It's easy to feel a bit beset by doom these days. The other week, I watched the heinous AI-generated "Trump Gaza" video and was so appalled that I impulse-bought a kayaking guide book. It felt like the only sane response was to take to the water and paddle away. Video games are a reliable antidote to existential doom, but layoffs, corporate homogenisation and AI slop are all encroaching on my safe haven, making it more difficult to get a brief reprieve from what's happening in the outside world. Thank God, then, for the Bafta games awards nominations, which reliably remind me that video games are pretty great, actually.

With his blue overalls, red cap, and trademark moustache, Mario is a character that's instantly recognisable around the world. But despite his fame, it turns out Mario is not the most iconic video game character of all time. Instead, that's a title that goes to Lara Croft, according to a poll by BAFTA. In celebration of the 20th BAFTA Games Awards, BAFTA asked over 4,000 players from around the world who they thought was the most iconic character. So, is your favourite character on the list?

Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. The classic romantic comedy follows nine love stories, including tales about a woman whose husband is cheating on her, a man who's in love with his best friend's wife, and a little boy trying to profess his love to his crush. In its initial run, the movie made nearly $250 million at the global box office, and has since become a must-watch movie during the holiday season. Here is what the film's cast has been up to since its November 2003 release date. "Love Actually" is celebrating its 20th anniversary.

After years spent pursuing a career in game development, Italian coder Luca Galante had given up. Uprooting himself from a comfortable life in Rome, he flew to England in the hope of finally making his childhood dream a reality. Yet after countless rejected job applications, Galante found himself flipping Big Macs in Thornton Heath McDonald's. Dejected, he gave up on his digital dream, leaving what he says might be "the worst McDonald's in the UK" to code slot machines for a gambling company. Now, 10 years and one bedroom-made game later, Galante is the proud owner of two Baftas.

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.

We went through a period in the games industry where I felt I was being shamed for doing story. It was like, all games should be Deus Ex, all games should be design-driven and systemic. Interactivity is what's unique about games, a powerful tool that can't be ignored, but I don't like limited ideas about what games "should" be. It annoys me because there are so many different people playing games who like them for completely different reasons. I learn a lot from my daughter.

The best games of the year have been revealed by Bafta. While Hellblade took the most awards over the academy's big awards night, the top prize went to Edith Finch. Action-adventure game Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, which focuses on the main character's battle with psychosis, won five Baftas at the industry awards. The game, which follows a Celtic warrior's struggle with the condition and was developed with input from neuroscientists, picked up the awards for artistic achievement, British game and game beyond entertainment. It also triumphed in the audio achievement category, while actress Melina Juergens won the performer award for her role as protagonist Senua.