PC It starts with a single machine: a landing pod on an untouched planet. Then a drill, built with iron mined by your own hand. Hours later, the planet is covered in neat (or not) arrays of extractors and conveyor belts, machines whirring comfortingly as they create their infinite thingummies. Corporate strip-mining simulator it may be, but it's just so absorbing. PS4/5, PC, Nintendo Switch Like much of the best British comedy, this slapstick puzzle game is topped off with just a smattering of unease.

We've already highlighted the very best video games of 2024 -- the big-name titles everyone's talking about. But now, it's time to shine a light on something different. These games flew under the radar, overshadowed by juggernauts like Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth. While they may not have had the same massive marketing push, you could argue they're just as good -- maybe even better. In fact, one of these titles made it onto both lists.

I had a great time playing video games in 2024 -- and I hope you did too. This past year was challenging for some, including myself, but the silver lining is that 2024 produced a bunch of excellent games to play. The RPG genre, in particular, saw a modern renaissance, with an overwhelming number of releases from studios big and small. Of course, there were plenty of other games, ranging from big-budget productions to ones created by a single developer. However, unlike most years, there isn't a single standout on this list that I consider to be better than all the rest.

At its midpoint, 2024 has been an incredible year for playing video games. Emphasis on playing because it needs to be said that it is not a great time to work in video games. Massive layoffs have ravaged the industry in recent months, leaving many talented people without consistent sources of income. I'm not here to bum you out, but I just needed to make sure we were on the same page about that. Anyway, back to the part where 2024 has been excellent for playing games.

Channelling the sci-fi military satire and extreme gloopy gore of Starship Troopers, Helldivers 2 was a surprise mega hit on its launch in February. Looking back we shouldn't have been shocked: it delivers engrossing, hilarious co-op action in a range of desolate landscapes against horrible insects and crazed robots, and it makes each fight feel like part of a much wider story – a factor heightened by Arrowhead Game Studios' excellent use of social media channels. What we said: "Everything about this game is ridiculous, including how good it is at what it sets out to do." Read the full review The set-up is not wildly promising: you play as a blob, stuck down a well. But this winding puzzle platformer is an ethereal delight, dense in atmosphere, with visuals that look like a lost 1980s arcade game glimpsed through a window. You explore, you learn new skills, you see lovely creatures.

When it comes to the best video games of 2023, it was all about revisiting familiar realms. Whether it was through sequels, returning franchises, or long-awaited remakes, the pleasure was finding new things to enjoy in old games. Larian Studios created a breakout hit based on one of the most iconic role-playing franchises in the world; Nintendo let players return to the land of Hyrule for one more go at saving the world. We went to Hell, and then New York, and we liked it. These, dear reader, are the best video games of 2023.

PlayStation 5, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PC A game about the importance of cooking and the immigrant experience, in which we see vignettes of the daily life of a family who have emigrated from India to Canada. The mother uses food to keep herself and her son connected to their homeland and as a distance grows, perhaps inevitably, between parent and child, we see the consequences. The Tamil language, film, music and cuisine are depicted here with affection, lending emotional weight to the story. PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC As a traveller in foreign lands, with no knowledge of the local languages, you must piece clues together from context, making this part puzzle game and part adventure game. The beautiful, minimalist art is reminiscent of Monument Valley and the contrasting colour palette creates a sense of otherworldliness.

After the last few years of pandemic-induced delays for big games, the first half of 2023 exploded with great games to play. From tiny indie projects to the literal biggest game of the year, it's been a great six months if you constantly want new stuff to check out. Or, if you would rather just play The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom for the entire year, that's cool too. Anyway, let's get to it. Here are the best games of 2023 so far.

Smartphones, PC Lightning-quick matches, collectible superheroes and enticing simplicity make this the smartphone card game of dreams. Free of convoluted rules and sprawling decks, this is card-battling boiled down to the elegant essentials. What we said: A wonderful combination of nostalgia, fun and challenge. If the seemingly unstoppable Marvelisation of popular culture must continue, let it at least occasionally throw up gems like this. PC, Mac A puzzle game that draws upon the human talent for pattern recognition to turn us all into neat-freaks, rearranging books and cutlery and stationery by size, colour, shape, or whatever else feels right.

There used to be a time where video games were sneered at and overlooked by the culturati as lowbrow schlock but games are, and always have been, a lively and responsive form of artistic expression. It's not always immediately clear when a game was made in Australia, which makes it a little harder to celebrate homegrown hits – which we should do, because we have a thriving community of developers who punch well above their weight. The Australian independent games scene is vibrant, dynamic and overdue an apology. As I have (graciously, selflessly) decided, we're all going to yank games from the declasse and appreciate them properly – so here are 10 great Australian-made games, all variously ruminative, charming, effervescent, sincere, generous, visceral, cheeky, and beautiful. Glad we have that sorted.