An immaculate battle royale that could be sold at a premium price point, but instead is one of the best free-to-play games ever.
This faithful recreation of the once king of kart racers means Crash Team Racing has seized the throne once more, with enough content and a high skill ceiling to keep players returning for years.
Football Manager 2021 may not revolutionise the series, but instead it adds countless quality-of-life improvements – including ones to the match engine – that make it the best Football Manager game to date.
Diablo 4 feels like the apex of the series, bringing together everything great about the previous entries. It isn't without its minor flaws, and the success of the endgame content is still up in the air, but for once Diablo has a gripping story, phenomenal graphics, and a gameplay loop that doesn't innovate too much but is certainly better than its predecessor.
Plenty of other racing games are the equivalent of a big, greasy cheeseburger that tastes wonderful, but Gran Turismo 7 is like visiting a Michelin star restaurant, and they've deconstructed the same burger to become a beautifully presented, fancier meal. It's like the JRPG of racing games, wearing its Japanese development on its sleeve, which is something not often seen in the racing genre. In 2022, Gran Turismo 7 is one of the best racing games available, and undoubtedly the best for pure racing on consoles.
Crypt of the NecroDancer; the dance-based roguelike you never expected to work.
Football Manager 2021 was the best entry in the series for some time, and it’s safe to say that Football Manager 2022 continues that trend, by building upon the huge leaps it took last year. The improvements this time around aren’t quite as groundbreaking as last time because they’re a little more subtle and less on-the-nose, but they’re there nevertheless, meaning it is a brilliant time to be a Football Manager player. I just wish I didn’t play quite so much of the last instalment, because I’m not quite ready to start again after leaving behind my beloved Oxford United squad just a few weeks ago.
Are video games art? In the case of Sable, I think it’s foolish to claim otherwise. It has been an honour to play and review this magnificent experience, with its jaw-dropping vistas, witty, personified dialogue, and genuinely unique world that offers something unmatched in video games. Sable will likely fly under the radar for a lot of people and were it not for the plethora of technical issues, this would be close to a score of the highest order. As it stands, the bugs do detract from the experience a little, but even so this is an absolute must-play title... I just wish there were more of it.
The lack of campaign is sorely missed in this bold new direction for Call of Duty, but the multiplayer shines like never before.
Nobody thought Fortnite would still be popular this late on, but it's continued to adapt and fight for its spot at the top of the battle royale ladder.
Football Manager 2020 continues the series' winning formula, but there's still plenty of aspects that need work alongside overpowered tactics and methods to win games.
F1 Manager 2023 improves on its predecessor in every way possible, with new driver development attributes, sprint races, more depth in car part development, more driver tactics, realistic tyre degradation, a whole new mode full of real-life scenarios, and more. The downtime between races is still a little dull, but it's finally a worthy pickup for every Formula One fan.
Headline features that don't have a lot going for them mean Football Manager 2023 is the smallest step forward in the series yet, but a step forward nonetheless, to make this the best FM game to date.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is a hauntingly beautiful tale of two lovers embarking on a treacherous journey that tests their relationship through tragedy. With a world and combat that emulate the God of War reboot, and side quests similar to The Witcher 3, this is one of 2024's early must-plays, even if its moral decisions are restrictive.
This dystopian tale of Pinocchio does a lot to stand on its own two feet, but when you strip all the set dressing away, it is simply a terrific love letter to Bloodborne. It is rough around the edges with some balancing issues and environment clipping causing you to get stuck in corners too easily, but with enough persistence (and skill), Lies of P is one of the best non-FromSoftware soulslikes yet.
Even though I may have an affinity for stealth gameplay and the first Dishonored still sits in my list of all-time favourite games, I do not want to leave Blackreef. I wish DEATHLOOP had more Colt-content for me to explore, perhaps another district or two and a few more visionaries to hunt down, because the core gunplay and traversal is so enjoyable. From the We Happy Few-esque masks to some of the quirky interactions - shoutout to 2-BIT - and simply how polished the game is, it's impossible not to recommend. It embodies replay value and even when things don't go your way, you're left wanting to try again rather than walking away frustrated.
Back when Skyrim launched in 2011, a fake mock-up of a Blastoise emerging from behind some trees in glorious 3D did the rounds on the internet. Pokemon fans everywhere, myself included, salivated at the thought of such a game coming to fruition. Pokemon Legends Arceus is the closest thing we've had to that dream yet and while performance issues and lack of graphical fidelity do throw a spanner in the works, not to mention the often lonely open world with lack of meaningful landmarks, this shake-up of the formula is a return to form for Game Freak.
A Call of Duty title that reigns everything in and is afraid to try something new, Black Ops Cold War gets the basics spot on but doesn't have enough content to warrant the price tag.
It's still the leading football game in town, but EA has made only minor changes in FIFA 23, such as set piece tweaks and a new way of shooting. If you didn't enjoy 22, chances are you won't be too impressed with this one either.
Content-rich and competent, if a little uninspired, Potter fans will enjoy Hogwarts Legacy's faithful recreation of its universe, but it brings little of novelty to the open-world RPG genre.