Animal Crossing: New Leaf finally evolves and revitalizes the formula, expands on the way you interact with your town in meaningful ways, and more importantly returns the series to portable hardware.

The sense of being Samus is really found in the details. With just the right flash of light or glare against the visor, a thin, hazy reflection of Samus can be seen against the inner glass. It's quite cool... A fantastic, top-notch effort.

It's a breath of fresh air to play such an entertaining and well done video game. Since I'm a fan of skateboarding, I truly appreciate the quality of work put into this product, but skaters and non-skaters alike will find this game a joy to play.

It deserves wholeheartedly to be on a list of nominees later this year. Play Shovel Knight. It is a damn delight.

That’s the beauty of survival, and this world of fallout: It feeds on adventure and breathes in freedom, yet it dreams of order and the safety of the Vault. I can describe it, explain it, tell it in finely chosen words, but I can never make you fully understand for as long as you sit and listen. But even if I die, I do not worry. There will come a time when you will seize that lever and open that metal door, and it is then I will return. And the Wasteland will greet you, the birth of a legend.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 is a triumphant return for the series and makes a strong claim for the best skateboarding game ever. It’s a must-play for fans of the series and newcomers alike, and I hope this isn’t the last Pro Skater game we see from Vicarious Visions.

Bioshock is that rare game where the plot, environment, and combat are all steps above the normal video game experience. Games at their very best, like this one, can create amazing alternative worlds for us to inhabit, doing those things we can't do in real life. This is one product the free market should be very happy to have.

Sure, the instant replay feature was left out, but this is a mostly untouched Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, one of the best games ever made, and now a version of it can be played on the PC with the best controls and graphics available.

Whether you're a long time fan or a newcomer, Resident Evil 2 remake is an absolutely fantastic game. It's the best in the series yet and wholly outshined my most optimistic expectations. It doesn't supersede the original, but it's an excellent retelling, a wonderful update, and an excellent experience.

The N64 is a 3D workhorse, and Zelda proves it with great textures, lighting, tons of little environmental effects, and smooooth framerates with no slowdown. Faces, the toughest graphical challenge on 3D characters, are fantastic in Zelda. Characters blink, look around and change expressions with surprising grace.

In atmosphere and narrative, Naughty Dog knows few barriers, and turning their talent and craftsmanship to such haunting and profound subject matter will ensure that the developer is poised to continue its dominance as a premier auteur development studio well into the next generation of console hardware.

Everything about Cuphead just feels right, even all these months after its original release. As it stands right now, this game is nearly flawless in its own right, thanks to its responsive controls and signature style.

Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is a fantastic expansion to one of the best games ever. It slots into the overall journey well, and despite introducing a new map, it feels like a natural ramp-up to the conclusion of your Tarnished becoming Elden Lord. It’s easily 40-50 more hours of content, which is a steal at $40, and FromSoftware has once again proven that it’s the master at proving both quantity and quality that most other AAA studios struggle with.

Despite its lack of replay value, Gris is a mesmerizing puzzle platformer. You won’t want the experience to end, but when it does, it will stick in your head due to its poignant atmosphere and incredible visuals. It’s just a shame that it only lasted around three hours. The game’s beauty and quality make it easy to not want it to end.

Death Stranding doesn’t try to imitate other games, and it’s not for everyone. However, it’s one of my favorite journeys in video gaming history. I feel I’ll return to again and again as the years pass.

If there’s one game you should play this year, it’s Death Stranding. It’s a system seller, and I love it.

It's so good it should come with a warning label -- or at least some methadone.

When I finished the final episode of The Walking Dead, eyes welling up with tears, I started thinking about the possibilities of where Telltale might take the series in Season Two. The series only got better with each subsequent chapter, so I can't wait to see how the studio plans to expand the franchise further in 2013.

Although I really liked Blow’s previous game, I just loved this. I became so absorbed in it, and its beauty complements the way it challenges my mind. I like how simply it begins and how complicated it is at the end but that there’s a logical line from those two points. There’s just a lot contained within, and I’m still finding more. I want that for others, too.

While I may be far removed from the days spent playing Super Mario World as a kid, completing it for the umpteenth time and still finding new secrets with each playthrough, experiencing Super Mario Odyssey transported me back to that same sense of wonder I felt when I first discovered the Star World, or when I used my cape to accidentally stumble upon a secret key that opened up a brand new level. Nintendo has delivered everything I could want in a Mario game, before adding things that I didn't even know I wanted. The end result of their efforts is a true modern masterpiece.

In that way, Entwined feels like Journey and that’s high praise for upstart developer Pixelopus.

But unlike the PS2 and PC versions, the Xbox port comes with that rarest of GTA treasures - a replay feature.

The best version of the venerable kart-racer since the Nintendo 64 era.

I haven't been more captivated by a video gaming in years. There were moments in Journey that I stopped pushing the directional stick because I was too busy taking in my character's surroundings. Should you play Journey? Yes. You should play Journey. Right now.

It is a video game that makes you perform familiar video game actions at the expense of all the reasons most people play video games, even going so far as to be ironic at times.

The Wii U version of Assassin's Creed III doesn't endanger what has made the game a masterpiece, and adds a few neat tricks of its own. The GamePad's map and horse calling features are useful tools that you'll enjoy, and being able to play it away from the television can't be understated. If you're going to purchase Assassin's Creed III for a console, the Wii U version is the king of the hill.

Impatience aside, Portal 2 is an exceptionally well-crafted, intelligent, entertaining, humorous game. You will laugh. You will feel like a freaking genius. You will want more. And yes, you will probably be hearing quotes from Portal 2 for the next three years.

Impatience aside, Portal 2 is an exceptionally well-crafted, intelligent, entertaining, humorous game. You will laugh. You will feel like a freaking genius. You will want more. And yes, you will probably be hearing quotes from Portal 2 for the next three years.