This year, we wanted to find those ongoing games that always had something up their sleeves for the fans who kept coming back, the games that refuse to bask in previous triumphs and always offer something new to coincide with the change in seasons and fan attitudes. We think we found a couple of great nominees, as well as one heck of a winner.

In 2018, we wanted to find the best from Japan and beyond, the games where we swapped spreadsheets and printer jams for swords and sorcery. It was a journey that took us across the world (but mostly to Japan go figure), as we delved deep into dungeons and explored tombs of another era. Here’s a look at the treasures that we unearthed, as well as the best RPG that we could lay our hands on this year.

It may not be as massive today as was in its heyday, but the strategy game genre is far from dead. On the contrary, it’s a genre that feels better and more alive than ever before, thanks to new technology and ideas resulting in grander conflicts and better storytelling while still asking you to flex your brain muscles and work out strategies on the fly. So requisition some resources, set up your units and prepare to march, as we look back at the best strategy games of 2018.

Life is good in Far Cry new Dawn! And surprisingly authentic, as Ubisoft’s replica of a post-apocalypse landscape has some actual science behind it.

Video games are more than their just their visuals, but there are times where a certain game can deliver a 4K haymaker that’ll knock you out of your shoes. With the gap between virtual and reality visuals becoming narrower every single day, here’s a look at the games which made that graphical gap even smaller in 2018.

Indie games are a vital part of the video game eco system, and 2018 saw more than one such game rise to the top of the food chain. Here’s a look at the best of the best, from the indie darlings that we just cannot get enough of.

You could say that every game is an action game technically, but for this category? We’re talking about the games that had a very specific kind of action. The games that swung swords, gave the richest of explosions and landed the most devastating haymakers possible were what we were after this year, and 2018 didn’t disappoint.

Without competition, the world would be a whole lot less ambitious, leading to life being kind of…well boring. Sports games were in fine form in 2018, with action taking place on a variety of tracks, fields and pitches. Here’s a look at some of the very best competition that made for some heated gaming moments this year.