What could have been an easy sequel that traded on past glories is instead a compelling argument for digging up the foundations of Zelda and seeing what happens - rather like Wind Waker did 10 years ago. A Link Between Words is not a total revolution, but it may very well be the start of one. I haven’t been so challenged by a Zelda since Ocarina of Time, and rarely have I been so consistently surprised by one.
Just Dance 2014 is still daft fun on PS4, but other versions have more to offer.
The Novelist is an interesting, minimalist study of family relationships undermined by a rather superficial narrative.
Nidhogg's sword-fighting is exhilarating and exquisitely balanced. Against friends, its appeal is perhaps limitless.
TR: Definitive Edition's good looks are a bonus. It's still Lara, great pacing, and clever design that make it amazing.
A a grim, unsatisfying and morally dubious exercise in frustration and empathy suppression.
This unique crossover is a powerful draw for fans of either series, but it doesn’t make the most of its potential. It sacrifices some of both series’ challenge, and the alternate-universe story feels like a missed opportunity where there could have been more meaningful interaction between the worlds of Wright and Layton. The witty dialogue writing, however, is as charming and enjoyable as ever.
The strangest, saddest and most memorable of all the Zelda adventures, Majora's Mask is still extraordinary. This remake slightly improves what was already exceptional.
Challenging, invigorating and brimming with humour, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate is the best in the series - a must for fans, and the best entry point for newcomers.
Adorable, enjoyable, but not particularly inspired, Yoshi's Woolly World is a comforting, safe puzzle-platformer with a lot of heart.
Flows confidently between shooter, puzzler and platformer, never runs out of ideas, and challenges both your mind and your reflexes. Oh, and it looks and sounds gorgeous.
Confused, inconsistent and technically poor, Devil's Third has some inventive ideas for multiplayer, but it suffers form the same flaws as its dreary campaign.
For all its various shortcomings it remains memorable. A loving, personal game.
Color Splash is so damned imaginative and beautiful, though, so colorful and confidently funny. Even when it annoyed me, it was only fleetingly. It makes the abstract world of Mario so personable. Its gentle, playful weirdness and irreverence contrast so positively with the prevailing seriousness of fall’s big games
A total assault on your ears, eyes and reflexes. Thumper will beat you up, but you’ll enjoy it.
Mega Drive graphics belie the brains behind this puzzle-filled 2D platformer in which you play a misfit mechanic dismantling a religious techno-dystopia
Pitting you against everything from fire-breathing dinosaurs to fluffy bird-wyverns, this is destined to be one of 2018's best games
The things that have been simplified are things that were needlessly time-consuming in the first place...What hasn't changed is hunting monsters with beautifully balanced weaponry, and that was always the point.
This 2005 game, remade for the high-definition era, still stands out as a work of extraordinary beauty and quiet profundity
A mission to save the US from destruction by a charismatic leader flits between flamethrowing fun and graphic torture in a tonally unpredictable vision