Skullgirls is an engaging, memorable fighting game that presents more of a skeleton than a full experience-but that skeleton is both rock-solid and highly flexible. The bulk of a fighting game is really its gameplay and characters, and Skullgirls has both elements focused and condensed like coal into a diamond, offering pick-up-and-play casual action with pretty visuals but a lot of combo potential and depth that sidesteps the cheaper, unfair aspects of other fighters. It's the most noteworthy original fighter to come along this entire generation after Blazblue. Its practical shortcomings hold it back a bit (time will tell if DLC fleshes these out), but it's ambitiously refined for such a smaller-scale game and at least a must-try for fighting game fans.

You have to give Ridge Racer Unbounded points for trying something new. The series has gone downhill at a blistering pace following industry embarassments like this one. Bringing fresh ideas to the table and executing them in a stylish matter is exactly what the doctor ordered. Unfortunately, none of these ideas are original and they were all better accomplished in the titles that originated them. Take one of the older models for a spin around the block and see for yourself.

That gripe aside, for a simplistic puzzle game for such a low price I can't find much of anything wrong with The Splatters. The control is tight, it looks great, contains a significant number of puzzles, and it's light on bells and whistles. It's everything to expect from the price point but is definitely an amusing way to spend a few minutes at a time, not meant to suck hours and hours into.

The layout design and storyline certainly does not short Anomaly Warzone Earth's satisfying gameplay. It is a strategy game through and through regardless of what kind of tower game it should be. Introduced initially on PC/Mac and touchscreen devices, Anomaly Warzone Earth does just fine on console and won't disappoint newcomers to the title or tower defense fanatics.

Polytron has crafted an exceedingly gorgeous world, full of surprises, temples, and eye-melting cuteness. Switching perspectives holds up as a gameplay mechanic, deftly avoiding gimicky traps along the way...Still, technical missteps and a confusing, unintuitive map system, confusing branches and game crashes remind us that Fez isn't the indie hero we need right now, but the one we deserve.

With plenty of new content mixed in with plenty of old staples of the series, Ninja Storm Generations is sure to please fans of Naruto. For average users and those just a little curious, this might not be the fighting game for them. Artistically it is very enjoyable, based on another animé series with a lot of plot and storyline that could have anyone watching or playing for years. But its gameplay is rather hit or miss.

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.

All in all, Sine Mora succeeds in applying a different concept to a side-scrolling shooter and it works. There might be a few questionable thoughts about the storyline, but it certainly does not shed any negative light on its chaotic and addictive gameplay.

Deadliest Warrior: Ancient Combat does not prove its mettle. Whatever fun you might have ends as quickly as the matches do. It has a glimmer of potential that flickers out in an instant, much like a single-arrow KO that can send you reeling right back to long loading screens.

If you've ever played and enjoyed an Armored Core game before, you have to buy V now. No questions asked. It's the best the series has ever seen and the online mode is balanced and deep, providing legs it desperately needs to contain a community. Even if you've never played an AC game before, now is the time to try. We're entering the golden age of mechs trying to blow each other up.

As a Nintendo title, it's everything you could want from the publisher, despite the fact that the controls leave something to be desired and the multiplayer will not satisfy all comers.

Blades of Time offers plenty of variety but without much substance. Combat is fun, levels are enjoyable, and enemies are challenging, but nothing is significant enough to be memorable. It's fun for the moment, but easily forgotten by the weekend.

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?

Silent Hill: Downpour upsets me not because it's a bad game (it is), but becaue there's the kernel of a good game in it, with some excellent set pieces that are undone by its muddy, bloated open world, technical glitches, and last-gen presentation. It's a game that I desperately want to like for what it does well, but I can't responsibly overlook its failings, which makes it all the more frustrating.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 would have been a stellar sports title, with its new emphasis on realism and online clubs, if it traded its microtransactional model for a fairer coin system. No one likes buying a $60 title that thinks it's free to play. If you actually put in the work-the weeks upon weeks of effort playing the game-you still feel shorted people who put in less work but have more money to spend. Of course, if you spend money, you've just bought into the scheme. Somehow, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 is as much a financial test of character as it is a test of gameplay skill, and that's unfortunately as memorable as any sort of comeback.

The problem isn't with Operation Raccoon City's premise. There's plenty of excellent games that came before and are very worthy of mimicry (Left 4 Dead), but the execution here is all off.

Like its quirky protagonist, Warp is small and doesn't have much to say, but it earns your respect and attention by the end with its originality.

Many people first caught glimpse of I Am Alive four years ago and I can't say four years was worth the wait. It's not that this is a bad game-that's hardly the case, as it's worth buying simply if you like the post-apocalyptic genre. The survival and intimidation/combat tactics are both the best and worst elements of the game, a love/hate relationship that can sway either way depending on the type of player you are. Running gameplay is short, but as a downloadable content only, this game at 15 bucks doesn't hurt.

If you're in need of a zombie fix, you could do better… even if to me it feels more than a little like a crime-themed Shenmue with an undead army.

For all Ninja Gaiden 3 tries to pull sympathy from its players onto its protagonist, it seems to have lost its way. It's an example of a game that is less than the sum of its parts-each on their own are fine, perhaps even good-because the entire thing is just stretched too thin. A two-hour campaign for a fraction of the cost would have, ironically, been much easier to recommend. But with things as they are, Ninja Gaiden 3 will only satisfy people wanting the video game equivalent to the weekend popcorn action flick.

FIFA Street offers months of entertainment and is just downright fun to play whichever mode you choose. It is a breath of fresh air to see Street showing the respectful side that competitive "street" sports have.

In the end, it's Mario, and it's a great party game. If you buy it, you'll get exactly what you paid for.

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.

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.

When all is said and done, Unit 13 fills a void but not completely. It proves that shooters can be done well on a mobile device, and it proves that Zipper is the third-person shooter crutch that Sony can lean on whenever it needs a title to show other developers that it can be done.

The online is like every other shooter, and that's the problem. Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, a horde mode, and few other standards-not very imaginative, are you? It's smooth playing online, so it's done well enough.

Snake Eater 3D is only recommended over the Collection if, for some reason, you don't have a 360 or a PS3

That said, Street Fighter X Tekken is among the most enjoyable fighters I've played in a long time, especially in co-op and Scramble Mode with some friends over (I've already taken names with my Abel/King team). Online mode is no slouch either, though the replay value could have been extended with a longer Mission Mode and a better acquisition system for gems.