Richard Walker
Over one year on and Grand Theft Auto V is still a stunning, unmatched achievement. An open-world that's still utterly absorbing, characters that you'll still want to spend time with and enough new stuff to drag you back for more, all conspire to make GTA V on new-gen entirely indispensable. Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.
A stunning, elegiac western that features some of Rockstar's best writing to date, Red Dead Redemption 2 is also the studio's finest open-world to date, handcrafted with real, tangible care and attention, defying the boundaries of what a video game can be. Arthur Morgan will also inhabit a special place in your heart, as a likeable, relatable rogue striving to find his way in the world. Good ol' Arthur.
A celebration of everything that makes MGS so brilliantly unique, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain heralds a new stage in Kojima's stealth opus that might sadly be his last. Should the Metal Gear series continue without Kojima Productions, we'd be surprised if it's anywhere near as superlative as this. The Phantom Pain is sensational.
Hitman is arguably a pinnacle for the series, possibly even eclipsing Blood Money as Agent 47's finest moment. Each episode is a sandbox that you don't simply play and then forget. You'll want to master it and discover all of its hidden secrets and nuances. And therein lies Hitman's innate brilliance. It's deep, expansive and open-ended enough that you'll never want to stop playing. Hitman is quite simply magnificent.
An uncompromising, visionary conclusion to Rocksteady's Arkham trilogy, Batman: Arkham Knight is the world's greatest detective in the world's greatest superhero game. Even the presence of an overused Batmobile doesn't dampen the experience. It's simply incredible, hitting you like a batarang square in the face. Be the Batman? Yes, please.
Prey starts strong, then gets better and better as its compelling narrative gradually unfolds, and new terrors stalk the confines of Talos I. A sci-fi survival masterclass, Prey is quite simply sublime.
A proper thrill-ride, DOOM Eternal is the sequel to DOOM 2016 that we wanted, and then some. Going to hell has never been so damn heavenly.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is about the importance of friendship and striving to become a better person, which is a message we could all do with right now. It also happens to be a sensational new dawn for a series that's brave enough to shake up the formula and accomplished enough to pull it off with aplomb. To quote Ichi, “let's do some hero shit!”
One of Codemasters' best racing games, DIRT 5 is an unbridled shot of adrenaline-fuelled fun that's impossible not to love. Superlative stuff.
A triumphant return for Capcom's coolest series, Devil May Cry 5 is a stupidly slick game that does almost everything right. It'll totally pull your Devil Trigger.
If this is how F1 goes out on current-gen, Codemasters should be proud of where it's taken the series, not only in making it more open and accessible to players of all skill levels, but also in bringing unprecedented depth, detail and immersion. Make no mistake, F1 2020 is the best Formula One game money can buy and a stellar racing experience in its own right.
A deep and colossal monster melee, Monster Hunter Rise is both enormously fun and uniquely rewarding. Snap it up.
Like Red Bull Racing winning every single Grand Prix, Codies brings home yet another cracking Formula One racing sim in F1 23, bringing back the excellent Braking Point story mode alongside all of that other good stuff. Break out the champagne – this one's a winner.
DmC Devil May Cry: Definitive Edition proves that DmC is still brilliant. A slight resolution upgrade, frame rate boost and additional content make for a good value package, but if you've already played DmC on last-gen platforms, you may want to carefully consider re-purchasing this, despite it remaining deliciously devilish.
One of the best Call of Duty games in a while, Advanced Warfare is a triumphant effort from Sledgehammer Games, whose storytelling nous and risk-taking in introducing the Exo pays off in spades. It's not the jaw-dropping reinvention that Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was back in 2007, but Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is the shot in the arm the series needed.
Like Max Payne and Alan Wake before it, Quantum Break has already left me desperate for a sequel. And with one or two loose threads left dangling tantalisingly, the way is certainly open for one. Quantum Break is another superlative Remedy game, combining story and gameplay to startling effect. I want to go back in time and play it afresh, all over again.
Building upon everything that has continued to mark out the Forza Horizon series as something special and unique its own right - beyond being Forza Motorsport's carefree sibling - Forza Horizon 4 demonstrates once again just how recklessly entertaining driving roughshod across an open environment can be. Revelling in what makes Britain great, Forza Horizon 4 also proves once more that Playground Games is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to delivering a polished, deep, and thrilling open-world racing experience.
The DiRT game that rally fans have been craving, DiRT Rally is a triumphant return to form that every self-respecting video game racing aficionado needs to own. Don't be put off by the steep learning curve, DiRT Rally is worth getting to grips with; it's super rewarding and ultimately a fantastic rally title. Pretty much one of the best of all time, in fact.
Dishonored was a genuine surprise when it launched four years ago; an innovative first-person experience that confounded expectations. That Dishonored 2 manages to once again surprise and amaze as much as the first game did is testament to what Arkane has crafted here. Dishonored 2 is quite simply one of the greatest games this year, and quite possibly one of the best of this generation. Do yourself a favour and go get it.
A ludicrously polished and tight game of basketball, NBA 2K17 is representative of a series that's at the top of its game. There are a few flaws, as ever, but they pale into insignificance against the consistent excellence that shines through in almost every nook and cranny of NBA 2K17. This is a shoo-in for All-Star status.