18 Best Video Games Of 2017 (So Far)

4. Nioh

As mentioned with developers Deck13 taking the Souls-like formula and rocketing off to space, Team Ninja gallivanted around the globe from western or eastern fantasy, delving into the sorts of ornate and feudal Japanese trappings we associate with Capcom's Onimusha series.

With the game being in development for around a decade, and Team Ninja themselves also helming the stupidly hard-yet-fair likes of Ninja Gaiden, Nioh is 100% the gamer's game. The "Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough" game.

Combining animation frame-specific attacks and difficulty spikes that reinforce the game's expansive ability set, attacks, dodges, quick recharges of meters and gambling with your pool of collected enemy currency is a sensation of intensity like nothing else. Making it to the next area, the next boss, the next portion of the story is a victory in itself, but bending Nioh's sensibilities to your whim, learning each weapons' special moves and breathing in the truly outstanding art style - that is what makes Team Ninja's return to form so exemplary.