Exciting online play and beautiful visuals help Monster Hunter Tri finally make good on the series' enormous potential.

The staggering originality of Scribblenauts makes it a great experience and a memorable puzzle game that will have you laughing with glee while you frantically think up crazier and crazier ideas.

Legacy of the Void doesn't quite manage the brilliance of Wings of Liberty, but it's a worthy note to leave the franchise on.

Poinpy represents my favorite kind of mobile game. Bouncing Poinpy around is a simple, repeatable, and fun mechanic, and I never once had to think about currency of any kind. It can be played with one hand and is both rewarding and challenging without demanding too much input from the player. With its soft ending, it is clear this is not a game you are expected to play forever. A conclusion exists and feels great to reach, but if you want to bounce your way up the well again while listening to a podcast in the future, you can always revisit that simple, joyful experience.

The dirt buggies fit right in and provide both rewarding survivor strategy and moment to moment excitement. The amount of content is impressive for an expansion as well, with approximately 10 hours of missions and plenty more for completionists.

As long as you're able to play the entire game in docked mode, The New Colossus is the same fantastic game it is on other platforms. It runs well and, despite some minor visual compromises, it still looks pretty good. Handheld mode is unfortunately far less optimized, and the Joy-Cons simply don't feel as good to use as the Pro Controller. If Switch is your only way to play it, The New Colossus is absolutely worth your time--just not on the go.

Varied missions, hard-hitting melee combat, and a captivating setting make Sleeping Dogs an enjoyable escapade.

Despite the stumbling climax and steady learning curve, Hacknet - Labyrinths is one hell of a ride that leads you down the rabbit hole and back again.

Tactics Ogre's intense tactical combat, in-depth character-building, and excellent storytelling makes it a must-play for strategy-RPG fans. It's wonderful that this game is much more widely available now, and most of the updates and upgrades make the package even better. While some might balk at the $50 price tag for a remake with an iffy graphical and sound overhaul, the superb strategy gameplay and branching story paths will keep your attention for a very long time. While it might not be a perfect remake, it's a damn good one.

Symphony is an exciting mouse-controlled shooter that delivers a dynamic way to enjoy your favorite music.

Band Hero makes fake plastic rock easy to pick up, family friendly, and a whole lot of fun.

Friendlier controls and a host of other improvements make Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 great.

Offers a lengthy new quest, five different playable characters, and a good amount of replay value, not to mention that distinct anime-meets-soap opera style.

It might be squarely aimed at the younger crowd, but Chocobo Tales is highly charming and a great choice for players of all ages.

It may have started out as a minigame, but with its original take on the Toad character and a large number of enjoyably tricky puzzles, it's great to see it in the spotlight it so truly deserves.

Functionally and visually, this game is a twin of F1 2002 for the PS2, which was developed using the same impressive graphics and physics engine used in "F1 2001."

It takes a while to grasp, but once the game picks up steam, it becomes an intriguing experience that's unlike any other game on Vita to date.

I do admit that my first impression of Mario Kart 8 was pretty close to a yawn. Mario Kart is one of my favorite franchises, but it's hard to get excited for the same old thing. But the more I played, the more I appreciated the many small changes, and grew to love my time in the Mushroom Kingdom. And now that yawn has changed to a shout of joy. It's more Mario Kart! I'm happy Nintendo still understands what makes this series so darn fun.

Culdcept Saga is easy for beginners to learn, difficult for experts to master, and fun no matter who you are.

Tooth and Tail is a bizarre cocktail of a dozen great ideas. It's a minimalist RTS that tosses out complex tech trees in favor of action-packed but accessible play. It's set vaguely in Eastern Europe in the 1910s, with both the Russian Revolution and World War I in full swing. Playing up the grim tumult of the era, Tooth and Tail also casts itself with all manner of cute--though ragged and crestfallen--critters. With so many disparate items, it's a wonder that Tooth and Tail manages to work at all, but it excels with but a few minor blemishes.

Shatter is brick breaking at its best--simple, innovative, and beautiful.

Superb handwriting recognition and other nifty features make a strong argument for ditching traditional paper crosswords in favor of ones on handhelds like the Nintendo DS.

Smite is a godsend for the MOBA genre, with the heart of its gameplay proving that innovation to the war plan for tower siege games is possible. With just a few changes to what other games have delivered before, Smite manages to feel like a brand-new game.

The surrealistic nature of Dead Take reaches a fever pitch in the game's final half hour, and it loses me a bit there. Overall, however, this is a great game, and I would have loved to chase down more USB drives and watch many more FMV recordings--these performances left me rapt and I was always eager to search out more. But even beyond this gameplay loop, Chase's efforts to delve deeper into a bizarre mansion and splice together corrupted recordings of people is rewardingly symbolic in a narrative sense. You're going into a person's twisted and guarded psyche and unearthing the painful truths hidden within to not only beat a video game, but also witness, as Cain so often puts it, "something real." Those truths are sickening and scary and it propels the experience of Dead Take into one of the most harrowing I've experienced this year. These are not five hours I'll easily forget.

Top production values and exciting gameplay make Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood one call you should definitely heed.

But even when it falters, it’s hard to hate Ys VIII for long. The feel of fighting your way through a big, beautiful island of untamed wilderness to save a group of people brought together by circumstance while uncovering an ancient mystery is an absolute delight, and will compel you to keep exploring for hours on end. Whether you’re a longtime fan or a newcomer to the exploits of Adol Christin, you’ll find a lot to enjoy in the exotic world of Ys VIII.

Tooth and Tail is a bizarre cocktail of a dozen great ideas. It's a minimalist RTS that tosses out complex tech trees in favor of action-packed but accessible play. It's set vaguely in Eastern Europe in the 1910s, with both the Russian Revolution and World War I in full swing. Playing up the grim tumult of the era, Tooth and Tail also casts itself with all manner of cute--though ragged and crestfallen--critters. With so many disparate items, it's a wonder that Tooth and Tail manages to work at all, but it excels with but a few minor blemishes.

This funny, fast-paced multiplayer shooter will have you repeatedly begging your friends for just one more rematch.

Aside from introducing many Legend of Zelda fans to the Warriors franchise, Hyrule Warriors adds little innovation to Koei’s megaseries as a whole, but nevertheless brings an undeniable spark ignited by the crossover cast itself.

Whatever awaits Clementine at the end of this road, she goes there with a full heart. If the finale lives up to the future set up in Broken Toys, so will we.

Bangai-O Spirits is an intense, challenging shooter with terrific tools for creating and sharing your own levels.

Black Ops has everything you could want in a portable Call of Duty game.

A storyline based on Norse mythology isn't the only thing that's unusual and original about this tough, complex, and action-packed Japanese role-playing game.

Konami has crafted a whimsical take on baseball that's as deep as you want it to be.

DmC succeeds both in its story and in its brilliant combat, and it looks the business too, despite a few minor glitches and the more colour-soaked levels looking like they've spent a little too much time in an Instagram filter.

Ultimately, the excitement that comes from commanding powerful ships during explosive battles on the high seas overshadows these faults. The thrills that await, along with the promise of unlocking advanced ships down the road, make World of Warships an enticing expedition into the sometimes turbulent waters of free-to-play games.

Still, at 10 hours, Thymesia is short enough that it doesn't overstay its welcome. You wind up feeling more like a general badass than a vastly overpowered killing machine for the most part, and the game's great ideas culminate in some intense, memorable boss fights. While a few elements of the overall experience don't gel, Thymesia understands what matters most about its inspirations, while adding a few spins of its own to create a small, smart, and rewarding Souls-like experience.

BlazBlue is a worthy successor to Guilty Gear. It's also a fast-paced, colorful fighting game with a lot to offer.

Even with a few PC issues and a less-than-perfect Switch port, Cities: Skylines remains the best city-builder on the market right now. The game's presentation is stodgy, but it is all but guaranteed to provide you many hours of carefully crafting cities, laying out zoning, and establishing districts for specifics residential and industrial uses…all free from real-world mayoral headaches like 6 a.m. phone calls griping about snowplowing. Right now, there is no better way to take a peek at life as a mayor without filing your papers to run for office in the real world.

Skylanders SuperChargers is a fast-paced affair, never lingering in one spot for too long, always offering something new and fun to do. It's a great game to play with kids, and one grown ups shouldn't be ashamed to try.

F1 2011 is a great sequel that faithfully represents the thrill and difficulty of driving the world's best racing cars.

Olija's best asset, truly, is its brevity. Its story is impeccably paced. Its mechanics never wear out from overuse. From start to finish, it finds new ways to gently goad you into using the harpoon in different ways, until it says its piece. I was taken with how emotionally resonant and mechanically pleasing it could be in such a short time. Succinct and satisfying is a rare combination, and it makes Olija a rare treat.

Lone Sails is a transfixing, lovely experience, one that takes recurring indie game tropes and does something unique and fun with them. It's short enough that you could play through it in a single two or three-hour session, but it will likely stick with you for a long time. I can see myself going back in a few months just to revisit the ship, like checking in on an old friend.

This is another expertly designed entry in the enthralling series. Though the core action remains largely unchanged, it's as exciting as it has ever been, thanks in part to the gorgeous visual design that brings each location to life.

You don't need a surgeon's patience or precision to appreciate this quirky, inventive, very likable remake of a remarkable Nintendo DS game.

Olija's best asset, truly, is its brevity. Its story is impeccably paced. Its mechanics never wear out from overuse. From start to finish, it finds new ways to gently goad you into using the harpoon in different ways, until it says its piece. I was taken with how emotionally resonant and mechanically pleasing it could be in such a short time. Succinct and satisfying is a rare combination, and it makes Olija a rare treat.

The PSP game mostly has the same great gameplay, gorgeous graphics, and sublime commentary the PS2 iteration has.

This entertaining and varied sci-fi shooter doesn't break new ground; it's just a bunch of goofy, gory fun.

Pinning down enemies with suppressing fire is a blast. So, too, is a well-executed offensive that cracks and divides enemy front lines. The adrenaline of pulling together a coordinated attack is priceless, and Steel Division is all about chaining these moments together, directed as they are by an aggressive tie to historical realism. If there's one failing here, it's that the game doesn't offer many chances to explore that rich field on your own before jumping into multiplayer matches. But when it all comes together in the perfect match, Steel Division's magic is undeniable.

You're treated to one of the most interesting and effective re-imaginings of a retro aesthetic around. Octopath will likely be a divisive game due to its fractured storytelling, but it's one worth playing despite its lesser qualities. Its high points are simply too good to ignore.

God Hand's pure focus on ridiculous martial arts brawls makes this simple action game fun and challenging. Bonus points for the wild sense of humor and surf rock soundtrack.

Ridge Racer 7 introduces some great new additions that make this the most significant update Namco's arcade-style racing series has seen in years.

Olija's best asset, truly, is its brevity. Its story is impeccably paced. Its mechanics never wear out from overuse. From start to finish, it finds new ways to gently goad you into using the harpoon in different ways, until it says its piece. I was taken with how emotionally resonant and mechanically pleasing it could be in such a short time. Succinct and satisfying is a rare combination, and it makes Olija a rare treat.

You might just find something you like, something completely different, or something that emotionally affects you in ways you never thought possible from a video game. And that alone makes Proteus a winner.

The uncertain future of the story that Katana Zero so brilliantly sets up is concerning, but that shouldn't deter you from diving into this compelling introductory chapter. Its combat provides an exciting challenge that tests both strategy and reflex, while also giving you clever abilities to make it as stylish as possible. The narrative contextualization of both your abilities and role within Katana Zero's world is expertly written, with a clever dialogue system letting you inject personality into character interactions. Katana Zero is bloody and brutal, but it's also a heartfelt tale that you shouldn't overlook lightly.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3+4 is a phenomenal game of skate, one that fans would flock to without hesitation if it weren't for some of the strange decisions regarding the game's Career mode and THPS 4 levels. Some of the changes feel needless, and overall, THPS 4 just doesn't fit as well into the same structure as the original three games. It's also disappointing that newcomers won't be able to experience the fourth game the way it was originally intended. Once the initial disappointment fades, however, you're left with a remake that still handles as well as these games ever have, and that's something that's worth playing no matter who you are.

This new frontier in rhythm gaming is electrifyingly fun, but the cover charge is steep.

Olija's best asset, truly, is its brevity. Its story is impeccably paced. Its mechanics never wear out from overuse. From start to finish, it finds new ways to gently goad you into using the harpoon in different ways, until it says its piece. I was taken with how emotionally resonant and mechanically pleasing it could be in such a short time. Succinct and satisfying is a rare combination, and it makes Olija a rare treat.

A fantastic representation of baseball, capturing the thrill and grand scale of the national pastime.

Lock's Quest's intuitive build mode and frantic, engaging battles are great for an action strategy game on the go.

Despite using the same graphical engine, the same gameplay elements, and some shared, familiar locations, the experience of inhabiting Chloe in Before the Storm is a completely new experience. Episode 1 promises a series that uses love and empathy as a sword and shield, the only way to either stay safe or strike back at a harsh life, harsher still by nature of being a teenager. That's a special ability we are so seldom asked to employ in games and it's so heartening to know there's at least two more episodes of Before the Storm where we get to do it again.

Insomniac Games has a storied history that includes many beloved games and franchises, and with Edge of Nowhere, that legacy grows stronger.

State of Decay is an immersive and suspenseful open-world zombie adventure that shouldn't be missed.

While its overall production isn't quite up to the level of "Ace Combat 04," it's technically up to par, and its gameplay is distinctive and entertaining.

Kirby Air Riders is an impressive package that makes the most of its deceivingly simple mechanics. Air Ride delivers a solid kart racing experience; Top Ride is a fun--albeit a bit straightforward--distraction; City Trial is chaotic in the best way possible; and Road Trip ties it all together with its creative encounters and satisfying progression. In the second Kirby Air Riders Direct, Masahiro Sakurai said he had no plans to continue the franchise or add any DLC. When I first heard this, I was a little disappointed, but now that I've spent countless hours exploring each mode, there's not really anything else I could want. This feels like that initial concept from 2003 taken as far as it could possibly go, and I couldn't be happier with the result.

Incredible production values and plenty of thrilling moments help make Uncharted an action-packed adventure, in spite of some slightly uneven gameplay.

There's plenty of joy to be had for grown-ups in Trap Team, and more than a few laughs as well.

Tales of Kenzera: Zau's strength lies in its powerful narrative, digging into how one navigates the sadness, rage, and terror that accompanies the worst moments of grief. Its tale has its hiccups, but Zau's adventure of coming to terms with loss resonates through the beating heart of the thumping musical score, standout vocal performances, and dance-like battles that feel straight out of Bantu myth. Loss is a universal human emotion, making Zau's attempts to grapple with grief uncomfortably relatable. But there's catharsis to be earned in working through that discomfort alongside Zau, and a touching story to enjoy along the way.

As Estelle pieces together her scrapbook made by my hand, I often found myself asking why I took a particular image, what I liked about a specific sound. What memories or feelings was I conjuring, even subconsciously, that led me to present Estelle's world in the ways I did, and what did that say about how I see my own world? Season asks a lot of introspective questions, provides few definitive answers, and hopes players are willing to breathe it in, consider it carefully, then exhale slowly as they reflect on both the game and themselves. It's unconventional even in a sea of indies that are constantly trying new weird things, but it works.

Red Alert 3 is a raucously fun strategy game that overcomes its issues with both style and substance.

Goofy humor and a bevy of wacky objectives make it easy to lose yourself in this action role-playing game.

Knights & Bikes was created by a small team featuring several people who worked on LittleBigPlanet and Tearaway, and you can feel that all these games share a similar creative vision. There's a kind of wide-eyed, rough and tumble spirit of adventure running through all three games that is hard to resist. Knights & Bikes is a wonderfully warm, effortlessly inviting experience that'll make you feel young again.

More than just Mario Party with a different mascot, Rayman Raving Rabbids makes great use of the Wii technology to create a bizarrely enjoyable minigame collection.

Good sequels strike a balance between reproducing familiar systems and introducing new features. Rage Burst shares many similarities with Resurrection, to the degree that you wouldn’t be blamed for mistaking the former for an expansion pack of the latter at a glance. But Rage Burst is bolstered by a beefed-up combat system and scores of stylish, powerful loot, making frequent, sometimes repetitive questing, more enjoyable than it was in Resurrection.

All-told it's a phenomenal port and still one of the better RPGs in recent years.

The best console version of Dishonored that money can buy--and make no mistakes, that still makes this the best version of a fantastic game—but as a re-release on systems far more capable than their predecessors, this is a perfunctory release that doesn’t justify the price tag except out of sheer convenience.

Where it counts, Overwatch 2 feels like a fantastic update to a multiplayer game with mechanics that enable thrilling skirmishes between teams of heroes. However, as a separate entity and sequel, it stumbles. Changes to the core gameplay are steps in the right direction, but it is surrounded by new points of friction where there previously were none. Thankfully, as a live-service game, things will be added or altered once Blizzard has more player feedback, so at the very least the studio has a strong foundation to build upon. There is plenty of good to be found in Overwatch 2 and in the heat of battle the intoxicating multiplayer dynamics that fans love are there to enjoy all over again. But if the first Overwatch taught me anything, it's to dream a bit bigger about what games can be, and there is still a bit more dreaming to be done here.

This sequel goes light on the role-playing but still presents a compelling puzzle experience that's as enjoyable and addictive as the original Puzzle Quest.

The game is both a celebration of the Wolfenstein series and what feels like a fitting send-off for it. The New Order could be the last hurrah of William "BJ" Blazkowicz, an outing which, for all its excess and bombast, is far from mindless.

Knights & Bikes was created by a small team featuring several people who worked on LittleBigPlanet and Tearaway, and you can feel that all these games share a similar creative vision. There's a kind of wide-eyed, rough and tumble spirit of adventure running through all three games that is hard to resist. Knights & Bikes is a wonderfully warm, effortlessly inviting experience that'll make you feel young again.

There is enough variety in the combat spaces, and the enemy combinations within, that The New Order's levels feel well paced, and combat feels tense without being unmanageable or overwhelming.

Creature in the Well manages to inject the geometry-focused experience of pinball into the frenzied gameplay loop of a dungeon crawler to craft a unique puzzle action game. On occasion, the game's hands-off approach to conveying information is a hindrance, but the well-structured dungeons and monstrous antagonist more than make up for it--producing an engaging hack-and-slash experience that allows for satisfying experimentation.

The 10th installment in this long-running franchise proves that some formulas don't need to change.

The graphics leave a bit to be desired, and there are some slight quirks with the gameplay, but compared with last year's bug-filled installment, All-Star Baseball 2003 is [a] winner.

Tiger Woods 12 for the Wii remains the golf sim of choice for motion-controller fans because of its accurate swing mechanics and the addition of the legendary Masters.

Overcooked 2 undoubtedly shines in local co-op and the versus arcade modes. New recipes and obstacles provide a fresh challenge for veterans, but it remains approachable for new players with simple controls and short playtimes. The new throwing mechanic, too, adds a new dimension to both strategy and the inevitable chaos without overcomplicating things. It's a strong foundation, and with the right friends, Overcooked 2 is one of the best couch co-op games around.

Homecourt is easier than ever to pick up and play, and almost all of the new moves and dunks are fantastic, but thanks to a shallow career mode and a limited number of other gameplay modes, there aren't enough ways to enjoy it.

While the visual fidelity noticeably lower on the Switch and there are some minor hiccups in performance that aren’t present on other platforms, The Flame In The Flood still remains a unique and absorbing survival game.

The Nathan Drake Collection is a firsthand account of Naughty Dog's growth as a storyteller, and this collection is the best way to relive that history, and witness its transformation up close.

Mirror of Fate on the 3DS may not have been the side-scrolling, vampire-hunting adventure that we all hoped it would be, but with its heightened presentation and revamped mechanics, Mirror of Fate HD is a big step in the right direction.

This is an impressively complete story. By the end of Resolve, I felt like all of the plot threads had been tied up; that questions that had lingered, some for almost 80 hours, had been answered. While Chronicles moves too slowly at times--especially during the Adventures half--the payoff at the end is worth the wait.

Monster Tale is a whimsical, colorful 2D adventure that's sure to please with its engaging combination of exploration, pet raising, and action.

With a newfound combat system that steals the show and offers a novel take on turn-based combat, its winking, nodding, and adventuring shine all the brighter. Its world and characters might not be the series' best, but it's still able to consistently throw left turns, good gags, and smart surprises at you. Each piece of The Origami King elegantly fits into its whole, taking its irreverent flair to new heights. The Paper Mario series has recently shown that being clever and being smart are two different things, but thankfully, it's once again managed to be both.

The Lego rendition of The Boy Who lived is a seriously charming take on the life of a wizard, with loads of gameplay variety and an emphasis on discovery.

Ultimately, where you fall on GT Sport will mirror how you feel about racing games in general. If you’re looking for a highly focused console racing sim, GT Sport is excellent, but don’t come looking for a robust "Gran Turismo" experience. You won’t find it. Casual fans will feel the pinch of the scaled-down offering and the intimidating push towards racing online. But for sim-racers with a competitive spirit, it’s easy to look past the smaller car and track roster and appreciate the incredibly detailed and responsive driving model, which is better than anything the series has offered before.

The somber tone that permeates the adventure still resonates deeply, using its delicate visuals and wistful music to capture a feeling of melancholy that still feels incredibly rare. The passage of time hasn’t undermined the sadness that makes this game so welcoming because there is still nothing quite like Child of Light. The transition to the Switch hasn’t hurt the experience in the slightest. Whether docked or in handheld mode, the beautiful artistic design shines through and the controls are smooth regardless of which controller you use.

Even though a lot of what's new is a bit rough around the edges, NCAA Football 08 is a great game with a lot to offer.

Killing Floor 2's strongest asset is in its simple yet effective combat--Tripwire could substitute the Zeds for robots or Nazis and still have a solid shooter on its hands.