A mighty fine bite-size Battlefield experience that takes a franchise synonymous with being a military shooter and establishes it in new territory. Battlefield Hardline is not as grand or epic as you'd perhaps expect a core Battlefield title to be, but it's certainly a damn fine alternative.
Cities: Skylines is a pretty damn good city building sim game for consoles. It's got its problems and it's incredibly limited in its scope, but if you're looking to kill more than a few hours with one of the most therapeutic game in some time, this is it.
Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is the Gears of War that fans didn't ask for, but it's the one they got, and it's actually pretty great, as it happens. The campaign seems to have taken a backseat to the multiplayer in terms of improvements, but it's worth buying for the multiplayer alone, so there's that. It'll tide you over till Gears of War 4 at least, but that's about it.
Star Wars Battlefront is undoubtedly the Star Wars experience that we all wanted, it's just a shame that there's a distinct lack of content. That said, playing Battlefront is as close to being in a Star Wars movie as you're ever likely to get.
A marked improvement over last year, but the absence of pace is sorely missed. FIFA 16 is not as good on the pitch as PES this year – again – but it's a great football game regardless, with unrivalled off the pitch options.
XCOM 2 is a great strategy game for the same reasons that Enemy Unknown/Enemy Within were, for the unique minute-to-minute gameplay, but as a sequel, this needed more innovation and less iteration.
Oxenfree just goes to show that you don't need vast wads of cash to make great games. You can make one with a strong enough idea and a solid and unwavering vision. With its engaging story, its excellent voice-acting and enthralling dialogue, Oxenfree is a game to remember, marred only by its constant crashes, which is less than ideal.
Dead Rising 4 is undoubtedly a great zombie game, with Capcom Vancouver nailing the open-world and tone once more, but the lack of true psychos in the world does detract from the overall experience. It’s no Dead Rising 3, but it’s still a bloody good game.
South Park: The Fractured But Whole is a case of one step forward, two steps back. From a gameplay perspective, it's infinitely better than it was in the previous outing, but as a piece of entertainment, The Fractured But Whole simply doesn't measure up to The Stick of Truth. There's no censorship this time, which is good, but it almost feels like the whole thing got self-censored somewhere along the way.
The Sexy Brutale is the perfect example of an interesting concept and excellent execution. Sure, it might have its issues, but underneath the unique puzzle mechanics is one hell of an enthralling story. Worthy of your time, indeed!
Two Point Hospital is a most excellent return from the abyss for the 'hospital simulator', one that is wholesome, colourful, incredibly creative and a joy to behold. It does tend to get a little repetitive after a while, but up until that point you're in for a real treat.
The third act is often the hardest, and with Hitman 3, IO Interactive has managed, somehow, to mix things up and make it feel fresh. Some will celebrate the lengthier, curated stories, but those who love Hitman for its replay value will be slightly dismayed at Hitman 3. Nonetheless, it's still a great bloody video game.
Alan Wake is a fantastic game, while Alan Wake Remastered remains just a great port. Yes, it loses something with the new shiny visuals and a few things have not withstood the test of time, but everything else is still fantastic. Especially that story!
A definite improvement over Steep, thanks to the Mass Races and the new bike discipline, but Ubisoft Annecy have still got a lot of work to do if they want to break into upper echelons of gaming. It should look to Playground Games and how they craft an elite open-world sports game if they want to reach that next-level, then maybe they too could be mentioned in the same breath as SSX Tricky. Fingers crossed, the potential is definitely there!
A Plague Tale: Requiem is a mighty fine follow up to Innocence, and will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Sure, there’s the odd interesting design choice littered throughout and the game has the odd technical issue, but other than that, Requiem is a great way to spend a weekend.
Pentiment is an incredibly enchanting adventure game that really is like no other. It doesn’t quite have the same depth and ingenuity that Disco Elysium has, but what it lacks in depth, it more than makes up for in charm. After a slow start, this murder mystery really becomes the talk of the town.
Marvel's Midnight Suns is a strangely complex game to explain. It’s equal parts isometric turn-based RPG, social simulator, and deck-building card game. But you know what? It actually works! Sure, it’s not as tense and as gripping as Firaxis’ XCOM series, but this is a nice action-oriented offshoot.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora’s true draw is Pandora itself, and while the gameplay can get a little repetitive and samey, there's enough here to keep you engrossed from start to finish. Come for the sights, stay for the sights.
An old skool RPG if ever there was one, Pillars of Eternity: Complete Edition should be on your shopping list if you're a strategy and RPG junkie. It's as close as we're going to get to a new Baldur's Gate, and while it has its quirks and suffers from agonising load times on consoles, it's still a joy to play.
Steep is an admirable effort from Ubisoft Annecy, one that is chock full of decent ideas, but held back by others. This simulation extreme sports title lays down the foundations for what could turn out to be another staple in Ubisoft’s ever growing catalogue.