Chili Con Carnage is a game that doesn't take itself seriously, which is definitely a good thing. The problem is that the slipshod controls make you not want to take the entire package seriously. When 90% of your game is about shooting, the shooting and aiming mechanics had better be dead on target.

It'll be curious to see where the next episode of The Walking Dead: A New Frontier goes from here. The retread of similar plotlines from both the comic and TV show feels stale in Above the Law, even with the slight twist regarding the new characters. At the same time, the character development balances that out, and they remain as engaging as before. The last two episodes will determine if the season can pull through, but for now, prepare for some rehash.

It's not something you can play for weeks and weeks on end, but rather a game you can play for three minutes or three hours and still have a blast.

Chrono Cross is a weird little JRPG that is arguably hindered by its connection to one of the genre greats. It has a distinctive feel and style, an interesting plot, and the craziest cast of characters you'll ever see in a JRPG. Weak characters and many nagging PS1-era flaws keep it from being a hearty recommendation. If you've passed on Cross because it's not Trigger 2, it's worth a shot, and Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers Edition is probably the best way to experience it.

I've enjoyed Serious Sam 2 as much as I did the first release and its expansion. In some ways, it's better, I certainly laughed more at the corny humor and references to other 3D shooters ("I love collecting big guns," Sam quips on Planet Kleer. "It looks so … UNREAL.")

Prototype 2 is undeniably an improvement in many ways over the original game. It controls smoother, has plenty of simple quality-of-life improvements, and it lacks many of the frustrating features that plagued the original. Unfortunately, it solves problems by erring on the side of simplicity.

Graphics are average, but the game is just too much fun to not like.

Everybody's Golf VR feels like a good first step in getting the sport on to a new technology. Once you get used to the controls — specifically controlling the shot direction and amount of power needed — you'll find the game to be very immersive due to its presentation. It may take a while to unlock everything, and while the number of courses isn't as abundant as the older games, there's still enough here to keep you coming back. The lack of multiplayer is a disappointment, though, and the repetitive lines from your caddies can be tiresome, but Everybody's Golf VR is still a game that'll make you spend more time with your VR headset.

In the end, RoboCop: Rogue City - Unfinished Business is a solid and more focused version of the kind of things offered by the main game. The story is straightforward but good, while the flashbacks become essential to the story instead of acting as diversions. While the gameplay remains relatively unchanged, it is still a thrill to walk around as a nearly invincible metallic man. The addition of the cryo cannon is neat, even if you might not use it all that much. The game does lack polish in places, but the solid shooting and darkly humorous interactions with the tower's populace will make you more forgiving of some of the visual anomalies. If you're a fan of the franchise or shooters in general, you'll have some fun with Unfinished Business.

Aside from the races in FlatOut mode, FlatOut: Head On is one of the most genuinely fun and entertaining racers I've picked up in a long time.

It's instantly reminiscent of Tribes, and in my book, that is a very, very admirable game to be comparable to. It's fast paced, well-balanced, and looks amazing with an impressive array of mech design that manages to not just clone anime cybernetics. Perhaps best of all, Lighthouse has chosen to release this with no CD-in-drive restrictions.

The Adventures of Pip is an example of a perfectly fun platformer. It doesn't do anything exceptionally well, but it's a solid and well-made game.

With strong gameplay, outstanding design, and intense action, the game definitely fills the void left in many players by the somewhat-disappointing "Doom 3."

Lockdown offers some reasonably fun, familiar action, but in a package that's too friendly and ultimately disappointing as the final Rainbow Six of the current Xbox generation.

Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom is certainly worth playing. The quest is rather lengthy, especially given today's standards of single-player game length, and it remains enjoyable in both combat and exploration despite the occasional instances of backtracking.

It tends to shift between greatness and mediocrity with the frequency of your average rollercoaster ride, but the great parts are easily worth a look by anyone who enjoys beat-'em-ups.

This title is not bad, but it's not particularly good, either; it simply blends into the crowd. That trait may be great for a ninja, but it's not so good for a console title.

Like much else in The Raven Remastered, the music is serviceable but feels like a missed opportunity to leave a stronger impression. That's probably a good way to sum up The Raven Remastered: serviceable but underwhelming. The title shows plenty of promise with its characters and story, but the sluggish gameplay, questionable acting, and mediocre audiovisual presentation drag it down. Mystery fans and avid Christie book readers will find something to like with The Raven's narrative, but the rougher edges make it a tough experience to recommend to all but the most dedicated and patient of players.

TopSpin 2K25 feels like a reboot of the series rather than a proper sequel. The lack of game modes really makes the title feel like it's starting from scratch and trying to nail the fundamentals before approaching more offbeat stuff. Despite the occasional missing inputs and stuttering from time to time, the game remains enjoyable enough that you'll want to master the controls and get in a few matches against others quite often. It needs work for future iterations, but for now, TopSpin 2K25 is solid enough.

Having come from the imagination of a few of LucasArts alums, A Vampyre Story had the potential to spin a gothic comedy steeped in that tradition, which my score reflects. But I won't recommend half a game to players.

Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions is a flawed experience. When it hits the mark, it hits hard, and it manages to capture a lot of the charm and fun of playing as Spider-Man. Unfortunately, this charm and fun is soured by the repetitive and unimaginative gameplay and the number of glitches.

Without question, Tetris: Axis is a lot of fun.

Looking at RAD as a whole, it's a solid roguelike that shines in creative ideas, setting, and visuals. At the same time, it falls for the usual tropes, so if you're not a fan of roguelikes, you have been warned. Difficulty and repetition are exaggerated here, but it's due to repetition in powers and level design, which makes grinding for progression even more tedious than it has to be. For a $20 purchase, this is certainly a good new roguelike for fans of Double Fine and the genre.

It has good ideas - all of which have been attempted before - and executes them in a way that leaves the title covered in mediocrity at best.

Minor complaints aside, Covenant of the Plume is a fun and unique strategy RPG, and it's a solid addition to any DS owner's RPG library.

The avatar system is a beefier system than what you'll find in any other RTS game on the market and offers for a little higher degree of flexibility and even strategy, outfitting your avatars with various weapons and spells in order to complement the other normal units of your attacking force.

Even though Avengers and Speed Rumbler make me twitch with anger when I play them, it's still fun to show to friends how bad some games from the "old-school" era really were, and then load up Super Turbo to purify ourselves.

It's not too often a game comes around that breathes new life into a genre. But I think that's just what XIII has done. With a little creativity and determination, Ubisoft has succeeded in creating an interactive comic book.