Red Dead Redemption (Xbox 360)

Rockstar's Wild West adventure took a subject matter, time and place that was massively under-utilised by games and applied their signature level of scope and attention to detail, resulting in an epic adventure that stayed with us long after we were done playing.

Yes, there's plenty of Rockstar's GTA-style humour and raucous carnage here, dead-eye makes a return and gunfights are bloody, stylish affairs that get framed by the camera to look just like those old cowboy shows you'd see on TV, but there was more going on here.

In Red Dead Redemption we witness a dying frontier, a rapidly changing America, through the eyes of John Marston. Big issues are dealt with, this game has plenty to say about corruption, racism and immigration, the struggle of forgotten people and the sense of unavoidable doom that permeates every decision Marston makes adds to a real sense of darkness that gives the story a surprisingly gritty edge.

With an enormous and spectacularly detailed world to explore, tons of side quests and activities, plenty of crazy characters, brawls, shootouts, challenges and a top-notch online mode to get to grips with, Red Red Redemption was Rockstar at the top of their game once again. Also, who can forget that ride into Mexico? An all-time great gaming moment.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes

Rez HD (XBLA)

Tetsuya Mizuguchi's rhythm game classic, Rez HD has attained cult status for good reason. This is a wonderfully psychedelic trip through a crazy virtual reality dreamscape where players assume the role of a hacker as they try to escape a malfunctioning AI.

With amazing visuals and music fusing beautifully together, layers cleverly added to trance tracks as you attack and destroy enemies and patterns to be found and followed in how your foes advance towards you, Rez HD creates a sense of synaesthesia quite unlike any other game of its ilk. Yes, you can now go completely wild and play this one in VR but, if you lack the equipment for that trip, this beautiful HD version of the 2001 original will still more than do the job.

  • Backwards Compatible? No

Shadow Complex (Xbox 360)

Chair Entertainment's Shadow Complex felt like a really important game for Xbox Live Arcade back in the day, as it was one of the early releases on the service that really made us all sit up and pay attention.

A superb Metroidvania title that also did plenty to rejuvenate the genre back in 2009, Shadow Complex sees you play as Jason, an unlucky hiker who's lost his girlfriend and ends up stumbling upon a secret underground military complex. What follows is a masterclass in Metroidvania design and pacing. You start out here armed only with a flashlight, nervously skulking past heavily armed guards and cameras, then you'll find a pistol, some grenades, new areas can be accessed, new powers discovered and eventually Jason transforms into a walking war machine.

With a unique 2.5D element that added a little depth to a handful of areas, punchy combat, slick controls, satisfying headshots and excellent visuals, Shadow Complex is a tight and exciting action adventure that we highly recommend seeking out, especially now that a revamped remaster of the original is now available.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes

Sleeping Dogs (Xbox 360)

We're going to go ahead and recommend the Definitive Edition on Xbox One here as the OG 360 version isn't backwards compatible but, however you manage to get around to playing it, Sleeping Dogs is absolutely worth the hassle.

United Front Games' open world adventure is so much more than the GTA clone we were expecting back when it first released, serving up a fun narrative that tells the tale of badass undercover cop Wei Shen's infiltration of the Sun On Yee Triad. There's an excellent combat system at the heart of the action here that combines attacks, counters, combos and OTT environmental attacks, making for enemy encounters that are so much more engaging than those found in other entries in this genre. If you've yet to play this one, we recommend you stick it on your backlog ASAP.

  • Backwards Compatible? No, but there's an Xbox One version

Spec Ops: The Line (Xbox 360)

Yager Development's 2012 cult classic turned our expectations on their head, delivering a third person action game that forces players to think on the horrors of war, rather than have them merrily blast their way through yet another shooting gallery of meaningless foes.

Captain Walker and his Elite Delta Force aren't heroes here, there's no glory in the acts they carry out in this disaster-stricken Dubai. Instead what we witness is a cocky, cheesy, run-of-the-mill protagonist and his crew slowly losing their minds, hallucinating, panicking and ultimately falling apart entirely when confronted with the true nature and horror of their actions.

There's some excellent combat here, thoughtful and well-designed skirmishes full of breakable cover and opportunities for you to give a handful of orders to your men - as a third person shooter it's a tight and engaging experience that often looks pretty spectacular. But it's the story, the repercussions, the choices made that lead to you experiencing one of four possible endings, that will stay with you once all is said and done.

Spec Ops: The Line is a dark, Conrad-esque experience, a unique game that challenges us to stop and think and a title that you should absolutely check out when you get the chance.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes

Spelunky (XBLA)

It may look like a relatively simple retro 2D platformer, but Spelunky is anything but. This is a hard as nails roguelike-infused effort that will crush you mercilessly time after time as you attempt to run its randomly generated gauntlet. It's also a ton of addictive fun!

Spelunky sees you burrow down into some very traditional looking caves and tunnels, rescuing damsels and grabbing treasure. It's full of the usual enemy suspects, spiders, snakes, traps, spikes, bats and so on too. However, the brutal difficulty, the risk vs reward, the quick restarts and fiendish addictiveness of the core gameplay loop here was something entirely new at the time and hooked us in entirely. No matter how much this game punishes us, we always come back, begging for more.

The marriage of roguelike and 2D platformer here went on to inspire a ton of cracking games later down the line and it's easy to see why, it's a winning formula that's supremely moreish and satisfying. Spelunky is a bonafide classic.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes

Split/Second (Xbox 360)

It's only very recently that this particular writer was introduced to the joys of Split/Second and seriously, everyone should be playing this game.

An explosive arcade racer, Split/Second charges you with blasting around some spectacular looking tracks, drifting, drafting, overtaking and jumping ramps in order to build up your Power Play gauge. Once you've successfully done this you can trigger screen-shaking special events that see dams burst, tracks ripped apart, courses changed, shortcuts opened and your opponents absolutely shredded.

Far from feeling gimmicky, these events add some excellent strategy - and a ton of excitement - to a racer that's already a blast to play as its slick controls and sense of speed are hugely satisfying stuff to begin with.

Split/Second is an immaculate arcade racing experience, a game that even those who usually shy away from racing games can enjoy. With online multiplayer and split-screen modes rounding out the package, this is one Xbox 360 game you really need to take for a spin.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes

Super Meat Boy (Xbox 360)

Super Meat Boy is a perfectly formed old-school platforming treat. As the titular blob of bloody meat, you'll dash and jump your way around fiendishly difficult levels on the trail of Professor Fetus, dying over and over again as you get to grips with the pixel-perfect nature of the 8-bit action at hand.

Levels are small, perfectly formed gauntlets here, filled with nasty environmental hazards and even the occasional boss battle, and the tight controls and mechanics, hidden warp zones and collectible playable characters keep us coming back for more even when we're tearing our hair out in frustration.

In terms of old-school, unforgiving platform action, Super Meat Boy is hard to beat boy.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes

The Orange Box (Xbox 360)

This 2007 compilation was, in hindsight, quite the flex on the part of Valve, a collection of five excellent games - four of which were new to consoles at the time - The Orange Box demonstrated the mastery with which this developer went about its business in whatever genre it turned its hand to.

Half Life 2 and its episodes may be the initial focal point here, one of the truly great shooters with two brand new chapters to dig into, but the genius of Portal's addictive puzzling and the meticulously crafted chaos of Team Fortress 2 turned this into into a 100% essential purchase. We're not sure there's ever been a collection of games to match this one and its power to entertain remains undiminished all these years later.

  • Backwards Compatible? Yes