While its commitment to madness can be maddening itself, Sunset Overdrive is an energetic, fun-focused adventure. The jokes don't always hit home, but this is a game that loves being a game, and you can't hate that sort of honesty.

Cave Story is fairly short, but provides a unique, somewhat emotional, action-based experience totally worth $15.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet is good fun, with striking visuals and a great setting. A few issues keep it from being totally brilliant though.

It's not particularly original, occasionally gets repetitive, and the main storyline is fairly short, but it's a solid and entertaining effort that you'll probably enjoy more than you think you will.

With Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Kojima Productions and Platinum Games have retooled Raiden into a capable character who is finally justified in having his own game. By taking him out of covert missions, Raiden's able to wield his sword of justice and use his martial arts skills out in the open. This is more fitting to him than sneaking around in a cardboard box, which is possible in this game in case you want to pretend you're still Solid Snake, even just for a minute.

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).

A few weaker sections do little to tarnish the fun of this old-school rooted shooter.

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

Sanctum 2 is a thrilling, fast-paced tower defense game, which keeps things interesting with the FPS gameplay during the assaults. The RPG elements add to the total package, making even the single player feel like a complete experience.

Like all good party games, Fruit Ninja is a bit bland by yourself, but add some friends into the mix and it becomes a goofy good time. You won't spend a lot of time with it when you play, but it'll be a surefire hit at your get-togethers.

If you're willing to put in the effort of replaying 999 to examine its many paths, you'll be rewarded with a multilayered, oftentimes horrifying, story and some satisfyingly creative puzzles.

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

It's a port of an excellent game that matches its source material beat for beat. Whether you're a franchise fan or simply a gamer looking for something fun to play on your 3DS, Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D is one of the best options of the platform.

A brilliant remake of two classic, underloved arcade brawlers.

Transformers Devastation is a blast to play while it lasts, and expertly blends elements of Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising, but packages it in a way that makes it come off as completely unique.

This standalone expansion is a wonderful fantasy strategy game in its own right, but it doesn't quite have enough to place it in the pantheon of classics.

Its rough edges will distract and annoy you, but Dead Island's quest-based zombie slay-a-thon is still loads of fun. There's tons to do, plenty of toys, and the chance to pick up and play with buddies is always appreciated.

BotW is best played on your TV from the couch on a console, and best enjoyed by players looking for a challenge. If you don't like dying, you should probably avoid it entirely, but if you're a persistent sort of player that doesn't mind having to try a segment a few times, it has a lot to offer.

Assassin's Creed Syndicate features a solid campaign, elevated by challenging assassination missions and a spellbinding setting. Syndicate delivers all of the innovations I had hoped to see from Unity, which was the franchise's first new-generation console entry, as the adjustments to combat, stealth, and travel breathe new air into the series.

Assassin's Creed Rogue is gameplay-wise more or less an unofficial sequel to Black Flag, in that it inherits virtually every enjoyable element from last year's title. The combat can be a bit repetitive, which is particularly true for those who played AC4 extensively, but it's a solid last-gen entry in the series all the same.

Into the Stars is a gorgeously-rendered sibling of FTL, featuring all the tension of collecting resources and fighting space aliens with none of the tedious micromanagement.

A standard, competent kart racer hampered by frequent loading times and irritating writing, but bolstered by an intuitive and powerful editor that lets gamers make their karts, racetracks, and characters their own - or at least lets them make their characters into Spider-Man.

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.

I was surprised that The Coma delivered on the premise it advertised in a way that was able to appeal to someone outside of its target audience demographic. I beat the game over the course of about a day, and I was left wanting more of this world as I watched the ending that set up an obvious sequel.

The Undergarden is laid back, gorgeous, and pretty damn weird - the main character is some kind of strange grinning monkey thing and your mission is to grow flowers in underground caverns.

It's good enough that it's easily worth the $30 price for fans of heist games, yet still good enough for people like me to get it at about a 33% discount on Steam. If it's $20 or less at some point and it looks interesting, get it. The characters alone are worth the money.

God of War: Ascension is an intriguing blend of action-oriented hack-and-slash combat and puzzles. Though the platforming aspects don't really sell Ascension, they do give you an opportunity to catch your breath.

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.