With slick and fast-paced battles, a more adult take on the traditional Pokémon concepts and an entirely new roster of characters, Pokémon Black & White is as close to a "reboot" as the franchise has ever seen, but it doesn't reinvent what doesn't need reinventing.

Rayman Origins is a beautiful looking platformer with a wide variety of levels, but is marred slightly by a handful of pacing issues.

Spelunky is a demanding platformer that manages to be both progressive and nostalgic at the same time. The enjoyment you'll get out of the title is limited only by your tolerance for frustration.

Lumines Arise is a meticulously crafted musical with a confident, rhythm-driven twist on the classic Tetris puzzle formula. The new Burst mechanic adds an explosive touch and extra layer of tactical depth that feels fresh without being overcentralizing. The campaign length is satisfying, and the multiplayer offerings will keep players coming back for more. While the visuals are vibrant and immersive, some themed backgrounds make it difficult to distinguish the blocks, slightly undermining an otherwise engaging and stylish puzzle game. Still, Hydelic and Ishida’s soundtrack delivers a hypnotic experience unlike any other.

Europa Universalis IV is a well-constructed simulation of what it's like to bring through the colonial era. For history buffs and strategy grognards, EU4 delivers an excellent update to a storied franchise, but it may be hard for new players to penetrate its esoteric systems.

The port to consoles definitely opens up the world of Sanctuary to a wider audience, with only minor impediments to enjoying the game. Without the Auction House, you'll have to trade with your friends, like the glory days of Diablo II, which should be a welcome change to many gamers.

Disappointing ending aside, Dispatch really is a gem of a game, and the fact that it came out of nowhere and grabbed the attention of fans the way it did is even more impressive. Few games manage to merge gameplay and story as well as this, and even if Dispatch Season 2 is a long way off, there’s still a ton of potential for this setting in the meantime.

The ending may not be the best thing ever, but it can't tarnish the incredible enjoyment you'll get out of Pikmin 3. This is probably the best game yet on Wii U.

After two hours with the game, Hi-Fi Rush has immediately left a really great first impression. While some of this may be due to my own personal nostalgia and Xbox’s unique release structure, there’s such a strong sense of voice and style throughout every aspect of the game, right down to Chai’s clean character design that feels like Marty McFly crossed with Joe Musashi’s flowing scarf. By the time I got to the first boss fight, which was set to the beat of “1,000,000” by Nine Inch Nails, I was sold. I know we’re only a month into the new year, but I think we already have a contender for best surprise of 2023. [Early Impressions]

Warlords of Draenor provides a new look and feel to an old franchise. It may disappoint some of the hardcore in its apparent simplicity, but for the regular and new players, this expansion shows a lot of what made the game so appealing when it launched 10 years ago.

Whether or not players find other changes displeasing, such as the new dialogue system and its limitations, is likely going to depend on their personal relationship with the Fallout series. Newer players will probably never know what they're missing and are likely to have a fantastic time, while fans who have stuck around may be disappointed with the direction Fallout 4 takes.

Cult of the Lamb: Woolhaven is a brilliant expansion on an already solid game. The amount of new content it adds is impressive, providing plenty for both players who enjoy combat and those who prefer the base-building elements of the game. If you enjoyed the original game, it’s well worth your time. Join us on the mountain.

One of those games that you'll play simply because it makes you feel so good. It's also challenging and clever, with well done co-operative play and even a great soundtrack. There's no downside to this game.

A fantastic game, keeping up the series' tradition of giving players a wide open world and the tools to go absolutely bonkers within it. It's hilarious, it's action-packed, and most of all, its fun to play.

A beautiful, charming, humbling, and difficult experience that's a good fit for shoot 'em up fans, but perhaps strange and unwelcoming to newcomers.

This game preaches to the choir - the hunting faithful will love it, everyone else, maybe not.

No, this game is far from the "revolution" that excited critics have eagerly claimed it to be, but it is a wonderful little example of how fresh a standard shooter can feel when you pour all sorts of extra garnish over a solid foundation.

This is the Tomb Raider you've wanted for years. It needs a few more puzzles, but that's a small gripe when cast against such a marvelous adventure.

In the end, even with just the three starting classes and nothing else unlocked, the game is a lot of fun and still completely free. It's worth checking out for both old fans and those of you who don't know what a Spinfusor is.

Extremely funny and surprisingly poignant, Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep is the Borderlands 2 magnum opus.

Gears of War 4 is the best Gears yet. Don't expect a revolution, but a refinement of all of the aspects that make Gears great, including an over-the-top, almost cartoonish campaign, and a kick-ass upgrade of Horde mode. It's also a flawless representative of Microsoft's new "Play Anywhere" and Universal Windows Platform initiatives.

Nioh 3 was a treat to explore as a fan of Soulslike games with well-developed worlds. Whether you’re a fan of the series or a Soulslike lover looking for a new title to rip through, chances are you’ll get a kick out of this title.

Some of the narrative elements are weaker this time around, but longtime fans will appreciate seeing character arcs begin to wrap up as the game moves to its conclusion in Legacy of the Void. Those looking exclusively for multiplayer will enjoy how the small differences change the game dynamics and strategies, though $40 might be a bit steep for just a few units if you're not actively invested in the ranked format.

Mortal Kombat finally gets over its overwrought heritage and laughs along with us. It's a great fighting game, stuffed with things to do.

Frequent out-of-game loading times and occasionally (but not often) repeated announcer commentary are the drawbacks, but everything else is as solid and refined as you expect from a major EA Sports title.

I’ll have more thoughts in the coming days, but for now, Arc Raiders is some of the most fun I’ve had in a video game all year.

The combat in Devil May Cry gets to be repetitive when you play for too long in one sitting, but the missions are well designed for playing in short bursts and picking it back up later.

Professor Layton and the Unwound Future is a brain-twisting delight. Show up for the clever puzzles, stick around for the gorgeous visuals and quirky minigames.

The Silent Hill series has always been spectacular, but its latest entry, Silent Hill f, propels it to new heights. This blood-soaked fever dream combines exquisite survival horror with a gripping narrative, making for an unforgettable experience. It performs brilliantly, looks gorgeous, and has a gut-wrenching story. What more could you want?

Bastion is an intriguing and eclectic action-heavy RPG with great audio and visuals, and it mixes some interesting mechanics with tried and true gameplay. $15 might be a little steep for some gamers, but this is a game you ought to play, particularly if you care about replayability.

Great controls, nicely varied (and genuinely challenging) goals, a good sense of humor and cartoonish physics make Joe Danger a real treat to play.

Pony Island is an incredibly clever puzzle-horror game that manages to immerse you in a screwed up world of ponies, code, and demonic machinations.

Brilliant gunplay, and a classic character make for an exhilarating experience, but much of the narrative style distracts more than aids the final package.

Resident Evil 7 is in your face, behind your back, and under your skin horror, and it features the most suspenseful, terrifying setting I've seen since the Spencer Mansion. While I have plenty of complaints - unspectacular boss fights and forgettable puzzles - none of these things detracts from the overall atmospheric horror, enjoyable gameplay, and brilliant antagonists that you love to hate. It's everything the series should have been up to this point, and I honestly would have been satisfied with less.

Despite the feelings of deja vu sprinkled throughout the 10-12 hour campaign and the flawed crafting system, Rise of the Tomb Raider is still a hell of a roller coaster ride, featuring fantastic gunplay, exceedingly clever puzzles, and a breathtaking world to explore. It may not rise above its 2013 predecessor, but it certainly meets it in the upper echelon of the third person shooter genre.

Steamworld Heist is an absorbing world wrapped around a decent game whose technical bits take away from a stellar personality.

Enemy Within is a solid expansion to an excellent game, with options like MECs, medals and gene mods that make you want to stomp aliens all over again in exciting new ways. The first two thirds of the campaign are definitely improved, but EW doesn't solve the problem of slogging through the endgame.

It's a fantastic little platformer that looks great, plays well, doesn't talk down to you and utilizes the strengths of the system to their full effect. This is a game that really "gets" the essence of the 3DS, and understands that a good 3DS game means so much more than just using the 3D effect.

Heroes is perhaps the most accessible MOBA ever created - which can either be a good or bad thing for you. Regardless, you're getting Blizzard-level production values - at Blizzard prices, if you choose to spend money. For what it is, Heroes is a great game with some room for improvement. Whether "what it is" appeals to you or not is a matter of personal preference.

Persona 4 Arena is a solid, accessible entry point for both fighting games and the Persona series without disappointing hardcore fans of either.

Conviction is the best installment in the series. The developers took some major risks in design and presentation that paid off, resulting in a game that's at once approachable and complex, and arguably the current last word in stealth adventure.

The feeling of accomplishment from solving The Talos Principle's puzzles is almost like a high, and the game does a mostly great job of guiding you in the beginning and then letting you figure things out for yourself. Some hiccups near the end drastically change the pace of problem solving for the worse, but it's a game that will seriously challenge you to think and to reason.

The finest city builder in over a decade, Cities: Skylines's few flaws are so minor I only noticed them after hours of enjoyment.

What Ni no Kuni lacks in finesse it more than makes up for in quantity and packaging - there's tons to do and every single moment in the game is a visual delight. It can be extremely frustrating and makes some choices that don't quite work, but offers enough charm to ultimately win you over.

Wasteland 3 succeeds on its narrative, choice system, strong characters, and compelling factions. It stumbles in its lifeless world, inconsistent presentation, familiar gameplay, and technical side – it often feels like a snow-themed reskin of Wasteland 2, with many of that title’s limitations and janky systems. Nonetheless, designer Brian Fargo has here made the best post-apocalyptic RPG since Fallout: New Vegas. It’s just not as good as the one he made 23 years ago with Fallout.

BioWare has created a role-playing game which feels like a massive monument to our culture. Inquisition is an absolute blast to experience for one hour or 150.

13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is absolutely wonderful all around. Each of the 13 protagonists gets relatively equal screen time, and they’re all brought to life by both the great English and Japanese voice tracks. You’re sure to have your favorites, but it’s incredibly satisfying to see how each of their stories intersects through time and space and coalesces into the battle for mankind against the alien invaders. This is one adventure you simply don’t want to miss.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is sensational, offering both fully realized single player and co-op experiences. It's gorgeous, clever, and a brilliant new vision for the franchise.

Bravely Default is a joy to play for old school JRPG fans. The music, graphics and mechanics all blend together perfectly and it continues in a already strong lineup of RPGs on the 3DS. This little handheld is becoming quite the powerhouse for these kind of games.

The core gameplay of Arkham Knight is nearly flawless, and most players won't even notice my problems with story or dialogue.

Though there aren't that many new characters, they're a worthy addition to the lineup. Many of the new ideas and modes outside of the core gameplay fall flat - Tutorial is a great idea with some presentation issues - but the refinements to the combat ensure that BlazBlue is the slickest hyper-kinetic 2D fighter this side of Marvel vs. Capcom 3. And yes, the music is still awesome.

With its retro-style visuals and surreal story, Hotline Miami is a brutally challenging but engaging 2-D shooter that'll have you coming back for just one more mission.

By virtue of its smaller scale, Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a tighter, better designed package. It might not boast as many hours of content, but what it has is far more worth your time. If you felt the original Marvel’s Spider-Man was a bit average or too bloated with open-world gaming cliches, Miles Morales might just be what you’re looking for.

South Park: The Stick of Truth could stand alone as an extended episode of the show. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing depends on how funny you think Trey Parker and Matt Stone are. For fans of the show, this is a seriously impressive game.

While designed for your pocket, Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS does not skimp on the features. A full-fledged Smash game, packed with stuff to discover, and boasting a roster of familiar and thoroughly inventive new characters, this is a beautiful fighting game than everyone can enjoy. Just a shame that the online isn't that hot.

A fun action platformer that remains incredibly frustrating by taking a few too many cues from Castlevania's jerkiest moments, Shovel Knight is satisfying and infuriating in equal measure. It's also a damn fine callback to the days of yore in a world where callbacks are a dime a dozen, and rarely this well done.

A fantastic fighting game, full of flashy moves, fast action, and heaps of sincerity for the franchises and the genre as a whole. It's approachable enough for newcomers and deep enough for hardcore fans but it doesn't help the new guys out enough.

Frozen Synapse is an amazing refinement of the tactical strategy genre. It's both approachable for those new to the genre and deep enough to keep you coming back.

An amazing introduction to the Fables setting, the first episode of The Wolf Among Us absorbs you fully into the character of Bigby Wolf through excellent writing and forcing the player to make engaging choices.

A refreshingly upbeat platformer that puts silliness and fun above all else. The gameplay is easy to grasp for platforming veterans, while the massive amount of content and alternate game modes ensure you'll be entertained for hours. You also may never look at your cat quite the same way again.

The sweeping changes to the Civilization V ruleset are both refreshing and familiar. Each of the updates feels like a logical evolution and are seamlessly integrated with the existing systems. Brave New World feels like Civ V Complete.

I encountered a few small rough edges during my review sessions, though, like a graphical element flickering and a small typo/grammatical error in a dialogue pop-up box. These weren’t major issues and didn’t hinder my enjoyment overall, but they were noticeable...Outside of this, Europa Universalis V was a delight to explore. It felt detailed and vibrant, and while it took me a while to pick up the game mechanics, the process of learning the game felt rewarding. Fans of grand strategy games looking for a new addition to their library will get a kick out of this title.

Chime Sharp is an incredibly simple game, just like the original, but the dynamic soundtrack and mesmerizing gameplay makes for an exceptional experience.

An impressive port that, while needing to jury rig one or two things, does a most admirable job of putting Terraria in your pocket.

Tomb Raider is a terrific game, and the Definitive Edition is a gorgeous looking version of it. It's the same game it was in 2013, though, with no further improvements justifying its "definitive" status.

Doom manages to challenge the conventions of the first-person shooter genre by going back to its roots. It will have you breathing heavily, cursing in frustration, and screaming in triumph. The multiplayer is a bit of a letdown, but the campaign is absolutely glorious.

BioWare lived up to its promises to make story really matter in an MMO context with The Old Republic. Here, your characters are so much more than just avatars with stats.

Combining an outstanding setting, tremendous visuals, and an open-ended play style, Crysis 2 is the whole package. Small problems with the story and some minor design annoyances don't get in the way of an otherwise amazing experience.

Overall, I really like Two Point Museum, and the game falls somewhere between Campus and Hospital for me. Museum fixes the pacing problems that made Campus often feel like a slog, while not falling into the micromanagement trap of the late game portion of Hospital. At the same time, the game can still be tedious at times, and I do wish there were more levels. Not every part of the title clicks perfectly, but Two Point Museum is a fun, charming game that I absolutely recommend to lovers of management sims. [Recommended]

As an open world game set in Middle-earth, Shadow of Mordor delivers unique emergent gameplay, finely-tuned combat mechanics and a story which avoids typical fantasy fare. While the main storyline can be finished relatively quickly, there is a lot of content in Mordor for you to pursue however you like.

It might take a while to figure out how its various mechanics work and its pacing may be too slow for some, but PlanetSide 2 is a solid shooter that does a very good job of merging the social aspects of an MMO with the action-heavy game play of an FPS.

A strong entry for franchise fans, and runs fluently on PC to give the expressive anime visual style the opportunity to show off its fullest potential.

The user-generated levels seem to promise nigh on infinite content, but the interplay between music and design that the best Sound Shapes levels achieve is a difficult thing to master.

This is a brutal hybrid of Metroidvania and action RPG that will beat players down and have them coming back for more. Though it doesn't stray far from its inspiration, Salt and Sanctuary is a finely-crafted tribute to From Software's work and is absolutely dripping with the signature cartoon aesthetic and punk rock style fans of Ska Studios have come to know and love.

Battlefield 3's multiplayer continues to excel at providing a FPS experience beyond just shooting each other with handguns. The single-player barely holds up.

For some reason, there is something uniquely satisfying about felling a great beast and wearing his skin in triumph.

Assassin's Creed III lets you jump into an intriguing point in history, and it succeeds on nearly every level with nimble combat, fun diversions and the chance to captain your own ship. Connor might not be an altogether likeable hero, but the New World he's fighting to protect is one you won't forget.

Outland will put your skills to the test, but strikes a pleasant balance between frustration and triumph. It's not the easiest game in the world, but the effort it takes to master is well worth it.

It's a shame that Halo 5's story is disappointing, because nearly everything else surrounding it is fantastic. The friendly AI definitely needs work, and there are a few too many enemy types that need to be attacked from behind in order to damage, but the level design is some of the best the series has ever seen, and the new abilities the player can use dramatically improve both the campaign and multiplayer. Throw in the robust Breakout and Warzone multiplayer modes and I think it's safe to say that you could find yourself wrapped in Halo 5 for quite some time.

Since nearly all the various trinkets and relics and map markers have meaningful purpose, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is a rare open-world game where virtually every activity feels worth doing. Like Eivor scaling the snow-covered mountains of Norway, Valhalla achieves new heights for the RPG era of Assassin’s Creed, and I’ve never been more excited to see where the series goes next.

Absolute brilliance that falls just short of perfection. Guacamelee! is the best Metroidvania since Cave Story.

Darkest Dungeon will kill your party, drive you insane, and leave you a gibbering mess at the Sanitarium. Yet it's so compelling and rewarding at the same time, you won't be able to resist diving back in for one more quest.

Enter the Gungeon is an exhilarating experience, but the difficulty often comes from the game refusing to provide you the necessary tools, which offers its own unique challenges.

It's so enthralling that I was crushed when I reached the end of Episode 2 and realized that I couldn't continue with the story yet.

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is a thrilling, suspenseful game that holds a mirror up to our own world without losing track of its own. Action, puzzles, a fantastical setting, and a compelling story merge together in a world where conspiracies are real, you can't trust the media, and a razor thin line separates your allies from your enemies.

The generally short length of the campaign (5-10 hours) will leave some consumers wanting more for their 60 bucks but the beautiful graphics and balanced multiplayer will be enough to keep most pining for Killzone 4.

As a course correction to an aging series, Soulcalibur VI is unimpeachable. More significantly, as a fighting game with a singular identity, this game could shed its name entirely and impress on its own merits. The game world is enveloping, full of posh art and luxurious conflict that evokes a waltz more than a brawl. The soul, against all odds, still burns.

Hyper Light Drifter is a breathtaking game that draws heavily from gaming's most prominent pioneers without relying too heavily on their influence. It is an eclectic masterpiece that feels more like an experience than a video game.

Bulletstorm is the evolutionary "next step" for first-person shooters that makes up for its jerk-off story by adding plenty of new wrinkles to a heretofore tired genre. This is a game that will be remembered for years to come (for a few reasons).

It's disappointing to see such an otherwise brilliant and polished game suffer from years-old bugs, and unfortunately our review score for the game has to reflect that.

I played Xenoblade Chronicles X for about 70 hours and didn't finish it, happily alternating between short sessions and long binges. It's one of the most accessible JRPGs I've ever played, combining some of my favorite parts of games like Monster Hunter with a wonderful world to explore and a lot amount of content to consume. I say consume because a lot of that content is, in the end, repetitive - or tiring because of limiting mechanics. Despite that it's a fun game, intensely satisfying to succeed at, and stands alone as a superb entry in the pseudo-series that started with Xenoblade Chronicles. An engaging world with interesting things in it, I expect I'll get another 40 hours out of this game just exploring, seeing the sights, flying my mech, experiencing the story, and picking fights with random monsters. Just to see what happens.

Resogun's pretty graphics and sometimes excessive effects make it look like a tech demo, but its refined action and subtle intricacies quickly put such notions to death. This is a thrilling and challenging shooter that just so happens to demo the tech quite well!

SOMA is a worthy successor to Amnesia: The Dark Descent, and sits among the best video game stories of 2015.

Steelport is a glorious sandbox with fun around every corner and the well-written story and easy-to-use design make Saints Row 3 a fantastic package.

Metro Redux revitalizes the original Metro 2033 in a smart way, offering a choice between the original experience and something more welcoming to newcomers. With the inclusion of Last Light, this is a two-hit punch of some damn fine FPS bleakness.

I went into this game as a skeptic. Madden NFL 11 made me a believer.

It’s hard to recommend this Kollection to anyone other than those who’ve adored Mortal Kombat since its early years, as when compared to the more modern entries, retro remasters of MK1, 2, 3 and 4 simply aren’t going to measure up. So much content will feel redundant, too. This is not to say that any of it is bad, it’s just a compilation that only the most committed Mortal Kombat fans will truly appreciate.

Just as Abe's Oddysee was a classic of the PlayStation era, so too should Oddworld: New n' Tasty be a classic of the modern age. More than just a remake, this is a contemporary puzzle-platformer that charms, exasperates, and delights. This is how you do a reboot.