Battle mode: The fight for the Christmas market

SUPER SMASH BROS UNLIMITED (NINTENDO SWITCH)

A mere two seconds of trailer for this game earlier this year sent Nintendo fans into whooping, dancing paroxysms of joy and will be, for many who do not yet own one, the reason to buy the Nintendo Switch. The earlier versions of the game, which thrusts all of Nintendo’s favorite characters into a mad, cartoon brawl, has created a global cult following and is at the heart of a thriving worldwide esports community.

CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 4 (PS4, XBOX ONE)

Now in its 15th year, the first-person shooter Call of Duty franchise badly needed some sprucing up and seems to have been given exactly that. This outing, which was released in October and made $500 million in its first three days, has been deliberately tailored to appeal to a generation of gamers for whom Fortnite sets a new standard for the online firstperson shooter format. It does that spectacularly well, reminding console owners of how well a highly developed battlefield scene can look on a big home television.

JUST CAUSE 4 (PS4, XBOX ONE)

The latest outing in the ludicrous series of action adventures, where hanging upside down off helicopters with a grappling hook and firing a rocket launcher at a passing fighter jet is the norm. Released this week, the game promises to be even bigger, more beautiful and more mayhem-filled than its predecessors.