It’s the kind of game that can be played indefinitely and a player’s performance will continually improve. The tasks ahead look daunting at first, but the depth of the game quickly becomes a player’s best friend as each new play session introduces new surprises.

In the end, Metroid: Zero Mission is not just a new snapshot of where the series began; it is a panorama of where the series has gone over the last two decades. By combining elements from several Metroid installments, Zero Mission unifies the overarching story of Samus Aran and sheds new light on her unusual childhood.

A highly addictive and entertaining game, with hundreds of hours of depth available. The animals are cute, with their own personality quirks. And if they annoy you, just remember they can't read.

This may be the best adventure game you have ever played, or will play in a long while.

On a technical level, I believe the game may be entirely without flaw. On top of that Ubi Soft has introduced us to a whole new breed of online gaming that did not exist before Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow hit the shelves. Their ability to pull that off has solidified them as the developer of the year and has made Splinter Cell an instant, must own classic.

These are by far the best console versions of the games (and are arguably better than the PC version). People who have an XBox and haven't picked these up yet for any other platform are in for a treat.

It's certainly the closest I've ever gotten to a perfect gaming experience with an RTS game.

The delivered promise of video games to stand alongside cinema and literature as works of art. It accomplishes this through extraordinary graphical and audio prowess, wrapped around a riveting story and conveyed by unsurpassed gameplay...It is, bar none, the finest game I've ever played.

It’s the kind of game that can be played indefinitely and a player’s performance will continually improve.

Have you ever played a game that's so good that the simple knowledge of its existence is enough to put a smile on your face? This is one of those games. Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon is a shining example of what this genre is capable of, and it comes as close to perfection as any recent adventure game has.

Analog stick feels and moves much better than the N64's, so moving Link is pretty easy. Lastly, the famous "Z targeting" system has been replaced with the L shoulder button taking on the targeting duties. All in all, the control scheme is near flawless.

The control is tighter than ever before and the entire exercise proceeds under a fluid sheen of reciprocal interaction: Input from the gamer equals output on the screen, religiously.

It’s the kind of game that can be played indefinitely and a player’s performance will continually improve. The tasks ahead look daunting at first, but the depth of the game quickly becomes a player’s best friend as each new play session introduces new surprises.

The action comes in waves, giving you time to catch your breath between massacres while catching up on the foreboding story. But once in a while, there are those marathon levels where you're shooting for 10 minutes straight, and loving every nerve racking second.

There are no clumsy cameras or complex controls to encumber the gameplay here. No, Viewtiful Joe is a video game made manifest into a work of art, and it stands as a shining example of what games should aspire to be.

This is not the Metroid you may remember, but this is the best game to come along on any platform in a long time.

It has raised the bar and raised our expectations of what an action/adventure title can be. This is one instance where the inevitable copycats from other developers will not only be welcome, they are highly encouraged.

Everything a player could want in a game: the story mode is of the perfect length and difficulty, the game is extremely replayable, and the multiplayer offering is both fun and robust. And, arguably most importantly, there are negligible loading times.

It is quite possible to blow through the game in 30 hours, but it is equally possible to play for 400 and still not have done everything there is to do in Cyrodiil.

If you buy no other action game this year, spend some green on big, green and ugly.

It may not be revolutionary from a gameplay perspective, but everything Radical has accomplished here is done with such care and expertise that the game should be recognized as the wonderful achievement that it is.

The story, graphics, speech, and every other aspect make this game an addictively fun title that no true RPG fan should pass up.

It's slower, scarier, and altogether one of the best offerings in the genre for any console.

From its characters and epic, if somewhat predictable story, to the gameplay itself, Twilight Princess is a terrific extension to one of the most timeless and important franchises in video game history.

The controls are brilliant, the presentation is spot-on, and the game is without a doubt one of the most entertaining titles to be released this year.

This is absolutely my favorite Final Fantasy title, a claim I probably would have laughed at two years ago when rumors about the game’s battle system began to circulate.

Guitar Hero II is what being a sequel is all about. Taking the core gameplay from a solid game and making improvements and sharpening until it can cut through steel like a hot knife through butter.

If Snake Eater were likened to an exquisite pie, then Subsistence would be that pie with ice cream, a cherry, served with a bottle of fine wine.