Critical Hit

This is a game that could be ripped from a screen and dumped into a book and the experience would largely be exactly the same, except you probably wouldn’t get the occasional wolf howl sound effect.

You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll jump in Thomas Was Alone on Nintendo Switch. Whether you’re leaping in for the first time or playing through the adventure yet again, this complete port does the iconic indie game proper justice and proves that great video game ideas are timeless.

Super Mario 3D is a great game to play solo or with friends and shows off some of Nintendo’s best level design yet, while Bowser’s Fury is an inventive take on the Mario formula that’s more generous with its content than it ought to be. Both games make for a fantastic bundle and should be checked out by fans and non-fans alike.

Fascinating for 15 minutes and boring for ten hours, you’ll be howling with frustration at this missed opportunity for full moon madness in Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood.

A mental destruction derby with some admittedly annoying quirks, there’s plenty of charm under the hood of this game that respects your time and smashes into the competition with a gung-ho attitude and some novel ideas.

Literally straddling the line between supernatural and real-world horror, The Medium is satisfying, sleek, and sophisticated in every department. While it makes only limited use of its signature simultaneous reality mechanic, and features some of the same gameplay frustrations as earlier Bloober Team games, it’s easy to overlook such stumbles.

The First Samurai doesn’t end the tale of Nioh 2 in a satisfying way but it does provide a meaningful and fun loot experience. Bbrutal new enemies and new gameplay modes makes the complete package of this game something truly special.

Hitman 3 is full of surprises beneath its familiar systems. It manages to break out of its own sandbox without disrupting its formula too much, ending on a subtle note that brings the world of assassination saga to a satisfying end.

A love letter to the golden age of beat ‘em ups that Nintendo and Sega ruled, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: The Game Complete Edition isn’t without its flaws and it has an entry curve more punishing than starting a band during your midlife crisis, but its still a terrific jump back in time that breathes new life into a cult classic.

A slow-motion bullet ballet extravaganza, The Hong Kong Massacre is a lean and mean action gameplay whose core gunplay makes for a satisfying and challenging loop that’ll leave you feeling like a hardboiled action star after every face-off.

A beautiful twist on the city-building genre, Airborne Kingdom is a fascinating journey with innovative gameplay mechanics, a stirring soundtrack, and a sense of exploration that flies high.

Morbid follows the Dark Souls formula pretty closely despite it having a retro charm, but the boss fights are an undeniable highlight of the game. Disturbing bouts of danger that will snuff your flame out with a single lucky blow, these encounters boast an incredible art direction, fascinating gameplay quirks, and a challenge that’ll leave your controller moist with hand sweat.

Releasing early in the new gaming generation, Call of the Sea sets the benchmark for story-driven adventure puzzle games moving forward. It’s an experience full of surprises, from its lush game world that takes advantage of next-gen graphic capabilities, to its emotionally impactful story that puts a fresh spin on the Cthulhu Mythos.

Fitness Boxing 2 isn’t a bad way to keep your body energised, but the few improvements it has loaded into its gloves can’t hide its flawed punching technique or its disappointing lack of beats to bounce around to between uppercuts.

Remarkably flexible, frantic, fun and funny, Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3?! serves up a cooking sim that’s great value for money, and entirely what you make of it. All the ingredients are there, whether you want to stick to comfort food with very little mental nourishment, or dial up your ambitions with complex culinary masterpieces that must be served to the second.

Chronos: Before the Ashes is an interesting collection of ideas, but dead average implementation, aging visuals, and flawed gameplay make for an underwhelming package that barely rises above being just fine at best.

A consistently compelling progression curve, gorgeous world, and a staggering amount of fun content makes Immortals Fenyx Rising a truly fantastic game, even if it is rather derivative at times.

Mortal Kombat 11’s Ultimate Edition is NetherRealm’s finest hour polished up further for a new console generation. Packed with content, further refined, and open to a wider audience than ever before, Mortal Kombat 11 is still a violent masterpiece that draws first blood with its new roster additions.

The Falconeer starts off as a fun, original take on aerial combat but quickly turns into a boring exercise in repetition that even a mysterious and interesting world can’t save.

Demon’s Souls is an unrelenting blast from the past, reforged with numerous quality of life changes and looking better than ever thanks to the PS5 hardware that gives this old-gen classic a true next-gen update.

A delightfully charming platformer, Sackboy:A Big Adventure untethers the knitted knight from the creation-focused LittleBigPlanet and gives him his own grand adventure. In doing so, Sumo Digital has delivered one of the most thoughtful, interesting, and love-laden platformers in recent memory, resulting in a perpetual delight.

Less is more, and Destiny 2: Beyond Light feels like a positive first step towards a new era for the franchise. New Stasis subclasses, a compelling storyline, and a gorgeous new planet to explore make for an intriguing new direction for Bungie’s cosmic sandbox.

Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition doesn’t offer any massive surprises for veteran fans, but as a fresh chapter for newcomers? It makes one of the best action games of the last generation one of the most thrilling of the new generation.

After rocking the world with guitars and other assorted musical stylings, Fuser feels and sounds like the logical next step for Harmonix. It’s colourful, brimming with positive energy, and the musical mash-ups that you can potentially create aren’t just surprising, they deserve to be heard around the world. If a steady flow of DLC keeps Fuser alive, I’ll happily hop back into the DJ booth to create a few more surprise hits.

Call of Duty: Black Ops: Cold War is exactly what you expect it to be, but there is a massive amount of content on offer here and it's still impressive. Maybe the magic is starting to slip now, but if you've not picked up a Call of Duty recently then grab this one, there's still some fun to be had.