Mafia III as a narrative alone is a commendable effort, and is unlikely to be forgotten for that very reason. It takes a hard look at a life many of us have never led, and challenges players with an experience most could never truly know. Ultimately though, even the strongest of stories can't save Mafia III from falling prey to genre conventions, and too many at that.

Smash Bandits is one hell of a fun game.

Drawing lines on a chalkboard may sound like a mind numbing bore, but thanks to this casual game’s intriguing play on one’s memory and use of finger skills, The Impossible Line rises to the occasion.

I cannot conclude this review without stating my utter hated for gyroscopic controls, and Driver’s Ed still does not give you the option of manually steering your car with on-screen controls (or any options for that matter).

When you get down to it, the game doesn’t offer any variety. All the action takes place in a single screen with a gradually increasing number of bubbles moving at gradually increasing speeds, with the only long term goals being new high scores and new swag at the item shop. You can drop some coins to challenge Hyper Mode, but that’s just a higher risk, higher reward version of the same gameplay. That core action is fun, but it won’t keep you coming back for more than a handful of hours.

Pac-Man Dash has some fast and fun action here and there, making it a good title to mess around with for a little bit. But I was not going in to this game ready to be blown away by anything. It’s really more or less what you would expect of a stock endless runner title that revives a classic video game character.

Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water's full price tag might shy away some would-be buyers since it's only available in North America as a digital release, but veterans of the series or survival horror fans in general will certainly have a good time having an otherworldly photo shoot at Mt. Hikami.

Its few shortcomings aren't to be overlooked, however, as its sluggish, frequently directionless, and deliberately archaic in its design. Don't come in expecting jump scares and big gore; this is a slow-burning experience with an emphasis on style and atmosphere.

Not everyone is going to enjoy Surgeon Simulator’s comedically clunky gameplay. For those with a bit of patience, you’ll get a game that will make you laugh, groan and repeatedly murder your patients in a variety of malpractice-y ways.

I don't fault Ubisoft for trying something different with its acclaimed Assassin's Creed franchise, and in some respects there's a lot to like. However when the game stumbles it does so in grand fashion, creating an infuriating experience that makes me want to throw my controller more than continue on my quest.

Iesabel doesn’t offer much on the RPG front as far as innovation, but that doesn’t detract from its appeal.

Ancient Battle: Rome isn’t going to set the world on fire anytime soon, but it checks all the boxes as a solid turn-based experience.

Its slow pace, lack of complexity and lack of micro control options may not appeal to everyone, but if you’re looking for something that makes decent use of your brain while moving things gently along, Oil Rush: 3D Naval Strategy may be the thing for you.

Bloodmasque may not be a perfect game, but its fast combat, (mostly) appropriately-priced upgrades, and minimally-intrusive social networking all mesh together to create a tasty action game for any wannabe vampire hunter.

Assassin’s Creed Pirates isn’t some cash in on Assassin’s Creed 4, it is a damn good game that stands right up on its own. It is epic, engaging, and most of all fun. It doesn’t wear out its welcome with bloated mechanics or unnecessary plot. It distills the essence of what we loved about the naval battles and puts it at your fingertips.

At its core, Bloodstroke is an unapologetic and noirish journey through Woo’s universe. Its streets may be bathed in black and white, but after a few rounds as Lotus, all you’ll be seeing is red.

If you can get past that you’ll find an approachable, yet complex, role-playing game that offers a lot do, but never manages to quite break away from the shallowness of the freemium genre.

Ultimately, most of this game feels as though it should have been patched into the original and it plays almost exactly the same.

Free is free, and this game is good for a few smiles and some decent entertainment, but you cannot outrun the ceiling of mediocre, free games forcing players into micro-transactions in order to unlock the fun stuff.

My only gripe regarding Ring Run Circus lies in its complexity, but that’s just me whining about my lack of intellectual dexterity. Finding the right circles to run in, as well as when to collect stars and slap elephants, really isn’t my forte. For some, life is just a circus, and for others, it solely exists as a dream. This app offers a bit of both, so choose your circle wisely.

A really great shooter for the iOS that expands the offerings in the App Store. It’s fun, exciting, and handles great. But, it lacks its own identity and much of the time, you might find yourself craving after your console and the disc for another video game that has already been out for quite a while.

Diner Dash Rush is easy to pick up and put down. There’s absolutely nothing complicated about its game play, but for some reason, in the middle of all this customer madness, one’s adrenaline is bound to spike.

Another Case Solved is an engaging puzzler that also doesn’t go for the money grab within the first 20 minutes of action.

I love the absurdity of a game dedicated to collecting zombie fish. The controls are a bit of an issue and it’s not as feverishly addictive as something like Ridiculous Fishing, but I found myself coming back to this little title for more than a few rounds.

Kamikaze Pigs may come off as a total joke from the onset, but if you get past the relatively easy game play mechanic, this title has a surprising amount of nuance. This isn’t just a blow them up, score as many points adventure, but if you want to keep it on that playing field that’s completely fine.

Fans have been wishing for the perfect Dragon Ball Z game for a long time, and Dragon Ball Xenoverse makes it clear that they'll need to collect the dragon balls again and wish for something else, because this thing sucks harder than Yamcha.

The story is interesting if you like fairytales and gives you a chance to battle the once good-guys-turned-bad instead of playing as them.

An intriguing trip into the unknown, simian.interface is a puzzler filled with delicious colors, sounds, and three dimensional shapes. Brain twisters come in all shapes and sizes, and this app will stay on my mind, at least until the next batch of simians come along.