Blake Peterson
It's still one of my favorite games this year, but the flaws keep me from recommending it to everyone; this is a game for those who love the genre, and want an old-school tactical RPG challenge.
Disney Fantasia: Music Evolved is a solid, entertaining game that's not too challenging for kids and whose main story I completed in about six-and-a-half hours.
While it has a few flaws, it's a frightening, innovative example of the survival horror genre, where AAA titles have been trending more and more towards action/horror mixes that, quite frankly, just aren't scary.
Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes is still an excellent upgrade to both the single player and content aspects of the game. There were moments in The Avengers set where my jaw dropped open as enemies tossed cars around like they were cardboard and errant blasts tore chunks out of buildings, giving the whole experience a truly super-heroic epic scale that I didn't expect.
In an adventure game, once the puzzles are over, the story is all you've got. Murdered: Soul Suspect, though it was diverting like a bit of light reading, never really hooked me. And that's its biggest problem.
Bound By Flame is a frustrating game to write about as it is frustrating to play. It's not a terrible game, though, but an uneven one that could have used a lot of extra development time. It prizes the idea that you can play your own way, but it is heavily biased toward one style.
Lego The Hobbit is, if not the best Lego game, then closely matched with the top entries in the series.
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes is a good value for the $20 entry-level fee, provided you are willing to explore every nook and cranny of the environment and all of the possible ways of playing.
For its price, Strider has great value, especially if you can switch gears towards being more exploratory at the end. Otherwise, it's frustrating as heck to have the difficulty curve go from playing tag with some school chums, to enemies darting for your throat with the gnashing of werewolf-like fangs for your body's fleshy sustenance. Ninjas are lean meat, after all.
[I]t's a sprawling game with Traveler's Tales traditional clean look that's pretty and plastic-looking—perfect for a Lego game. It just might have been nice to see some of those scuffs we saw in the movie.
[I]t's probably a great buy for people already doing Zumba Workouts and other fitness programs, but not much use for anyone else.
Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON'T KNOW! does a great job of managing and working with the story, characters, and feel of the franchise, but unfortunately doesn't have the gameplay to match, especially at a $40 retail price.
Warframe, which has been out for PC since March, is free-to-play on the PS4, and in spite of its bugs, is worth the no-cost price. Playstation Plus members get a free starter pack, but beware that it will get you used to how seductive the ease of purchases with platinum can be.
Contrast is best when the story and the puzzles complement each other, like the platforming sections of the Lighthouse later in the game. Though short, Contrast can be replayed to get all the collectibles and is worth a look for the way the story and gameplay integrate, even if at times it's a little rough around the edges.
It really is the best Lego and best Marvel game that I've played—an excellent ride.