In 2025, I started this website, and I have enjoyed doing it immensely. It means a lot to me to have an outlet to express my passion, and I really do hope that comes across in my work. Balancing this website with my other job on the side, though, it has meant I haven’t been able to review anywhere near as much as I would have wanted, both in terms of games and films. And so this brings us to 2026, where we look forward to more brilliance coming, but also reflect on what we have had to feast on for the past year. In this article, I am going to go through some of the bigger games that I did not get around to reviewing, and to make up for it, give a small write-up for each. To save this being spectacularly long, this article will be dedicated to games and the next will be on films, and I will release that soon. But for now, lets see what I played this year.

Monster Hunter Wilds

As a long-term fan of the Monster Hunter franchise, I can understand why some take issue with Wilds. Even aside from its glaring technical issues, which are still rampant nearly a year after launch, the game is definitely not one made with those long-term fans in mind. It is much too easy at times; the actual hunting for the monsters feels much too streamlined, especially when you can just mount up and run straight to the monster, giving it little reprieve. That being said, this game is incredibly fun, full of spectacle and ridiculous fights with colossal beasts, sometimes up to 50 times your size. Its weapons upgrade system is simple, but effective and the end-game grind to get even more powerful just feels so rewarding and fun. As mentioned, I can understand people’s gripes, with things like the wounds system making fights trivial, but it just feels so cool to play. Finding a wound, stabbing your sword into it to topple the beast, and whaling on it till you can reap the rewards; it is an age old system for the series and it is still just as rewarding and satisfying. I still play it every now and again and will look forward to the next expansion. Score: 8/10

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered

Die-hards may crucify me but I have always much preferred Skyrim to Oblivion. It has a lot to do with growing up playing Skyrim obviously, but Oblivion has just never quite grabbed me enough to really sink my teeth into it. This remaster did not really sway me towards loving it anymore than after originally playing, but it is incredible what Bethesda have done with it. Although it did run slightly iffy on my PC at launch, patches seemed to fix that and it is just a much better way to play an already pretty good game. I do plan to dive back into it at some point when I am less busy, and just try and force myself to see as much of it as possible. But as it stands, I think this is just a good game that has been made much prettier and alleviated from some of the mid-2000s jank, although as we know with Bethesda, jank is part of the charm. Score: 7/10

The Outer Worlds 2

Now, I will admit, I have not finished this one, but there is a reason for that. Partly, it was the massive onslaught of releases during October and November that I simply did not have time for, and also the substantial amount of work I had to dedicate to my other job ahead of the busy Christmas period. That being said, after playing a solid 15 hours or so, I have never had any desire at all to go back to this. I enjoyed the first one to an extent, but I always saw it as a Bethesda-lite kind of experience, and I do not mean that in a complimentary way. Some elements are better in this one, the Flaws system being a fun mix-up for the RPG formula. But as much as the RPG systems work, the combat is a bit clunky, and I just did not enjoy roaming around in it. Where Avowed failed on the writing front, the gameplay at least was really fun, and I enjoyed fighting things. But here, I just do not think there is an overwhelming strength, and it is all just middling and fine. The plot writing is uninteresting and a bit derivative, so it failed to draw me in properly. I will say the dialogue is funny, even if they do have pretty much one joke, and it all hinges on its satirical presentation. I do not look back on this too fondly, but the reviews are generally pretty good, so maybe I will have to go back and give this another try at a later date. Score: 6/10

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II

Now this is an RPG. How this did not win Best RPG at The Game Awards is beyond me, but I would give it to this in a heartbeat. True role-playing experiences like this do not come around often, particularly on this grand scale. A swashbuckling adventure that you can approach in pretty much any way you want, without the game holding your hand. Warhorse Studios, so often here, just give you a task and just allow you to complete it how you see fit. The opening for example where you lose everything, I struggled to get myself into any sort of comfortable state. I stole what little money I could get, gambled on the dice game in order to try and duplicate it, but it was not to be. You are really left to your own devices, trying to solve your own problems in this unforgiving world. I ended up winning a fist-fighting competition that gave me enough money to get a sword, so I could then kill some bandits and sell their equipment. I think this magic wears down slightly towards the end when it basically just becomes an action adventure, but by that point, you have met so many wonderful characters and are so invested in its sprwaling narrative that none of it matters. It is not a game for everyone, I know people that found it incredibly tedious. But if it works for you, it will take a hold of you for a very long time. Score: 9/10

Battlefield 6

After the major disappointment of Black Ops 7 (which I will not be talking about any longer), I needed a good multiplayer shooter that felt like it had a spark. Around the busy Christmas period, a lot of the time, I was too tired to sit down and play a few hours of an RPG or play some merciless, unforgiving Soulslike. Like a tired old man, I needed something to just have a quick game to blow off some steam, and Battlefield 6 was that game in 2025 for me. From the impeccable sound design and glorious-looking graphics, to the crisp and responsive gameplay during the endlessly impressive spectacles it offers, this is an absolute blast. If you have never played a Battlefield game, I can imagine it being a sensory overload, with its constant explosions, buildings toppling beside you and fighter jets flying overhead. It can certainly be tough, but in the best way, it makes you feel like an inconsequential soldier in a massive conflict. The weapons and classes all feel distinct from one another and I just love the teamplaying aspect of Battlefield. I care way more about winning or losing in this game and that is because everything comes together in a premium package that you cannot hep but get invested in. I have heard the campaign is rather lacklustre but I do not know a single person that has bothered to even play the campaign for Battlefield games. For the experience it is, you cannot get much better. Score: 9/10

Super Mario Galaxy 1&2 Remastered

If anybody knows me, they know how much these games mean to me. As some of the games that got me into games at all, possibly the first ones that I acheived 100% completion, they were my gateway drug into a larger gaming world that I am constantly exploring every single day. What more can be said about these games? They are just pure magnificence in level design, and it never gets old playing it. For a consistent month after this came out, the beauty of the switch meant I could play these in bed before going to sleep, and I did so pretty much every day, polishing off a few galaxies before going to sleep. I really took my time with them this time and truly appreciated their brilliance. The constant flipping of its own formula through new power-ups, enemies, and bosses is so spectacular to see, and having seen the likes of Astro Bot try to replicate that, it makes me appreciate what a high bar this game set for just keeping a game fresh for essentially its whole playtime. Its art design is out of this world too, keeping Mario series familiarity and yet also going for some things completely different. It is always so special to have such nostalgia for a game, to then play it again and feel those exact same feelings of bewilderment and just excitement from when I first played it. That was the case with both of these, and with its shiny new coat of paint, this is the best possible way to play these wonderful games. If you have not already, do yourself a big favour. Score: 10/10

Marvel Cosmic Invasion

I have never really played old school Beat-em-ups, but when a Marvel one came about, I knew I had to give it a go. I played a good few levels of the first Streets of Rage and really appreciated it for what it was, but it definitely showed its age. This, though, takes an old, simple formula and polishes it very well. Each hero feels very different from one another, and it is always exciting to unlock somebody new and try them out. Nobody’s combos are particularly complex, and you will often just resort to button mashing, but I suppose that is part of the charm of these games, and I can appreciate that. The story is nothing to write home about at all, but it is a simple enough story of Annihilus taking over, and you just have to plough through as many enemies as possible to try and stop them. The boss fights are genuinely really good and are all very distinct; they can even be pretty difficult, too, even when playing multiplayer. There is not a lot to say about this one, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. It is just fun, pure and simple, not trying to do anything too crazy. Score: 7/10

That does it for the review round-up of games. Anything else I have played has pretty much just been old stuff, or things I am nowhere near finishing, but I will get around to them eventually. There are certainly a lot more films that I have watched, so brace yourself for that, because it will be a long one!