TechSpot Tech Gift Shortlist 2017

The New Colossus never lets you forget who and why you're fighting. Nazi brutality is on full display, from the blown-out, irradiated remains of Manhattan to each of the resistance members, who all carry mental scars if not physical ones. You're never given a chance between cutscenes, missions, and even downtime on the U-boat to lose sight of the Reich's cruelty.

As reviewed by GameSpot

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds is an addictive multiplayer shooter that's great to play solo and even better with friends.

As reviewed by Tom's Guide

While not equally emotional, this battle's reinterpretation in War mode proves to be a highlight in a superb suite of competitive modes. Zombies rounds off this stellar return to form, effectively blending the ferocity of online cooperative play with the goal-driven satisfaction of found in the campaign. As one of the most comprehensive and filler-free Call of Dutys in recent memory, Call of Duty: WWII successfully capitalizes on the series' strengths.

As reviewed by GameSpot

Widely anticipated game 'For Honor' is a third-person melee fighting game that requires strategy and speed to win battles, online or in-story mode. Take on the role of a deadly Viking, a cold-blooded Samurai or a brutal medieval Knight. According to reviewers, For Honor is one of the most enjoyable and bloody games of 2017 if you're up for that. For those playing on PC, TechSpot's benchmark test is a must-read with 45 GPUs tested.

Cuphead has been a longtime coming, and it's great to see that it lives up to its initial promises. It's beautiful to look at, and with a pitch-perfect soundtrack, it flawlessly captures the era its developers so clearly revere. It's also an intense action game that pulls no punches. It could benefit from a few tweaks, and two-player co-op doesn't feel like the valuable addition you might imagine, but Cuphead remains a rare, unique game that truly stands out.

As reviewed by GameSpot

Destiny 2 is a blast out of the gate thanks to its excellent co-op shooter gameplay and strong storytelling in the campaign. Not all the features I’d expected to find are here, but it does deliver the same kind of highly social gameplay and rewarding, loot-driven progression that helped the original keep me hooked for hundreds of hours.

As reviewed by IGN

In the end it's a combination of doing a handful of new things well and avoiding a long list of prior release day issues that earns Football Manager 2018 the privilege of a veteran player's time all over again. The pace of its innovation might be slightly frustrating to those who make huge time investments every year, but if it wasn't doing enough the compulsion to make that investment would evaporate. 50 hours in, the proof of the pudding is in my 'Just one more match, I promise' rating.

As reviewed by EuroGamer

Nostalgia can soothe the homesick, but ultimately you can't go home again. Where Stories Untold is at least partly a genuflection at the altar of old stuff, it touches on another idea: the way nostalgia distorts reality, and how it can be used to hide reality from yourself.

As reviewed by EuroGamer

The Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum is a well-made, high-performance gaming mouse with a comfortable design. The device is flexible, working flawlessly on a variety of surfaces, not to mention its five chevron-shaped 3.6g weights (it can go from 145g to 163g), eleven programmable buttons, dual mouse wheel modes and in-game DPI shifting ranging from the pixel-precise 200 DPI to a lightning-fast 12,000 DPI.

For the third year in a row, the Razer DeathAdder is our top mouse pick above all others. The DeathAdder is consistently mentioned and chosen by reviewers and gamers alike as the best mouse around. While there have been a few iterations over the years, Razer has focused on incremental upgrades without ever changing what makes the DeathAdder beloved by so many: its comfortable and ergonomic design, accurate sensor, and most recently, proven endurance.

This is the best gaming mouse on the market. It’s wireless but performs as well as any wired gaming mouse. It’s lightweight for a wireless mouse, customizable, has great software, and a comfortable design. Sadly, like most wireless gaming mice, you’ll have to plug in every few days to charge up unless you spend another $100 on the POWERPLAY mouse pad. But if you do, you’ve entered mouse nirvana.

As reviewed by IGN

If you want a controller that’s easier to set up on Windows and will also work on OS X, if you have large hands, or if you simply prefer Xbox-style controllers, you should get the Xbox One controller.

As reviewed by TheWirecutter

The Vertagear S-Line SL4000 Gaming Chair is truly a race inspired chair and has earned its name. Vertagear has touched on all the important factors: race inspired styling, offset colored stitching, strong supports, as well as a seat that stays comfortable even during the longest computing sessions. It has just enough adjustment to make nearly anyone comfortable, without needing to feel like you have more controls than you know what to do with.

As reviewed by Modders Inc

We can’t tell you enough how much the move from a standard sized mouse pad to the Corsiar MM300 Extended Edition mouse mat has improved our everyday comfort when in front of the PC. The soft surface of the mat is very comfortable under your hand and wrists, and the stitched edge is just as soft. The textured rubber bottom keeps the MM300 in place at all times.

As reviewed by Bjorn3D

The Acer Predator XB271HK is certainly sweet, but to fully take advantage of it you'll need a GPU capable of running games at 4k. I tested the monitor for a few weeks with gaming, general daily driving, and also professional photo work and found it to be spectacular in every measurable way. The 4k resolution granted me quite a bit of desktop real estate despite the smallish 27" panel size, and for gaming it's absolutely incredible, especially with G-Sync to keep things running smoothly.

As reviewed by IGN

The K70 RGB Rapidfire features a clean, straightforward design and looks quite imposing overall. This is complemented by multi-color LED per-key backlighting, which is configurable to create various lighting effects (or download pre-designed ones) through the Corsair Utility Engine, where you can also play with reprogramming keys, making macros, and linking games and applications with different keyboard profiles.

At the end of the day this is one of the best gaming headsets I’ve used. It sounds great, is super comfortable, I can play for hours upon hours without having to take it off, its easy to control and of course its wireless. If you are looking for a new gaming headset this is one I would definitely consider! Right now you can pick it up at our favorite online retailer for $99.99.

As reviewed by ThinkComputers

I’ve slowly but surely been won over by the charm of the Switch. Its versatility and accessibility make it a joy to play, particularly as a portable machine. With Nintendo swiftly addressing my biggest concern with the hardware, it’s hard to argue this console isn’t absolutely brimming with potential in the months to come.

As reviewed by TrustedReviews

With a gaming PC's worth of graphical horsepower housed inside a deceivingly small package, the Xbox One X does what no console has done before: Native 4K HDR gaming. However, while games look absolutely stunning, with a fantastic level of detail accentuated by the console's HDR support, their larger file sizes will mean that the 1TB hard drive fills up fast. Minor faux pas aside, the Xbox One X fulfills the promise of 4K HDR gaming and offers the most premium gaming experience on a console, bar none.

As reviewed by TechRadar

Smaller, sleeker design. Supports the full PS4 game library, including PS VR. 1 TB hard drive. The slimmer, redesigned PlayStation 4 Slim has all of the features of the original, with a lower price and twice the storage capacity.

As reviewed by PC Mag

At $80 with two controllers bundled, it's difficult not to recommend the SNES Classic Edition. Even if you don't have nostalgia for Nintendo's '90s console, it's worth considering.Nintendo hasn't perfected its "Classic Edition" trick yet, and several of the NES Classic's defects show up here. Even so, some of the best games of all time graced the SNES, and a lot of them are here, in a neat and tidy package.

As reviewed by Engadget

Super Mario Odyssey is that game. If you’ve been wondering what the Mario fuss is all about, this is the game for you to check out. The Switch is already among Nintendo’s most popular consoles of all time, and Super Mario Odyssey is only going to take it to new heights.

As reviewed by Gadgets 360

Microsoft pitched Forza Motorsport 7 as the ultimate automotive playset, and it’s hard to argue otherwise. With enough cars to fill a dozen museums and the most generous selection of tracks to date in the series, the amount of driving, experimenting, and racing here is absolutely mammoth. Accessible as always for beginners but crammed with content targeted at lifelong car junkies, Forza Motorsport 7 is Turn 10’s finest love letter to speed and style this generation, no matter what language you speak.

As reviewed by IGN

If there’s a better game out there than Breath of the Wild, I haven’t played it. Nintendo has created, for me, the greatest game of all time. It’s everything I want from a game and one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve ever had.

As reviewed by TrustedReviews

Horizon Zero Dawn is Guerrilla Games’ best effort, one of the PS4’s greatest games, and the best game ever crafted from the ground up for the platform. It combines a gripping narrative with intense action that blends both fast-paced combat with slower-paced, tense stealth sections perfectly. Everything about their vision for this game clicks into place and is accentuated by a stellar presentation. The game features top-shelf graphical work, a unique and enjoyable soundtrack, alongside a fantastic cast to make an unforgettable experience.

As reviewed by Game Over Online

But FIFA 18 is still seductively deep and delivers excitement. It gave me the feeling that there is still so much to learn about what appears to be a rather straightforward sport, and that the game would gladly help me understand. This is always the time of year when I ask myself why I don’t just spend all of my time playing FIFA, and FIFA 18 poses the question more forcefully than ever.

As reviewed by Polygon

If you're the type of person who tried Splatoon for a little while and gave up, Nintendo hasn't done a whole lot to change your mind outside of adding a horde mode. But with more concessions for higher-level play and a deeper meta, veterans will be jumping ship from Wii U to Switch in an instant. Here's hoping that Splatoon 2 gets even more long-term support and Salmon Run is free of the shackles of a "once in a while" event for those of you who don't have multiple Switches at your disposal.

As reviewed by Destructoid

The game borrows highly from Dark Souls, but you can really feel the Team Ninja presence when it comes to the combat since it feels a lot like a ground-based Ninja Gaiden overall. If you're a fan of Dark Souls, Ninja Gaiden, or difficult action games in general, it's worth giving Nioh a try. It's definitely one of the better action game on the PS4 console.

As reviewed by GamersTemple

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is, therefore, the definitive version of an already great racer. From the wealth of tracks now available in the Grand Prix mode, to the range of multiplayer options - including the vastly improved Battle games - makes Deluxe a package with depth and range as well as high-speed thrills. Coupled with the new possibilities of the Switch - such as the ability to wirelessly connect multiple tablets for your own Mario Kart LAN tournament - and you have what might just be the definitive arcade racing experience.

As reviewed by Den of Geek!

Injustice 2 is NetherRealm once again outdoing itself. This is the best, most polished, most impressively produced story mode to ever feature in a fighting game. The game’s cast — more than a dozen of which are newly playable characters — is varied and interesting, thanks to additions like Swamp Thing, Supergirl and the Red Lantern who has a blood-vomiting space cat, Atrocitus. Even if you aren’t a diehard DC Universe fan, there’s bound to be someone on the roster you’ll love to play as. Plus, you get to beat up Superman.

As reviewed by Polygon