They Stole Max's Brain! accentuates Sam's own special powers. While Max was away, I came to appreciate Sam on a whole new level.

I very much enjoyed the thought and balance that obviously went into the creation of this new mission, and as a true Mass Effect fan, this attempt to return to form is probably the most welcome thing I could possibly imagine.

Duels of the Planeswalkers is a faithful, if watered down, representation of a classic game that excels at drawing in new players and reigniting the old fire in seasoned veterans.

We both agreed that what the game achieves for kids is the ability to transport them into the world of Woody and the gang. For adults, it's a venture back to their own childhood.

Although I can genuinely say that I have great affection for the Disgaea characters and I had a blast going through the game once, the drive to unlock every ending evaporated almost immediately. Watching a game made of cut-scenes isn't bad if they make you laugh and bring a smile to your face, but watching the same scenes over and over and over and over and over because you can't figure out how to get to the new ones isn't an appealing proposition.

For the most part the simplified controls work like a charm, allowing the player to zip around the map, easily locating their prey. It's the maps themselves that are the problem-they're far too small for the number of players that regularly compete on them.

Flawed in its conception, impoverished in its design, and thoroughly inept in its execution, Alpha Protocol is an unmitigated disaster

ModNation Racers has a core of creative multiplayer fun, but it's sadly mummified beneath an irritating career mode and layer upon layer of load times.

For those who thrive solely off of the thrills of putting points into stats and watching numbers go up, Hexyz Force leaves little to be desired. For the rest of us, Hexyz Force has equally little to offer.

Still, stellar gameplay trumps all, and Super Mario Galaxy 2 has that in spades.

Alan Wake puts up a front of being cerebral and deep, but it simply doesn't do the legwork to back it up. I had significant difficulty becoming invested in the events and found it very hard to care about anything that happened from start to finish.

In keeping with developer Rockstar's cinematic approach to game aesthetics, Red Dead Redemption succeeds in allowing the player to inhabit, in some measure, the Westerns on which it is based.

Great presentation, (mostly) great gameplay, and an above-average set of characters combine to deliver what I see as the most diverse, entertaining Trauma game to date in a series that really doesn't have a weak link.

The most clever innovation isn't the puzzles or even the characters, as well-done as they are. The most clever bit is the framing of the game as a film.

Ultimately 3D Dot Game Heroes does exactly what it sets out to do. It's a nostalgic look back at the classic Zelda games sprinkled with some commentary on gaming history, and a great example of retro gaming done right, even if it does keep the flaws along with the goodness.

I can't say that the developers totally nailed it, but with solid mechanics, a strong sci-fi theme, exciting action and tons of large-scale watercooler moments, I do recognize it as an experimental step forward that succeeds far more than it fails.

It may not explore much new territory in the horror genre, but what's here is one of the best small-scale chillers that's been turned out in quite a while.

Although Nippon Ichi didn't develop What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord!? 2,-NIS America just published it-the game is still a natural, if steep, Nippon Ichi-themed progression in teaching me to think for myself.

Retribution gave me absolutely nothing that I was expecting it to, what I was offered in its stead was amazingly violent and fast-paced action. The game achieves almost everything it set out to do, and I have to applaud that.

With Nier, Cavia has done the seemingly impossible, and created something entirely unique from nothing but borrowed components

After Burner Climax is as close as it gets to getting the full experience short of stepping into a specialized arcade cabinet, and the EX mode gives legs to what would otherwise be a incredibly short play time.

Monster Hunter Tri is most definitely not a game that will appeal to everyone, but it is by far the most polished, user-friendly and approachable entry in the series

The first chapter of Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse shows us that storytelling in games doesn't have to be a luxury, and perhaps shouldn't be. In The Penal Zone, good writing isn't just an added bonus: it infuses every aspect of play.

Mass Effect die-hards will certainly want to invest, but more casual fans of the series might want to think twice before purchase.

It's simple, fairly balanced, and damn near endlessly replayable, just as any multiplayer game should be.

As a side-story to the series, The Conspiracy falls utterly flat—so it's lucky that it fares much better as a game than as a spin-off.

A dating simulation combined with more traditional combat is certainly an interesting concept, but with Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love's inconsistent tone, exhausting battle system and poor story, it's trying to be too many things at once.

A miserable, frustrating, and graceless experience, I can't recommend this game to anyone but the most dedicated Samurai Shodown fans—and even those players should be well-warned to stay away