Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 is a delightful skateboarding title that series fans can't afford to miss out on. It brings welcome visual updates to classic maps, and the level creator brings plenty of new challenges. While the product placement and lack of evolution from the previous entry scuffs the overall experience, there's still a lot more ups than downs.

Genesis Rising, with its intriguing twist on the RTS genre, dares you to choose a side, and be counted.

A new coat of paint, a ton of actionable analytic data, solid improvement in the trenches, and the extension of two popular modes makes Madden NFL 15 a winner.

Madden’s detractors often, and incorrectly, refer to its annual release as a “roster update.” Madden NFL 25 is anything but; it’s better than last season’s solid effort, and when compared to releases from two and three years ago is light years ahead in terms of on-field quality and off-field activities.

For us it was a slow burn; the more we understood, the more fun we had. Once you start getting past the learning curve you'll find yourself more and more absorbed by all the complex little dramas that swirl around your nobles; you'll know you're getting there once you start feeling the urge to fill in other people on your crazy, possibly immoral medieval exploits.

While some of its threads don't always come together as neatly as they should, Fullbright's sophomore effort is a quiet and haunting examination of the ways corporations dehumanize us all.

Like a real-time strategy on a console or a platformer on the PC, Fireteam Bravo 2 bears the burden of being a great game in the wrong medium. Still, as far as first person shooters go, it’s one of the best we’ve seen on the PSP so far and offers an excellent single player campaign with solid multiplayer action to boot.

While not particularly revolutionary, there's a lot to like about Anno 117. If you get your teeth into the game's complexity, you'll find yourself investing a lot of time into spreading Roman ways across your islands and growing your settlements from tiny villages to grand cities.

If this genre has intimidated you in the past, Tabula Rasa is the perfect entry point with its user-friendliness and swift tempo. Calling it a clean slate may be a bit of a stretch, but Richard Garriott has certainly provided gamers with something unique.

But whether you play single- or multiplayer, the action in Empire is fast and intense. It’s definitely a better game than its predecessor, which was pretty good to begin with.

Lost Judgment is more of the same, with better detective work, great side cases, and fast-flowing combat.

The Mega Man Legacy Collection perfectly preserves six classic Mega Man games without any extensive changes or modifications from the developers. What changes it does bring are entirely optional and only serve to enhance the experience.

In many ways, Arkham Origins is a lot like the Gotham that it's set in; weirdly empty, but so much fun that you're going to be able to overlook most of the flaws.

The PS3 game is a neatly-constructed package that wonderfully showcases a smart and challenging puzzle game. It's a great way to dive in and invest your time in a unique and soundly designed experience.

While too simplified to be a sim and too serious to be an arcade racer, Driveclub's online integration, beautiful environments and accessible handling make for a great new-gen racing package.

Ultimately, you don’t need to be well-schooled in the sport to get a kick out of Rugby 08 - and if you’re not, the rollicking good time you’ll have will pique your interest. Sporting all the best players in the world, plenty of depth, and the chance to smash some helmet-less faces into the mud, it’s a title that we can really sink our teeth into.

Still! It's impossible not to love Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, because even despite the ridiculous easiness and the stereotypically meandering adventure, it still has a ton of heart (both the lighthearted and heartwarming varieties), and doesn't take itself too seriously.

The game looks the part, but pieces of it just aren't right. The presentation, for instance, is beautiful, but baffling (the play selection menus are downright terrible). It'll get the starting job eventually, but Madden next-gen, like Bills second-year QB J.P. Losman, still has to bow to the veterans.

And while you may ponder why the developers built a new engine and then mostly squandered the potential for originality, their staggering devotion to a piece of wood with four wheels will still daze you.

The only question that remains is, with four games in this series and countless other similar titles, how much longer can this engine be revved? Still, by offering up plenty of vehicles, racing styles and gameplay modes, ATV Offroad Fury 4 is a solid racing experience.

Kirby's newest and likely final DS outing is one of his best in years. It might not reach the heights of adorability that Epic Yarn did, but it's definitely a stronger game when it comes to gameplay and longevity. There's a ton of replayability, numerous unlockables, and more than enough content to justify a purchase.

Even fans who’ve already played through the original version should consider this re-release, since long marathons and quick bursts of gaming suit Dark Hero Days’ gameplay so much better than on a console.

Despite a few lurches here and there and some so-so exploration, Mario & Luigi Brothership offers an enjoyable voyage with smooth sailing, and a punderful script that brings the laughs. It has a new developer and an extra dimension, but the same dedication to humor and brotherly love.

Our biggest complaint is that sometimes if feels like you're just filling in the blanks and it's only a matter of time before the game finishes playing out the way it's supposed to. On the other hand, the fast daily routine and quick rewards, like a new building or job class, make it easy to get sucked into playing for "just one more day" more than we'd like to admit.

The fact that you can only test for your age once a day gives you incentive to keep trying, and with the floating head of Professor Kawashima offering suggestions, there's a sense of a persisting, updating world every time you play.

Shadow Assassin's flaws are easily forgiven though because the end package is just too great to hold a grudge.

Demon Tides invites me to a sunny vibes open world filled with platforming islands to master, and allows me to build my own kit of platforming vibes to break them apart. At times, a bit more structure would be appreciated, especially when it comes to progression, but otherwise the looseness is all part of the charm for this super slick jumper. Demon Tides has easily become a high watermark in my 3D platformer pantheon.

If you’re the kind of gamer who loves a quick and competitive romp through gaming of yesteryear, absolutely give Final Fight: Double Impact your consideration. Mike Haggar is one mayor who definitely deserves your vote.