Desperados 3 is the leader of the pack in this genre. A quality game, tight controls, excellent story and addictive puzzle-based gameplay that rewards creative thinking when you clear an area of bad folks.
Anyone who has played a turn-based game will know what's coming, or at least know how to control their units and battle the forces of the Suffering. There's a decent tutorial which shows you many of the game's early elements, allows you to cut loose and find your feet. Then as you progress you will be given other tutorials, mixed in and these drip-feed the management skills and knowledge you need to get to grips with the other systems of the game. The tutorials are good, solid, and explain everything you need to know.
I always loved my time with Amalur, and I am still loving my time with the Re-Reckoning. What with Dead Kell to dive into, and Naros, with ALL the DLC from the first run of the base game packed in with it there's a lot on offer here and the price is decent. You get a complete package, one that doesn't trick you through nostalgia. If you want to pay a bit more, you can also go for the full edition of the game and get the new expansion that's coming in 2021.
Forgone has a great feel to it, incredibly good animations and superb graphics. The action platformer with rogue-like elements is a strong contender for one of the most accessible, yet challenging titles since Dead Cells.
It's a big game, it's packed with content, and none of it is phoned in. Every aspect of this game is created to feed into the systems that are at play. I'm 160 hours in and I've still got a lot to do, none of it is filler, and all of it is stuff I want to do. From fun mini-games like Orlog (the dice game that's equal in complexity to Gwent from W3) to the drinking challenges, flyting (Viking rap battles) and more.
Stranded: Alien Dawn excels at being a game like Rimworld, but charts it own course, marks its own innovations and breaks out of the mould set by the former. I’m really glad this came to the Xbox and it’s now one of my favourite games in this genre – I can’t wait to see what happens post-launch, because this feels like Stranded has a very bright future both on PC and console.
Whilst it doesn't have the same breadth and scope as Diablo 3, Victor Vran has some great gameplay, solid combat action and delivers a decent experience that's miles better than some Diablo clones out there. Worth checking out if you're looking for more action adventure monster slaying!
I haven't had this much fun in a Final Fantasy game for a long time. XV is the perfect blend of action and exploration that keeps you coming back in for more.
I'd have loved to say Must Buy on this, but the raft of bugs early on and the fact that it just doesn't quite hit the spot as one of those must-have games even for a fan like me meant that it missed out on our top result. Still, it is a fun game and you may want to grab it down the line.
A worthy addition to the Left 4 Dead first person action adventure horde genre. Vermintide manages to keep close to what made L4D great, but strikes out on its own and delivers a solid game which has a lot of replay value.
Titfanfall 2 is a great package, solid shooting and an engaging singleplayer campaign combine with a solid multiplayer suite to deliver a great shooter.
Watch_Dogs 2 improves on the first game in almost all areas, adds a ton of new content and delivers a satisfying open-world action adventure.
A solid entry into the CoD franchise, a bit different (in a good way) than the previous CoD games like AW and Black Ops 3. Worth getting for the spectacle, pretty epic campaign and has a new take on zombies.
This game has a ton of potential, perhaps not quite there yet, but there's always room for changes in a future patch. It feels like a remix of several Ubisoft games in one, not a bad thing per-se. A great game though, I've loved my time in the Wildlands.
Lego Worlds is super silly fun for anyone who picks it up. It's especially fun for fans of Lego and the TT approach to the Lego games. It's also fun for anyone who happens to like Minecraft-style games.
The atmosphere in this game is dialled up from the previous, the graphics and design are better and the music has a neat way of tracking the peril you're in. It changes based on the on screen action and provides subtle (or not so subtle) clues to the situation. The same can be said of the sound effects, though they sound mostly recycled from the first game.
Rime is beautiful, it's simple in a lot of ways and has some nice ideas. It's worth grabbing and especially if you enjoyed games like Ico, Journey and so on.
I love Far Cry, I really do, there's something about this series that makes me smile no matter what the game. I might be horribly biased by the open world nature of the games, and like many of my favourite titles before it, it's the mix of unpredictable gonzo fun and sudden random nature elements that combine to make it such a great experience. Far Cry 5 seeks to keep that flavour from previous Far Cry titles such as 3 and 4, and push the boundary of its design a bit further.
The Prize Crate system is the downer here, it ruins what could have been a perfect game. It doesn't put the game in the bargain bin of course, or detract from the actual game itself, but it's a nasty sour taste that doesn't really fit with Forza. Of course, this is just my opinion and you can take it, or leave it as you desire. It's not as mode rich as Forza 6 at launch but there's time for additional modes and the like post-launch, as well as tweaks and the changes coming to the VIP pass. In the end though it is pure racing fun at heart, stripped of the useless tat and dazzle of the previous games - left for people to do the one thing they bought it for. The sound of the cars, the look, the feel, the thrill of the race and of course to collect badass rides and drive them at breakneck speeds in places they might never visit.
Agents of Mayhem is a fun game, it might get a little repetitive now and then, but with solid controls and a great combat system it's a delight to play. If you're missing Saint's Row and Crackdown, this could be the game for you.