Sure to be a fun, good natured under the tree gift this Christmas for kids and kids at heart.

NCAA Football 10 is the complete college football experience, it has the depth, the style, and the substance that fans have been looking for. For the first time in years I am happy to report that the upgrades in NCAA Football 10 game were enough to make for one of the best NCAA Football titles in years.

Overly referential with gameplay that doesn't go anywhere.

At the bargain price of $9.99 there is no reason you should not pick up this game.

The story mode is still quite impressive and has plenty of length to it.

Colorful and surrounded by mystery, Dropsy is a nice twist from “normal” adventure games and worthy of investment.

The best thing about a new Pokemon game is that it's more Pokemon. The core of the series continues to be sound, but in the end the series needs to get better at following up on the story that it teases us with. After such a strong departure for the series the original Black and White, it's a shame to see Version 2 take a step back and offer such inferior characters and story beats. Despite being the follow up to the best Pokemon games in years, though, Black and White Version 2 have to settle for being "pretty good," leaving us waiting for the next real evolution in the series.

After her horrendous PS2 debut, Lara gets back into top form on the 360 with a back-to-basics exploration-based gameplay and tasty puzzles.

Slain: Back from Hell was a master class example in teaching how to play well. Valfaris, on the other hand, doesn’t understand the same rewarding philosophy. Luck plays too big a part in beating all the hardship in Therion’s way, controls are unfortunately sloppy (again, it could be a console-specific issue) and the game even falls to punish players with its dubious risk/reward system. Valfaris looks great and at its best, can make your hands sweat when tackling its steep challenge but ultimately, for all that the game is, it more talks the talk than walks the walk.

Thunder Force AC is a solid port of a classic shmup. If you are craving some retro shooting action on the Switch or want to give the genre a try, give this game a shot.

Moving out of the subterranean world of the first two Metro games, Exodus preserves the tense, stealth shooter vibe while opening up into a vastly more varied and interesting series of environments. Even on its normal difficulty setting, Metro Exodus is a challenging and often unforgiving shooter, requiring careful planning and situational awareness. Although it would benefit from a ruthless editor’s pen and fewer wooden characters, Metro Exodus has found a great balance between linear and more open-world game play.

Overall, I had a ton of fun with Doom Eternal, even if the story is borderline incomprehensible to seasoned Doom Slayers. I look forward to more installments in the franchise if this is the level of quality we continue to get. Those platforming sections are truly awful, though.

Etrian Odyssey V might not have changed much over previous installments, but it has refined the already sophisticated cartography to a T with its clever environmental puzzles and great user interface.

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is a fantastic return to form that benefits from modern console hardware, making a more dynamic air combat experience. The story, told from different perspectives on both sides of the war, has a tendency to be too serious and overwrought to the point of hilarity but I always give it a pass because it’s so endearing.

It’s not a great option for those that already invested in MLB 14: The Show, in fact I probably wouldn’t recommend the upgrade. However if you’re new to the PS4 and want to enjoy a little of America’s past time this is one of the best sports games available on the PS4 today.

Still, if you loved Dishonored as much as I did, The Knife of Dunwall is worth your time; just be prepared for more of the same and less of the extraordinary. Except for Daud. Daud’s cool.

The narrative experiments are definitely awesome, but you can’t just put style over substance, especially when all the same problems return. Hitchy framerates, action sequences that hang too long and make you fail them at least once thanks to technical error, the fact that you want to say something but your character doesn’t give you the option.

It’s an strong addition to the genre, and does a fine job building upon the foundation set by the lauded Company of Heroes.

I enjoyed my time in the world of Trine 4. The puzzles are engaging, the world is attractive, and there are few puzzle platform games with local co-op out there. There were a few issues here and there, but I recommend Trine 4 to anyone looking for a game to play with a friend.

Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy is a reverent and imperfect resurrection of an icon. This furry oddball creature could have been left in the past, but I'm pleased that he was revived for a new generation. I say this in full awareness of the fact that Vicarious Visions could have done more in the technical and gameplay departments. Here we have two great games, and one that could have been great if given the update it truly needed. They look stunning, too, but resolution, framerates, and load times are all at an average standard when at least one of the three should be better. And yet, whether you find yourself zooming down a desert highway, running from a gigantic bear, or just bouncing over a bridge of crates, you can't help but smile and know that, at the end of the day, Crash is still a whole lot of fun.

Games as LSD alternatives are nothing new, but Circa Infinity is in the upper echelon of the category. It remembers that weirdness is not a substitute for discipline, and so tempers its abstract presentation with immaculate level design and a blazing tempo. The outcome is at once a striking artistic vision, a viscerally and intellectually engaging product, and a frontrunner for best indie game of the year.

It’s fairly obvious that a major reason for Samorost 3’s existence is to give its series some recognition as something other than a footnote to the rest of its developer’s work, and in that regard, it roundly succeeds. But after shaking off the “browser game” stigma, it merely continues its business as a temporarily enjoyable diversion.

Nihon Falcom’s games have helped me to rediscover JRPGs which I had almost given up due to their often perplexing superiority complex. There’s this integrity towards the way Nihon Falcom makes their games, and it’s reflected in the gaming experience. What The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel may lack in production values, it makes up for in the richness and depth in its unpretentious and diverse narrative. That makes following Rean and his friends during their year of study uncannily engaging entertainment. I can’t think of any better way to get acquainted with The Legend of Heroes series than this. The only thing bothering me right now is how long I have to wait for the second part!

Danganronpa V3 is not without its flaws. Class trials don’t always pan out and pacing gets in the way at times, but this is still the same Danganronpa fans have grown to love over the years. The wonderful cast of characters and immersive plot coupled with a plethora of endgame options makes this a must-play game for fans and newcomers alike.

Wild Guns Reloaded isn't necessarily a game I asked for, but I really enjoyed it nonetheless, especially on handheld mode. It's colorful, vibrant, and an artistic beauty. Among other things, it remains to be a very fun title from a time when video games were still evolving. With some extra polish and new ways to play the game, Wild Guns was remastered as best as it possibly could have been. It's not new or special in today's landscape, but I still think that it's a title everyone should pick up and play for a really great time.

From top to bottom, Bow To Blood offers a solid concept, fun player/AI dynamics, randomized play, and great VR immersion. This game belongs in every PSVR owner’s library.

Thanks to the randomness ingrained with the other games that ensues no two sessions are alike, we could easily stick to the games we liked and still feel like The Jackbox Party Pack 5 was a great way to spend an evening with friends.

Blazing Beaks was a nice little surprise and I thoroughly recommend it for fans of the genre. It loses a few points in my eyes for a rather bland soundtrack and a complete lack of narrative. Overall, though, it’s a fun little game and worthy to sit among the others.