For newcomers, this is a remarkable opportunity to experience one of gaming’s most important adventures in its best form. For veterans, it’s a respectful and beautifully realised return to Hyrule that understands what made the original so enduring. And for me, it’s another reminder that sometimes a video game can be much more than an escape. It can be a place you carry with you long after the console is switched off.
Sonic Pico Park doesn’t reinvent the formula that made its predecessors so enjoyable. Instead, it takes the established cooperative chaos, adds a recognisable cast of characters and introduces abilities that give the puzzles a new dimension. The result is a terrific little party game that’s easy to recommend to almost anybody.
Godzilla Destroy All Monsters Melee Remastered is an uneven return for a wonderfully out-of-pocket party brawler. Its combat is entertaining without being especially deep, its solo progression asks for more patience than it deserves, and its online multiplayer feels strangely restrictive.
If you missed the original, GotG Encore Edition is an excellent opportunity to correct what I would call a very large mistake on your part. And, hey, if you’ve already played it, the native Switch 2 port offers a convenient reason to revisit an old favourite.
On Nintendo Switch 2, Look Outside is an easy recommendation for anyone who appreciates retro RPGs with a genuinely nasty streak. It’s disturbing, inventive and occasionally infuriating, but those frustrations rarely overshadow its considerable strengths.
Phantom Blade Zero is a spectacular martial arts action game that understands style matters as much as survival. Its superb combat, inventive weapon systems and unforgettable bosses easily outweigh a few technical blemishes and repetitive encounters. S-GAME has delivered a confident, ambitious knockout that deserves to be experienced by action fans everywhere.
On Switch 2, the improved performance removes some of the technical friction that previously threatened to undermine the experience. It doesn’t fix every repetitive element or eliminate the occasional frustrating weapon roll, but it makes an already compelling game feel better suited to the hardware.
Ultimately, Nintendo Switch Sports Resort is a more substantial and enjoyable package than its predecessor, particularly for players who want something to enjoy alone as well as with friends. The new sports bring some welcome ingenuity, the return to Wuhu Island provides a lovely sense of familiarity, and the improved solo progression gives the experience considerably more staying power. When the motion controls click, there’s still nothing quite like the uncomplicated joy of picking up a controller and getting stuck into a round of virtual sport.
MW4 ain’t perfect but it gets the fundamentals so right that IW’s conservatism starts looking less like a lack of ambition and more like a much-needed intervention.
Ultimately, Boltgun 2 is a solid sequel that understands the appeal of its predecessor and expands on it without losing sight of the fundamental pleasure of blasting through waves of enemies. Nyra’s introduction adds meaningful variety, the new environments provide welcome visual contrast, and the expanded enemy roster ensures there are plenty of fresh abominations to introduce to the business end of your arsenal.
Ultimately, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse feels like a meaningful new direction for the franchise rather than a simple return to familiar territory.
Dark Arisen feels like it understands what Dragon’s Dogma 2 needed rather than simply shoveling more of what it already had at me. It’s bigger, nastier and substantially more rewarding than the adventure that preceded it. There’s also the kind of endgame progression loop that makes all that slogging forth, slaying fiends and fretting over inventory feel worthwhile.
This was already one of the PS5’s prettiest, most satisfying open-world adventures. The Complete Edition doesn’t reinvent it. Instead, it gives its strongest ingredients more room to breathe, adds a genuinely worthwhile new chapter to Atsu’s story and provides a surprisingly addictive combat playground on the side.
Minecraft Dungeons II adds depth without losing the approachable chaos that made its predecessor work. The Sift and expanded gear game broaden the formula, while a reduction in start-and-stop co-op menu faffing is greatly appreciated. I just wish its teasing glimpses of an open world went further.
Fuse Games has taken the foundational joy of Star Wars racing and wrapped it around a surprisingly deep arcade system, branching rogue-lite campaign, meaningful vehicle differentiation and enough customisation to keep the garage interesting.
Gears of War: E-Day feels like a confident reminder of what made this series Xbox royalty in the first place. It’s nasty, ridiculous, surprisingly funny and occasionally horrifying, all while giving Marcus and Dom another jaunt to share that feels worthwhile rather than merely nostalgic.
Ultimately, Minecraft Dungeons II feels like the sequel this particular family wanted. It keeps the immediately understandable combat and absurdly addictive loot chase of the original while adding the systems that make spending an entire evening playing together much easier. The character-building is deeper, movement is more interesting, exploration has more purpose and the co-op experience has been thoughtfully improved.
It is stranger, faster, more physical and considerably more willing to throw its toys out of the pram. Most importantly, it feels like Remedy actually had something to say with the sequel beyond “here’s more Control.” It’s a sequel is that’s willing to take a big, weird swing, and it mostly connects.
Ultimately, when it came time for me to eject from AC8, I was left with the impression of something fun but not flawless. Target-selection nonsense, overcooked dialogue and some not-so-novel decisions that decelerate the pacing keep it from being a perfect sortie. But when Wings of Theve is firing on all afterburners, it delivers exactly the kind of high-speed, high-altitude blockbuster nonsense I wanted from it.
The previous Hot Wheels Unleashed games understood that the best thing about Hot Wheels is putting tiny cars somewhere they absolutely shouldn’t be. Infinite Rush gives those cars a massive playground, but because everything is built around the same toy scale, it doesn’t produce quite the same sense of wonder.