I was never that bothered about achievements on the Xbox 360. Now though, since the Xbox One was released in fact, I have become far more addicted to achievement hunting than ever before, so much so that since the start of 2015 my Gamerscore has doubled. I plan to continue that trend by hitting 100,000gs in 2016.

Therefore, with 2015 over and with many games released during the year, I felt as though I would provide a quick top five list of easy game completions on the Xbox One. Bear in mind I have also based this on how enjoyable these are to play, so even if you are not an achievement hunter, these are actually very fun games and will take you no more than a few of hours to complete each. Also please bear in mind that the days of bashing the A button for a few seconds in order to unlock 1000G are long gone!

So, in no particular order:

5) Pneuma Breath of Life – Read our review

This charming, first person puzzle game, from Deco Digital and Bevel Studios, has a unique style that utilises the Unreal 4 engine to provide a graphically impressive, Ancient Roman style world. The voice work for your character is good, taking inspiration from the Bible and philosophical theories (cogito ergo sum and all that) to try and understand who he is and what he is doing in the world. The puzzles are mostly straightforward but varied and interesting, with some of the harder ones making you pause for thought before you finally solve them. As for the achievements, they are mostly very undemanding and all but one requires you to complete each level and subsequently the entire game. I would however highly recommend using a guide to complete the final achievement, Soul – complete the soul puzzle, as without it, I for one would have had no clue what to do.

4) Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons – Read our review

One of my favourite games was ported to the Xbox One in June. Brothers is unique as it puts you in control of two characters with the player needing to use both analog sticks to control them at the same time. The game takes you on an adventure through a beautiful, mystical Scandinavian style land forcing you to solve some relatively simple but diverse puzzles as you go, with the end goal being to find the cure for your dying father. The achievement list is extremely easy, although if you are playing solely for achievements, it is possibly a good idea to utilise a guide just so you don’t walk past a miss-able one by accident. As I mentioned before, even if you have no interest in gamerscore, the story of this game and the world that Starbreeze Studios has created is so good that it is worth playing anyway!

3) Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast and Furious – Read our review

Put simply this game feels and plays great, despite it basically being a promotion for the latest F&F film. Driving controls are responsive, the cars look fantastic and sound even better, so if you’re a fan of Forza you may as well play this too. The achievement list is crazy easy, all you need to do is complete the car showcase (which essentially means you just need to complete the game) and then perform a number of different ‘skill’ challenges – most of which can be completed within the first 30 minutes of play time. The only thing that may cause a slight issue is that of banking a skill chain, but with a little practice, really isn’t that difficult at all.

2) The Swapper – Read our review

An older game from 2013 that has recently been ported to the Xbox One, The Swapper is a sidescrolling, puzzle game that allows the player to clone himself a maximum of three times, before using these clones to complete increasingly complex challenges. I have to admit, on a couple of the hardest puzzles I gave up and checked out a walkthrough because I could not figure out how to do it but the vast majority are simple enough to finish. That being said the game offers a memorable world on a desolate space station with a surprisingly compelling storyline which will hold your interest as you progress through each section of the map. To 100% this game all you need to do is find ten collectibles but I strongly recommend using a guide as some are in ridiculously hard to find locations. With a guide you will have no problems whatsoever.

1) Whispering Willows – Read our review

A creepy, sidescrolling indie game, Whispering Willows has you control young Elena Elkhorn, a girl who has the ability to interact with the spirit world, as you help her in the quest to find her lost father. The story is very good and is complimented by the spooky environment, excellent visuals and brilliant sound design. As far as the achievements go, although they are extremely easy and straightforward, there are a few missable ones so I highly recommend using a walkthrough to help you out – just make sure to not spoil the puzzles for yourself!

If you have never played these games before, I guarantee that by playing through each one, you will get an extremely easy and enjoyable 5000 gamerscore. Obviously, there are few games nowadays which provide gamerscore for nothing so if you do find yourself stuck on any of them, have a quick search around the web for a guide or two. Failing that, hit us up in the comments below and we’ll help out where we can.

In the next article I will be looking at 2015’s hardest/longest Xbox One game completions, but until then enjoy these games and happy hunting!

Good luck.