Nintendo Switch Sports
The ebullient hilarity of flailing around the living room and swinging game controllers like a tennis racket makes a most welcome return. Old favourites bowling and tennis remain family favourites, while the fraught back and forth of badminton and more involving football are the pick of the new bunch. Six sports is a bit miserly, perhaps, but made up for with charm, execution and laughing at family members as they crash into the sofa during a particularly intense rally.
OlliOlli World
OlliOlli has come a long way since its mobile debut as an addictive one-finger skate sim, but it has never lost its charm and attitude. With a candy-coated overworld, more complex controls and a smattering of story, you might worry it bails as it overreaches. Not a bit of it; nailing the landing with trick-packed runs across tight, smartly designed levels.
Unpacking
Who would have guessed one of the year’s best examples of interactive storytelling would be found in a simple puzzle game about moving house? The charming art style and moreish gameplay exude a certain charm but it’s the insight into a life lived via the possessions we keep and the spaces we store them in which really resonated.
Diablo Immortal
Blizzard’s venture into mobile gaming proved more than an amuse-bouche to tide over fans until the delayed release of Diablo 4; Immortal was instead more akin to a fully-formed, multi-player loot-em-up RPG experience you could play on your phone. Thirsty micro-transactions soured the pitch somewhat, but this is still a great game to play on the go.
PowerWash Simulator
An unlikely breakout hit thanks to its inclusion on Xbox’s Game Pass service, PowerWash Simulator took the concept busywork to new levels. The irony of spending hours cleaning up virtual living spaces while simultaneously neglecting their real ones wasn’t lost on many, but the game’s hypnotic appeal proved hard to resist.
Poinpy
Netflix’s mobile games offering has slipped so far under the radar most subscribers don’t even realise it exists. Dangerously addictive one-finger puzzler Poinpy is too good to be ignored, though. Developed by Downwell creator Ojiro Fumoto, it’s easy to pick up but almost impossible to put down.
Cyberpunk 2077
CD Projekt Red’s much-hyped but ill-fated follow up to the Witcher series will rightly be remembered for being one of the most disastrous video game launches ever. The Polish studio has worked hard in the 18 months since to fix many of their mistakes, and the next-gen version released this year shows what could have been. Sure some flaws remain, but there’s an engrossing first person RPG here that deserves a second chance.
