Pokémon Conquest is a solid addition to any Nintendo DS library. Fans of the RPG series should enjoy this twist of tactics battling and will appreciate the level of complexity available with castle management, team building, and Pokémon training. It's nice to see a spin-off mash-up turn out to be a quality game.

Madden 13 on the Wii U sacrifices the Impact Engine from the PS3/360, but adds Gamepad integration that is intuitive and works well. That combination could make the purchase a tough decision for diehards, but whether you wait for next year or go with this release, you're getting a good football game.

Slant Six Games and SCEA have put out a solid third-person shooter for Sony's portable system. It has a large variety of weapons, solid online play and a single-player depth that puts Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 to shame.

I like what Square Enix has done with Final Fantasy Explorers. It has some real potential to be great, but as it stands, it might fall short slightly with a more seasoned Final Fantasy adventurer.

Pokken Tournament is a well crafted, yet simplistic fighting game. It won’t compete against the Tekkens or Street Fighters of the fighting world, but it does enough to cater to the Pokémon crowd. If there was a bit more balance and a lot more characters, then this game would have been phenomenal. As it stands, it’s still a good fighting game with lots of potential for growth.

Perhaps not quite what Borderlands veterans were hoping for in the game's second DLC, but it still provides a fun and challenging co-op experience.

For Pac-Man and Galaga fans on the go, this is a nice release, but those looking for just Pac-Man Tilt or Galaga: 3D Impact, both cool games, they may want to catch this one on sale.

Puddle on the Wii U looks and plays great. It's too bad there is no new content here from previously released versions, but it's still a challenging and likeable physics puzzler.

Excluding Wii Party, Mario Party 9 is the first we've seen in nearly five years of what was historically a perennial series. This break in the action has provided an opportunity for reinvention, and to some extent, that's what's occurred. What it all boils down to is a clever, unexpected, and much-needed reboot of a series that previously didn't seem to have much left in the way of creativity. It won't turn haters into lovers, but it's most certainly a step in the right direction for the franchise.

Eufloria is an ambitious game in constant search of a way to properly engage the player.

We Are The Dwarves is not the best RTS game out there, but its difficulty is addictive enough to suck any good PC gamer in for more than a few hours.

With that said, the primary flaw in Assassin's Creed Rogue is the plot. Conrad, in Heart of Darkness, wrote "showing in this remark the weakness of many tellers of tales who seem so often unaware of what their audience would best like to hear." And Ubisoft Sofia has succumbed to these weaknesses. Rogue does not tell the story players want to hear.

Though the characters, locales, and general lore of Warhammer were lost on me not having ever played any Warhammer before (tabletop or otherwise), this didn’t stop me from getting into the game and enjoying it. The story, characters, quest and dungeon design, and general gameplay are all pretty straight-forward and familiar, and I don’t mean that in a disparaging way. This is a good case of ‘if it’s not broke, don’t fix it.’ If you’re looking for an expansive and fun co-op loot-gathering, combat-heavy dungeon crawler, this is a good choice, and your only choice right now for the new consoles.

Overall, if you can accept the difficulty of New Super Luigi U then you probably will love the additional challenges, 80 levels and complexity of it all. Nintendo did do a lot to this DLC, far more effort than most companies would have put into their own DLC. Give them credit for delivering the goods the way you would expect Nintendo to deliver them -- except with a little bit more difficulty included.

It's hard not to like Gatling Gears. The pains of a worn genre and derivative mechanics are eased by a bright, inviting aesthetic and supported by an impressive attention to detail. Vanguard seemed more interested in creating their particular take on twin-stick shooter rather than doing something crazy with an established formula, and I'm strangely okay with that.

If you're looking for a good fighting game this holiday that's accessible, not overly technical, and doesn't require a commitment or previous experience to enjoy, give Saint Seiya Brave Soldiers a serious look. It's hard to beat for the cost.

A solid adventure despite some significant issues, The Cursed Crusade is well worth a look this holiday.

Despite some parts of the game being more simplistic overall, the exploration of the catacombs is far more enthralling than the over world from Challenge of the Warlords.

Delta isn't likely to change your opinion of the original game, but it lives up to its Ultimate Edition billing.

Darkstalkers Resurrection might be just a gauge for future releases of the series, but the effort put into it from Iron Galaxy and Capcom certainly says otherwise. The HD upgrade mixed with the extras and online play make this a solid package that any Darkstalkers' fan will want to snag.

Overall, I think the longevity of the gameplay might be a bit grind-y for a mainstream audience. If you can accept that grind, then you have a good story waiting for you with a beautifully woven tapestry led by leveling and a competent upgrade system, which helps keep the gamer motivated to continue. Is it a perfect game? No, but it’s a damn good one, especially with friends.

An obvious must have for those who have cleared The Assignment and are eager to continue the story, but if you aren't in that position, you might want to wait for a probable 'ultimate' edition later this year.

If I had to sum up Thunder Wolves with a single world it would be 'fun.' It's not the most memorable or rewarding game you'll ever play by any means, but just like any good arcade game from the 90s, it provides you with several hours of raw action enjoyment.

Far Cry 4 is radiant with opportunities to both seize and indulge in its power. This speaks to its fondness for connected progression systems, an insistence on emblazoning its geography with scores of content, and meaningful improvements to the blueprint laid out by Far Cry 3.

Far from a bad game yet short of greatness, The Night of the Rabbit is worth your time and money if you enjoy the genre.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is a successful reboot by MercurySteam. Touting a strong combat system in the vein of God of War, the game features a fairly lengthy quest that is rewarding if you stick with it.

While it’s perhaps not as full as Animal Crossing or as thematically engrossing as Kingdom Hearts, Disney Magical World is a surprisingly nice addition to the Disney universe that stands well on its own while further extending the reaches of Walt’s massive canon.

Playing as Batgirl is not quite as interesting as I had hoped primarily due to a lazy hacking mechanic, but, A Matter of Family was still different, interesting, and fun enough to recommend to Arkham fans.