PC
It begins with a single machine: a landing capsule on a pristine planet. Then a drilling machine, built from self-mined iron. Hours later, the planet is covered with neat (or not) rows of extractors and conveyor belts, machines that hum reassuringly as they make their endless thin gummies. It may be a corporate mining simulator, but it’s just so immersive.

PS4/5, PC, Nintendo Switch
Like many of the best British comedies, this slapstick puzzler is rounded off with a bit of discomfort. As a small-time traveling salesman, you explore a northern town with a Viz feel and solve the strange problems of its residents (a boy afraid of milk, cake meat of questionable origin, a lost screwdriver stolen by sentient rats). Exceptionally funny.

PS4/5, Xbox, PC, Nintendo Switch
A cleverly self-referential horror game about a spooky theme park that takes inspiration from all the genre classics of the 90s and adopts their blurry, polygonal aesthetic. The twisted carnival settings are as detailed as a dollhouse, evolving in unsettling ways as the hours pass and the mystery of Crow Country unfolds – and the bold ending is worth the effort.

Smartphones
What at first glance looks like a manipulatively addictive card collecting mobile game with a range of different, inscrutable currencies is… well, exactly that, but with impressively balanced, fast-paced and entertaining competition. It plays quickly and intelligently, allowing for creative deck building and creature combinations, allowing each player to put their own spin on their game.

PS4/5, Xbox, PC
A seance in a high school library goes completely wrong in this adventure game, a spooky, hilarious homage to the best of ’90s horror in both movies and games. Thanks to its warm, slightly metaphorical story and merciful absence of gore, this is the kind of game that even people who normally don’t like it will like hate Horror can be enjoyed.

PS5, PC (2025)
Based on 1997’s Final Fantasy VII, Rebirth creates a bigger, richer and, of course, much more beautiful world for Cloud Strife and his companions. A maximalist fan service wonder filled with activities and new, in-depth details on some of the most beloved characters and stories in gaming history.

PC
From the title, you’d expect a game about a magical special forces team making their way through enemy territory using spells and powers that turn back time. You might not expect a quiet, radical story with excellent characterization and the courage to question the morality of the entire military shooter genre from which it is borrowed – but that’s what you get.

PS5, Xbox, PC
Just a great modern fighting game, polished in every way. New contenders join the highlights of the 30-year Tekken roster (including martial artists, cyborgs, a demon, etc.). two giant bears) to beat each other in excitingly ostentatious battles that could change at any moment.

PS4/5, PC, Nintendo Switch
An artist invites you to an abandoned baroque hotel where nothing is as it seems. When you get there, you can only rely on your wits to unravel the tangled timelines and bespoke puzzles that await you, finding fragments of answers in paintings, discarded documents, behind closed doors and on the other end of a ringing telephone . As ambitious, compulsive and stylish as puzzle games can be.

PS5, Xbox, PC, Nintendo Switch
The eeriness of this underground maze filled with unsettling pixelated animals trying to snag you for a snack is balanced by quiet beauty. The fronds of bright plants sway as you walk past them. Drips and creaks and distorted animal cries echo off the damp walls of intricate caves. Extremely clever and atmospheric.

Xbox, PC
The adventurous archaeologist whirls through fascinating recreations of the Vatican City and the Pyramids of Giza in the 1940s, delves into ancient crypts and, of course, punches up Nazis. Anyone expecting a first-person Uncharted or Tomb Raider will be pleasantly surprised to find that the emphasis is on puzzles, disguises and exploration rather than getting out a revolver.

PC
A compilation of 50 games from the long-defunct (fictional) gaming company UFO Soft from the 1980s, encompassing an astonishingly creative variety of themes and gameplay styles while remaining true to the retro style in look and feel. Almost any of these games individually would be an indie release worth paying for. Together they are an absurdly generous package.

PS5, PC
It’s rare to play an action game in 2024 that feels truly original. Black Myth: Wukong’s spectacular take on Journey to the West is as eye-catching as Devil May Cry and (almost) as rewardingly challenging as Dark Souls. A carefully curated journey through Buddhist legends and breathtaking landscapes.

PS5, PC
The premise of this hit shooter is so simple and so well-trod: four players land on a planet full of insectoid aliens and blow everything to pieces. But everything from the feel of the weapons to the rhythm of each mission to the jingoistic satire is designed precisely to entertain, and with the right friends, every session has the potential to turn into slapstick hilarity.

PS4/5, Xbox, PC, Nintendo Switch
A warrior and her wolf pup fight for survival and fend off the invasion of oil-black demons into their natural paradise. As the seasons progress, the wolf grows and so does the threat. One of the most extraordinary games you will ever play, filled with deep and sincere feelings.

PS5, Xbox, PC
A highly unusual and consistently entertaining quasi-medieval fantasy RPG that has no qualms about getting you into hot water and challenging you to figure things out for yourself. Lingering in the woods at night after forgetting to pack your camping gear, surrounded by ghosts, will lead you to adventure.

PS4/5, Xbox, PC, Nintendo Switch, smartphones
The biggest indie hit of the year, this psychedelic chillwave take on poker can make hours disappear. Create fancy hands with decks of cards that change with each playthrough and keep your score rising (if you know what you’re doing). Victories are difficult to achieve, but each attempt brings you tantalizingly closer.

PS4/5, Xbox, PC
Exceptional art direction, an operatic soundtrack, and theatrical battles between transforming fantasy robots and grotesque, human-adjacent Bosch-style monstrosities combine to create a passionate plea for acceptance of a multicultural society and an end to divisive politics. A role-playing game that is as intelligent as it is grandiose, combining philosophical postulating with intense strangeness and outrageous style.

PS4/5, Xbox, PC
Technically not a sequel to 2022’s dark fantasy masterpiece, but it might as well be. Shadow of the Earthtree adds dozens of hours of creatively disturbing enemies and even more fascinatingly contaminated locations to FromSoftware’s unparalleled realm. It revitalizes an already excellent game with a new sense of danger and possibility.

PS5
A cute blue and white robot and his hundreds of little friends romp across a galaxy of fun-filled planets, aided by backpack monkeys, extendable frog boxing gloves and a rocket-powered chicken. Over ten hours of pure, focused playfulness from Sony’s Team Asobi, this imaginative and enchanting adventure showcases exactly what the advanced technology of modern consoles can add to the fun.