All told, Convergence can be beaten in just a few hours, but it offers a lot of replayability and additional exploration which I think is fantastic. In my conversation with Rowan, we touched on the goal that Riot Forge has which is to ensure that these games being published in the League of Legends universe strive to be great games on their own, separate from that massive property. The games should be approachable for folks like myself who have no real familiarity with the overarching franchise or narrative. I felt that Convergence was a complete, standalone experience that left nothing out for me. As Riot Forge continues to grow and allow stories to be told inside the League universe across different genres, I look forward to seeing what the next few years will bring.

Definitely worth a purchase even if you have the Vita original, and worth a look even if you’ve never played an Assassin’s Creed game, like me. This is one title that may make you a fan.

NHL 06 is as good as it gets in console hockey.

This one breaks the mold of conventional gaming and is still extraordinarily fun to play.

For me, I chose NBA Live 09. Not only has EA brought legs back to this franchise since struggling its first two years out on next generation platforms, but they have delivered a very strong outing last year and now this year as well.

It's not the "perfect" game, but when you combine great visuals, massive depth, multitude of modes/characters, load times better than most consoles, and then put it on a portable platform it's hard not to be impressed.

While some gamers will be turned off by the lack of total simulation, they still may be intrigued by the extras EA threw in for good measure such as the deep dynasty, slam-dunk contest, and three-point shootout.

All in all, EA's first effort took long enough to get here, but it is a welcome one indeed. While the other two games struggle with being an arcade game and not enough sim, or too much sim and not enough arcade, EA has the mixture just right by taking the sport and representing it seriously, yet making it viable for a casual or new fan to jump right in and take a whack.

A very accessible and pretty RPG. Perhaps it could benefit from added complexity and higher difficulty.

Pixeljunk Monsters was a fantastic addition to the PSN library, and while Encore builds upon the foundation well enough, the challenge can be more than off-putting to the casual player.

All together, I found Monsters vs. Aliens to be a fun game, something that could easily appeal to adults and kids alike, whether you were a fan of the film or not. The gameplay is addictive, great to sit down and play in short bursts, and there's plenty of unlockable content to keep you busy after you've finished the main story.

At the end of the day, if 2D Souls-inspired action platformers with Metroidvania elements are your thing, you absolutely need to play this game. Story aside, the gameplay is great and the difficulty hits that sweet spot between too hard and too easy. Once you grasp it, it is intuitive and pretty simple but until then you will die, die, die and die some more. With a modest $20 price tag, I recommend it.

"Polished" is the best way to describe THPS4 for the Xbox. The visuals, the sounds, the gameplay, the interface, everything is about as good as it is going to get in this generation...I really feel the series has plateaued.

Yoku’s Island Express is kind of a testament to the power of positivity. Sure, it’ll leave you frustrated at times. But it’s frustration borne out of wanting to experience more of this delightful world, and that’s more than enough to keep me pushing through those brief moments of annoyance.

By fixing the elements of the original that needed it, providing a richer backdrop for the gunplay, and tweaking the dialogue to better fit the film noir atmosphere, Remedy and Rockstar should be commended.

I'll be truly screwed when Firaxis starts patching the game up, which is really holding it back from what it could be in a fully fleshed out form. That's all I got for this one; Ghandi is being a bastard anyway and I've got to take care of that.

Heavenly Sword has it's problems, but it's still an enjoyable, stylish and wildly cinematic ride that all PlayStation 3 owners should experience.

So visually the game isn't really impressive, but the gameplay certainly feels unique. It's a pretty cool blend of RTS mechanics and tower defense strategies, but nothing about it feels like a retread of something I've played before.

We probably would have preferred a $40 price point for what’s included in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales but at $50 it’s still a great buy, and also one of the cheapest launch PS5 releases. So if you were disappointed by Avengers and were waiting for the return of Spidey, it’s time to suit up with Harlem’s newest hero.

If you own a Wii and you are a sports fan, this is one game that utilizes both controllers and shows off why the Wii is so innovative.

Hands down, Capcom offers the most complete nostalgia collections available. The latest includes titles practically destined for portable systems and is well worth the price.

Burnout Dominator may not revolutionize the series or even offer a significant upgrade over Revenge, but it still delivers the goods when it comes to hardcore, fast paced, killer crashing, racing action. What else could a virtual masochist want out of this series?

Throughout the five stories on offer here, you always feel like there’s something new around the bend, or some order in which things can progress. That’s a whole lot of words to write about a game that doesn’t use many to get its point across, I know, but Ord. is all about making players fill in the gaps, and it does a pretty good job of it.

Overall, I think that Tales from the Borderlands feels different enough from Telltale’s previous efforts to be a worthwhile experience, regardless of whether you’re a Borderlands fan or not. I’m hoping that the humor clicks a bit more in later episodes, but I’m certainly on board for whatever this season brings.

Like a bigger, better and more polished version of Assassin's Creed II.

While EA Sports MMA won't be an instant success due to the overwhelming popularity of the UFC name brand, I can honestly say that EA has made a more accurate and solid version of the shoot fighting sport than THQ.

I definitely think Skater XL is worth checking out, more so on the PC for the mod side of things than the console version at the moment. But if you’re not opposed to challenging yourself and seeking out your own fun with a responsive, unique physics-based control system, then I think you’ll still get some enjoyment with the current release of the game. Ideally, future updates will flesh out the experience even more, and based on the early access process prior to release, it does seem as if developer Easy Day Studios is committed to Skater XL for the long haul.

If you're itching for and old school game with some new play mechanics, I highly suggest giving Drill Dozer a spin.