Congratulations, you made it to the last level of 2020. To get this far has taken determination, grit and, no doubt, a sturdy pair of shoes. (Also, maybe a cheat code?) Whether you’ve been outside splashing in puddles or inside and resorted to previously box-fresh sneakers as crib kicks, now is the time to invest in a new pair for the final battle. From Yeezys and Vaporwaffles in new colourways to reimagined Nike Air Force 1s and Dunks and adidas Superstars, arm yourself with one of the latest arrivals on site. As Street Fighter put it succinctly, “player select”.

Nike’s flagship air-cushioned basketball shoe, the Air Force 1, has seen more variations than G-Dragon has dreamt up hair colours. That said, the K-pop sensation’s latest take on the OG shoe is something else entirely. The new white colourway, an inverse of his first collab, is embellished with scuff marks and fat laces, plus printed insoles and a daisy embroidered on the tongue. Perhaps the USP here, though – as if the reflected glory of the South Korean rapper were not enough – is the unique artwork, revealed only when the upper is peeled away. A hidden G-Dragon, if you will.

Where Mr Peter Moore’s Air Jordan 1 was designed with one man in mind, the high-top Dunk, released mere months afterwards, was by definition an everyman shoe. Well, not every man – you’d have to be playing in a college basketball team to get your hands on a pair. But the idea behind the two-tone upper was that players could wear the shoes to match their team’s livery. The initial run came in 12 different colourways to match 12 leading national schools (the shoe even had the working title “College Color High”). This particular pairing of black and vivid yellow, inspired by the Iowa Hawkeyes, dates back to that first batch, but has added notoriety in it bearing a striking resemblance to the 1999 reissue endorsed by the Wu Tang Clan. This isn’t that, but it is striking nonetheless.

Hot on the heels of the Vaporwaffle that arrived in last month’s batch is this edition in a colourway described, in full (deep breath), as “String/Black-Villain Red-Neptune Green”. Which sounds like a lot of colours, but then this is also a lot of shoes all at once. As reported, this model layers several generations of Nike legends, notably from the brand’s often-overlooked Pegasus line, on top of each other. (Well, no one is overlooking them now.) And as the lengthy name alludes to, the contrast tones do in fact resemble the four-colour tones of the comic books from Marvel’s mid-century heyday. Which would make Nike and Sacai, what, Avengers?

Founded in 1993, A Bathing Ape helped set the post-modern, copy-and-paste template of 21st-century streetwear (even its logo is a nod to the 1968 film Planet Of The Apes). Perhaps one of its biggest steps from cult brand to influential international force came in its 2003 team-up with adidas on a batch of skate shoes. Since then, meetings between the two have been relatively fleeting, save concerns involving Human Made, Bape creator Nigo’s side project. Which is surprising given the respect the Japanese label clearly has for the German sportswear giant. This collaboration, which ties in with the Superstar’s 50th birthday, pulls in Bape’s trademark camo colourway, with the branding of its Bapesta sneaker replacing the three stripes on the outside of each shoe. Also look for the ape logo on one tongue. Monkey see, monkey do.

The last time we saw a Yeezy 700 V3 in these parts, it was in a slightly out-of-character aquatic blue hue. But here, the imprint returns to the more earthy tones it is known for, if a deeper, richer brown than the dusty, post-apocalyptic vibe of much of Mr Kanye West’s output. (If you didn’t know his home was a white cube, you’d suspect it was more like the Scavenger’s junkyard from The Walking Dead.) The streaks across the upper here come in a fetching copper, which stands out against a darker RPU cage and bulbous midsole. Should this year live up to expectations and the Last Judgment be upon us, this is a good option for outrunning the end of days.