There isn't much out there quite like Zone of the Enders. The first game is the weaker of the two, serving as lukewarm appetizer for the main course. The Second Runner, though, with all its refinements and polished battle system, is certainly worth the price of admission.

If you enjoy creating your own shows, forming your own factions, and designing your own stable of pro wrestlers, you'll view WWE 13's creation suite as the best there is, the best there was, and possibly the best there will be, with options more diverse than Mick Foley's wrestling personas. Yet the gameplay, AI, and controls have not significantly advanced from last year's title, making WWE 13 more uneven than the "People's Eyebrow."

While some of the interface experiments are hit or miss, the gameplay in Need for Speed: Most Wanted provides a solid mix of heart-in-your throat speed and playful discovery. Whether you're weaving through traffic or lining up for big air, Most Wanted's densely-packed automotive playground is fun to explore on your own, and really comes alive with friends.

While it's a little slow to get going, Assassin's Creed III is a rewarding, elegant game on many levels. It understands that everyone plays open-world games differently, and provides plenty of incentive for players to tackle its quandaries how they see fit. The sheer variety, overall quality, brisk pacing, massive amount of content, and satisfying story make it easy to forget its few rough spots. Heady and well-informed, Assassin's Creed III is the polar opposite of a guilty pleasure.

In spite of some strong individual elements, it ends up feeling like a sloppy and ultimately pointless conflict. Focusing on superficial distinctions that add nothing to the game, Warfighter lacks a convincing reason to fight, and there's no reason anyone should pick up the banner apart from brand loyalty or sheer boredom.

The Skylanders concept still feels novel and you get the feeling that there's a lot of potential waiting to be squeezed out of the experience. However, it's clearly being held back by the focus on peddling collectible toys. There's a decent game in here, but it's ultimately hard to justify the substantial investment you'll have to throw down for all the figures required to get the full experience.

007 Legends was clearly rushed to market, and the publisher has such a spotty track record with the franchise, that it's high time for the Bond license to be revoked. Uglier than Jaws and shorter than Nick Nack, 007 Legends doesn't expect you to gawk. Oh no Mr. Bond fans, it expects you to cry. Mission succeeded.

Straightforward in approach yet exceedingly effective in delivery, it elevates the notion of melee combat past a last ditch combat maneuver and into a realm of medieval, multiplayer bliss.

There's so little variation in how any given activity is completed that even younger muggles will quickly bore of it. Not even Bellatrix Lestrange would be crazy enough to spend $50 on it.

The battles are often tiresome, not only because of the activity level associated with the controls, but because fights tend to drag on with rock-paper-scissors type counter attacks, blocks, and deflections. While you can unlock over 50 characters, all of the fighters control the same, and the first-person perspective means you can't even see them in action. Considering the lack of new content and spotty controls, Dragon Ball Z for Kinect ultimately puts the "sigh" in Super Saiyan.

The Unfinished Swan is a treat for the senses, with thoughtful music and a poignant, elegant, and ever-so-slightly enigmatic story with tinges of the bittersweet, as well as humor and hope. This is the sort of game that offers up that rare spark of ingenuity that manages to thread both its form and function between narrative, aesthetics, and game design.

While Forza Horizon does have room to grow, it's fantastic for anyone who wants to take to the open road with more authentic driving and car customization.

It isn't completely successful with some of its experimental features and still lacks some of the fun auxiliary modes of its sister games, but it's clear that it isn't just a glorified track pack. For all the aspiring b-boys and b-girls out there, Dance Central 3 is a great game to experienced, and an even better one to share.

For all its snark and irreverence, Retro City Rampage is pretty earnest in terms of what it's all about: take a gander at all the rampage events and the dizzying array of display modes available, and it all becomes clear. If you have a soft spot in your heart for classic games and an appetite for open-world destruction, you'll be able to overlook the knee-slappers and mechanical mishaps that occasionally mar this expansive pastiche.

All of the decisions you've made until now converge at this point, and it's a credit to Telltale that you'll walk away incredibly excited to see how it all ends.

Scrambling for some mysterious, hilarious weapon harbored in a crate, landing an impossible shot, or carving out the land for an assault continues to be what makes Worms' game of destructible chess worthwhile. It's easy to write off the single-player campaign, but the heart and soul of the multiplayer stays the sure and steady path. It may not be advertised revolution, but this long going war is one worthy of enlisting in.

You won't regret your excursion to these ursine lands if you've still got the spirit of exploration, the scars, and the fond feelings of battle etched into your heart. Those less into the prospect of jumping into WoW yet again may just as well stay in hibernation.

A gorgeous game with clever levels, but the abysmal controls make it all for naught. For all it does right, playing it feels like a frustrating chore, and no amount of affection for the Fable series will make its failings easy to overlook.

XCOM makes a complicated design feel smoother and more elegant without losing the feel and nuance of the original work.

Dishonored goes out of the way to encourage freedom in how you approach your obstacles, and it plays the long game, offering up layers of experimentation.

While the shift towards having more control on offense has left the defensive game a bit out of step, NBA 2K13 is still highly entertaining overall, offering enough changes to keep players interested in starting another career, season, player, or franchise.

Despite a few fumbles with the new multiplayer option and the throwaway storyline, it's a polished adventure that easily justifies its reasonable $20 price tag. But, even better, this is a game that begs for multiple playthroughs.

It manages to deliver everything you'd expect out of a Pokémon game, and it's still a decent RPG, but it fails to take any chances or offer real innovation.

Despite throwing in some new bells and whistles, Pokémon Black & White 2 doesn't deviate from established formula.

With its old identity stripped away you've left with a massive action game that tends to check all the boxes instead of creating new ones, yet measured against its contemporaries it remains near the top of its class. Big, brash, and full of memorable moments, Resident Evil 6 deserves to be played by any fan of the action genre.

Last year's game featured major enhancements, and FIFA 13 is a disappointment in comparison. However, refined offensive controls, a brisker pace, and a focus on thoughtful, skillful play ultimately help this year's installment achieve an identity.

While the driving in F1 2012 is as tough as ever, quicker modes and a greater emphasis on driver rivalries make it easier for a broader audience to get into. There's still plenty of room to make for a more exciting depiction of the sport, reflecting the trends of a given season, but Codemasters continues to push its strengths to create demanding and detailed racing gameplay.

For its high-def debut, Jet Set Radio's visuals are clean and crisp, as you'd expect, while retaining the original game's comic book-style presentation.

Joe's sophomore outing certainly delivers on its goal of bridging the precise and methodical nature of platforming with the white-knuckle rush of finishing as fast as possible. If you're curious about this sort of hybrid experience, Joe Danger 2: The Movie is well worth the $15 ticket price.

Dead or Alive 5 capably reaffirms the intrinsic charm of the series: fast, technical fighting that's easy to pick up, easy to appreciate, and easy on the eyes. But rather than advance the series into a new level of play, it merely repackages the its strong points rather than evolve them.

While this bunny can be funny, his game is lame, and even its standout segments aren't particularly strong--they just seem that way in comparison to the overall mess. Weak charm and knowing references aside, we can confidently give Hell Yeah a "hell no."

Despite a few wrinkles, LittleBigPlanet is a wonderful outlet for creativity and a great fit on the handheld. While the gameplay won't convert those who weren't already enamored with the series, its longtime admirers are guaranteed to burlap it up.

If you've every daydreamed about commanding a starship held together by sheer will by a bloodied, ragtag crew, these are 10 bucks very well spent.

The odd premise of Tokyo Jungle is only augmented by the adrenaline rush of survival and the peculiarity of its systems and rules. It can certainly get repetitive and unlocking everything is a bear, but its random nature can often have you shouting at the screen in moments of panic and surprise.

As with its predecessors, it's a rare game that earns its difficulty through the weight of its decisions rather than its gameplay, and it sets an increasingly high bar for narrative excellence in video games.

The story in Borderlands 2 is by far the biggest improvement. The humor and over-the-top style that was merely glimpsed in the first game are ever-present here. Strong personalities drive the experience from beginning to end, whether it's Claptrap's sense of self-importance, Tiny Tina's hyperactivity, or Handsome Jack's spiteful annoyance.

The level of imagination, inspiration, and variety on display sets a high standard for other games to come. And with a payment model a good deal more generous than the majority of its competition, it puts to question just what other developers can get away with.

Focusing on what's most important to creating a good fighter, Tekken Tag 2 sets a moderately high bar and confidently clears it. It offers a ton of fighters, the tag system is interesting, it plays well online, and it preserves the goofy sense of humor that defines the series. Spinoff or not, this is the best Tekken game in years.

Reconstructing the skating and goaltending succeeds at making the game more realistic, but not necessarily more rewarding. Still, these changes will pay huge dividends down the road. The new GM connected option provides just about as much flexibility in playing a sports game as we've seen, and there are more than enough ways to keep your mind off the looming lockout.

Just like those that inspired it, this slick, demanding game inspires you to revel in the grim possibilities it offers. And when it comes to the precision of its execution, it might just have something to teach the big dogs.

There are one or two things to be wary of here, but if you're willing to sign, you'll have a chance to earn a feeling of true accomplishment.

The best rhythm games successfully tie gameplay and music in such a way that players feel like they're part of the song. Rock Band Blitz doesn't quite bridge that gap.

The most important aspect of any multiplayer game is how much you want to play after a session ends. This is where Global Offensive excels, possessing the same addictive quality that helped make the previous games a long-term success story.

With its brand new physics engine and RPG elements, Madden NFL 13 tries hard to make its mark, but both changes have problems fitting into the existing gameplay and design structures. While it's better than last year's game in some ways, it's worse in others, and buying it at full price is hard to recommend unless you've sat out a couple seasons. It's encouraging to see EA Sports finally take some risks with the series, even if they don't all hit pay dirt.

The Last Story employs some bold mechanisms in an attempt to chart new territory. If not for a few undercooked components like the multiplayer, it would stand among the best on the Wii. Still, it's a strong RPG in its own right, excelling precisely where you'd expect such a game to. The Wii could have done much worse for a bookend to its storied history.

If you're game for a striking take on the classic side-scrolling adventure, albeit one populated by a cast of urgently self-serious talking animals, you could do much worse than Dust: Elysian Tail.

It won't exhilarate you in ways that games typically do, nor does it offer much in the way of replayability. But its existence proves that neither are specifically required for a worthwhile experience.

With a series of meaningful improvements that culminate in a more interestingly designed campaign and sustainable multiplayer experience, Fall of Cybertron continues the franchise's upward trend in quality with a sequel that's definitely worth attention.

Well-tuned driving and fighting ultimately outweigh Sleeping Dogs' inconsistent tone and relatively modest production values. The ability and status of your character ramp up nicely, and you'll have plenty of opportunity to exercise your power in a well-constructed playground.

Hybrid is a game that you might not expect from the creators of Lock's Quest and Scribblenauts, but if the sort of imagination behind this jump-jet cover based space shooter is anything to go by, the connections aren't all that difficult to make.

Death flirts with mediocrity, but he's careful never to linger there too long. Darksiders II has more than a few rough edges, but they never fully run away with the experience. With a meaty quest, and hours upon hours of optional, quality stuff to do and discover, you simply can't beat Death, so you might as well join him.

If you own a Vita, Sound Shapes is a no-brainer, especially since a purchase gets you both the handheld and PS3 versions of the game. That said, we'd also heartily recommend it to those consigned to TV play, provided you have even a passing interest in fiddling with music, and/or games. Few creation-oriented games make it feel so effortlessly rewarding to fiddle in this way.

By appropriately mating the strengths and traits of its mixed heritage, Persona 4 Arena flourishes as a fantastically realized fighting game that stands tall even without resting on the laurels of legacy.

You feel more as if you're performing a repetitive series of tasks rather than surviving by your wits, but there's still a certain satisfaction in overcoming the game's challenge.

Heroes of Ruin fails to deliver a solid action-RPG experience, and earnest efforts to tailor the experience to the 3DS hardware don't excuse its shortcomings.

The addition of coin rush and StreetPass functionality extend the shelf life of what would otherwise be a rather limited experience, but while there's still reasonable value here, the new Super Mario Bros. formula is losing just a little bit of its luster. Innovation and creativity don't shine as brightly as they should, but the glitter of great control and tight level design still make New Super Mario Bros. 2 tempting to pick up.

It is a great pick-up and play title with an upbeat sense of humor, relentless action, and strong replay value thanks to different difficulty levels and cooperative play.

Even if you've been hankering for a reason to dust off your Kinect, there is no shortage of fleeting distractions better suited to the task.

Far from yet another filler installment to hold you over until Kingdom Hearts III, Dream Drop Distance is one of the better entries in the series and a solid RPG in its own right. It avoids the pitfalls some of the more recent entries have stumbled into and delivers some fresh new ideas to a series in danger of stagnating.

Telltale has presented yet another riveting story that's arguably superior to the AMC television series on account of the level of immersion granted by its interactivity. It's a different experience than the first episode, but it's also a better one.

The vainglorious plot and meticulous landscapes of cliché will draw you in place of base compulsions to hit a level cap or maximize a "gearscore." If you can stomach the horrors of the night, as well as rote combat and occasionally glitched gameplay, you might just be the perfect pledge for this secret society.

Those who grew up with later installments in the series may lament the lack of an open world, split-screen support, create-skater option, level editor, or moves such as the revert, but the best part of the original games--working toward mastery of particular techniques and levels--remains a compelling reason to revisit the past.

Virtual Fighter 5 Final Showdown shines in its utilitarian simplicity, delivering a premium experience that's focused on the fighting at an economical price. If you've ever wanted to see what the hubbub was all about in the arcades of Akihabara, consider this your ticket to find out.

If you've never experienced Sins of a Solar Empire before, you'll find no better entry point than Rebellion. But if Rebellion commits any sins of its own, it's in the $40.00 price tag, which seems excessive for an expansion that will almost certainly strike its loyal fans as little more than a meaty content patch.

Dyad's heart and soul ultimately reside in the hard-edged and inventive gameplay mechanics that prop-up the aesthetics. Both easy on the eyes and exciting to fiddle with, it'll simultaneously dazzle and bedevil you. If you're game for the challenge, a ticket to this vivid world is yours for a song at $15.

NCAA Football 13 is a bit of a disappointment as the franchise faces its inevitable confrontation with the law of diminishing returns. Significant advancements in design or gameplay are few, and the ones that are included are flawed in some way. With last year's game available on the cheap, spending 60 bucks on this will feel a lot like buying tickets from a scalper, but you'll ultimately feel fairly satisfied.

Thanks to a wealth of content, solid presentation, and overall playability, the new Duels of the Planeswalkers is an excellent way to enjoy a game of Magic.

Level randomization is a delicate tool and one that Spelunky wields well, placing its tiles just so to equally aggravate and entice. Play Spelunky to conquer it, keep playing to master it, and just remember to keep your eyes open for new danger and adventure.

Anyone who has an appreciation for Final Fantasy music will find much to love here.

With an expansive city to explore between levels, LEGO Batman 2 can easily be a likened to an Arkham City-lite. The promise of playing with other DC Super Heroes isn't brought to its full potential as the story remains laser-focused on Batman, Robin, and Superman, but there's a fun family-friendly adventure for these three leads.

This Spider-man isn't that amazing, but he saves the day anyway. His adventure goes the distance with enough ingenuity sprinkled into the sustained action to distract more often than he disappoints. Even with the kindergarten controls, you'll want to see the story to its conclusion.

It's kind of like having some philosophical chewing gum to go with your war. You feel like there's something to think about, but it's not going to bother you as you go about your business.

The problem is it doesn't work consistently, effectively shattering the sense of immersion each time you reach out and hit the wrong lever or button and then comically try to undo what you just did. There's a potentially entertaining game here, but it's buried underneath the Kinect's infuriating limitations.

Despite its faults, Gods and Kings scores high on the entertainment-per-dollar scale and the allure of building a civilization from sticks and stones to ships and Gatlin Guns never wears thin.

Suffice to say, it won't be giving Square's vintage stock a run for its money, but if you've got some pocket change and a healthy admiration for Gabe and Tycho to spare, this amusing trip through time is certainly worth the expedition.

With several dozen scenarios on offer, it'll certainly keep you busy if you've got a hankering for transdimensional brain-teasers. It's just too bad that so few of the puzzles end up feeling memorable.

The game's shorter than the protagonist's skirt and is filled with more cheese than a Hickory Farms gift basket. Despite its relatively shallow gameplay, Lollipop Chainsaw is worth checking out for its sheer audacity and outrageousness. At the same time, it's hard to recommend paying full price when taking into account the limited replay value.

Gravity Rush is definitely a looker, achieving a level of visual fidelity that wouldn't seem out of place in a high-end console game.

It is yet another game with potentially interesting mechanics that fail to deliver on their promise, making Inversion's approach to gravity feel more plodding than liberating.

As just another chapter in Arkham City, as is the case if you buy the Game of the Year edition, its single-mindedness isn't such a big deal. But as a $10 downloadable chapter, it's coming up short.

No, you won't find volumes of content or progressive new ideas, and the forced touchscreen controls are a minor strategic bungle. However, the well-paced single-player campaign is punctuated by a strong and varied weapon set and online multiplayer that hits an unprecedented level of quality for a handheld.

With an immersive world, crisp combat, and a venomous gameplay hook that refuses to let up, Diablo 3 delivers a slick revitalization of the action RPG, even if it isn't a complete re-invention of it. If you've yet to repent for your grubby, loot hoarding ways, consider this your next guilty indulgence.

Dirt Showdown is certainly a different type of racer, trading bumpy wheel-to-the-road driving mechanics for the dents, scrapes, and screams of vehicular mayhem. In some ways, it feels more like an expansion pack than an all-new game, but if you don't take this departure too seriously, it makes for some great summer parties online.

There are some great ideas in Sniper Elite V2--they're just buried under a few too many bad ones. Asking you to stomach the poor game that exists between the solid sniping sequences is frankly a tall order.

Sorcery embraces the Move's functionality to deliver something only possible with gesture-based controls, even if they're still not quite optimal. It's unfortunate that Sony couldn't muster a more complete package with extra content and incentives to come back after completing the single player mode.

If you buy games for the single-player experience it's hard to recommend Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. Once you hop online it's a different story as the tactical, objective-driven modes manage to fill the five-year void left since the release of the superior Advanced Warfighter 2. It's heavily reliant on teammates who are willing to play specific roles, but with a group of dedicated soldiers it's a war that you'll want to keep fighting.

If you're the kind of player that can get completely lost in these sorts of open world RPGs, you're going to eat Dragon's Dogma alive. However much its reach exceeds its grasp in certain respects, this ambitious game succeeds in taking the form in an altogether welcome direction--one that does not sacrifice minute-to-minute gameplay on the altar of expansiveness.

Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode Two ultimately feels loose where it should be tight, slow where it should be fast, and tedious where it should be exciting. Sometimes it's best to let sleeping 'hogs lie.

For those wanting to explore the wilds of Westeros, climb to the top of The Wall or engage in a thrilling battle with a direwolf, this Game of Thrones falls completely flat. However, if you don't mind suffering through the combat, the visuals, and the lackluster environments, there's actually a decent interactive story to experience. Of course, that's a very big "if."

Mario Tennis Open's single player mode is fun for a few hours, but it will ultimately leave you wanting more. Thankfully, the multiplayer mode with its online functionality will keep you coming back well after you've plowed through the main course.

On its loftiest promise of redefining massively multiplayer combat for good, Tera delivers a stunning new model of action that can't be ignored. Its only flaw is keeping the focus of its ambitions narrow, choosing to play it safe in almost every other regard with the form and function of an otherwise conventional MMO.

Attempting a character study of a deeply flawed action hero is an interesting gamble that just doesn't pay off, and the single-player experience continually struggles with leveraging the character's identity or unique skills. So it's got some issues. That said, the surprisingly entertaining multiplayer modes and a virtuoso treatment of extreme violence stand out as legitimate highpoints. It all basically comes down to your tolerance for pain.

Minecraft on the Xbox 360 does an admirable job of reproducing the essence of its forbear, and on the strength of the local co-op, it also manages to improve upon it in a small but essential way.

Datura just doesn't seem to go far enough, offering just a quick dip into occasional oddity instead of a full-on baptism in the truly peculiar. Even its most attention-grabbing moments can come across as a little dull. With gimmicky motion elements, threadbare puzzles, and a ghost's whisper of a narrative, Datura ends up as an underwhelming experiment.

With a mix of on-foot gunplay, full on dogfights, and strategic base-building, Starhawk lets you find your niche or switch roles at the drop of a hat. While it doesn't leverage this versatility to create new game types to call its own, its territory-based gameplay offers a wide range of tactical options to explore.

At a reasonable 800 Microsoft points, Awesomenauts offers a unique and vibrant entry point to the DotA-style game on consoles. With a fun-filled sense of competition and replayability to spare, it's definitely one downloadable multiplayer game worth paying attention to.

While the swift pace and simplified mechanics might seem appealing, the combat is wholly unsatisfying, the environments are shallow and stifling, and the camera is annoying.

Risen 2 has more than a few issues, but there's plenty of buried treasure waiting here for players who are willing to dig for it. Unfortunately, the excavation is demanding, and the slaphappy combat and bland quest structure might prove too overpowering for players who want to sample one of the few examples of a genuine pirate roleplaying game.