Skulls of the Shogun is irreverent, challenging and, most of all, fun. It masterfully mixes humor with well-balanced gameplay to keep players coming back for more. If strategy is your thing, this is a must-buy.

Realistically, if you own Wings of Liberty and enjoyed it, you should pick up Heart of the Swarm — not because it is more of the same, but because it's not.

If you haven't had the chance to play the first two games, do that instead. If you've already gone through those titles, rent this if you feel like blowing through something disposable for an afternoon.

Puddle is a mechanically sound game that's good for fans of physics puzzles. The presentation is solid, and even though the controls aren't the most optimal, they get the job done and provide enough options.

Dead or Alive 5 Plus sets the bar pretty high for 3-D fighters on the Vita. Flawed mode aside, it is a compelling port of a home console title that sacrifices very little to reach parity.

HarmoKnight is a fun, rhythmic endless runner for all ages and skills. The rather low initial difficulty level coupled with inviting graphics make it good for players just getting their feet wet with the genre. The bonuses from the gold medals provide some appeal to genre veterans or those looking for a challenge. Having a much more memorable selection of music to run with would have been ideal, but as it stands, this is another fine entry in the system's eShop.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity is easily the weakest of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon titles. It goes for streamlining but achieves simplicity instead.

There's just something disturbing in seeing a game that is part of such a storied and influential franchise sacrifice so much to rush headlong into the social sphere. Perhaps the bugs and shortcomings will be resolved in a few weeks, but until then, SimCity's hidden requirement of additional patience still applies.

It plays to the original's strengths and adds a batch of new features. Most importantly, the multiplayer mode alleviates any concerns about short length and is a ton of fun.

I can't overstate [how] quickly I became engrossed by the multiplayer.

It takes the traits of what made the Travellers' Tales LEGO games so well loved in the first place, such as the good-natured humor, and it does so without a license as a crutch. The story is good, but it is the multitude of activities that really makes this title shine and gives you plenty of reasons to explore every nook and cranny after Rex Fury is behind bars once again.

A flawed masterpiece. When it is on, there is no other game like it, but it's frustrating when it fails. The story line is simultaneously clever and too impressed with its own cleverness, and the gameplay veers between some of the most exciting you'll ever play and being workmanlike and tedious. The failures in Infinite are mostly from setting such a high standard that it is disappointing when some moments don't live up to it. This is a rare example of a good game that disappoints because it could have been even more.

As the second part of a trilogy, Chaos on Deponia does exactly what it needs to do, and it does it well enough. There's some story progression here, as well as character advancement to help flesh things out. It's too bad that the advancement comes very late into the game, leaving the player with a somewhat alternate take on the original tale instead. The presentation holds up very well, and the adventure is humorously entertaining.

As collections go, the first Capcom Arcade Cabinet game pack isn't a bad deal. Avengers might be a bit of a dud, but both 1943 and Black Tiger offer plenty of entertainment for the price.

If you're remotely a fan of dungeon crawlers, Etrian Odyssey IV is for you.

When all is said and done, Gears of War: Judgment offers up exactly what it promises on the cover: a romp through the world of Sera. Aside from the multiplayer modes, Judgment doesn't really bring anything new to the table.

Take away the graphics and the title, and the game doesn't have many noteworthy aspects. The gameplay is decent but in a very generic way that doesn't differentiate itself from any other shooter on the market. That's depressing, considering the series' roots.

At the end of the day, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance's greatest accomplishment is that that it assures the world that Platinum's bag of tricks is deeper than anyone thought. This game provides a fresh take on the stylish/character action genre, and it comes off as a high-tier entry in the Metal Gear series.

At its core, Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Plus isn't a bad action game. The action is still very combo-heavy and less tolerant of simple button-mashing tactics. The story is decent enough for those who can tolerate the typical plots of action-heavy anime, and there is a decent amount of gameplay to be had.

Ultimately, it's hard to go wrong with Zen's Star Wars Pinball. Though the included tables don't quite surpass Data East's classic, they are all solid pinball experiences and among the best tables that Zen has produced — even if the Star Wars license wasn't attached.

Tomb Raider is a reboot that's mostly done right. The lack of the franchise's trademark puzzles is unfortunate, but everything else captures the feel of the original games with a more modern twist.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time pays homage to the original game mechanics in lieu of simply starting over like many franchises have.

Once you get past the (incredibly frustrating) first hour or two, earn some cash, and buy or upgrade a few cars, it's an OK combat-racing game that's hamstrung by its appalling camera and handicapped AI, and both of those sabotage any satisfaction you might actually get from the game.

While the original Skylanders was appropriately lauded for being a unique, quality title for all ages, Skylanders: Giants seems to be riding on the coattails of the original title's good will. It's not bad, and it's really similar to the first game, but its limited innovation is largely unnecessary (Giant Skylanders).

Aliens: Colonial Marines is both disappointing and sad. The plot plays out like a bad fan-made film with unintentionally bad acting and ties to familiar things because it didn't have any original ideas. The gameplay feels dated and out of step with the evolution of the shooter. Bugs are rampant throughout the title, and the game lacks a level of polish that was expected during the first year of this console generation.

Crashmo, like Pushmo before it, is a near-perfect title for the 3DS. The new mechanics feel like a natural evolution for the series and provide some depth to even the simplest of levels.

Dead Space 3 struts its dedication to more dismemberments than delusions as a solo sci-fi gunfest. On that count, it's not a disappointment. On the other hand, it's hard to ignore what it loses when it tries to balance the needs of longtime fans while seeking to broaden its audience.

Hey, Ice King! does what a good licensed game is supposed to do but few actually accomplish nowadays: It's well-crafted game that shows care and polish, but it also serves as a good gateway to the "Adventure Time" cast, world and style of humor, with fan service besides.