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Fight through that frustration of wondering where to go when you start The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. Once you learn the rules of the game, you'll find a deeply satisfying, if short, story within.
Awaited for well over a decade by now-ancient gamers, Wasteland 2 manages to live up to the spirit of the original while going beyond it in terms of depth and detail. While there are bugs to be fixed and the difficulty may be too challenging for some, any lover of turn-based RPGs should add this one to their Steam library as soon as they can.
Skylanders Trap Team's biggest surprises lie not in its gameplay, but in how it uses sound to completely sell its gimmick. It'll bleed you dry, but somehow, that doesn't seem so bad.
While the narrative is a bit disconnected, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments uses the short story framework to its benefit, keeping each of its cases focused on pure, thrilling detective work.
While expectations may have been fairly low for Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, there was still a certain amount of hope within me that Monolith could produce an enjoyable experience. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor soared past those expectations and not only produced an enjoyable experience, but also one of the best experiences with a video game this year. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor is a very well crafted adventure that will keep you hooked for hours on end.
A tough-as-nails tactical challenge is hard to find in today's console market, and Anomaly 2 will probably be enough to scratch your strategical itch. Without a strong multiplayer community behind it though, I would say skip the PS4 release and head straight for PC if you have the means.
Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes 2.0 feels like a failed attempt at rushing a game out to cash in on a trending genre, that ultimately suffers from too little development time and polish.
The Sims 4 is a fantastic game at its core, but with its tiny neighborhoods and many features simply missing, it holds itself back from Sims greatness.
Endless Legends tries to overcomes flaws by focusing on strengths. Unique factions, in-depth customization and beautiful art will keep you hooked and wanting more. It isn't perfect, but it is still a solid strategy game.
Few games can come close to creating the same mayhem and excitement as Gauntlet can. While not the game for a lone wolf, Gauntlet is all about friends competing for gold and shooting each others' food. From the new hero designs to the variety of enemies and snarky humor, this is one that co-op fanatics won't want to miss.
This feels less like a review and more like a love letter to Forza Horizon 2. This game was an absolute joy to review, and I'll play it long after this article goes live. Like opening the hood on a Ferrari, Forza Horizon 2 is filled from fender to fender with absolute awesome.
While Archeage doesn't bring much to the table in terms of story, quest mechanics or even combat, the sheer depth of the PVP and tradeskill system promises to make it into the EVE-Online of the fantasy genre. The queue system is marring what would otherwise be an enticing game, at least for those players who have been looking for a fresh take on the fantasy PVP MMO genre – Ultima Online can only last so long.
Destiny is the sort of game that will need to breathe before it's appreciated. The team has launched the first free raid upgrade yesterday, and they promise far more universe-expanding content in the immediate future. As it stands now, it feels like a strong foundation coupled with a thin story and some baffling missteps on the MMO aspects of the formula. When Destiny is a shooter, it's amazing, but when it aims to make that a social activity it falls on its face. Like Bungie's previous efforts, history will prove it to be the classic it aims to be.
It's certainly not perfect, but Hyrule Warriors' combat and treatment of the typically sterile Zelda franchise is just big, dumb, loud fun.
There have been way too many years where you can describe the changes to Madden as "minimal, but helpful." This year, the changes to the defense and boost in presentation slide it away from "minimal" and feel much more substantial. But unfortunately, I find the player aspect of Connected Franchise to be one of the biggest parts of the whole Madden experience, and it being a husk of its former self is more than a little disappointing. That said, Madden NFL 15 is definitely one to jump into if you have not played a Madden game in years. It will be very interesting to see how EA Tiburon builds upon this success in Madden NFL 16.
Dead Rising 3 Apocalypse Edition is simply a fun game. Its story lacks and it has its fair share of downfalls but it is all worth it due to its unforgiving and humorous gameplay. If you don't have an Xbox One, this package includes all of the DLC as well as a few new graphical bells and whistles. Dead Rising 3 is truly a game that is its best when it isn't trying, it is unapologetic and bloody, and one of the best zombie hack and slash games that has ever been released.
Firefall is a massively-mixed bag. The game is at its best when it forces players to frantically shoot their way through swarms of enemies while protecting an objective, but the fun found in these missions wears off when repeated over and over. I think there are a few hours of genuine pleasure to be found in Firefall, but beyond that I think it's hard to recommend it to anyone, unless they're just a diehard fan of MMO tropes.
The next generation jump for NHL 15 is far from a mind blowing one. It brings about fantastic visuals and more of the same excellent gameplay we have come to expect. Unfortunately, it really is just more of the same but with an impressive visual bump. Of course, the improved presentation is nice as well but it lacks that oomph needed to wow consumers. That being said, EA Canada has done enough to create a very recommendable hockey game, but they may have some trouble on their hands if they continue to provide more of the same next year.
Infamous: First Light takes an interesting, flawed character and does nothing with her. Even at $15, it's a vapid, empty, wasted opportunity. At least the combat is still fun, though.
Natural Doctrine is a broken attempt at revitalizing the tactical RPG genre. At first glance, it appears to have all the markings of a classically inspired and intelligently designed strategy game. But sadly, despite delivering its own rare bursts of satisfaction, it remains frustratingly bogged down by artificially challenging gameplay, a confusing and overtly complex user interface and a painfully slow pacing that will try the patience of even the most Zen-like of gamers. If you're looking for the next Final Fantasy Tactics, I'm sorry, but you're going to have to keep looking elsewhere.