While it's still puzzling why the developers seem so reluctant on including some sort of simultaneous multiplayer action, Championship Edition DX is unbelievably fun and mercilessly addictive, enhancing the timeless appeal of Toru Iwatani's original coin-op design to frantic and eye-catching levels.

For every video game system there's a piece of software that defines its capabilities. God of War II is that game. It's a thrill ride from beginning to end, and one of those experiences that will cause you to hunker down, turn off your phone, and check out of reality for a few days.

Super Mario 3D World is much more than the console big brother to 3D Land, incorporating the series’ every idea into a well-tempered concoction of imagination fueled by jumps and 1-ups for a new experience that transcends nostalgia to enter the realm of the sublime.

If judged solely on its failure to resolve its story, Wings of Liberty could have been a disappointment. But with a production so carefully thought out, masterfully designed, and flawlessly executed, it's impossible to come away from the game with a negative impression. Starcraft II is the sequel that we've been waiting for.

Fighting games have long been out of the spotlight, and Street Fighter IV basically carries the future of the entire genre. It refuses to make itself accessible, doling out tough love in place of true tutorials or simplified control schemes, but by proving to be deep and fundamentally enjoyable, the series has once again proven itself worthy of attention.

In the end, Minecraft is what you make of it, and that's the beauty of the game. Whether you want to spend hours at a time experimenting with digital Lego or playing a hack-and-slash version of Wolfenstein 3D, Mojang's unique achievement allows you to do either and more. While it still has some pixilated edges that leave it feeling unfinished, few games in recent years have done so well with such a promising concept and offered so many opportunities for true exploration.

This lengthy, unique, and upbeat JRPG is absolutely worth the many dozens of hours your inevitably sink into it, making it an essential addition to the Vita's repertoire.

Cribbing the best of Zelda and mashing it with a killer aesthetic that’s both justified and gorgeous, yields a lengthy, legendary quest.

There’s just so much to see and do, that your average player will undoubtedly find something to amuse themselves with, and your average role-playing fanatic will probably have a heart attack when they take in the size of the world.

Tthere’s a constant flow of surprises and excellence packed into this RPG. Everything is set at such a high caliber that the negligible flaws and inconsistencies come across as much larger blemishes than in most games, but they can’t tarnish the overall experience.

The game consistently manages to put impressive, holy crap-worthy stuff on-screen. Your ears get their fair share of candy, too. Voice work is almost always right on and the music is epic, foreboding, and dangerous.

Improves many of the series' individual elements, and provides finality to a saga in which numbers of us have invested dozens of hours. But despite this success, it's unable to reward the effort and investment of players in the same way previous games did. Still, it handles its subject matter in a way that invites you to care, and the addition of multiplayer does add another dimension to the game. When all has been said and done, there's a very good chance that you'll feel something.

The Phantom Pain is excellent. It expands and enriches Metal Gear Solid without compromising the qualities that make the series so beloved. Despite the huge scope, Hollywood talent, and technical flashiness, there’s a subtlety to the Phantom Pain that’s truly captured our hearts. Even now we’re still turning its events over and over again in our minds. So rarely do game stories demand so much consideration. Decades later, it’s incredible that Metal Gear can still captivate, inspire, and amaze.

Stripped bare of accessories, its all-business approach will thrill some and frustrate others. Less whimsical and more weighty, it proves that clever level design and tight gameplay trump all, and perhaps most importantly, that motion gaming can truly be for everyone.

For Rock Band 3, Harmonix revisits its roots to create a risky and adventurous music game that re-blurs the lines between fantasy and reality--but not at the expense of a fundamentally terrific experience that's accessible to most anyone who plays it.

It’s absolutely relentless in its assault on the senses and never lets up until the last trigger has been squeezed. The multiplayer is even better, with the perks and weapon upgrades acting as a balance to the lack of vehicles.

It's incredibly familiar and a bit brief, but God of War III still stands as a herculean achievement. A lot of TLC went into its creation and it comes shining through at every turn. The tweaks to the gameplay are minimal and the lack of titan interaction feels like a missed opportunity, but when Kratos is swinging his hypnotizing blades it's easy to forget that the rest of the world even exists.

The new guitar is cool, the new songs are amusing, there’s downloadable treats on the way, and the game itself is hours and hours of fun, even though you always feel a lot cooler than you look. With that said, the lack of online play is a huge disappointment and a glaring example of missed opportunity.

Its near-perfect sequence of peaks and valleys demonstrates how restraint can imbue some moments with increased impact. It's a short campaign, but the multiplayer makes it worth the asking price.. Drake's Deception is one of those games that has something for just about everyone, and if you own a PlayStation 3 it shouldn't be missed.

It’s a tool set that will be revitalized every time a new song pack is released, and with all the improvements over the Guitar Hero formula, one that will eventually become the de facto standard in music and rhythm games. For those who can foot the bill, Rock Band delivers a gaming experience that’s simply like no other.

Between the expansive story, PvP, Chalice Dungeons, the significantly harder new game plus mode, and the countless number of secrets, Bloodborne seems almost limitless. Yet breadth wouldn’t matter if the game wasn’t so captivating. Several moments had us in awe, making us feel things we haven’t felt since the original Dark Souls. Whatever it takes, find a way to join the ranks of the hunters.

Penny pinching pugilists may give pause, but let your fears be dissuaded: Super Street Fighter IV is worth every single cent.

Despite the massive size of its world and seemingly endless optional content, Final Fantasy XII feels like an unfinished, conflicted game. In the end, Square Enix’s developers seem to have fallen into the same trap the game’s waiting fans did - while the overall scope and ambition has gotten plenty of attention, the minute-to-minute play experience has been all but ignored.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a thoughtful, diverse, and frequently awe-inspiring adventure. Its stories are deep and satisfying, unafraid to touch on themes of personal character, presenting players with choices and consequences that aren’t about turning into a hero or a villain. In the end, it’s quite simply one of the best RPGs ever made.

Forza Motorsport 3 features a wide breadth of content and truly excels with its fantastic creative tools and community structure. Some limits on the rewind feature would be nice, but the ability to shape the experience to your skill level insures that it will satisfy anyone looking for a realistic racing experience without too many headaches.

Nintendo has managed to lower the barrier to entry in Awakening while still preserving the core Fire Emblem experience. It takes positive strides forward with new additions like enhancements to the social system and battle mechanics, and the series' established formula is all the better for it. If you've been hard-up for a solid RPG on the 3DS, Awakening is precisely what you've been waiting for.

If not for the inconsistent online functionality, Smash for Wii U might have been the definitive Smash installment. It offers up every control option under the sun, including the much desired GameCube controller support, delivering the most accessible version in the series. It’s definitely an improvement over Brawl and the recent 3DS counterpart, though Nintendo could still learn a few things from Melee to include in future installments, like adding a competent adventure mode back into the mix.

The developers clearly worked hard to tweak what was already great, and made it superb. With more songs, more features, and more pure rock, Guitar Hero 2 is a must own for anyone with a PS2.