Lucas Sullivan
Contrast has a lot of heart, but its protagonist and environments lack some soul. It's not the best puzzle platformer you'll ever play, but it's far from the worst.
Resogun looks incredible and provides plenty of arcade fun. It's only held back by sudden difficulty spikes and some frustrating point-scoring mechanics.
Excellent mechanics and incredible playability make up for Killer Instinct's shortage of single-player content. Franchise fans and fighting game junkies will be most pleased.
Powerstar Golf blends time-tested mechanics with a unique style, rewarding your hard work with a pleasant sense of accomplishment. As long as you don't let the microtransactions ruin it for you, you're all but guaranteed to have a good time.
Jazzpunk is uniquely ridiculous and undeniably hilarious. It's not afraid of making you work to find all the funny, which turns even the tiniest throwaway joke into something special.
Trials Fusion delivers more of what you want: addictively challenging obstacle courses, complete with precision controls and highly competitive leaderboards. The futuristic setting and subplot don't add much, but they (usually) don't detract from the fun either.
The subject material is ghastly, but Valiant Hearts has the right mix of emotion and entertainment to make enduring the Great War worthwhile.
Though Reaper of Souls' story additions feel too open-ended, the new Crusader class and Adventure Mode go a long way towards revitalizing Diablo's inherently fun and addictive core gameplay.
By turning your every death into the start of a personal vendetta, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor makes you that much more invested in its open-world. The savage combat and satisfying stealth are just the means to exacting your ultimate revenge.
A highly polished iteration of Smash Bros. that plays great on its own. But if you're afflicted by latency problems in local multiplayer, you'll suddenly become painfully aware of the 3DS version's critical shortcomings.
You've never explored an open world quite like this. Sunset Overdrive's iffy gunplay and inconsistent missions are redeemed by absolutely amazing mobility and an infectious enthusiasm for mayhem.
Same great Smash Bros. gameplay, amazing new presentation on the Wii U. Whether you're looking for technical depth or enjoyable chaos, you'll find it here.
Warlords of Draenor may not fundamentally change the way you play WoW, but it does a fantastic job of rejuvenating it. If you've been wanting to come back, now's the time.
If you can steel yourself for a challenge and come to grips with an unwieldy checkpoint system, Ori and the Blind Forest will mesmerize you with its lush world and incredible artistry.
Mortal Kombat X has tons of polish, unique mechanics, and the genre's best story mode, but it doesn't do enough to keep players invested if they weren't already planning on it.
Heroes of the Storm is like a MOBA highlight reel, cutting right to the best moments and doing away with all the boring bits. It's a fast, lean, and relentlessly fun 5v5 experience.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5 exists to exploit any nostalgia you might have for the earlier games, offering an insulting dearth of worthwhile content in exchange for your money.
Despite some wonky tie-ins with the film, this is a gorgeous, thoroughly great platformer and a worthy reboot for Ratchet & Clank.
There's certainly room for improvement, but Overwatch is already a superb team-based shooter full of memorable multiplayer moments.
Inside's nightmarish journey is fascinating and frightening in equal measure. This puzzle platformer is easily consumed, but digesting its disturbing world will be a contemplative challenge.