After spending more than 100 hours in The Witcher 3, we're still left with dozens of side quests to complete, enormous tracts of land left to explore, and monsters yet to fight. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a thoughtful, diverse, and frequently awe-inspiring adventure. Its stories are deep and satisfying, unafraid to touch on themes of personal character, presenting players with choices and consequences that aren't about turning into a hero or a villain. In the end, it's quite simply one of the best RPGs ever made.
Both visually and mechanically, Rayman Legends consistently sparks the imagination. The co-op play on the Wii U is something that really must be experienced, and while the implementation isn't a perfect fit on other platforms, it does little to hold the game back. While we certainly wouldn't advocate carbon copies, we hope Rayman Legends paints a vision for other 2D games to follow.
Lasting ten to twelve hours with complex characters, diverse scenarios, stunning new locations, and memorable bosses, this ten dollar expansion stands out in a period when many DLC offerings feel like lackluster afterthoughts. Even though it's an expansion that returns to familiar areas, Hearts of Stone doesn't feel like it's merely piggybacking on the main game, but has its own worthwhile tale to tell.
Watch Dogs isn't inspiring or revolutionary, but it's a well-rounded approach to open world gameplay. Completing the story and merely sampling the various side activities can last over thirty hours, with plenty more left to do. The focus on hacking lends to more cerebral gameplay, and the multiplayer is solid. So get out there and get hacked.
Forza Motorsport 6 maintains the series' strong handling, robust features, and its ability to bring together players of varied skill levels. There are improvements in virtually every area, but even with additions like night and weather, it doesn't really feel like there's a standout change to push the series forward. It seems like most of the effort this time around went into getting Forza back on track.
If you have a tendency to rage quit and throw controllers, Trials Fusion may not be for you. Sometimes satisfaction is only found after hours of failed attempts, but the ease of giving it "just one more try" can be absolutely engrossing. The game's outside-the-box goals are brimming with creativity, and the uncompromising level design pushes you to keep digging deeper to conquer every roadblock in your path.
InFamous: Second Son is visually stunning with rocking dynamic music to boot, but with its repetitive side-tasks, the finely crafted Seattle streets feel a bit lacking in things to do. Nevertheless, the game's characters and core story arc holds strong. The varied and eccentric powers give you a lot to experiment with, and you truly feel like a super-hero with the city at your fingertips.
In some ways, Forza Horizon 2 doesn't feel that different from the original, but its proficiencies are expressed in new ways as you joyfully tumble across wide stretches of terrain. It gets open-world gameplay right by continually encouraging you to explore, and you may climb a hill just to look out over the scenic landscape and watch the clouds roll in.
In order to make room for next-gen growth, Forza Motorsport 5 comes in riding lighter than past entries in the series, but despite these big cuts, there's still a hefty driving game with lots to do. Despite infuriating DLC practices Forza remains a fantastic drive, and with some improvements, Drivatars could set a new path for competitive AI.