Games
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Harry Potter, The Last of Us and Kingdom Hearts are likely to be the stars of the year – but streaming could change everything
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The interactive fiction of the latest Black Mirror episode is a thrilling indication of the direction games could take -
Rainbow Arcade explores the cultural history of queer content and games, from Nintendo’s transgender bird to World of Warcraft’s pride parades -
Buzz Lightyear joins Kingdom Hearts, Harry Potter looks for the Pokémon Go effect, it’s party time down on the farm, and an avenging hero returns from the mists of Dreamcast time -
From Red Dead Redemption 2 and God of War to indie titles some may have missed, here are the games you thought end of year list-worthy
Reviews
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3 out of 5 stars.
GRIS review – gorgeous colours swirl around a tale of grief and fear
3 out of 5 stars.Beneath a sumptuous, absurdly beautiful surface, dark beasts haunt a troubled girl’s crumbling fantasy world -
If you’re a gamer after something more in-depth than coffee table books, here are some of the most thought-provoking reads about gaming
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5 out of 5 stars.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate review – the fighting game with everything
5 out of 5 stars.Wildly disparate heroes from Nintendo history – from Mario to Pikachu and Street Fighter II’s Ryu – meet for matches of thrilling, barely controlled chaos -
From immersive shooters to psychedelic Tetris and gothic fairytales, here are the virtual reality games you should be picking up -
3 out of 5 stars.
PlayStation Classic review – Sony's nostalgia trip misses the magic
3 out of 5 stars.It looks nice, it’s easy to use and the games are fun to revisit, but the functionality is bare-bones – and all the swagger is gone -
4 out of 5 stars.
Battlefield V review – join the war effort on a thrillingly grand scale
4 out of 5 stars.This technical tour de force throws you into realistic second world war battles – shame it felt only 70-80% finished at launch
What to play
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From outlaws in turn-of-the-century America to a young woman falling tenderly in love – and Norse gods going to war in spectacular style -
From the latest fun-filled escapades of Mario, Donkey Kong and Link to complex, literary titles such as Octopath Traveller, here are the games that get the best out of Nintendo’s console -
Pop bubbles, play pool, become a neighbourhood god, a viking hero, or start a craft beer empire in 2018’s best new mobile games for iPhone and Android.
You may have missed
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In 1998, the Sega Dreamcast changed the whole face of console and games design, but it was haunted by an unbeatable competitor -
Quirky and egalitarian, Toca Boca’s games are a world away from the usual half-hearted or exploitative kids’ apps. We meet the Scandinavian company taking child’s play seriously
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For harassed loved ones everywhere, we compare the Sony PlayStation 4, Microsoft Xbox One and Nintendo Switch -
When children spend their parents’ cash on Fifa players, it’s easy to believe games are ruthlessly engineered to extract money. But that’s not the whole story
New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe review – a jump back to basics
3 out of 5 stars.