Elden Ring is a crowning achievement for FromSoftware and undoubtedly the very best gameplay experience they've yet delivered - and that's really saying something given this developer's incredible back catalogue. The Lands Between deftly combine breathless open world exploration, stunning artistry, immaculate world-building and wondrous adventure with classic Dark Souls combat and dungeon-crawling, resulting in not just the best Souls game to date, but a candidate for one of the very best video games ever made.
Starfield is Bethesda's best RPG to date, an enormous space odyssey that serves up some incredibly evocative and engaging exploration, satisfying combat, and a narrative that had us hooked right to the end. Yes there are issues here with the usual jank, and some very messy and fiddly menus and interactions, but all of these problems feel minor when compared to everything this game gets right. In a year that's been packed full of absolutely essential games, Starfield manages to sit right up top with some of the best of them. After all the hype and bluster, this is just a very, very good RPG and a game we'll be playing and replaying for a long time to come.
It may be passé to say, but FIFA 16 is a game of two halves. Off the field, not much has changed that you could really write home about. The stalwarts of career mode and Ultimate Team feel much the same as they did before with very minor changes. With the ball at your feet though, the tooth-and-nail fights to hold on to a 1-0 lead against superior opposition or to take advantage of an entirely organic mistake to equalise in the final knockings of a lower league cup match, along with the general feeling that you're taking part in a decent tactical battle are stellar. The things EA hasn't shouted about are the things that they've clearly worked the hardest on and while there are still flaws, this is the best on-pitch representation of the beautiful game since Konami's PlayStation 2 efforts.
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is a sprawling adventure that does not take itself too seriously, yet offers up fantastic storytelling in an immersive and gorgeous-looking world. Its slow pace and lack of true action will not appeal to everybody but with popular culture references galore and a cast of heroes that you can't help but develop a fondness for, it's a title that can sit proudly with others in the genre...if it can get away with mocking them all mercilessly, of course.
Penarium is one of the best arcade-style games we've played this console generation. The campaign doesn't last all that long, and more multiplayer options would've been appreciated, but all in all, there's a healthy amount of content for the price. If fast-paced gameplay and high-score chasing are your thing, we suggest planning a trip to this sadistic carnival. Just don't be surprised if you end up imprisoned, losing hours upon hours of your life to the addictive chaos.
Pro Evolution Soccer 2016 is a strange entry in the series. The improvements are obvious and clear to see from the outset but the areas in which it has taken a step backward take a lot longer to actually uncover. You don't realise that you haven't conceded a free kick for ages until you've played more than a handful of games. You don't realise that the keepers pretty much can't save low shots until you've conceded a dozen goals in the bottom corner. This means that your time with PES this year will be spent playing for an hour or two and then putting the controller down in frustration. It's to Konami's great credit that it somehow always calls you back to it.
Pumped BMX+ is a good advertisement for mobile game ports on Xbox One. Crafted with care and not just spit out onto the platform in under five minutes, the game is easy to pickup and tough to master. Despite the amount of gameplay addicted players will get out of it, a little more variation and the inclusion of any sort of multiplayer play – H.O.R.S.E. anyone? – would have seen it score higher, though there's plenty going on here to justify the price for lone players. Good fun.
Toy Soldiers: War Chest could really be something great but unfortunately choppy performance, uninspiring missions and a repetitive single player experience put paid to this. The licensed properties present in the game aren't enough elevate the game to anything more than a very workmanlike version of your favourite childhood moments.
Some of the off-track functionality in Forza Motorsport 6 is sometimes surprisingly lazily implemented but you'll tend to forget that when you're in a battle with the elements, trying to shave a tenth of a second off your laptime in your newly-tuned favourite racer, or simply gawking at the outstanding visuals. Time ebbs away when you're playing. "One more race" becomes "one more series" and then you just pop online to have a quick League race, then you just have to take on a rival's laptime real quick…and soon it's 5am and you realise exactly how much game you get for your buck. Warts and all, this is well worth the investment.
Asteroid Base have done a fine job with Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime, providing that you're a co-op gamer. Single players will likely find that they enjoy things up until the game becomes too overwhelming. Still, as a whole, there's a lot to like here – including genuine innovation - and it's definitely something different.
Mad Max's frame may be built from familiar parts, but that doesn't mean there aren't enough surprises under the hood to make for a furiously enjoyable ride.
The Deer God will inevitably divide gamer's opinions. Some will love its pixelated art style and be carried away by its themes and the emotions it invokes, while others will find it a frustrating, boring trudge from left to right. There's no denying that there is potential here and there are some very touching moments, but the flaws are so game breaking that at times it's just not any fun to play.
Gears of War: Ultimate Edition is anything but a lazy remaster. With a bunch of new content, a massive visual overhaul, mechanical improvements, and other subtle modernizations, Ultimate Edition has earned the right to be referred to as the definitive version of Gears of War.
Mega Man Legacy Collection feels incomplete, even at the relatively low asking price. You get the first six titles that form the basis of the Mega Man Legacy (which is apt, given the compilation's name) but other than an entertaining challenge mode, there doesn't appear to be much in the way of love shown to the franchise here.
The team at Tic Toc Games have done a great job here for sure, but we just wish that there was either more volume to it in general, or more of a challenge to what is provided. It's definitely an enjoyable enough way to while away a couple of hours.
Super Mega Baseball: Extra Innings is a fitting way to round out the baseball season and a great excuse to invite friends over for some local multiplayer action. While another mode and online functionality would've made this package an absolute grand slam, the core gameplay is so addictive and well-executed that it's hard to think of it as anything less than a home run.
