Weaving a complicated tale of murder, industrial espionage, and corporate corruption, its story doesn't always make sense, but it sure is exciting.

One of the best standalone stories in the game.

This one's short but fun, with a few memorable interrogations, an unusually lighthearted tone (for Noire, anyway), and a notable appearance by character actor Kurt Fuller as a faintly sleazy used-car dealer.

Deadliest Warrior's violent contests are mainly good only for amusement, as the shallow play mechanics and repetitive battles offer more laughs than longevity.

Unfortunately, the lack of intuitive physics is the real killer.

Fruit Ninja's amazingly simple gameplay is strictly designed to be taken in small, party-based doses - nothing more, nothing less. And for $10, we were kind of hoping for more.

It's sloppy, boring, and inauthentic.

You may tire of the basic gimmick before you're skilled enough to succeed on elaborate, brutally competitive four-player online maps, but Half-Minute Hero's charms still last a surprisingly long time.

Legacy is a bit overpriced for its shallow, brief amount of content, but whether it's worth the money ultimately depends on your interest in the game's expanded universe.

The game still falls far short of modern shooters, and the boss battles often fail to add new gameplay tactics to the mix. But when the game rises to the occasion - like during the battle against giants, and in a sniping section set on a bridge - it's a fine conclusion to the franchise.

Though Dead Block's zombie combat would benefit from easier targeting, its rockabilly music, amusing characters (zombie clowns, anyone?) and manic pacing more than compensate. The campy madness only gets better in split-screen co-op, so not having online multiplayer is a shame, but for hectic puzzle-action fun, this game delivers.

It's sad to see an under-the-radar favorite tank so spectacularly in an attempt to revitalize the brand, but Cartel is one call you can clearly push to voicemail.

Super Soldier never hits with as much force as Arkham Asylum, but for superhero fans, it's a worthy adventure.

It's a genuinely great football game, but this edition delivers the kind of small-scale updates that only a paints-his-chest-and-face-on-Saturdays fan could love.

But mostly you'll just grind through wave after mildly entertaining wave, and wonder why hardly anyone drops any desirable equipment. [Sept 2011, p.85]

From Dust's malleable world is intoxicating to wield power over, even if your control feels more like work than actual fun at times. Juggling resources and racing against the cycles of nature isn't for everyone. Though stages grow progressively harder, the game doesn't really have a climax to break up its even-keeled rhythm, making it less of a thundering ride and more of a blissfully Zen, workman-like process.

Between the stages' constantly changing art style, the strange story, the unforgettable cast, and the novel take on action combat, this game is definitely worth checking out for people seeking something new. [Sept 2011, p.74]

It's a dense, intelligent game, and we felt smart for having finish[ed] it. [Sept 2011, p.78]

Sound bizarre? Well, it is. Yet the madness is spellbinding - if you have the stomach to survive Catherine's grueling tower-puzzle scenarios.

Though we found ourselves wishing the gameplay and story had just a little more depth and variety, the game's definitely captivating. Carefully crafted and full of charm, Bastion is irresistible.

We'd have appreciated a thicker campaign, more visually diverse missions, and especially the option to play co-op over Xbox Live, but as-is, this hors d'oeuvre is still an entertaining treat.

A veritable clinic on how to enhance your game for a follow-up. Most of Splosion Man's niggling issues have been replaced with a dizzying grab bag of interesting and compelling design choices. Well done, guys.

If you're looking for tactical depth, environmental variety, or anything resembling a story, you'll be left wanting. But if you're in the mood for a blissfully mindless fire-and-forget shooting gallery, you could do a whole lot worse.

High Moon clearly did all they could, but ultimately, Dark of the Moon is a small package with too much filler to be worth more than a rental. Though we're betting it's still better than the film it's based on.

But it's certainly easier to grit your teeth through some frustration when almost every level has an intriguing new wrinkle.

It's a bit muddled, but the action is positively debilitating.

In short, there's little to distinguish Green Lantern besides its top-notch production values (polished combat, vivid graphics, good voiceovers), two-player co-op where a buddy plays as fellow GL Thaal Sinestro, and support for both stereoscopic and anaglyph 3D.

An entertaining experience in short bursts - assuming you can overlook the occasional misstep.