While there are definite areas where Nintendo could improve on Super Smash Bros. in an inevitable sequel, this is the most feature-complete, compelling Super Smash Bros. entry to date. It stands right alongside Fire Emblem: Awakening and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds as a game that every 3DS owner should play.

Fans of the comic should feel a deep resonance with Episode 4, as it channels aspects of the early story directly, in the way the group explores the house, a la the Wiltshire Estates, and the inclusion of the self-obsessed, Governor-like figure briefly mentioned in the middle of the game.

Double Dragon Neon is a fantastic game, one that's carried on a simple premise: it's fun to punch stuff.

Borderlands 2 is full of memorable moments and silly, crass folks – and if those silly, crass folks happen to be your friends, it's easily one of the best co-op experiences out there, and one of the best games I've played all year.

It's a whole-brain game with minimal controls, and it's the most fun I've had with a bow and arrow since The Year Of The Bow – or even the 1980s.

This is a formula that just works.

Like Costume Quest and Stacked before it, Trenched is one of those downloadable games that almost makes you feel like you're getting away with robbery for paying $15 for it rather than full retail price.

Moment to moment, it outshines just about every other game on the market, and while it doesn't exactly break the action-adventure mold, it fills it with such practiced substance that you don't really mind the familiarity of its shape.

This is a beacon, a fine reminder that if you have talented people and a little respect for your audience, great storytelling in games can be not only possible but profound.

Even without any hope of using the multiplayer, Dragon Quest IX is so upbeat, goofy, and, well, pleasant that I can only smile. It's the kind of game you can play as a vacation from other games.

It's easy to forgive the things that Gravity Rush gets wrong because of the absolutely basic thing it gets spectacularly, brilliantly right: movement. You might have guessed already, but I found flying around wildly to be fun in itself.

With its simple mechanics and unforgiving difficulty, Crashmo is the new standard bearer for Nintendo's legacy of excellent handheld puzzle games.

It's because Capcom had the good sense to leave well enough alone, however, that Online Edition is the best Third Strike there's ever been. And, as we all know, the third strike is what counts.

I've come to a conclusion: Bulletstorm wasn't so much developed as it was raised on human growth hormones and taught the English language by a group of sailors and truck drivers. It was also shown every '80s action and sci-fi movie ever made about a dozen times, given a bottle of whiskey, handed a gun and instructed to shoot anything that moves.

The experience of a game so elegantly, artfully designed in both mechanics and visuals is something that will stay with me, even if the plot wasn't totally coherent.

A singular experience, at times strange, astonishing and even bewildering, but always captivating. The mystery will keep you going, but what the game does best is surprise. The Vanishing of Ethan Carter has a great story to tell, even if it's not the one you were expecting.

The few complaints I've aimed at Castlevania: Lords of Shadow can't withstand its engaging combat and unapologetic march through danger.

It's a digestible version of football that even the biggest sports cynic can enjoy. And, in the unlikely event you don't have a good time, the typical game only lasts around 15 minutes, so your stint in hell is at least guaranteed to be brief.

THQ and Yuke's bring the sport to life, and it says something about their efforts when the worst aspects of their product are minuscule in comparison to its overall value. UFC 3 makes it easy to get wrapped up in the tactical strategy of MMA fighting while maintaining the pace and difficulty at a challenging level.

Modern Warfare 3's multiplayer is some of the series' strongest, and the co-op offerings have been expanded tenfold. But the campaign will leave you yearning, wishing that the characters were differentiated by more than thick accents, or that the gameplay tried something more than aim, shoot, take cover, reload, rinse and repeat.

The level of synergy between Career and multiplayer feels precise and balanced; one constantly bolsters the other, yet neither take priority or feel parasitic. It's an equalized, symbiotic relationship that neither hampers nor enables, and players that prefer one over the other need not worry over missing out.

Successfully executing plays in its more complicated control system, especially in trapping and dynamic one-two passing, does feel appropriately rewarding. There's definitely an appeal to the more challenging game in Pro Evolution Soccer 2013, and I happily encourage players to give it a shot.

Despite its small annoyances and ancillary shortcomings, King of Fighters XIII is hands down the best, most polished and solidly constructed King of Fighters game there's ever been.

Medal of Honor's campaign is an exceptional experience, but the total package simply doesn't beat Call of Duty...But at least EA's getting closer.

Even as a one-off experience, though, Leo's Fortune is an excellent platformer. The thumb-sliding controls fit tablet play perfectly, and the clever, gorgeous design is evident throughout. It's neither lengthy nor terribly challenging, but these complaints are outweighed by the joy of sliding through each beautiful level.

Every bit as fun as Earth Defense Force 2017 was, and it's a great improvement over Insect Armageddon. Though its rehashed content disappoints initially, EDF 2025 emerges as the best in the series in its latter half, delivering freakish new enemies, over-the-top weaponry and a solid and expansive multiplayer experience.

Adults who have a fondness for Disney will get the most out of Disney Infinity, thanks to its expansive Toy Box mode, and the Play Sets will provide hours of entertainment for kids who have prior experience with platformers.

Payday 2 proves that you can't plan for everything. No two jobs, despite being of similar set-up, go down in the same way – and without the help of few friends, you'll never survive long enough to reach that tropical paradise.