With all of these things in mind, I respect that Saints Row: The Third might not be a game for everyone. Specifically, those who do not find joy in the act of inflicting terrible, fiery, dildo-y pain on whatever innocent polygonal creature happens to wander too close to their personal blast zone will probably not get much out of Saints Row's unrelenting dedication to preposterous anarchy. It is a game specifically designed for annihilation junkies, those who can embrace the idea of an infantile playground of seemingly infinite obliterative pleasures. For those who prefer their games a tad less absurdly--perhaps needlessly--violent, any number of other games this fall will likely suit your fancy just fine.

Gran Turismo 5's core problem is that the broad scope of all these game modes diminishes the polish of the general product. There's no denying the feel of the actual driving, but everything else that makes up the game feels tedious and half-baked.

While the career mode of Skate 2 lacks focus, the open-ended nature of it works out pretty well, and the additional online components really add a lot to the overall experience, as well. Some players may find the difficulty or the open progression a bit overwhelming at times, but the advances in the trick system and the new ways to play make Skate 2 a great sequel that further capitalizes on the concepts introduced in the original.

The technical side of Darksiders II isn't as laudable, especially on consoles, where the frame rate gets rough when the action picks up and little things like shadow detail are noticeably drawing in as you run around.

It's also one of those games that's so strong in parts that its shortcomings become almost glaring by comparison. As such, the game's barebones story, lackluster AI, and insufficient player trading options are real disappointments that prevent the game from reaching its full potential. But when you're frantically trying to stay alive while getting swarmed by an angry horde of gigantic spiderants, chances are you won't care much about that other stuff.

As complex, over-stuffed, top-heavy game of football that EA has been producing since this console generation gained its bearings. That is either a thing you want, or a thing you don't. Madden 11 won't change any minds yet, but at the very least, it's a big step in the right direction.

This sequel offers plenty of reasons to revisit the world of assassination, whether you're an experienced hitman or just trying out the fiber wire for the first time.

The glitchy technical issues appear across the board in every version of the game. In that, Fallout 4 is universal. As such, a big part of deciding if you want to play Fallout 4 becomes a personal inventory of your desire to either revel in these glitches or your patience at dealing with them, should they appear. As someone who has really appreciated this line of games in both its Fallout and Elder Scrolls flavors, Fallout 4 was still harder to swallow than I initially suspected it would be. It's another one of those games, for better and for worse.

For the second year in a row, Madden makes smart, interesting changes that genuinely improve the experience.

Everything about New Super Mario Bros. U is pretty exciting, except the game itself. Is it possible that this is the best game in the "New" series to date--not to mention one of the best exclusive Wii U games on the market, by default--and at the same time kind of flatly uninteresting? Apparently so. The game is perfectly well made for what it is, and I had plenty of fun playing it in short bursts here and there, but at this point the series' by-the-numbers design philosophy is starting to lend the name "New Super Mario Bros." a degree of unintentional irony.

Feels like a genuine step up from its impressive predecessor. Everything about the game is better in only an incremental way, leading to the occasional feeling of excessive familiarity. But then, Trine was already so good that it's hard to argue with more of the same great game, right?

If you're looking for a game you can play alone, UFC 2009 Undisputed will probably get pretty boring for you. Even with multiple difficulty settings, fighting the AI doesn't stay exciting for very long. But if you're in a household with multiple UFC fans or enjoy getting online, you'll love it.

It's hard not to wish there was just more of Child of Eden to experience.

Its weird, half-hearted political gestures aside, Vanquish is the kind of video game that reminds you that these are video games. Perhaps more than any quality, video games allow for visceral thrills unfettered by the real-world logistics of physics and general plausibility. Sometimes a game just needs to look cool and make you feel like a space-age badass, and Vanquish accomplishes both with vigor.

Its weird, half-hearted political gestures aside, Vanquish is the kind of video game that reminds you that these are video games. Perhaps more than any quality, video games allow for visceral thrills unfettered by the real-world logistics of physics and general plausibility. Sometimes a game just needs to look cool and make you feel like a space-age badass, and Vanquish accomplishes both with vigor.

After being really down on Bulletstorm for the first couple of hours, I was pleasantly shocked to see how well it started coming together once I started getting better at using the different weapons and once the story started moving at a faster pace.

Picross 3D gets hard. But it never feels impossible, and it's the sort of game that causes afternoons to simply vanish. If you're looking to do a little time-traveling, Picross 3D is a great way to do it.

An intense, replayable multiplayer shooter that's fully worthy of both the Battlefield name and the price of entry.

A smart, original evolution of the previous game's concepts with plenty of new things to see and do, from its new protagonist to its faster combat and engaging loot system.

It's a game whose many elements speak with one voice to address a subject and tell a story that has the potential to deeply touch those who identify firsthand with its themes, and if this game doesn't leave you feeling more civilized and empathetic toward those themes by the end of it, it's hard to imagine the game that can.

For those who just like the idea of a game in which sailing and stabbing exist in harmony across a vast ocean of entertaining objectives, Black Flag most definitely delivers the goods.

Halo 3: ODST fills in a few interesting spots in the Halo timeline, even if the characters themselves aren't strong enough to carry the narrative. But it strikes a healthy balance between new twists and more content done in Bungie's trademark style. The more important thing is that if you've enjoyed playing Bungie's Halo games in the past, chances are you'll continue to enjoy that style in ODST.

Pure looks great and runs fast. You'll get a good sense of speed on the ground and you'll get to see enough of the surrounding environment to make those huge jumps look positively majestic. The rider animations are perhaps a bit stiff, and the crashes are cut so short that they start to look a little weird, but overall, it looks terrific.

I played it start to finish in three sittings, have played it extensively in other capacities while working on this review, and still can't wait to go back and play through it again cooperatively on higher difficulties to open up more of its goodies. If that's not the definition of a fine action game, I don't know what is.

It's only at its peak when you're sitting next to another player, locally engaging in SFXT's brand of tag battles. Online, I found it to be a bit of a mess, and the game's attempts at meaningful character customization fall victim to layers and layers of slow-moving menus and a bundle of additional content that only serves to further confuse the issue.

Adam Jensen's return is largely successful, even if the conspiracy surrounding him could've been a little more engaging.

It's got its share of flaws, but overall Treyarch has assembled a great, fast, and fun first-person shooter that, even if you were thinking about finally skipping a year, is still worth your time.

If you honestly care about the universe and its characters, you'll probably take what you can get in whatever format you can get your hands on, but at times this story feels like it'd be better suited for a short manga series than a video game.