jump on LT. I can see why this is the case, but it’s a shame that I couldn’t remap this as I could with most other buttons. I enjoyed some of the great features like passive abilities, different guns including a cat gun, unlockable characters and eggs, which follow you and have the chance to hatch into buddies that help you.

Demolish and Build may have its issues, but the game can be enjoyed on many different levels. Fun and creativity can be found in this title, and it’s good to see some more simulators of this calibre to come to Xbox.

Sisters Royale is a fun and amusing bullet hell title that offers up some solid arcade action, but little else. The specific anime styling will either draw you in or put you off (you know what I mean), but the light-hearted tale will likely win over even the most prudish players. Some online leader boards or alternate modes wouldn’t have gone amiss, but even so I still think Sisters Royale is worth a look if you’re into, or curious about, the bullet hell genre.

It’s fair to say this is true of the whole experience. Whilst MIND CONTROL DELETE is not quite as brilliantly unique as its predecessor due to the nature of sequels, it is a very thoughtful addition to the series. Its narrative is intriguing and its balancing systems work well. Whilst the repetition of levels can occasionally become grating, the end result is polished, interesting and a great value.

The Great Perhaps tries to marry some puzzle adventuring in with a weighty story, but in the end all this does is drag it down. The gameplay mechanics are interesting and provide a good time, but the stilted delivery and un-engaging tale are unlikely to drag you though.

I came away from my time with The Otterman Empire feeling very little at all. Despite some good looking character designs and multiplayer ideas, there’s a distinct lack of atmosphere or excitement to the whole affair. Vague, tricky to decipher mode mechanics lead to confusing opening rounds, the shooting feels inaccurate and unresponsive and despite the dev’s best intentions, I just don’t feel it’ll be sticking around many people’s gaming night playlists for very long.

All in all, 505 Games and KUNOS Simulazioni have a great simulator for wheel users. It provides excellent feedback and is the way the play, if you’ve the right set up. Controller users can still find enjoyment if they take the time to tweak settings, but they will definitely miss out to a degree. Those less experienced with racing games should probably be wary of jumping in here too, as the sim style of racing could be a turn off until they “git gud”, as they say.

Superliminal pulls us in with a fun looking gameplay hook, holds our attention while it twists our expectations, and brings us out the other end with something to truly reflect on. Easily one of the best puzzlers out there, and one that deserves all of the success in the world.

A Summer with the Shiba Inu is a lovely little game that offers real catharsis. It draws you in with cute characters and holds you with its rather fascinating story. Whilst it does drag occasionally, it is well worth making your way through. There’s a clear level of love and dedication felt throughout Shiba Inu, from the phone interface, to the backgrounds, to the 70000 words it advertises on its page. If you watch the trailer for this and it interests you, it’s hard to go wrong with a purchase.

F1 2020 is easily the best F1 game Codemasters has released. My Team is a great addition to the franchise and could quite have easily been released as a stand-alone title. The racing action is as solid – and good looking – as ever.

West of Dead is a beautiful looking cel-shaded game which made me feel like a bad ass cowboy, with a sprinkling of Ghost Rider. I felt some of the hit boxes were off slightly on occasion – I’m don’t think I’m that much of a bad shot… The clever mechanics of cover and using light and dark to “hide” your enemies is a good addition. Rogue-lites can be fun if balanced well and this is a wonderfully put together example.

I can see Hunting Simulator 2 working for some people, but it doesn’t work for me. It is clunky, slow and glitchy, and whilst there’s a base loop that could be intriguing, the lack of any real depth past the first few hours left me feeling disappointed.

Hard West is a tough one to recommend; the tactical battles are pretty decent, if perhaps a little lighter in options than some examples of the genre, but it’s also quite po-faced and sterile in its delivery. The in-between map sections are a nice idea though also suffer from the same flaws, as well as not feeling all that engaging or interesting. I liked the supernatural twists across the scenarios though, offering up a little something extra to just cowboys shooting at each other.