Jack

It's quite hard to think of a game I have more of a love-hate relationship with. On the whole, though, I truly believe Apex is a superb game. Its movement and gunplay are second-to-none, its array of Legends are almost all fun to play and offer interesting challenges in combat, and the little story content we receive is often intriguing.

Unfortunately, I think Apex has been stagnating for some time now. Respawn going back on its unanimously-panned battle pass plans last year, while also adding the fantastic E-District map, gave me a lot of hope, but the game just doesn't feel as fresh anymore. Moreover, hackers have been a consistent issue - and I've probably experienced more of them in Apex than I have in most other multiplayer games. The game's monetization is also a big issue for me, not only with how exorbitant prices are getting but with how the game is still sticking to the pseudo-gambling system of loot boxes, even after most of the industry has rightfully left them in the dust.

Nonetheless, I think Apex is a great game - but Respawn will need to do a lot to bring it back on the upswing.

It might seem odd to view Cuphead as a relaxing title, but it's genuinely a title I always go to when I want to kick back and chill. I don't need to traverse anything complex to get a good time out of Cuphead, I can just hop right into an incredible boss fight with some of the best art I've ever seen in a game. It's old hat to call Cuphead visually stunning, but it's true! Every corner of the game shows just how dedicated the team at MDHR are to paying homage to the rubber-hose era of animation. From its superb animation to its unforgettable soundtrack, Cuphead is a stylistic powerhouse.

That's not all folks, however, as Cuphead is both incredibly tough and incredibly tight from a controls and design perspective. Every movement feels responsive and you feel responsible for (almost) every slip-up. Dying in Cuphead rarely feels infuriating to me, as just playing the game is a reward in-and-of itself. However, finally conquering a boss that's been giving you trouble is always satisfying.

Cuphead is a near-perfect boss-rush platformer, and I can't wait to see what MDHR does next.

Garden Warfare 2 has a fair share of issues, mainly its monetization (practically as problematic as Battlefront 2 in terms of lootboxes, but flew under the radar at the time). However, this is probably one of the my most hyped games of all time. I'm a lifelong fan of the PvZ series, and absolutely loved the original Garden Warfare (still do!), so I was gutted as a kid when I found out its sequel wasn't coming to the 360. That's why I was beyond happy when I finally got both an Xbox One and Garden Warfare 2 one fateful Christmas - and I was even happier when I found out Garden Warfare 2 lived up my to expectations.

Garden Warfare 2 takes everything great about the original and improves it, adding some great quality-of-life features as well as fantastic new characters. The addition of the Backyard Battleground in particular was incredibly clever, and it's since become one of my favourite hubs in gaming. Scouring the mix of urban warfare, zombie dystopia, and suburban paradise is always a pleasure, whether I'm invading the opposing base, looking for loot, or just screwing around with friends.

GW2 keeps the frenetic, unbalanced-to-the-point-of-balanced, chaos of the original, adding in new characters, new maps, and new gamemodes. The new cast are perfect additions, and the title's many modes remain incredibly enjoyable. I prefer the maps of the original Garden Warfare (especially its many iconic Gardens and Graveyards maps), but GW2 is still no slouch in that regard.

Overall, an endlessly enjoyable shooter that more than stands the test of time, even if there are some flaws I overlook for nostalgia's sake.

Combining a boss-rush core with RPG and sandbox elements was an absolute masterstroke, and Re-Logic continues to improve this already-fantastic game with evermore thoughtful additions, whether they're more excellent bosses, inspired crossovers, or quality-of-life features fans never knew they needed. No doubt about it, Re-Logic is one of the best studios in the busy, never placing itself above its fans despite Terraria's astronomical success.

While the game might be a little confusing to newcomers (you'll scarcely find a fan that doesn't make good use of the wiki), Terraria's worth getting into. Every step of the game's progression is fun, with near-endless ways to customize your experience. The game's systems are rich with depth, and the game's combat classes have niches within niches. You can really play Terraria however you want.

The crown jewel of the game is its bosses, and there's not really a bad one in the bunch. Golem might be a pushover, Deerclops might be superfluous, and The Twins might make me want to tear my hair out, but all of these bosses are fun to fight. Even if they put the fear of God into me, I'm always looking forward to the next boss.

In summary, Terraria is absolutely excellent. It's been with me for about a decade now, and I look forward to playing it for decades further.

Came for the memes and music, stayed for the incredibly solid gameplay and storytelling. Reveangeance combines over-the-top, bordering-on-camp edge with great characterisation, thematic interludes, and social commentary. The game manages to tell a compelling story while not taking itself too seriously, creating some of the most iconic characters in gaming.

The game's combat system can be tough to learn, but Reveangeance's initial power-fantasy stages help ease players in. Properly mastering the game's controls is one of the most satisfying learning curves I've encountered in a game. This leads to some of my favourite bosses in all of gaming, with the fight against Jetstreme Sam perhaps being my all-time favourite. Armstrong is also up there - a near-perfect final boss. Add in the game's incredible soundtrack and these combat sequences easily surpass much of what I've seen in the medium.

Overall, an incredible game on all fronts - the mother of all omelettes, indeed.

There are games I like more than Minecraft. I'll go back and forth on how much I prefer it to this game or that game, I'll whinge about features new and old, I'll come and go from it in phases.

But at the end of the day, nothing else will quite compare to what I've gotten out of Minecraft. It's been with me for well over a decade now, charting my progress as a person since I was a child. The ceaseless creativity it inspires has forever changed me as a person, and its worlds of endless and ever-evolving adventure have strengthened old friendships and helped forge new ones.

I remember first playing an online timed demo of Minecraft, surviving my first night by bunkering in a tree and mining wood with a pickaxe. I remember the Xbox 360 days, playing with my sister in survival world after survival world, playing with friends in minigames or building castles with them in creative. It was in Minecraft that I first played with a friend online, battling them through a shoddy little hunger games world I threw together.

That gave way to the Xbox One days, when Minecraft was out of vogue and I was the only one of us that played it. But then, in the 2019 resurgence, friends from all walks reunited in-game. Over the lockdown period, we played on epic multiplayer worlds and realms. Factions were forged, duels were fought in the sky, superweapons were developed from crossbow exploits. However riddled with grand conflict those worlds were, though, we would always come together - sometimes dozens of us - to slay the ender dragon.

For the most part, I only play Minecraft with one of my friends, the others less interested than they were in those lockdown days. We usually play on the Hive or mess about with a new update's features, but we just started a new survival world together. I hope it goes far.

Minecraft is everything wonderful about being a kid, and you get to keep those little trinkets of the person you once were forever, etched in blocks and bonds.