Earth's Dawn is a solid little title with a few minor niggles that hold it back from being a great title. On the surface, the game appears quite simple and yet the combat, skills and crafting make for quite a deep and intriguing game with many gameplay and combat possibilities.
Dead by Daylight has the potential to become a cult classic among asymmetric games.
Armored Warfare is a welcome addition to the tank battle genre.
In summary, it's a brilliant simulation, but it comes at the price of even being called a game.
MotoGP 15 manages to delight and disappoint this year. The racing itself is better than ever due to the improvements in the physics and handling of the bikes. However, with the game making its first appearance on the Xbox One you feel that Milestone had the chance to impress and perhaps bring new fans into the fold, but with the lacklustre presentation and more severe bugs, it feels like a missed opportunity and that's a shame. To be fair, the title has always focussed on the racing - it just wants the player to race and race some more, and with this Milestone have continued to deliver an unrivalled two-wheel experience that is a thrilling and intense as the sport it represents. It is genuinely hard to find fault in the actual racing within the game.
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown brings the franchise hurtling onto Xbox One with all guns blazing. For genre fans, it's a great time thanks to intuitive and compelling combat, an interesting variety of missions, a wealth of content, planes, weaponry and technology, all backed up with stunning graphics and a thumping soundtrack.
Other than a few minor bumps and quirks aside, there remains little to complain about in the latest installment in the Ride franchise. Milestone has used its vast knowledge of motorcycling titles to build one of its best titles yet.
This is Milestone's best MXGP title to date, improving the graphics, improving the physics, the handling, and the realism, all whilst keeping the title accessible to players of all levels.
Despite showing its age in occasional places, the purity and simplicity of Burnout's arcade racing is as refreshing now as it was when the title was first released.
If you're into resource gathering, crafting and exploring, then Subnautica is simply a title that you have to play.
With the combat essentially untouched, it remains as engaging as ever, not forgetting that this is a free update for a free-to-play title without paywalls or loot-crates, so it's a good time to jump in if you already haven't started.
Project CARS 2 really does feel like Project CARS version 2.0 with virtually all aspects of the title having been polished and improved.
MXGP3 is another step forward for the franchise and Milestone is to be commended in how well they have managed to capture the essence of the sport. The title looks better than ever and plays better than ever, a few niggles aside.
World To The West is a 'Sunday stroll' type of game. It's pleasant and enjoyable without being too taxing or stressful for the player.
Whilst Dirt Rally is aimed at the drivers, WRC 6 is definitely for the fans. The game wants to bring the thrill, the sensation and the enjoyment of rallying to all of the fans of the sport regardless of their driving ability.
The game is an exhilarating driving experience both online and offline, with great physics, nice visuals, and some nice little additions to deepen the immersion and the feeling of involvement that captures the pageantry and showmanship of the sport.
Dying Light is Techland's best and most ambitious title to date.
Axiom Verge is a brilliant homage to the 'metroidvania' origins back in the 8-bit and 16-bit eras. Whilst the choice to be so uncompromising in its retro style might not suit everyone, the gameplay in the title remains compelling and manages to maintain that fine balance in the level of difficulty for being challenging for all players without becoming frustrating.
Ziggurat, like some of the loot drops in the title itself, is a surprising little gem of a game, representing the best of what ID@Xbox titles can offer: simple, stylish, polished, and great fun, and never takes itself too seriously. Dungeons and enemies are, ironically, bright and colorfully brought to life. This is a game that focuses on replayability with unpredictability at every turn and challenges the player to make the most of the hand that they have been dealt. Admittedly, this is not a title that will appeal to everyone, but there is enough here for most to enjoy. The combination of FPS and dungeon looting is interesting, and the randomness makes it all the more intriguing. This is one of those titles that you could easily and quite happily continually dipping in and out of for quite a while to come.
Fully patched with a fuller catalog of cars and even more circuits, there is little left to complain about. The racing is as good, as real and as uncompromising as it gets on the console and it is a truly exhilarating experience.