I’m loving Need For Speed: Most Wanted. It’s a great combination of "Underground" and "Hot Pursuit," and it’s just one hell of a lot of fun.

Where Rise of Nations really sets itself apart from the pack is with two innovations: territorial control and a big Risk-like macro game.

More experienced players will wish there were fewer diversions and a harder difficulty setting in addition to the challenge mode, but Nintendo’s hallmark for ingenuity, imagination, and polish shines through.

Although burdened by some flaws, AVP2 delivers three of the most unique gaming experiences ever and is a game no fan of fast-paced, in your face, brain-eating action should pass up.

It’s cheap, it’s fun, it’s challenging, and it’s a much less embarrassing way to relive the ‘90s than reuniting your old band.

Despite its flaws, The Oath in Felghana is the perfect game for the PSP. Enjoyable combat and dungeon crawling is its own reward.

While not totally original, it's got enough intensity and excitement to have even the most jaded real-time strategy gamer glued to his computer for hours. Death to the American dogs, comrade.

The presentation is really what makes Lost in Nightmares enjoyable and lends a reason to long for a full-blown old-school Resident Evil to come back. Alas, one can only dream.

What we are left with is a remake of one of the greatest games of all time, which in and of itself is an accomplishment worthy of praise. It's just as addictive as ever.

Several interesting twists on the classic arcade shooter bring this game up a few notches.

With a unique plot, great characters, and gameplay that’s fun for both kids and adults, Lego Batman continues the sheer fun of the series and is a great game on all available platforms.

The Delta release features some gorgeous animations and character designs, although the biggest addition is the Grim faction.

Its world has been expanded with new areas, enemies, and group content that surpass much of what the original game offered. Leveling suffers from repetitive quest design and its zones are troublesome to traverse until you can fly, but these issues are soon left in history as you plunge into Heavensward’s magnificent story conclusion, and engage in its wonderfully composed group content.

It’s not the greatest playing horror game, and some aspects feel extremely dated. However, Yuppie Psycho is undeniably worth playing for anyone that is looking for something weird and wants art to actually have something to say.

There's usually one episode in a Game of Thrones season where the numerous setups that the earlier episodes have built finally culminate into a payoff. For Telltale's adaptation, this is that episode.

Ultimately, the Complete Edition is the best way to experience this spin-off, as it is a solid game in its own right and serves as an excellent, if different, primer for No More Heroes 3.

Project Warlock‘s speedy gunplay, rockin’ soundtrack, and armory of slick weapons combine in a way that make it a bit more than a repeat of past Dooms and results in a game that’s bigger than the sum of its many recognizable parts.

It demonstrates that an actual sequel is long overdue as the core gameplay is still compelling in 2019 and no other game has quite filled that same niche. Either way, Capcom’s underrated gem is worth playing in one of its various ways and is well worth the time investment due to its fantastic ending.

While the score below is very much based on my experience (duh), you can knock this grade up a half point if you love games that revel in challenge and restarts. Lots and lots of restarts. Regardless, this is a well-priced indie with a lengthy, ten-hour campaign. I also suspect that there are players out there who might end up loving the idea of Lumo more than the execution. That said, if the controls could be made less frustrating I would love to see a sequel.

The First Samurai is a lovely, if bloody way to wrap up the Nioh 2 saga. From its vibrant levels to its imaginative yokai to its crushing difficulty, this DLC does almost everything base Nioh 2 did but better aside from the superfluous storytelling. Team Ninja may have been honing its craft to get to this level for the final expansion, but in doing so the developer has saved the best for last.

Wasteland 2: Director's Cut is a fantastic retro-styled CRPG with many modern upgrades. Sure, it has a few bugs and takes a while before it becomes truly interesting and fun, but that's par for the course for games with 50+ hours of gameplay.

Its collection of well-designed tracks are wonderful playgrounds for its familiar yet still addictive physics-heavy biking gameplay.

If you’ve never played the first Resident Evil, then purchasing its HD remaster is a no-brainer. However, there’s enough here to convince old-timers to explore the Spencer Mansion once again.

If you're looking for a classic Dragon Quest game with a twist, then this more than fits the bill, so long as you don't mind playing alone the whole through way through. As unexpected as it might be, Omega Force has proven that it can adapt popular franchises with surprising consistency.

For $9.99 this game has a ton of replay value.

Bear puns aside, you will feel like you need to dance between the darker, more serious cast of Persona 3 and the lighter cast of Persona 4 as there are so many lovable archetypes at play. It’s to the P Studio development team’s credit that everyone gets at least a little time in the spotlight here.

Forsaken is a bit of a reset for pretty much everything about Destiny 2, and it’s one that gives me hope that the franchise is making a turn for the better.

FIFA focuses on fewer aspects, only adding a few new things and sticking with their already solid gameplay. Both make tough cases, and it is obvious this has been the closest race to date. As a whole, FIFA 16 plays well and fantastic visual cues.

There's not much else to Mushroom 11 beyond the core movement mechanic, but the game is confident in its limited scope. It allows the simple and innovate control scheme to take center stage, and though it requires both patience and practice, it contributes greatly to the novelty of the puzzle platformer experience.

No matter if you’re looking for a goofy FMV good time or an engaging mystery to solve, The Shapeshifting Detective delivers. You can see where the corners were cut if you push too hard in the wrong places, but the story and characters drive the game past those shortcomings.

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX is currently available for the Playstation 3 for a suggested retail price of $39.99. Without its predecessor, Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, it doesn't make much sense, but it may be worth the purchase price for the truly excellent Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep alone.

Unity may be the hardest game the franchise has produced thus far. Regardless, I welcome any open-world game that can dedicate resources to this kind of heavily-directed play while maintaining the living environments you spend most of your time in.

It has heart and soul, telling an emotional tale that’s full of wonder. Wandersong isn’t perfect, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Adéwalé has his moments, but the real draw here is in the expansion of free-form gameplay both on land and at sea, meaning Freedom Cry succeeds at what it set out to do.

This particular revisit gave me a newfound respect for Yu Suzuki and his singular vision for what Shenmue is.

It seems fitting that FromSoftware ends its DLC trilogy in the snow rather than some hellish landscape or poison-infested shrine. Sure, I died plenty of times while playing Crown of the Ivory King, but I also remember the sense of accomplishment that contrasts those deaths.

Payday 2's presentation feels plastic, but the rest feels exhilarating and livened by the presence of human players you have to rely on.

Connection problems aside, I've really been enjoying the hell out of this new Luigi's Mansion. The whole thing is damn fun, especially for people like me that have fond memories of the Gamecube original.

Rocksmith 2014 may not have party-game appeal due to its strong focus on educating the player, but it definitely has jam session appeal.

The ease of access and quick time to beat each mission is what separates this game from other turn-based strategy games and makes it more appealing for those who don't necessarily have 30 minutes or an hour to complete a map.

If you’re already a fan of the series, or if any of this niche game sounds appealing to you, I urge you to give Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy a try. Certainly, those who played the previous two (or five) games will want to know how the trilogy ends.

No-hitters seem like impossibilities in MLB 14 The Show, unless you turn on automatic fielding and let the others in your squad help out. America's game has always been about teamwork and that’s the only thing I feel is missing when sitting alone on my couch, playing the game.

Digimon Story: Hacker's Memory is the more refined version of Cyber Sleuth with an engaging new story. For some, this could be a deterrence as not much as changed at all. The graphics, locations, and gameplay are exactly the same, but the same core gameplay hook is there with some much-needed improvements.

Harmoknight has that deceptively simple, cheery, Rhythm Heaven-like quality that belies just how addictive it can be.

The first episode of The Enemy Within has been a thrill ride for me, constantly testing me and forcing me to make split-second decisions. I’m anxious to see who’s coming next, with a tease to Dr. Harleen Quinzel, or our girl Harley, in the next episode possibly. I’m very ready to see how Batman navigates the oncoming storm that's going to unfold across the season.

Age of Wonders: Planetfall is one of the most unique 4X games released in recent memory, and that is great news for a genre that can be a bit stale at times. Its blend of XCOM-like combat with the traditional strategy elements isn’t perfect, and there are some rough spots that Triumph Studios will need to work on in the future, but it provides an enjoyable and fresh challenge. While the generic sci-fi world isn’t as rich or organic as the previous high fantasy settings, its amount of depth and ways to play carry it up and beyond many of its genre rivals.

Exploring the galaxy in Star Wars: Outlaws is a blast, and the open-world gameplay perfectly fits the franchise. Kay might not be the most exciting protagonist ever, and the main story suffers as a result. However, the environments are well-crafted, and the gameplay is entertaining enough to compensate for it. Massive managed to avoid many issues that Ubisoft titles are often criticized for, and Outlaws is a must-play for any Star Wars fan.

This episode held my attention much better than the previous one, because of better action sequences and more of getting on with the story.

Though it can be a blurry mess at times, Wild Hearts does plenty right to justify a play by both monster hunter veterans and newcomers to the genre. The Karakuri system is genius and enhances an already fantastic combat experience, and co-op is wonderfully implemented, making it easy to group up with other hunters. Wild Hearts is a fantastic first attempt by Omega Force, as it goes toe-to-toe with an established franchise and gets in a few attacks of its own, and I’m excited to see how the team builds upon this victory, Karakuri-style!

Those that played the game when it was first released on Wii aren’t missing a ton if they skip this one. There’s no new content, just tweaks here and there. However, those who loved it will find this is the best way to play it now.

It’s an exhilarating finale that’s made even better in the smaller moments that highlight how Lara Croft continues to grow as a character.

Rather than being all about sports, Sports Champions 2 takes the intense competition found in these six sports and turns them into a party game. Taking pointers from other party games, Sports Champions 2 puts you and up to three others (four total) against each other, tournament-style.

Both a respectful reimagining and a superb, modernized kart racer in its own right.

This is another retro collection that does an excellent job of preserving a classic franchise in an accessible form on current-gen platforms and is worth your attention whether you’re a long-time fan or someone who’s looking to get into the Mega Man X series for the first time.

If you’ve never played Company of Heroes 2 and are interested in the RTS genre, buy this. If you already own CoH2, then at $19.99 this expansion may be a little pricey, though those who loved the base game will lap up the versatility of the new armies and the exhilarating wars that can be waged in the added maps.

Hitman GO is designed to be a temporary go-to for those times you’re stuck in minor delays, like a doctor’s appointment when you’ve arrived early, not the DMV or anything crazy.

But really, all the game's complaints won't detract from the simple fact that this is Uncharted on a handheld. It's just slightly diminished. Golden Abyss is more like Drake's Fortune than it is Deception-it doesn't span that many environments, has smaller set pieces, and lacks online multiplayer.

Still, The Sims 3 Supernatural works its magic enough that all Sims 3 fans should be left spellbound.

Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth is the shot that Digimon video games have long deserved.

Tekken will always have a place among today's fighting games, but it will always be its own place, and Tekken 7 is the best embodiment of that mentality. They've made very little effort to conform to what other fighting games have taken for granted, even down to Tekken 7's use of 3D arenas where most fighters conformed to a 2D battlefield years ago. Rather than getting hit by typical fighting game tropes, Tekken 7 was able to sidestep them.

No matter whether you’re just touring through these realms of magic or going for full mastery, Amid Evil is a blast from start to finish. Everything from the moody soundtrack to the heart-pounding circle strafing just clicks.

A blast whether you play it by yourself or with a friend, The Stretchers is bound to put a smile on the face of anyone that plays it and showcases how talented a developer Tarsier Studios is.

As polished as the graphics and presentation may be, the lack of options is apparent especially when compared to its MMA predecessor, UFC Undisputed 3. Perhaps that's not a fair comparison, but that's reality.

Gran Turismo 6 feels like a last-generation model car with premium parts. It's certainly no slouch, but there's only so much room left for improvement, where an upgrade would finally mean moving to the most current edition.

The single-player campaign is a blast while the multiplayer is solid if only slightly underwhelming. Kudos to the developer for creating a work of fun that made me chuckle, smile, and feel good. Who knew an iron giant, accompanied by clever level design, would steal my heart?

Days Gone is one of the better zombie games in recent years. It doesn't beat out the Resident Evil 2 remake (very few games do) as being my go-to zombie fix, but it's an entertaining if somewhat unevenly-paced adventure through post-apocalyptic Oregon.

Again, the difficulty curve is sharp at times and inconsistent, though for a discount release, this is a fun and quirky little experience. The story is amusing and deeper, albeit forgettable, than one might think. Easy to pick up, difficult yet engrossing, and a simple story worth the giggles?

Objectives are sometimes unclear and the PS3 version chugs like no one's business in the larger environments. But these are classic games that are at the apex of the survival horror genre, now playable on current-gen platforms. Great games, warts and all.

For $50, players are getting 7-9 hours of story missions, combined with the optional 10+ hours of side content, much of which is collectible hunting. That doesn’t strike me as a great deal at launch, but the free upgrade from PS4 to PS5 does help soften the blow. When the price is right for you, this PlayStation exclusive comes with my recommendation, as it further bolsters Sony’s arsenal as we enter the next generation and beyond.

Still, I have to underscore the way Tokyo Crash Mobs maintains a truly unique sense of gameplay and aesthetic. Sure it's kind of stupid and not all that innovative, but it helps to define the burgeoning Nintendo eShop as a place to find wacky, nonsensical games that are willing to take risks.

For the strategy gamer, Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. is a must-grab. But even for those who may not be too familiar or comfortable with strategy games or the genre as a whole, Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. still merits a healthy look. The title eases the player into the ideas that relate to both the game itself and the genre as a whole, and highlights necessary details through pointed, yet laughably-bad dialogue.

While Evolution is largely based on the original, can be a bit repetitive with puzzles that aren’t all that compelling, and has run-and-gun gameplay that might be a bit too basic, it is still highly entertaining. I recommend this to gamers who enjoy a tongue-in-cheek, cinematic platformer that oozes bloody cartoon carnage by the bucket load.

If you're a 3DS gamer with a penchant for Mario in any way, shape, or form, New Super Mario Bros. 2 is well worth your time. Despite that, if you've had your fill of Nintendo's mascot and the perpetually kidnapped Peach, you might not find a lot of entertainment here. You might resent being the 99% to Mario's coin-hungry top 1%.

If you love mecha and miss Armored Core as I do, Daemon x Machina is the game for you. It has some narrative issues, but the tight gameplay will keep you wanting more. This is one of the big sleepers of 2019, and you shouldn’t let it pass you by now that its on PC.

Metro Exodus is everything I wish the Fallout series would be. It’s a serious story that takes you on an epic journey across a continent and makes you feel like what you’re doing actually matters. It lasts just long enough (around 25-30 hours) to really blow it out of the park and leave you wanting more. 4A Games did a great job on Metro Exodus, but a few glitches (particularly in the audio department) keep it from being a true masterpiece.

So long as Nintendo can build a wide audience and keep its online courses fresh, World Tour should score high enough to move the series toward the next installment.

On a year-to-year basis, 14 grows more than it maintains, even if it stands in shadow of the looming EA Sports Ignite engine.

All that said, every year we beg the question: Is Madden really worth $60 for what little tweaks are made? Probably not, but most people buy it anyway because we all feel that desire to be caught up and current with what's new.

Almost every moment of Super Lucky's Tale allows for the pure joy of platforming when you aren't annoyed by the limited camera design. It's worth noting that the main game is extremely short to beat, but there are enough optional levels, puzzles and collectables to complete that will easily double or even triple your time with it.

The exploration serves as the centerpiece of Journey to the Savage Planet and almost all of its other parts enhance or are enhanced by it. It is usually some symbiotic fusion of the two as exploring opens the doors for more upgrades which unlocks more places to explore. And it does this all within a modest runtime that doesn’t beg for your every hour for months on end in order to yield a satisfying amount of adventuring. Such an outlook is refreshing that we should see more often from this style of game. It makes it clear that for every No Man’s Sky, there should also be a Journey to the Savage Planet.

Despite several setbacks with authenticity and character depth, Sleeping Dogs delivers an entertaining and realistic enough interpretation of Hong Kong to warrant a sequel.

Whether you're playing online or solo in your home village, Monster Hunter exhilarates and excites with the same kind of thrill you'd get from climbing a mountain or conquering a fear you never knew you had. It might not be the prettiest game, but it succeeds in tying your emotions to the action on screen, whether that means dashing your excitement in a narrow defeat or encouraging you to pick a bigger fight after an illustrious victory.

Resident Evil is alive, and although it isn’t quite as we remember, its new perspective has brought with it a terrifying and intimate experience.

If you're looking for a fun, light-hearted racer that will give you countless hours of fun, I highly suggest you give Microsoft's arcade-y racer a look.

It's unfortunate that its online component is unnecessarily complicated, making players jump through hoops in order to go head-to-head against one another, but there's a healthy amount of offline modes tucked away in here that combine to form one helluva package.

I'm sure the punishing difficulty and numerous unfair dice rolls will turn many gamers against Tharsis, and that's perfectly understandable. However, the reward of actually beating the game truly elevates my spirit. I can only hope that the developers will continue the story with another punishing round that occurs on the red planet itself.

With Attack on Titan, Omega Force has managed to craft a wonderfully exhilarating game full of action and suspense that closely follows the source material. It's leaps and bounds above their Dynasty Warriors franchise.

For what it is, One Piece: Unlimited World Red is a solid game.

D4 is a game that knows what it is. It’s quirky and odd with an outrageous story and over-the-top characters, and that may not sit well with some people, but that’s the kind of game Swery is known to make.

If you’ve been scared off of Cage’s work before and you don’t mind a tale that takes itself much too seriously, you might just be hooked by Jodie’s journey.

I can easily recommend Quadrilateral Cowboy, one of my favorite indie games so far this year, to anyone looking for an adventure game that brings something that feels fresh and new to the table and leaves you feeling smart as you've become a hacking god, or in this case goddess.

If you're looking for a fun twin-stick shooter that feels familiar yet fresh, Livelock is worth a purchase, especially if you have friends to play with. Now, if only it had a better title like 'Rock'em, Sock'em, Brobots'.

A gorgeous remake of a cherished game adaptation. With tons of unlockables spread across levels with tons of variety, it doesn’t rely on its namesake alone to carry it. While SpongeBob fans will undoubtedly be happy to play through a game that retains the show’s sense of humor and colorful animation, its solid platforming and the freedom it provides players with to explore its diverse levels make it one of the better remakes we’ve seen.

NGD Studios has crafted a suitably epic, deeply engaging strategy game with all the bells and whistles. Despite some awkwardness with the combat, it’s a satisfying title that delivers on its core promise: to make you feel like an intergalactic conqueror.

Lollipop Chainsaw controls well, which is a high point. There are plenty of special combos and attacks available for purchase to upgrade your Juliet, along with unlocking all kinds of new songs, outfits, and concept art.

As far as remakes go, Square Enix shows time and time again how to do it right, and Dragon Quest VII for 3DS might be their best DQ revamp yet—a massive adventure packed with stories and characters, traveling across time and magical realms to plunge through volcanoes, caves, and underground lairs.

Beneath Bionic Dues’ bland appearance lies a thoroughly engrossing strategy game, one which deserves to be played by anyone with a keyboard, a mouse, and a hankering for blowing up evil mechs.

The Show, through and through, is a fun baseball game to play with buddies but won't keep the average fan playing. It's a coin toss to which MLB title to get.