Grand Theft Auto IV is the sex, drugs, and rock and roll of video games. It's a little less brave and intimidating this time around, but it's also the most refined and polished game in the franchise's history. This kind of sheen is generally reserved for titles with a much smaller scope.

It's a perfect blend of the established and unexpected, and a finely crafted piece of software that will infect your subconscious and make you dread dropping the controller. The accessibility, ingenuity, variety, quality, and quantity are impeccable. The only real uncertainty is how much you'll allow it to take over your life.

Twilight Princess gives you just about everything you were hoping for in a new Zelda game while supplying things you didn't even know you wanted in the first place. The tone is decidedly darker, the overly melodramatic moments are subdued, and it deliverers that razor-sharp Zelda gameplay...It's easily one of the greatest games ever created.

There's just so much here to experience, and it's all uniformly excellent in execution. BioWare has delivered on its promise to let us affect this massive world through our actions, and you can bet that we'll be playing this one through several times in anticipation of how it all pans out.

There is more creativity in some single stages in this game than in entire other games. It's a bit familiar, but all the fat has been cut away to expose a pure gaming core. There's something for just about everyone and games that we can truly recommend to almost everyone are rare.

The original "Metroid Prime" is one of the highest-rated games in existence, but Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is easily superior. It's far less frustrating, and more action packed, while managing to redefine console shooting controls in the process.

Involving, ambitious, and beautifully executed, Mass Effect is a powerful experience that has a lot to offer anyone who plays games as more than a casual diversion.

The developers clearly worked hard to tweak what was already great, and made it superb. With more songs, more features, and more pure rock, Guitar Hero 2 is a must own for anyone with a PS2.

The atmosphere, the water, the story, the architecture, and the perfectly tuned challenge all come together to create one of the greatest experiences of this generation of consoles. Rapture is awaiting. Bliss is inevitable.

For every video game system there's a piece of software that defines its capabilities. God of War II is that game. It's a thrill ride from beginning to end, and one of those experiences that will cause you to hunker down, turn off your phone, and check out of reality for a few days.

The atmosphere, the water, the story, the architecture, and the perfectly tuned challenge all come together to create one of the greatest experiences of this generation of consoles. Rapture is awaiting. Bliss is inevitable.

There's just so much to see and do, that your average player will undoubtedly find something to amuse themselves with, and your average role-playing fanatic will probably have a heart attack when they take in the size of the world.

The game consistently manages to put impressive, holy crap-worthy stuff on-screen. Your ears get their fair share of candy, too. Voice work is almost always right on and the music is epic, foreboding, and dangerous.

By rendering an expert treatment of its Wild West source material, Red Dead Redemption provides an excellent and original open world experience. The atmosphere and gameplay fit together almost perfectly.

The air of unpredictability and the care that was paid to each separate element puts it in lofty company. The multiplayer hasn't received an overhaul, but considering most shooters are still playing catch-up with Call of Duty 4, the tweaks and twists make it the best multiplayer shooting experience in the industry. Few games manage to meet such high expectations.

The air of unpredictability and the care that was paid to each separate element puts it in lofty company. The multiplayer hasn't received an overhaul, but considering most shooters are still playing catch-up with Call of Duty 4, the tweaks and twists make it the best multiplayer shooting experience in the industry. Few games manage to meet such high expectations.

If judged solely on its failure to resolve its story, Wings of Liberty could have been a disappointment. But with a production so carefully thought out, masterfully designed, and flawlessly executed, it's impossible to come away from the game with a negative impression. Starcraft II is the sequel that we've been waiting for.

Its near-perfect sequence of peaks and valleys demonstrates how restraint can imbue some moments with increased impact. It's a short campaign, but the multiplayer makes it worth the asking price.. Drake's Deception is one of those games that has something for just about everyone, and if you own a PlayStation 3 it shouldn't be missed.

Improves many of the series' individual elements, and provides finality to a saga in which numbers of us have invested dozens of hours. But despite this success, it's unable to reward the effort and investment of players in the same way previous games did. Still, it handles its subject matter in a way that invites you to care, and the addition of multiplayer does add another dimension to the game. When all has been said and done, there's a very good chance that you'll feel something.

The sound design is spectacular and really pulls you into the battle, from the first gunshot being fired in the distance to the barrage of armored forces rolling over a war torn city.

If you can overcome the occasional performance hiccups, you'll be rewarded with one of the most engaging and visceral role-playing games ever created.

Brawl is average if you intend to play it by yourself. As a multiplayer game, it nears perfection. Though the subspace emissary is a disappointment, the fast-paced fighting, bountiful modes and customization options, and a deep set of hidden content to be unearthed give it staying power that few other games possess.

The new guitar is cool, the new songs are amusing, there's downloadable treats on the way, and the game itself is hours and hours of fun, even though you always feel a lot cooler than you look. With that said, the lack of online play is a huge disappointment and a glaring example of missed opportunity.

For what you're paying, you'd expect this expansion to have one-sixth the content of the original game, but it strays far from delivering on this assumption. Still, if you're desperate for more to do, letting the Knights of the Nine rest in peace has its short-lived rewards.

LBP lives up to its promise of playing, creating, and sharing. It's a strong 2D platformer that darts into the shadow of trouble once in awhile, but it's ultimately redeemed by its daring design.

It's absolutely relentless in its assault on the senses and never lets up until the last trigger has been squeezed. The multiplayer is even better, with the perks and weapon upgrades acting as a balance to the lack of vehicles.

It's absolutely relentless in its assault on the senses and never lets up until the last trigger has been squeezed. The multiplayer is even better, with the perks and weapon upgrades acting as a balance to the lack of vehicles.

It's absolutely relentless in its assault on the senses and never lets up until the last trigger has been squeezed. The multiplayer is even better, with the perks and weapon upgrades acting as a balance to the lack of vehicles.