A lack of core changes means this loses some of Dead Rising's novel excitement, but there is still plenty of zombie-smashing fun to be had in this downloadable offering.

Few modern shooters can match the heart-pounding exhilaration and immense strategic depth Siege achieves with its asymmetrical PvP.

Still about as good as Super Monkey Ball has ever been, and it serves as a great example of how the Wii's uniqueness can be put to good use.

However, the vast majority of my time was not spent wading through inscrutable dialogue. It was spent exploring a diverse steampunk world, mastering the surprisingly rich combat, and filling out the smartly-designed skill tree. Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is a joyful journey into nostalgic metroidvania action, and a great start for a potential franchise.

Blackguards 2 may start off as a something of a bad-guy gimmick, but it soon transcends the wow factor inspired by the dark gothic setting and the baleful protagonists. Come for the evil, stay for the brilliantly realized and addictive tactical game loaded with depth and challenge.

Intense tactical encounters filled with firefights and flying bodies prove thrilling enough to make it easy to look beyond Insurgency's less impressive visual design. The team dynamic and unique squad system inject something different into the mix too, offering match after match of absorbing cooperative killing that proves good looks aren't everything.

For each anomaly, like a poor facial render of a head coach, there's a subtle detail, like a wide receiver who tries to keep both feet in the field during a catch.

Disgaea D2: A Brighter Darkness is one of the funniest and freshest role-playing games of the year.

No voice chat and an over-reliance on stupid bots take away much of the joy in this silly take on capture the flag.

This is a substantial package that's propped up by exciting gameplay that puts the onus squarely on attacking football. There are moments of frustration on defense when the balance doesn't feel quite right, but then you'll go down the other end and score a Puskás Award contender that makes you forget why you were mad in the first place.

Stylish combat that is as challenging as it is exciting provides the backbone for this great role-playing game.

Though its presentation is rather dry, Formula One Championship Edition is a good racing game that straddles the fine line between being accessible to newcomers yet deep enough for longtime fans of the series.

Inazuma Eleven is a charming RPG with a lot going on, but it doesn't offer a great game of football.

It has pretty much everything you'd want out of a solid adventure experience, like diverse settings, a good storyline, wacky characters, and lots of complex puzzles.

An unapologetic homage to beloved Japanese RPGs that plays well but takes few risks.

NBA Live 2001 is beautiful, and it is still a lot of fun to play. By far, it's the best basketball game -- pros or otherwise -- on the PlayStation 2.

Completely spoiled by a few major problems, the worst of which makes it possible to get by opponents using only one button.

EA Sports simply hasn't made enough gameplay changes to make it feel even remotely different from its NBA counterpart.

Those who've played MMORPGs in the past may appreciate the relative simplicity and relative fast pace of EverQuest Online Adventures, but those who have never played a game like this before may just find it boring, confusing, and overly repetitive.

A one-of-a-kind title, partially because of its art direction, and partially because of its incredibly unique character-creation system.

It has its little glitches and problems here and there, but the bonus material is nice and most of the games are nearly identical to the arcade originals that they're trying to duplicate.

Puzzle gamers looking for a quality weekend rental need look no further than Frogger 2.

Ring of Pain is interesting and enjoyable in ways that can keep you enthralled despite doing almost the exact same thing for hours. The quick runs are really nice for just jumping in and having a few goes rather than oversaturating yourself with this world. It nails the creepy aesthetic from the art and sound design right down to the way it plays. It can make you feel a bit unsettled no matter what stage of the game you're at and how confident you're feeling. Ring of Pain swings between frustration and satisfaction but thankfully leans heavily to the latter most of the time. It's a delightfully disturbing mix of roguelike and card game genres that's worth stumbling in the darkness to discover.

In almost every way, Hotline Miami 2 is a marked improvement on an already tremendous formula. This is a game that had me pumping my fists and laughing with joy throughout my time with it, and I was left despondent by the time it drew to a close.

The Missing Heir and The Girl Who Stands Behind, while mechanically similar, offer pretty different takes on the detective game. Do you want to slowly unravel the conspiracy behind a powerful woman's death in a quiet village? Or, would you rather chase down a murderer in a high-octane, spooky thrill ride? The former is better executed, but both are worthwhile opportunities to dust off your magnifying glass.

Greater than the sum of its parts. It's pretentious and can be frustrating or tedious at times. And it's also one of the most unusual, politically charged, and thought-provoking video games since "Metal Gear Solid."

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine is on the shallow side, but it still serves up plenty of "waaagh!"

If you ignore the motion-sensing controls, then you'll find a lot of exciting aerial action in The Sky Crawlers.