With one of the best years in recent gaming memory over with, it’s time to look forward and towards a new horizon of upcoming releases. Whether it’s action, puzzles or straight-up brutality, 2019 has plenty of offer even the most jaded gamer on the planet. So with that in mind, here are our top ten picks for the games that …

Despite the cut content, New Super Mario Bros Deluxe remains the most feature-packed, and dare I say fun 2D Mario game in decades. If you missed it on Wii Um own a Switch and love Mario, platformers, fun and just plain good games, there’s no reason not to get New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe.

The world may be burning, society is in chaos and technology threatens to strip us of our humanity, but it’s comforting to know that in the end times, comic books are better than ever. This year wasn’t just a fantastic year for the medium, it was the very best that fans had ever seen. Writing felt sharper than a hotly forged sword, the art on display could put the entire gallery of the Louvre to shame and the resulting combination was an explosion of quality.

2018, in so many ways, is a year marked by controversy. Many great games, mind you, but a level of silliness and backward business practice so astronomically confounding – so very boggling to both mind and wallet – that most of us are still reeling from the impact; or cringing from the taste on our tongues. Luckily then, that particular dumpster fire has more or less sailed. 2019 is geared to deliver a stellar lineup in general. But gaming’s titanic trio in Sony, Microsoft & Nintendo respectively are left in something of an unsure position as they either look to the future, try to find their place in the present or both.

Treasure’s esteemed vertical shoot-em-up Ikaruga remains one of my favourite games. Though it, and other games like it have a lineage that’s nearly a straight line back all the way to Space Invaders, Ikaruga’s colour-switching mechanics presented something new to an iteratively derivative genre that mostly saw innovation through added enemies and more on-screen bullets. Rival Megagun, a split-screen competitive …

Road Redemption is a surprisingly sincere and brutal love letter to the past and its inspirations. It may look like a junker if you glance at its battle-worn chassis, but underneath the fairing is the heart of a surprisingly addictive and fun road warrior game.

The other day, a friend of mine asked me to have a look at a box of old comic books that he had found in some forgotten corner of his garage. Comic books from his youth, stored and kept in relatively great condition. Surely, there must have been a few issues in that box of that were worth some decent …

Maybe running isn’t for you though, and that’s just fine. Plenty of other options exist, from boot camps to trampoline cities, although there’s nothing wrong with sticking to a tried and trusted method of staying active: Picking up a heavy object, putting it back down and repeating the process ad infinitum. In other words: Gym.

No, your face is an entire seven days late with this feature LEAVE ME ALONE MOM! Ahem, anyway… It ain’t just a new month, but a whole new year! The cycle begins anew, the hype for forthcoming games is currently at a far more stable level as AAA hibernation sets in and the road to E3 has yet to begin. In other words, January is a bit of a quiet month for video games. Or is it?

Kick off 2019 with this massive crop of new movies, series and documentaries coming to Netflix in January

2018 has been quite a year for movies. Not only did we once again see Hollywood studios make more money than ever, but it also saw the release of some exceptional movies that could easily become future classics. No year is perfect though and it just wouldn’t be memorable if there weren’t some turds amongst the diamonds on offer. So exactly what were the year’s highlights and lowlights?

Just Cause 4 may be a maniacal sandbox full of explosions and action, but it’s a world that feels dull, repetitive and hollow inside as it missed the mark on being the perfect vehicle for some much-needed Christmas Catharsis.