Its giddy, family-friendly spirit makes Kinect Party a perfect game for adults and kids alike - though not necessarily in groups of five or six, where the game feels crowded and players may end up vying for screenspace and floorspace, even in a large, Kinect-ready room.

An outrageously slight, unattractive, and ill-refined tribute to a franchise that deserves better.

The F1 license ultimately adds little value to a style-over-substance kiddie racer where luck often trumps driving skill.

Oddly, what doesn't come into play so much is the series' unique new feature - the heart-rate monitoring done by the optional new Top Shot Fearmaster.

Think of Karaoke as a backup for a night at the pub with rowdy pals; serious singers won't find much satisfaction here.

The jokes alone make flaming skags worth weathering.

Both games are perfect reproductions that add Live co-op. Sadly, though, their record-scratching soundtracks and exaggerated early-'90s urban culture have aged as well as an MC Hammer lunchbox.

There's a gentle magic in Giants' cunning formula, but it's a spell that collectible-minded gamers of all ages will find incredibly hard to resist.

In the rare instances that frantic limb-flailing does land your lasso around a calf's neck, the rewards are minimal and unsatisfying: success in the barely-there campaign only unlocks variations on the same boring events in new venues.

Dragonborn gives players plenty more of what they loved about Skyrim, and is worth buying for that fact alone, but it could've and should've been so much more.

Despite the off-tone retelling, though, Lego Lord of the Rings succeeds in being the most authentic and complete LOTR videogame to date.

With just one map for each lane approach (split between two play styles), Guardians' limited scope left us itching for just a bit more variety. But the game rewards obsessive, repeated play with extensive tactical depth, making such a streamlined approach remarkably effective.

Omega has little narrative impact on the main game. Omega has snatches of rich backstory, but it's a limited, pricey thrill aimed only at the series' most devoted fans.

The biggest bummer for retro enthusiasts is this package's complete lack of special features.

You'll just need some patience and a love of the sport to value it properly.

It's a limited, simplistic experience, but still an enjoyable one for old-school shooter fans. [Jan 2013, p.83]

To its credit, Home Run Stars swings for the fences at every opportunity and clears the wall as often as it completely whiffs. At the very least, it's a cheap, interesting experiment in trial and error.

The routines here are fun when you know them, but getting there is more of a struggle than it should be - and unfortunately, that slows this dancer's roll.

Warlords is feel-good nostalgic fun, especially played against other humans - though it's missing one key ingredient: those spinner paddle controllers that let you block with fast, pinpoint accuracy in the game's original Atari 2600 version. That rush is something an analog stick just can't replicate.

Don't let an uninspired online experience keep you from Far Cry 3, though. You'll have to go it alone to see all its wild thrills, but those unique situations and over-the-top conflagrations are undoubtedly worth some lonely time spent tramping through the jungle.

As good as the comic is, and as exciting as the TV show's third season has been, this vision of Robert Kirkman's zombie opus will always be our one, true, definitive version.

Does Sonic's latest racing romp transform the genre? Not really. But it is an enjoyable mishmash of many elements, and a delightful treat that does much more with the Mario Kart template than even Mario Kart itself has managed to do in a long time.

Absolution has the pacing and exotic set-piece locations of a James Bond film, which seems appropriate given that 47 is essentially Bond stripped of his smirk, gadgets, and vices.

It's one of those perfectly imperfect games you'll grow to love, even with its annoyances.

Not being able to save during missions is a pain, as a single poorly tossed grenade or unseen enemy tank might cripple your crew. But find your sweet spot among the five difficulty levels, and suddenly ambushes and rolling heavy artillery feel like reasonably fun challenges instead of backbreakers.

Call of Duty's three-pronged attack serves it well in Black Ops II, with the superb online play and Zombies co-op making up for a less-essential campaign this time - though its many changes and occasional high points still warrant a playthrough (or two) to see Treyarch's spin on the well-worn template.

The super-basic matchmaking and sometimes-laggy online play are also disappointing, especially coming from the developer that brought us BlazBlue's superb netcode. Ultimately, this game's a good value; just be prepared to do a lot of your own research if you want to grow beyond a rudimentary level - and get local buddies to do the same if you want competition.

The game's biggest issue, however, is still iffy core gameplay. Compared to Mark of the Ninja and Dishonored, which let you perform greater acts of stealth against enemies that react more naturally, Panic's fodder is a bit too brain-dead and the stages don't make kills as rewarding.