[T]hose who can get three or more friends together for a lengthy Sportsfriends play session will come away feeling like they did back when local multiplayer was an endless addiction fueled by caffeine and heated arguments. Some of the games are more successful in delivering that feeling, or in generating excitement, than others, but as a whole the collection works more often than not. Get a group of friends together – even those who might not be particularly adept at video games – and you'll likely have a good time.
A game like this, where the mechanics fall extremely short, needed a strong story to carry players through, and that's not the case here. The game is by no means broken, save for one or two bugs, it just isn't very fun to play. Much like its protagonist, Murdered: Soul Suspect is lifeless.
Valiant Hearts is confident in its direction and thoughtful in its design. As a puzzle-focused, story-driven experience it isn't going to be for everyone, but those who relish the days of LucasArts' point-and-click adventures will certainly find a lot to enjoy here — doubly so if you are a history buff.
There's no doubt that Rebellion is on to something with Sniper Elite 3, but their inability to make draw clear gameplay distinctions pulls the overall experience down dramatically. On the one hand, the game smartly incorporates realistic sniping concepts (using sound for cover, adrenaline impacting aim, etc.) into its gunplay, but it undermines those clever ideas with half-baked stealth mechanics. At the end of the day, it leans too far away from the full-blown sniper sim to strike a chord with fans of the genre and its stealth isn't strong enough to hit those marks either. Instead, the game is left floating somewhere in the middle – where each element has its moments, but as a cohesive whole Sniper Elite 3 falls apart more often than it succeeds.
Madden NFL 15 is the best the series has looked and played in years, and is very close to coalescing into something truly impressive. One or two more years under these new consoles and more changes like those featured this year, and Madden just might reclaim its old glory.
'FIFA 15' represents a significant leap forward for the series and offers one of the the best soccer experiences from EA Sports.
'Alien: Isolation' evokes the atmosphere and tension of the movies, but inconsistent xenomorph AI and antiquated design turn fear into frustration.
Every facet of 'Sunset Overdrive' is bursting with personality, and despite some faults it's still a must-play on Xbox One.
'Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare' doesn't change the franchise's identity, but its near future setting and tech help make the component parts exciting again.
After nearly a dozen releases, the LEGO franchise has found a concept and a set-up that work well, even if it doesn't stretch the limits of gameplay ingenuity. It is for that reason that LEGO Batman 3 serves as a solid entry in the library, but not an exceptional one.
'LittleBigPlanet 3' shows flashes of potential to current-gen gamers but comes across as a proof of concept more than anything else.
'Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris' is a suitable successor to Crystal Dynamics' isometric adventure game, but does little to impress.
'Saints Row: Gat out of Hell' offers more goofy open world antics on the back of some cool design ideas, but is limited in terms of scope and gameplay variety.
'Dying Light' hides all of its best gameplay behind a frustratingly steep learning curve and boring fetch quests, but shows potential once players dig a little deeper.
'The Order: 1886' is bursting with creativity when it comes to design, narrative, and setting, but its gameplay is far too linear and derivative to be worth a full price purchase.
When 'Evolve' hits all the right notes it succeeds at delivering a tense and dynamic boss battles, but if just one thing goes wrong it loses its appeal rather quickly.
'ScreamRide' lets player's latent roller coaster fantasies free, indulging every creative and borderline sadistic idea with arcade-style, high score-focused gameplay.
'Helldivers' is an isometric co-op shooter that favors challenge and strategy over all else, and despite a lack of variety is extremely satisfying when played with friends.
'DmC: Devil May Cry Definitive Edition' is still a solid character action game with sharper visuals and a consistent frame rate that's worth picking up for those who missed out.
'Final Fantasy Type-0 HD' features deep combat mechanics and a mature tone, but some confounding design decisions and awkward storytelling hold it back.