DeVuego

Though Afterpulse looks like it ticks all the typical boxes for a shooter, under the surface a slightly too forgiving targeting system unbalance the action, and the generic nature of what's on offer make Afterpulse feel like little more than a vehicle for grabbing your cash. Fun while it lasts, then, but not the deep experience it pitches itself as.

This is the trade off Love You to Bits makes. Other point-and-clicks would indicate just what you need to do and why with a simple line in the script, whereas Love You to Bits relies on the design of the levels themselves indicating what your next task should be. It's a leap of faith that doesn't wholly come off, though thankfully Love You to Bits' bold take on the genre has enough charm to pull you through its patchier parts.

But this isn’t just a reskinned version of the SNES classic, with MercurySteam improving upon the formula with new stealth segments, outstanding visuals and tight combat with a highly rewarding counter system. It’s too early to make a final judgement, but I’m optimistic this could be one of the best first-party Switch games, period.

Metroid: Samus Returns is a commendable re-imagining that has clearly been crafted with plenty of love and care by MercurySteam.

There are good ideas at work in Reservoir Dogs: Bloody Days, but it’s a shame that one of the most intense and shocking indie movies ever made has spawned a game that’s neither. At its best, it’s a tight, engaging twin-stick shooter with an element of strategy and a cool rewind mechanic, but it never manages to be anything more than that.

While it’s reminiscent of Journey, The Wind Waker and Ico, RiME is so much more than a grab-bag of borrowed ideas. Combining art, craftsmanship, enigmatic storytelling and engaging gameplay, it does what the likes of Bound and ABZU couldn’t: wrap a powerful experience inside a compelling game. I’m still working out whether RiME is a masterpiece and, if so, where it sits in the pantheon of greats – but one thing’s for sure: if you love the games it’s inspired by, you’re going to love RiME as well.