Genres

If you have ever played a game with a guy in a green costume, who is generally always sleeping at the beginning of his adventure, then you've probably played a Legend of Zelda game at some point. Nintendo's latest Zelda release for the 3DS has received much attention since being released, including a number of Game of the Year nominations from multiple prominent media outlets. So what makes yet another Zelda game so appealing and fun?

The Final Fantasy XIII franchise has managed to completely split the Final Fantasy fandom down the middle, becoming a punchline for a certain sort of online persona. In the echo chamber, those that are angry shout the loudest, and they only hear their own voices jump back. That's a shame, because Lightning Returns shows that things can get better, and that new ideas sometimes pay off. It was never going to be the best Final Fantasy game ever - but it CAN be a decent time filler.

Artsy-smartsy games like Bioshock and Spec Ops: The Line have ruined video games. Nowadays players can't just sit back and enjoy a game. Now they're expected to look for symbolism and all that other tweedy intellectual stuff. LocoCycle is a game about a talking motorcycle that blows stuff up - or it might be an insightful deconstruction of the linear nature of video game narratives. The fine line between stupid and clever gets finer and finerer every year.

The Last of Us’ first and last piece of single-player DLC, Left Behind, is a great piece of additional content that further fleshes out both The Last of Us’ exceptional world, and its equally compelling female protagonist, Ellie. Left Behind works well as a standalone experience and breaks free from being marred by the core game.

The game nobody ever thought would be made: LEGO Marvel brings together almost every single noteworthy Marvel hero and places them into a world of blocks and building. Combining the likes of Spider-man and Captain America with the bright, colourful humour of the LEGO franchise was a genius move, and it hits almost all the right buttons.

SEGA's House of the Dead is a gaming institution, not because it's especially good (although it does what it does very well), but because its purposefully shaky action and dialogue makes it stick in the mind. Being chased by a sumo-sized monster? You can't possibly enter the door marked "No Entry." It's silly and harmless, and Typing of the Dead takes that idea and makes it even more outlandish.

Old-timey PC gamers might recall a game from the 80's called Shufflepuck Cafe, a science-fiction air-hockey sim with overt influences from Star Wars. The new PC game Shufflepuck Cantina Deluxe takes the same concept and allows modern gamers to experience the exotic thrills of Air Hockey... IN SPAAAAAACE!

Tomb Raider Definitive Edition fails to offer any sort of substantial additions or changes from the original 2013 release. But its lack of deviation is slightly marred by the better looking next-gen versions of the game. Tomb Raider is still the same thrilling experience jam-packed with satisfying gameplay, fantastical set-pieces, gorgeous visuals, and a likeable main character. It is undoubtedly flawed, most notably with its storytelling and writing, and the multiplayer mode still isn’t worth anyone’s time, but Tomb Raider is a great new beginning for a once ...

In Race The Sun players control a fast-moving hovercaft that speeds through an endless landscape of abstract geometric objects. Enormous cubes, cones, and walls fill the world as the player hurtles ever forwards towards a setting sun. The ship is unable to stop, only steer from side to side until the player makes an inevitable mistake and crashes in a shower of flaming pixels.

The Wolf Among Us Episode 2-Smoke and Mirrors continues Telltale’s Fable-based series in excellent fashion. This second episode lacks the excitement of the first, but it provides a much more complex outlook into this unique, noir-themed world.