Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is the first PS5 exclusive that I can recommend everyone go out and buy. It's a cutting-edge visual masterclass of what the PS5 is capable of, but with the soul of the original R&C games, packaged with a comprehensive set of accessibility options.

A prime example of intelligently controlled chaos wherein the gameplay experiences are as diverse as snowflakes.

The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition comes highly recommended, whether or not you are a series aficionado like myself, or just a noob pirate.

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

Ubisoft's platformer was one of the best games money could buy last year, and it's one of the best games you can play on your PlayStation Vita now.

Respected gameplay in nice new wrapping and ties it up with amazing online integration, which hints at things to come.

As a singleplayer experience, Bad Company 2 is mostly forgettable, which is a disappointment considering how entertaining the first game’s campaign was. Thankfully the multiplayer features are so polished and well designed that BC2’s shortcomings won’t matter in the slightest.

With its frantic dual-screen battles in a dense little city, The World Ends With You is a surprisingly hardcore, impossibly ambitious DS title. This pint-size powerhouse might sadly intimidate a few DS owners and their Pokeymans. Don’t get scared off; put down your Zeldas and your juice boxes for two minutes and try taking on The World.

If you've got a few extra bucks and want to revisit the golden age of dungeon-crawling loot-fests in a modern title, Torchlight 2 is your knight in shining armor… or in my case, butcher-knife wielding psychopath.

With an unnerving sense of persistent tension and procedurally-generated maps that extend the value of every map, XCOM 2 survives the hype train with just a graze.

A more deeply developed plot and some tweaks to the control would have given more heart to this tin man.

A montage of innovation and disappointment. It brings to the table a mixed feast generously laced with Geo-Mod fun and decent gameplay, but the difficult control and platform jumping makes it harder to swallow. Still, this is one of few genuinely fun and exhilarating shooters out for the PS2.

While other games do their damnedest to make first-person football work, NCAA Football 2005 has changed the playing field by tying the college atmosphere into the gameplay, leading to a smart, well-designed sequel.

Simply put, Bungie did an excellent job at reading the faults of the original by making change where change was needed and leaving the successful areas alone... In the end, whether playing single player or multiplayer, Myth II offers the best real-time strategy experience in the industry.

Despite the unfortunate lack of online compatibility in both the Xbox and GC versions of NCAA Football 2004, this is still the premiere college football game and is clearly the best of its breed. If you also own a PS2, though, I'd go with that version instead.

If they can just clean up the fighting and add some extra fire to the Franchise, we’ll definitely be seeing this series' “A” game.

Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition is a fantastic example of developers going out of their way to ensure that a PC game is specifically tailored to work on consoles. It's also a great way to introduce console players to a challenging style of game they might not normally play.

Aside from some very minor bugs, Forbidden West was a treat to play and is an early contender for Game of the Year. Aloy’s journey across the West is a must-play for PlayStation owners and another reminder that Sony’s first-party studios are at the cutting edge of gaming.

Althought wrapped in a mediocre package, Final Fantasy Tactics is a stellar game. If Square Enix had spent just a bit more time on the in-game graphics, writing, and user interface, this could have been one of the top titles for the PSP.

An extraordinary hockey game. The action is hot and fast, and the intangibles and extras add quality on top of quality.

Terrific. It takes the most open-ended game around and adds more open AND more end, effectively turning a delicious double-scoop into a triple-decker.

X & Y are two of the best 3DS games available and succeed in making Pokémon feel next-gen.

Black Ops' minor flaws won't deter you from its gripping storyline and gratifying multiplayer modes.

Unfortunately, the weak recon missions made too easy by the lack of challenge from AI enemies, the small number of maps that are quickly mastered, and the limited variety in gameplay burdened by uninspired upgrades, ultimately prevent Deathloop from reaching the highest of highs. With online multiplayer enabled and embraced, however, it becomes easier to overlook the weak points and Deathloop comes out on the other side as a compelling lesson in how intimate multiplayer can greatly enhance the single-player formula.

Not what it could have been. As a story it's utterly bizarre, as a sequel it's sub-par, but as a stand-alone game it's very good. The simple truth is that regardless of the detractions, killing Nazis will always be fun...always.

As a single-playthrough experience, Ori and the Blind Forest is a wonderful example of sublime presentation, a simple but heartfelt story, and challenging platforming.

With the enhanced Campus Legend content, realistic momentum system, excellent "Get the Jump" mechanic and the tried-and-true core gameplay, this is another championship season from the official alma mater of college football games.

One cool feature in this game which really sets it apart from the pack is the Critical Hit system. If you hit someone in the head or just particularly hard, they flash purple and you gain health, giving you not only an incentive to kill your enemies, but kill them with style.

The gameplay is largely untouched if not just a smidgen faster.

Even with its flaws, The Witcher 2 is the best game that I have played in years and one of the best games I have ever played. As I mentioned before, though, it's hardcore, with a steep learning curve. However, that's an easy price to play for getting to play through one of the most intelligent multi-pathed stories in video game history. For fans of RPGs or story-based games in general, this is a must-buy.

Rockstar deserves props for miraculously cramming this much candy into such a small pouch without ripping a hole in the bottom, and while it doesn’t favorably compare to its older kin, it far outshines other attempts at shrinking GTA.

So far, Metroid Dread is a serious contender for my personal game of the year. It takes all the things that I loved about previous entries and streamlines them into a much more playable game. It’s the most accessible Metroid title to date, and it’s sure to win many new fans for Nintendo.

Despite some missed opportunities, Medieval II: Total War is still, hands-down, the best strategy game you can buy today. The scope is epic, the battles look legendary, and the increased use of non-military units and the smart incorporation of the politics of religion are welcome additions.

Super Mario Maker 2 is a joyous celebration of the intricacies that go into designing the perfect level. It’s a game where you can invest hours creating and playtesting one short section of one small level, or decide to do away with creation altogether in favor of playing through its ever-growing number of courses. Despite recurring technical problems that have become synonymous with Nintendo games, Super Mario Maker 2 is still an essential Switch purchase, building upon the groundwork laid by its predecessor and adding so much more.

You won’t want to invite the camera over for coffee or anything, as it can be quite unruly, occasionally getting stuck on terrain. The game also experiences some occasional slow-down and the very last battle seems a little unfinished. But make no mistake: Sly 2 is a great game.

It looks great, plays good, takes a nice 20 hours or so to complete and it's genuinely scary, which is all you really need to have a good time.

Its arsenal isn’t as robust as it could be, but it makes up for it with a flurry of awesome modes and some deadly fast gameplay.

The Stanley Parable is a game which isn’t really applicable to the standard rating system. It’s a game that achieves what it has set out to achieve perfectly, and though it could be longer and have more endings, it doesn't need them. It’s a thought-provoking and intelligent game which should be experienced by everyone, and one which will be referenced for a long time to come.

Rich, philosophical story...that's not as clever as the original story.

Fans who love Monster Hunter exclusively for the hunts will likely welcome the raised emphasis on taking on major monsters as quickly as possible. However, Rise is missing some of the worldbuilding of Monster Hunter: World, which will make it feel a bit emptier for players who prefer to stop and smell the roses.

When you combine the depth of gameplay, breadth of modes and quality of delivery with the salary-cap friendly $19.99 price tag, it's easy to see how ESPN NHL 2K5 stays on top of its division.

Rich, philosophical story...that's not as clever as the original story.

This is a captivating game, one that consumes your time and gives back more than you put in. It’ll test your ability to make sound decisions, and anticipate the future. While diplomacy and numbers tuning will be required to combat some of the frustration that the game brings, this is yet another outstanding 4X game from Firaxis Games that will undoubtedly become one of the most popular PC titles for the years to come.

The culmination of all the features that Legacy of the Void adds to the StarCraft II ecosystem is the most complete RTS package the world has ever seen.

Diablo III is a game that relies on very little but is able to offer a tremendous amount of enjoyable gameplay. All it takes is a steady fire of clicks to quickly appreciate how satisfying the skills are to use and in-turn earn mountains of loot that pour from the corpses of enemies. It's a shame that its first week has been wrought with server issues, but Diablo III is a game that has the potential to live a long and prosperous life. Never before has it been this easy to recommend a dungeon crawler to everyone, and it's no surprise that Blizzard Entertainment was the one to pull it off.

Capturing cute, fuzzy animals and hurling them at enemies is good fun, even though some of the action gets repetitive and the replay value is suspect.

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.

Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus wraps up the feeling of a blockbuster movie in something you can interact with. There's a lot of games that do that, but the spectacle here is outstanding, and the fast-paced gunplay and compelling main story made me want more when the credits rolled. Killing Nazis is one of the most fun and wholesome things a person can do, and there's no better way than to do it with Wolfenstein 2.

The end result is a successful blend of traditional controls and new-wave touch gaming, a title that seamlessly mixes rival input schemes. LittleBigPlanet Vita makes good on the promise Sony made with the Vita when it was revealed.

The true outcome will be determined by post-launch content and how well it integrates into the already thoroughly satisfying experience, but for now the Burning Legion's invasion of Azeroth has inspired a landscape of greatness.

If you're a long time CRPG fan, or you never really gave them a try, Pillars of Eternity 2 is an excellent choice. It has the complexity of CRPGs of old but without the clunkiness. It's a much bigger, more polished game than the first in almost every way and a worthy successor.

If "MVP Baseball 2004" was Alec Baldwin, MVP Baseball 2005 is Daniel – mostly the same, but a little bit sleazier.

Joe Danger Special Edition is a real blast to play and gives me some hope for the nostalgic gamer in all of us: a solid game that reminds me of some great games of yore, with a few updated ideas, sharp controls, and a visual appeal that has me giggling, especially when I crash as a chimp wearing a cape and goggles that bounce up and down on a large bumper like a rag doll.

This is the "Rosemary's Baby" of video games, a video-offspring of demonic potential...the best multi-player game of 2000, bar none.

Another great addition to the series. It's a little more geared towards the magic-lover.

Oozes style and substance, matching its PC counterpart bullet for bullet and raising the stakes with its upgraded control.

The Talos Principle: Deluxe Edition doesn't offer any new content to entice people who played the PC version, but I highly recommend it to everyone who hasn't.

When the online modes work, they really sing, allowing for hours to slip away into tons of entertaining crashes and near-misses. Unfortunately, they can also be extremely broken.

It will never have the depth of a "Gran Turismo," but then again, it’s not supposed to. 400 horsepower of arcade style fun isn’t a bad way to ring in your new PSP.

Although inspired by greatness, Nioh is a superb game in its own right. Its test of precision and timing strays from the accessibility of most modern games, reminding us all what the thrill of overcoming obstacle feels like. While not everyone will agree with its hard mode approach to design, its combat system is well-crafted enough to win everyone over. This samurai tale might not be so simple, but it's a legendary one that won't soon be forgotten.

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.

There's a feeling that sinks in after awhile that "Diablo" was more direct, more enveloping, more focused than Diablo 2.

Best if all, its just fun to play! Need For Speed 3: Hot Pursuit is certainly among the best racing games to hit the market yet.

Gamers everywhere can enjoy this polished, stylized, highly addictive, unforgettable adventure and look forward to a bright future for the dark, hilarious world of Odd.

It manages to work well on the Xbox...though the PS2 version is still probably the best of the three.

The new features are generally welcomed but don’t change the fact that this is largely the same game you probably spent way too much time with last year.

By the end of the game, I found myself left with a distinctly ashen taste in my mouth; the victories are left hollow and incomplete. Partially because the ending doesn't fully resolve the numerous sub-plots of the game, but also because the storyline felt arbitrary and disconnected.

There is no doubt that NBA 2K13 is one for the ages. Without any other true competitors to stand in its way, the sky is the limit. If you haven't already picked up a copy, you are sorely missing out. I can't ever truly say if a game is worth $60, but with this one, it might be worth even more.

This variety and sense of not knowing what's next is what keeps Plants vs. Zombies fresh - as fresh as rotting zombies can be - and fun.

At $49.99, PC players are getting two fantastic Naughty Dog games that had previously been exclusive to PlayStation consoles. This is yet another win for both PC players and Uncharted fans, as the enhancements seen here allow for an even greater depth of immersion, with the potential to push visuals and performance to a whole other level. This is the smoothest PlayStation-on-PC game I’ve played so far, and it’s clear that the quality of ports is continuing to improve and close in on perfection.

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

These minor hitches notwithstanding, Burnout Paradise is an excellent, solid ride for both solo and online gamers, with superb control, high production values, complete freedom, and so much obsessive, secret-hunting, gotta-catch-‘em-all lasting gameplay incentive that it’s almost ridiculous.

While I’m not increasing Guacamelee’s score with this review, it is easily one of the best next-gen games you can own right now, especially considering the price. I know some reviewers don’t take that into consideration, but with persistent cooperative play and plenty of exploration, genuinely fun combat, and gorgeous 1080p graphics, it’s hard to find a better value for your digital currency of choice.

It’s hard to describe exactly what makes the game feel so intuitive, but when you combine the smooth control with the great scripting and chilling atmosphere, you get a fun, unique, visceral experience.

So far Subnautica has been the outstanding title of 2018 for me. We're only a month in, but the time I've had with this game has been incredible, and I'm sure it will be a game I remember in December when the year is wrapping up. Even after completing it, I'm itching to go back and see what nooks and crannies I missed.

Its reluctance to properly evolve keep it from being the king of its genre, but its commitment to its stylish and responsive mechanics still makes it one of the best hack and slash games, crown or not.

Unless Black Ops II or Far Cry 3 manage to revolutionize the genre in astronomical ways, Halo 4 is the clear frontrunner for best first-person shooter of 2012. Heck, it may very well be the best game you play all year.

The Old Hunters aims to deepen the experience of the original by taking the good ideas in Bloodborne and expanding on them. And on those terms it’s a success.

The bald, barcoded assassin has had many hits in his 21-year career, but even though it might be his last for quite some time, Hitman 3 is one of 47’s best executions yet.

These minor faults—jerky background characters and a lack of add-on extras for the sake of variety—may seem silly when we're talking about a gorgeous remake of one of the arcade's few luminaries. Still, the lack of renovation below the surface might make the celebration short-lived.

These fruits are soured by lazy, contrived storytelling, and a gear system that stands in opposition to what fighting games should be about. All of this ultimately makes Injustice 2 a step back not only from the original but also from the level of quality we’re used to seeing from NetherRealm.

While the value proposition is up for debate, it’s hard to argue against the fact that Ghost of Tsushima has evolved beyond anything we had expected. From the post-launch patches that included improvements based on community feedback, to the full-fledged online co-op mode that was released at no extra cost and with free updates, Ghost of Tsushima is a prime example of how video games should be launched and supported after release. It launched in an already superb state and now it is even better and bolder.

Improves many of the niggling flaws of the original while updating the maps and graphics along the way, leading to a genuinely fun and at times, addictive game. Unfortunately, the disconnect ranking issue still need some ironing.

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 BlazBlue is unabashedly brutal online, there's more than enough offline content to keep beginners busy until they feel skilled enough to brave online play. BlazBlue doesn't apologize for its complexity, but it does make everyone feel welcome.

A ton of tracks and licensed cars, tight control, amazing graphics, stunning physics and a solid online component places Rallisport Challenge 2 out in front of the competition.

Battlefield 1 isn’t just a great addition to the series, it arrives as a thunderous explosion that will impact the military shooter space for many years to come. A memorable single player campaign in an FPS is a rarity, and it delivers that without compromise. Operations is an instant classic for multiplayer lovers, while the other modes will keep you invested, supported by fantastic gameplay. Visually breathtaking and fun to play, DICE has delivered an instant classic that has raised the bar.

The Nioh Collection confidently slashes through these minor oversights because it is still a definitive duo of difficult classics that play, look, and feel better than ever before. Even though its sequel is easily the superior, more varied title, both are still genre-defining action RPGs that provide so many engaging encounters that crush players to a pulp as a means to make them work for their euphoric victories. Few games can master this balance and maintain it after dozens or hundreds of hours and this collection has two such titles, doubling the amount of pain while also simultaneously doubling the amount of satisfaction.

My recommendation is to go into Midgar with an open mind and allow it to wash over you. Final Fantasy VII Remake is a video game experience we only get every once in a while, and it's one of the best titles I've ever had the pleasure of playing.

Forget about what you've done during the main game's single player campaign, turn off your suspension of disbelief, and nail those suckers in the head.

It's highly likely that if you spent any energy at all anticipating Pokémon Black and White, you're going to be ridiculously pleased with whichever version you choose. For Pokévirgins who are curious as to what it's all about, this is a fine place to start.

A solid little package that offers a charming, totally-satisfying, side-quest-packed Slime-load of gaming value.

X & Y are two of the best 3DS games available and succeed in making Pokémon feel next-gen.

Serves up enough tasty D&D stew to satisfy your role-playing urges. It oozes with quality and is genuinely fun.

One of those games that coulda, woulda, shoulda, but didn't. It introduces some great ideas and lets them fall flat.

Passing the game is a short, easy task and other than the item collection in adventure mode, there isn't enough single player action to keep things fresh. But toss a few friends on the couch and it's magic.

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.

Overall there's nothing incredibly ground breaking about Jeanne d'Arc. However it has an extremely compelling story with some great “Holy Crap!” moments.