Black Ops Declassified isn't a Call of Duty game. It's like one of those grey-market cameras that has an almost-recognizable brand name on the front. And Activision, in all of their laziness, may have inadvertently kicked off the Vita's funeral procession.

Painfully low production values, unsatisfying action, and outright confusing controls.

The game's superfluous combat and unforgiving puzzle-solving mechanics only serve to bog the experience down; I can only assume that, without them, Sticker Star would have been infinitely crisper and more enjoyable.

In a lot of ways, it feels like Treyarch is giving a gigantic middle finger to Infinity Ward, the Modern Warfare developer that always seems to dominate the spotlight. Black Ops 2 isn't just the culmination of the Black Ops series, it might become the most-loved title in the Call of Duty franchise. Either way, fans won't be disappointed this year.

Pid is a clever little indie title that looks great, sounds great, and provides a decent challenge. Sure, there's currently an almost overwhelming deluge of triple-A blockbusters due to the holiday gaming season, but don't let that distract you from the indie goodness that is Pid.

It offers both a substantial kart racing experience and a heaping serving of that LBP flavor we've grown to love. It's not perfect, but it's an absolute blast.

Okami HD is the definitive version of Okami. It has the best graphics, fewest bugs, and most responsive controls if you are using a DualShock. It runs perfectly in widescreen 1080p without a hitch.

Painfully mediocre and flawed at its very core.

A thoroughly enjoyable experience; unfortunately, the game itself isn't very thorough.

With just a bit of patience in getting through its tutorial month, players will find themselves settling into this Harvest Moon experience for a good, long time.

Dragon Ball Z Budokai HD made me realize something: All I ever really wanted was a DBZ fighting game. Sure, all the newer Dragon Ball Z releases are cool, but the simple mechanics and customization of DBZ Budokai 3 (and to a lesser extent, 1) was far more enjoyable that the cinematic systems of newer games.

It's certainly a feast for the eyes and is probably the superior way to get introduced to the game. If you are a fan of the original, on the other hand, you are essentially paying $20 to play a far prettier, slightly shorter, somewhat adapted version of what you have already played.

The game was just that painfully disappointing. It's its own fault, though. It was touted by its team as a spiritual successor to Guardian Heroes, one of the best Saturn games of all time and a great side-scrolling beat 'em up in any context. The comparison, though, only holds up at the shallowest level of the surface, falling apart as soon as one scratches that away.

The idea is great, but there's not a lot to this game yet.

It may not be Metal Gear, but it's still one of Kojima's best works, and this is a great way to experience it all over again. Not only that, but it's worth picking up the game with the hope that sales will finally push Kojima to make Zone of the Enders 3.

The multiplayer for Halo 4 is something of an enigma wrapped inside an awesome plasma grenade. To say that I am in love with what 343 has done with it would be a disservice. Suffice it to say that I enjoyed the multiplayer enough to go out on a second, third, and probably fourth date.

If you've been looking for a reason to return to Turbine's version of Middle-earth, Riders of Rohan gives you not one, but several. I found myself constantly surprised and impressed with each new area I explored during my journey; may your own be filled with that special sort of wonderment that only Middle-earth can provide.

This game shows that there's still plenty of magic left in the Professor Layton series, and leaves me interested in playing the final game in this prequel trilogy.

As fully featured as any console game, and every aspect feels like it was given the proper care. Liberation is part of a beloved series, and it can be proud standing beside any other of your Assassin's Creed favorites. If you've been looking for a reason to pick up a PS Vita, this is probably it.

With such an engaging storyline, refined combat, and content that perfectly complements the time period, Assassin's Creed III is a revolution, not only to the series, but to the genre itself.

It has a feature set unlike any other and its commitment to both built-in narrative and player-based customization is greater than anything we have seen from almost any other title on the market, regardless of genre. In fact, the only flaws I can find in WWE '13 are concerning the gameplay engine itself, but the feature set is so huge it's almost like it doesn't even matter.

Competitive types will adore proving themselves superior to their friends while doing all of the above. I think it's safe to say that no matter which type of gamer you are, you'll find at least some aspect of Need for Speed Most Wanted to completely lose yourself in.

While there's enjoyment to be had here, it is fleeting and often devolves rapidly into frustration and boredom. I feel bad saying that, because the folks at Danger Close seemed intensely passionate about their work and there's simply so much potential in here, but it clearly needed more time if it was to develop into anything truly unique and compelling.

Forza Horizon is made of pure, unadulterated open world racing fun, and I can't take off points for that.

A game that may sell based on name recognition alone. It's certainly not worth the forty-dollar price tag.

This collection is a little something for fans to whet their appetites with in preparation for id's long-awaited reveal of the long-in-development fourth installment. With that said, this is one of the best HD re-releases I've played so far.

The controls could use a little work. The basic FPS gameplay is standard-WASD, click to shoot, etc. But things can get a little hairy when you hoist yourself into a vehicle. I can't tell you how many times I took off in a helicopter and crashed it in a ball of flames five seconds later before I finally got the hang of it.

If I had to pick something I really enjoyed about the game, I'd have to go with the loading screens. I miss the time when games tried to keep the player busy, even in little ways, while they wait for the game to load. So yeah, there's that.