20 Best Video Games Of 2019

11. The Surge 2

Where the likes of Jedi Fallen Order and Code Vein are off aping the Souls formula and innovating elsewhere, Surge developers Deck13 appeared to map it out on one giant table, only to remark on which specific components can be tweaked, added to or removed.

Continuing the studio's "gambling mechanic" from Lords of the Fallen, not using a checkpoint lets you build up an XP multiplier, directly playing into that "How far can I get?" mentality of the genre.

Want better gear? That's tied to lopping off specific components from your foes' limbs, which will need to be weakened in certain ways, so you come away with the best kit. The game's file size is tiny, as the world here is a tight, overlapping combination of hidden rooms, routes and unlockables.

Even blocking and dodging is done with leaps and ducks amongst standard movement, combining with such a great progression system and a labyrinthine level layout that always snakes back in on itself.

The Surge 2 shows a level of comfort with the Souls genre that extends to playing with its fundamentals, and that's great to see after so many identikit clones.