Reckoning surprised me with its energetic combat, rich story, and dazzling visual style. The weight of all its parts threatens to pull it down, but the rigid skeleton holds strong.

Overall the game is a pleasure to play, a breezy RPG packed with beauty and charm that will bring older players back to the series’ beginning while recruiting a new generation that will ensure Pokemon’s future. So much of my favorite childhood media just doesn’t hold up to my modern tastes and I have no real interest in using some form of emulator to relive the original Pokemon Red/Blue’s archaic gameplay. Let’s Go brings back the warm memories and blends them with a satisfying new experience.

With plenty of missions, new enemies, new weapons, minor enhancements and lost of things that go boom, Crackdown 2 offers hours of satisfying, brainless fun for those who enjoy that sort of thing. Newcomers to the series and die-hard fans alike will find plenty to obsess over.

If you happen to be the one person in the world who has never played Bejeweled, this is a great place to start. If you've already had your fill of the series, there's nothing here that will bring you into the fold.

Add in some surprisingly good plot twists and emotional arcs and SteamWorld Quest is a game that storied RPG developers like Atlus and Square Enix could be proud of. The fact that this is Image & Form’s first outing in the genre begs the question of what exciting adventure the developers will rush headlong into next.

The most memorable episode since the season premier, Amid The Ruins fleshes out the supporting cast, provides some nasty scenarios, and takes Kenny's personal arc to some very haunting places.

Despite its quirks, Darksiders II really delivers on the breadth of its content, making for a sweeping experience that fans of multiple genres should be happy to explore if willing to look past a couple of hiccups along the way.

Once the characters grow up and band together, the plot finds its Focus, and the gameplay takes the training wheels off to let gamers make the most of the stellar combat system, it's an excellent JRPG, just one with severe pacing issues.

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective is a clever concoction that will stretch your brain in pleasantly unusual ways. It strikes just the right balance between whimsy and challenge, always just the right amount of difficult and bizarre.

Fans of the series will find more to love in the third installment. For newcomers, this is the most accessible and fun skateboarding game there is.

Black Ops 2 is conflicted. It wants to move in bold new directions, but it falls back on safe, but aging, mechanics.

I picked up Michael Jackson The Experience as a skeptic, but I had a lot of fun dancing with my sequined glove despite myself. There's not much of a game beyond mastering the choreography, but it's worth it if you ever wanted to dance with a legend.

It's a great way to reincentivize the most enjoyable Warriors game since DW3, and it looks suitably pretty to boot.

While the action can wear the player out, and the campaign itself isn't particularly lengthy or deep, fans will get their money's worth from this concentrated blast of Ratchet & Clank action.

Kirby Triple Deluxe is a light and breezy trip to the spherical slurper's roots. While those looking for a challenge will find this installment as frustrating as previous entries, fans are in for another undeniably charming treat.

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.

Legion is more focused on the player's personal story than any other World of Warcraft expansion has ever been, and it does an absolutely fantastic job at telling it. The Demon Hunter class isn't as fleshed-out as it could have been, but there is still a ton of new content for every kind of player.

The gameplay is refined and polished to a mirror shine, and traipsing through the lovingly rendered regions of Johto and Kanto brings with it a fond nostalgia that few other games manage to evoke.

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.

While it is incomplete by design, with the missing content being dolled out for free over the course of the year, Street Fighter 5 is the most accessible the franchise has ever been and remains mechanically brilliant.

Dead Rising 2 is at its best when you're goofing off, finding new combo weapons and exploring the Fortune City Strip - and that works so well that you're almost inclined to forgive it its faults, like irritating boss battles and a cumbersome save system.

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

It may not re-write the book on action games, but for licenses, it just might.

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.

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.

Echoes of Aetheria weaves narrative, combat, and exploration together wonderfully, with no one aspect of the game overshadowing another. However, dialogue is occasionally cheesy and design flaws cast a shadow on what is meant to be a tactical combat experience.

Over three years after the Wii hit store shelves, Red Steel 2 finally delivers the motion-controlled swordplay we expected from the original Red Steel, and it more than makes up for any niggling flaws in the level design.

Joe Danger 2: The Movie has so much more content than its predecessor it almost doesn't feel like a sequel, and almost all of it is great. With tons of challenges to complete, multiplayer, and community content, you'll have plenty to do even after the credits roll.

In spite of dated graphics and other technical whizbangery, Crazy Taxi will remind you why you love driving games - and who started that fire. It's a game that's fun to play in short bursts that will become longer and longer the more of them you devote to it.

Its main boasts - the soul subclasses and the dynamic content - are fantastic ideas that occasionally go clunk every now and then, but the core there is solid and makes the game feel worthwhile.

Natural Selection 2 is a fantastic-looking FPS/RTS hybrid that's an in-depth and involved experience for those who enjoy cooperative and team-based games, although it does come with a steep learning curve that'll turn some players off to the strategic side of the game.

Lego Marvel Super Heroes is a light-hearted adventure that's got a few technical flaws, but is a nice, relaxing super hero game that's free of all the grimness we've come to see in recent years.

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.

LittleBigPlanet 2's controls leave a bit to be desired, but the game is so charming that it's begging to be played anyway. The main story is pretty short, but the player-created levels will offer near-endless supply of Sackboy experiences. The level creation tools, with their new additions, are so vast and easy to use that you might even wind up creating a few levels yourself.

Enslaved rises above its flaws to deliver a grand adventure. Neither the platforming nor the combat are particularly inspired, but it doesn't really matter - you'll keep playing because you care about its characters.

While its writing can make one cringe now and then, Child of Light is an overall charmer of a game, with a beautiful audiovisual style and clever twists on simple RPG concepts. Lovely stuff!

A challenging experience centered around gameplay that has you deflect bullets by rolling head first into danger.

A solid, if bite-sized, space combat game that revitalizes a defunct genre with excellent flight combat and only a few missteps.

Firewatch is an excellent, tense story, uncanny in spite its numerous beauties, and unmissable despite weaker mechanics.

Stories: Path of Destinies is a whimsical, cartoonish story experience that demands a near-methodical approach to navigating storylines. You learn with each run, but it's harder than you think to avoid making the same mistake twice.

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.

Sonic Origins was great, and Sonic Origins Plus is great plus. It’s that simple. It’s a fun collection made a little more fun with the adequate addition of Amy Rose, Knuckles in Sonic CD, and a dozen emulated Game Gear games. Some of those Game Gear games I dare say are even still worth playing today, especially Sonic Triple Trouble. Sonic Origins Plus also adds in the Classic Music Pack and Premium Fun Pack add-on content that was made available for the original release. So if you want to play most of the classic Sonic games ever made in one place, you might as well pick this up and have a fun time.

The last episode of the series completes the arc of Bigby's investigation, and you'll be able to exact some final judgment on the perpetrators, but the resolution stumbles a bit after a spectacular climactic action scene. The whole series is excellent, and the conclusion may want to make you replay it to figure some stuff out you might have missed.

Pillars of Eternity: The White March Part 2 offers a focused, fast-paced endcap to the Watcher's tale, answering all of the lingering questions from Part 1, and then some. The encounter design brings some ongoing problems with Pillars combat to the forefront in several areas, but the overall experience is balanced out by high quality storycraft, interesting new locales, and momentous, world-shaping decisions available to the player.

I like Brink quite a bit, but it's definitely not for everyone. The cumbersome interface is the antithesis of the modern streamlined shooter. If you can get past all the obstacles the game puts in your way, there's a lot of fun to be had here.

A whimsical, imaginative take on World War I that has you fighting for freedom and for fun. The missions get repetitive, and there are only three types of planes with different skins, but the combat itself is entertaining, the weapons are cool, the multiplayer is a ton of fun - and it's jam-packed with lovable charm.

You feel like a superhero playing alongside your favorite characters in an open MMO world thick with action but with a frustrating user interface. The fun combat and beautiful scenery more than make up for any shortcomings.

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.

If you only play games on consoles - or if you're looking for a Sims experience you can share with your friends - it's worth a rental at the very least. If you're familiar with the series on PC, knock the below score down a star - the controls are going to drive you nuts.

The best sequel we could have expected. The levels just plain aren't as challenging, but the new toys and characters manage to distract enough from the cracks in the paint to keep the whole ride breezing along. It astounds in some ways and disappoints in others, which, while not perfect, is good enough for science.

The game hits on a lot of levels; it's challenging, full of charm, and genuinely fun. I just wish it wasn't over quite so soon.

Warp is good fun and definitely worth a playthrough. You'll have a great time figuring out the puzzles and popping humans like water balloons. It is an arcade game, so Zero doesn't stick around very long, but it's a fun ride while it lasts.

Space Marine combines gameplay elements to nail the feel of being a 7 foot armored tool of destruction. The game will simply leave you wanting more in both good and few bad ways.

A loving tune-up of BioWare's groundbreaking RPG, with visual enhancements, bug fixes and new content, but the game itself is the same as it ever was, wonderful and punishing in equal measures. It's a great second chance for RPG lovers who missed out on the original, but gamers after a more casual or relaxed diversion may find it more frustrating than fun.

A hardcore experience in just about every sense of the word. If you're looking for a simple hack-and-slash brawler, you'll need to look elsewhere. Strategy is paramount here, and while the skill - or lack thereof - of your teammates can indeed doom you to failure, the rewarding feeling of waging a successful war is well worth it.

For the first time in a long time I only have one complaint about a game I'm reviewing. This game really needs to add a single player mode. I have no idea how it would work but it's kind of pain finding people to play with. The game has occasional hang ups and graphical missteps on occasion. As I said earlier, the average player should expect to spend at least 15 minutes getting the hang of the games concepts and core principles of the game and that's mostly because of the seven house card rules. If you enjoy party games and insanity, play this game.

Guild of Dungeoneering is simple, light-hearted fun with an adorable sketchbook aesthetic and delightful humor. It's not perfect, but as obscure indie games go, it's certainly top tier.

Fallen Enchantress engenders a feeling of real accomplishment, without requiring the investment in time and study demanded by truly hardcore strategy titles.

Marvel's Spider-Man is a modern, AAA blockbuster video game in every possible sense. It is highly polished, intricately designed, near-flawlessly produced and intelligently scaffolded. And it has achieved for the character of Spider-Man what very few games about comic book heroes accomplish: creating an experience both purely focused on the character and broad enough to have mass appeal. It will, without a doubt, stand for some time as the definitive Spider-Man video game.

With its tense naval battles and huge array of historical vessels, World of Warships is the free-to-play MMO that can make a wargamer out of anyone.

A surprisingly well crafted multiplayer shooter full of options, amusing cartoon violence, and rock solid action. That Loadout does all this, and provides a respectably balanced free-to-play ecosystem, is encouraging to see.

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.

Sid Meier's Starships lacks the strategic depth of Civilization, but the added tactical layer, and shorter game times make it a fair substitute, especially if you're looking for bite-sized strategy.

Like Cactus in the opening sequence, the ultimate result of Assault Android Cactus is looking at the relentless danger, thinking "I'll take my chances with the lasers," and wading into the chaos. Reckless, gleeful, and a really hard, incredibly good time.

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.

SSX has glorious over-the-top moments, masterfully inspires friendly competition, and rewards practice with steady improvement. It's slick, polished, and hand-crampingly addictive.

Dragon taming doesn't feel very engaging, but because of the story's depth and the host of new items and abilities, Dragonborn is still a thoroughly charming experience.

DOA5 is fun to play, easy to pick up, and hard to master. Everything you want from a fighting game.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 is much better to play on the pitch itself than its chief competitor, while the lack of important football licenses and a unimpressive menu interface keep it from being a full package.

Despite some lingering flaws, the gameplay is fantastic in both single and multiplayer. A big part of the game's audience won't care about the lack of variety or depth among the characters, but the monotonous tone still holds the game back from being as great as it otherwise might have been.

If you've been dying for a classic Final Fantasy title that's closer in mechanics to Final Fantasy IV than Final Fantasy XIII, you'll enjoy 4 Heroes of Light. If you despise retro RPG conventions, 4 Heroes is not for you unless you really want to morph into a chicken.

Combines the simplicity of modern tablet or touch screen gaming with complex old school systems. For the most part it works well, like balancing regenerating health with hunger, though there times where it feels like the game is stretched in two opposite directions.

An excellent adventure with just enough challenge to keep it intriguing without scaring off players looking for an engaging casual experience. Old school adventure fans will likely find the game to be a bit too shallow and easy, but casual gamers will appreciate the pace and polish.

FIFA 11 is a well-made soccer game, but it doesn't make any huge leaps in game design or feel. The added features like more sensitive passing and the famous stars' individuality are great on paper, but don't add a lot of value.

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.

Fez straddles the line between platformer and puzzler, taking the best from each genre and blending it into a refreshing whole. It doesn't punish experimentation or require advanced controller skills, letting you discover the game's secrets at your own pace.

Snowblind Studios delivers an experience that will satisfy even the staunchest Tolkien purist, and playing through the new story with your friends is fun even though the action and UI is not as impressive as the lore.

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.

Often funny, sometimes shocking, Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc is as convoluted as it is curious. A strange but gripping interactive crime novel, and a thoroughly unforgettable jaunt into lunacy.

The things that Exato has done to make Guncraft different from its predecessors have made it a better game. Instead of a clone, they've stepped up and made an engaging game that lets you get your block-building and headshot fix at the same time.

SMAA doesn't aim to do anything particularly novel, preferring to embrace the clone nature of the game and make that aspect as good as it can be. There's no doubt they made the right decision there, as you'll be hard pressed to not enjoy your time with SMAA.

Company of Heroes 2 is a shot of vodka. You know what to expect from its real-time tactical combat, and playing one mission or match quickly turns to two, three or four. But watch out for the hangover; the Eastern Front was hell.

Skyshine's Bedlam is a tough but rewarding trip through a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

It's a really highly polished experience with a lot of secrets to be found, coupled with a story that pulls you along with strong characters.

Lego Pirates of the Caribbean is a rollicking good time. You have to play through a few times in order to track down all of the secrets, jokes, and prizes, but even if you just play once, you're bound to enjoy yourself.

Mechanically, Far Cry 4 is an excellent shooter. It adds further polish to the open-world and action of its predecessor with even more involved and dynamic gameplay, and is loaded with rewarding side content on top of featuring a huge game world you'll spend hours exploring. The narrative isn't quite as solid, and falls through in several places with some aggravating characters and a lack of context to drive your actions.

It's going to feel a little off with a new studio taking over the franchise, and Bungie left a big mark on gaming with Halo. While 343i shouldn't just try to make a Bungie game, the single player isn't up to the series' standard. Halo 4 does balance that with a robust amount of content across the various gameplay modes.

Latency issues aside, 90% of your time with PlayStation All-Stars is going to be spent fighting, away from the game's lifeless game modes, unlockables, and challenges. And that fighting, easily the most important factor of the game, is an absolute blast, even if the way it resolves doesn't always feel fairly tallied.

A simple yet entertaining "city builder" that'll provide a difficult challenge.

Downwell is an unique take on the shoot em' up and roguelike genres that is sure to keep you coming back.

It might have trouble holding a steady pace across the whole game, but Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time is an enjoyable platformer with many differing styles of gameplay to keep things interesting. Plus, the sheer amount of collectibles and treasures to hunt down will make it hard for any completionist to put the game down for long.

Even as simply a pure action game, Blood Dragon would be worth a look, but for those who appreciate the retro futuristic style that it bathes in, it's an absolute treat.

Unless you're absolutely sick of Shin Megami Tensei's core mechanics or can't push past a few tutorial-heavy opening hours, Strange Journey's a fantastic RPG - portable or not.

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

Any review of WoW is inherently a work in progress, with the full scope of the expansion taking years to reveal. But Battle for Azeroth has me hooked again and I look forward to sharing more of my thoughts as the war rages on.

Consortium is an ingeniously subversive gem, containing enough backstory to fill a Triple-A trilogy while focusing exclusively on an airship crew in distress. The execution is a little clunky at times, but Consortium still has the charm and depth to encourage multiple playthroughs as we wait for the sequel.

Neverwinter is an extremely fun adaptation of D&D's 4th Edition, with all of its strengths and weaknesses. Though the game is arduously linear at times, they've made the roller coaster gameplay into a wild ride with beautiful environments, and just the right amount of freedom to explore.

Judgment is as magical and grounded as true city life.