On the flipside, for those that are completists, who want to eke every drop out of their Layton, there is a staggering amount of depth here, not just from the multiple puzzles,but from the way all of the mini-games are directly tied into the main adventure, and the Treasure Hunt mode can actually provide a beneficial reason to keep your idling 3DS in your pocket, lest you have a cheeky StreetPass encounter that will unlock a juicy reward. The 3DS has certainly come of age this year, and this is another sterling effort that combines expert design with frankly gorgeous looks and sounds.
Edge has a lot to give you. You can pick it up and whizz through a few levels at your leisure and just enjoy the blocky, bleepy wonderfulness of it all. Or you can focus on becoming a master of the flashy balancing trickery, eking every last drop out of it, keeping your best times as low as they can possibly be, not missing one damn prism.
[RUSH] is another fine effort from Two Tribes, who seem to have carved themselves out a nice little niche delivering quality puzzle fare to the Nintendo masses.
Although it has flaws, you have to hand it to Nintendo for spicing up their eShop catalogue with something a bit different. Well put together by a developer who have a nice little niche carved out when it comes to this sort of thing, indieszero have made the most of the raw materials that EAD have given them.
Originally a PC release, the Wii U is a fine platform for Unepic, and it's another worthwhile addition to the eShop library. It can be quite frustratingly difficult at times, and the constant geeky references to everything from Star Wars to the worlds of Gary Gygax may not sit well with everyone – one particular misfiring side quest involving bureaucrats may be enough to turn off some gamers – but for those who enjoy old school platform action, this generously sized Spanish-crafted effort will be manna from heaven.
Triple Deluxe is a solid platformer bookended by some great extras, even if it is pretty easy, give or take a couple of tricky boss encounters. It lacks the sense of wonderment that Epic Yarn generated with its incredible use of texture, humour and verve, yet is still well worth a look -and is perhaps the finest handheld outing for the cerise sucker. Another understated triumph for Nintendo, then.
Ice Cream Surfer tells the story of a maniacal vegetable hell bent on destroying the sugary world of the flying gelato-influenced heroes, but just as fast food and candy treats are light on essential nutrients and likely to do you more harm than good, this is a game that is probably best left on the shelf, with other far more healthy options available to the discerning shooter fan.
Wooden Sen'Sey isn't the worst title in the world – it just exists in a time when we expect a bit more from our platformers, particularly when you are shelling out the thick end of a tenner. Again, I tip my traditional pointy straw hat in the direction of another tiny developer who have done some good work here – and I hope that they continue to develop for a console they clearly have a solid grasp of – but things really need to be a bit tighter next time.
This is undoubtedly the finest handheld version of the Disgaea-verse that you could possibly wish to own. It gives you a scaled-down, but not pared-back port of one of the highlights of the series, and offers a near-endless amount of tactical RPG fun. You are always learning when you take on the mantle of fulfilling Valvatorez’s honourable promises, and vicariously helping him on his crusade against corruption and wrongdoing. While things haven’t moved on tremendously over the staggering eleven years of its existence, Disgaea is a thing of real beauty and depth, that arguably works at its best on the go.
PES stands alone, and this year finally delivers on the next generation of consoles. A great looking, immensely satisfying kickabout.
Singstar Ultimate Party completely fails to move with the times, with an overall karaoke package that is inferior to the 2004 blueprint.
Zelda by name, but beneath the mask lurks something much darker.
A more accessible adventure for newcomers this time around, but Monster Hunter Ultimate 4 still hasn't fully shaken off its outer armour.
Some great moments, but this is far from being everything a fully interactive Dragon Ball Z battle could and should be in 2015.
A superb puzzle game that has the added bonus of being cross-buy.
A charming Steampunk romp with the spirit of the Silver Age of Comics, which stumbles thanks to some awkward design choices.
Ten years on, even with the aesthetically wonderful amiibo that can be purchased with this game, it's hard to see how the titular Chibi is suddenly going to become a wildly popular player in the Nintendo universe based upon his exploits here.
Sword & Shield is a really tricky Pokémon entry to pigeonhole. It retains the old Pokémon charm, but it's not without flaws
While EarthNight looks and sounds like it could be the product of a bygone decade, the gameplay and structure are very modern
It's not perfect, and it is unlikely to win many new fans this far down the road, but finally Capcom's delivered the completed vision for Street Fighter V.