Genres

Chivalry Medieval Warfare released at the end of last year as a surprisingly good sword- fighting game from an independent studio. It successfully captured the finesse and brutality of hand-to-hand combat in the middle ages, but it had a few clear flaws. The handful of maps and game modes grew repetitive, and highly-skilled players often found themselves besieged by swarms of button mashers. The developer, Torn Banner Studios has released a large, free patch to correct some of these problems and now Chivalry has gone from a good game to a great one.

The end of a console generation is a perfect time for an ambitious spin-off title: most major franchises are either completing trilogies or releasing refined, creatively safe iterations of popular titles. Developed by Forza vets Turn 10 Studios and UK-based Playground Games (a team compromising of landmark arcade, rally, and simulation racer developers), Forza Horizon takes its well-refined racing style to the beautiful landscapes of Colorado, with some very interesting ideas on how to bridge the gap between hardcore simulation and casual arcade racer, ...

Any fantasy-RPG fan knows that if you’re looking for a broad, open-world experience with unprecedented attention to detail and more lore than you can shake an enchanted mace at, then you should look no further than the Elder Scrolls series. The fantasy realm of Tamriel is home to multiple races, factions, guilds, ghosts, and monsters. In The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, players are brought to the titular province to explore the northern wilds, mountains, caves, catacombs, and ruins of Skyrim, the land of the Nords. Bethesda’s latest entry into their long-running ...

Uber-small developer, thatgamecompany previously wowed gamers with Flower. The game was stripped down and simple, but also oddly beautiful. Furthermore, it proved insanely addicting with its "snowball effect on flower petals" mechanic. Flower is a perfect argument for the oft-asked and much- debated question, “Are games art?” And now the studio has upped its game (so to speak) with Journey a compelling and emotional title that is subtly deep and outrageously beautiful…it is a triumph.

Bungie’s involvement with the Halo universe is no more. The longtime developer of the FPS that breathed new life into consoles, shooters and hell, let’s just say it—online gaming—is off to next-gen pastures leaving developer 343 Industries to continue Master Chief’s tale with a new series known as The Reclaimer Trilogy.

When Super Mario Bros. arrived, beating the game was a source of pride for most players. Those with poor reflexes or a low threshold for frustration would fizzle out before finally finding the right castle and saving the princess, but more tenacious players would stick it out, replaying the levels over and over until they could zoom through Mario’s adventure with perfect precision and timing. Eventually, merely beating the game wasn't enough, and the question became “How quickly can you beat it?” This gave birth to the gaming subculture of speed runners ...

Lord of the Rings: War of the North was supposed to be a darker, more adult game for those of us old enough to appreciate the films when they first came out. It was going to have a deeper story, more intense combat (complete with decapitations and blood – adult stuff) and it was going to show a side to Middle Earth we’d rarely seen, let alone in video games. War of the North was also publisher Warner Brothers’ first chance to show the world what they could do with their newly acquired Lord of the Rings licence.

Stealth games are an odd sort. Numerous titles these days feature at least some sort of stealth mechanic, but most of them don't use the concept of “stealth” as the primary gameplay element. In recent years, Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Dishonored served as examples of developers longing to bring back the stealth genre that was so popular at the turn of the century. While both titles were fine games, to me they still felt a bit lacking in terms of stealth mainly due to the fact both games featured numerous other styles of gameplay which rendered some of the ...

Having received over 50 E3 awards globally, Dishonored has surpassed all expectations and even managed to snag Spike TV’s Video Game Award for ‘Best Action Adventure Game of 2012’ as well as IGN’s award for ‘Best Overall Action Game of 2012’. Hosting a unique water color art style and played from a first-person perspective, this unparalleled experience is meant to be tailored to each player’s preferences and moral compass.

Dishonored came out of nowhere to become the surprise hit of 2012. As a new IP developed by the relatively unknown studio, Dishonored's chances of scoring big with both critics and gamers seemed low. However, through a combination of inventive gameplay mechanics, and a very original setting, the game has managed to prove that innovation is still alive and thriving in big-budget game development.