Dream Daddy is a surprisingly wholesome game about fatherhood, and about finding love again after loss. The well-written dialogue surprised me, and so did the fact that it is an incredibly heartwarming game. Rather than focusing on titillation, Dream Daddy has a cast of characters that are both real and diverse, even if it doesn’t always bring enough depth to the topics it tackles.

While it doesn’t offer the same breadth and reimagining of core systems found in The Taken King, Bungie’s latest release has a sentimental tone that is refreshing. This adventure through forgotten legends stands strong on its own, and continues an unbroken string of content drops that have each made Destiny a richer universe.

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock is often stupid and frequently silly, but I got caught up in shredding my way through the ridiculous experience. It doesn't matter if I was laughing with the game or laughing at it; I was entertained.

I enjoyed my time with the game, and I can see it grabbing a rabid cult audience. I'd recommend it to anyone who can relax their expectations a bit, particularly when it comes to the voice recognition. The more you're able to focus on where it succeeds and look past its obvious failings, the better.

I recommend Dungeon Siege III to anyone that wants to connect with friends and kill a whole mess of monsters together. [July 2011, p.84]

Halo 2 on Vista is a solid port that brings the Master Chief’s heroism to more gamers, and that’s indisputably a good thing. If it’s additional content or a new experience you’re looking for, though, this direct translation to Windows Vista will feel like $50 wasted.

For gamers looking for something different on the Wii, this might be the ticket – provided that you’re willing to cope with the unpolished mechanics.

This newer game is by far the more impressive choice, with fully fleshed out features, excellent animation, solid soccer gameplay, and an exciting presentation, replete with another batch of great music from around the world. [Jun 2006, p.112]

Indy’s newest adventure wasn’t built to last.

This title's humorous tone and engaging gameplay are charming, even if the game itself is a bit on the repetitive and shallow side (just like real politics!). [Nov 2004, p.167]

50 Cent’s first foray into video games (50 Cent: Bulletproof) was a hot mess of action clichés and poor control, so kudos to new developer Swordfish Studios for delivering a vastly improved sequel. It’s a thuggish, high production value exercise in excess – not unlike the music of the man that inspired it.

While many aspects of the story are on a linear path, the consequences of some defining choices do echo into the season’s end, including a few important characters being alive or dead. Nonetheless, I wouldn’t go so far as to suggest that Guardians of the Galaxy offers a particularly compelling spread of choices across its many episodes. Instead, the biggest selling point of the season is the opportunity to glimpse some backstory for these popular superheroes, and explore the interpersonal dynamics that those histories have on the team. If that sounds appealing, there’s good reason to give Guardians a shot. The action may be lackluster, and the path through the story may not be filled with surprises, but I did manage to care how it all shook out for this mismatched squad of heroes, and that’s more than I can say for a lot of video game characters.

Last year's game showed promise and a commitment to getting this series back on track. This year's installment is a disaster. There's a decent game of baseball to be played here, but you are more likely to pitch a complete game than play through nine innings without a bug or glitch.

They Are Billions is an interesting mashup of classic RTS, tower defense, and survival that successfully conjures up that “one more game” feel, assuming you can persevere through countless defeats.

The best Tiger in years just appeared on the Xbox 360 and PS3, but this game just doesn’t feel the same in comparison. Of course, with the Wii controller it shouldn’t – but it also shouldn’t leave me guessing half the time as to where my ball is going.

While – both graphically and in gameplay – Saints Row feels behind the standards set by GTA IV, it has an ace up its sleeve in the online arena: true online co-op. And it works. [Dec 2008, p.105]

Here we have a tactical shooter that has all the thrills in all of the right places. [July 2002, p.91]

It's a great puzzler. Definitely a little weird, but most certainly good. [Sept 2003, p.109]

If you fell in love with the virtual pet aspect within the original, the Creature AI is more dynamic and the insertion of variety keeps the adventure from becoming redundant. [Mar 2002, p.88]

But after spending a mere 30 minutes to complete the adventure, you'll soon discover that there's too little sustenance to provide a satisfying portion of gameplay.[Nov 2002, p.138]

I have a feeling that hardcore role-players will completely devour and praise Lost Kingdoms for its ingenious strategies and addictive design. [July 2002, p.84]

Shortcomings in the pacing and the lack of diversity in the combat pull down the experience, but I liked the time I spent with Kenshiro. The Fist of the North Star franchise feels dated in many ways, but you would be hard-pressed to find a better representation of its strange and violent world in a video game.

Despite these complaints, Nostalgia is a worthy distraction. [Nov 2009, p.114]

Rush of Blood is straightforward in its execution. It’s a simple action game that feels like an evolution of the light-gun shooter, but in this early age of virtual reality, it’s the right call. Pointing and shooting at scary things on a fun-house roller-coaster might not seem like the right direction for Until Dawn’s character-focused storytelling, but for PlayStation VR, it’s one of the best ways to get your feet wet, even if it doesn’t do anything bold or particularly innovative in the world of game design.

Shaun may have walked away with the gold, but his games still can’t qualify.

While there's not much new, it takes something old and makes it seem fresh. And where gaming fun is concerned, that's worth a lot. [Dec 2004, p.177]

Although Narcosis’ runtime is fairly short (about four hours), it’s padded by frustrating stealth segments and banal puzzle-solving that get in the way of some great storytelling and voice-acting. While captivating, those aren’t enough to make this experience worth wading through.

Earth Defense Force 5 has none of those things – but that’s okay. This series has always had a single-minded commitment to one simple truth: It’s fun to use weird weapons to blast lots of aliens. That fact may never change, but in an industry that has been steadily raising the bar, Earth Defense Force 5 allows the series to fall further behind.