An amazing conclusion to the beloved puzzle series. Its variety and clever storytelling make it the most interesting and well-executed installment of the franchise, and it’s nice to see that after six games, Level-5 can keep surprising players with intriguing, surprisingly moving plots and hundreds of clever puzzles.

Galak-Z: The Dimensional is worth the pain, but it involves a great deal of effort. Like its arcade ancestors, you can appreciate its high replay value well before you beat it the first time.

A number of minor gaffes, an uninspired multiplayer, and a severe drop in tension defuse Tomb Raider somewhat, but nothing stops it from living up to Lara’s legacy.

I love that Semblance is challenging, and its presentation is lovely as well. It has a unique look, full of organic shapes and eye-catching colors. Though it’s light on story, it’s worth dying a few dozen times to experience.

Yes, the Metroidvania space is becoming crowded with great games, but Sundered fits in with the best of them.

It’s a terrific sequel with its own personality that still leverages the fun, minimalistic mechanics.

A delightful, engaging, and clever tribute to one of Mickey's greatest games. In many ways, it surpasses the original Castle of Illusion. In fact, this is the best title starring Mickey in years.

Most of all, it’s ambitious. Mobile games and music games both tend to get short shrift when it comes to emotional narrative arcs. Lost in Harmony commits to one, and does its best to bring that through in level design, musical selections, and even small details like costume picks.

A delightful snack-sized game that combines its disparate elements in a whimsical, entertaining way. I loved the style and the occasional clever puns. The kitchen battles to be a lot of fun, especially because they were timed, and used match-3 mechanics in an innovative way. If you’re a fan of Iron Chef, Studio Ghibli, or both, you’ll like enjoy this foray into the world of Victusia.

Overall, I thought the whole game was very well done, balancing history, fun, and personalized stories set within epic battles. The game challenged my own preconceptions about World War I and taught me a few new things. I developed an appreciation for the diversity of the battles and the technological change from the beginning of the war to its end. Overall, I thought it did a wonderful job delivering something fresh. And that’s very hard to do in the shooter genre.

This is a story that we’ve seen a lot, in everything from Blade Runner to 2001: A Space Odyssey. It’s becoming as common a storyline as the zombie apocalypse or superhero fantasies. In each case, the story is only as good as its execution. If the characters are believable and engaging, if the story is well told, if the context and environment broadens the story, if the acting is superb, and if the actions and choices are consequential, then it is a job well done. And that’s how I feel about Detroit: Become Human.

The seamless integration of the GamePad hardware with the atmospheric gameplay is nothing short of a triumph, and Ubisoft deserves full credit for not only seeing the possibilities but capitalizing on them.

I think The Dark Pictures is very spooky, and the sense of fate that comes with it is very compelling. I think it was very smart for Supermassive Games to build a whole horror series around this concept. I’m looking forward to the next one, but I also hope that the graphics and gameplay will strike a better balance so that it’s more interactive.

Bloodborne is the system seller for all dedicated gamers that don’t already own a PS4.

You'll still need to be a fan of the show to get the most of this. But if you are a South Park aficionado, The Fractured but Whole is another hilarious and fun game that captures the spirit of series.

Creative Assembly has been very ambitious with Total War: Attila, and the game is a lot more compelling than its predecessor. It feels more balanced. The A.I. is smarter, but a human general can still beat it. But the unrelenting weight of a collapsing empire pushes a human ruler to the limit.

New Leaf is a delightful way to spend a lazy afternoon. It does have stagnation issues — this is basically the same thing we played on GameCube, Nintendo DS, and Wii — but the magic is still real.

It is astounding to me that such a small team can create a game that is as moving and inspiring as The Unfinished Swan. It is the kind of game that big game studios won't make, to their loss.

As one of the better and more charming rhythm action games to come out in recent years, Persona 4: Dancing All Night is not only an apt and engrossing spin-off, but it’s an effective side story that will help pass the time while we impatiently wait for Persona 5.

Playing The Witcher 3 with an eye for grand strategy can be both a densely engrossing and mechanically frustrating, overlong adventure. When played one move at a time, however, Wild Hunt is the supreme alchemical distillation of the role-playing experience. It’s a bleakly human play at the heart of a dark fantasy.

Almost all of my time with Dragon Quest Builders 2 has been pleasant, and I look forward to building more, either with my kids playing along or by myself, sipping a beer and relaxing after a long day.

A very well-executed, bug-free game with awesome technical effects. The single-player campaign is on the short side at nine hours, but it gives you everything that you want and expect in a Gears of War game. The Coalition does a decent job walking the tightrope of providing something that fans want and giving them something different at the same time. The Horde mode has taken the co-op play in a very good direction, and I expect that fans are going to enjoy multiplayer quite a bit as well. If I had to pick one flaw, it’s that this game has too wide a range, with a lot of humor and a lot of terror all at once.

If you’re looking for a good game to play on the PlayStation 4 or the Vita, Velocity 2X is a fantastic choice, with its crisp, bright visuals and energetic soundtrack (I never got sick of it once). Just keep in mind that outer space can be an unfriendly place, and if you’re a sucker for story, you’ve got a lot of playing ahead of you if you want to finish all 50 levels.

This Lara Croft memoir ends in a good way, and I’ll miss this version of Lara more than any of them.

The narrative is a bunch of clichés that had me checking my phone and skipping cutscenes. It’s not all bad. The characters are mostly interesting, and the presentation is well done. I also like that it takes place Christmas time. But that stuff isn’t enough to make up for another lackluster gaming story. It’s a bummer because Bayonetta is so cool, and she deserves the chance to shine in something better.

Galactic Civilizations III is a great 4X space strategy game, one that will keep you pushing for one more turn late into the night. If you’re looking for a terrific multiplayer experience, GalCiv III won’t scratch that itch, and some parts of its core pacing stumble. But the combination of depth, ease of gameplay, and a sometimes-funny, snarky aesthetic, make GalCiv III a delight to play.

Beamdog’s first effort at original storytelling is a good start, and I’m excited to see more in the future, even if it’s in the world of Baldur’s Gate.

Like with God of War and Uncharted before, Horizon: Zero Dawn should be the start of another PlayStation iconic franchise. It offers a gorgeous and interesting world rich with adventure (including plenty of giant robots to kill). While it borrows heavily from the likes of Far Cry, it’s a more interesting and less repetitive effort than we’ve seen from that series. The presentation suffers a few hiccups, but it’s mostly a beautiful game. It’s also a long one. Horizon will keep you busy for a good chunk of time with its multitude of side-quests and extra activities. This is one of the PlayStation 4’s most interesting exclusives.