Sony has already put together a mostly impressive but somewhat worrying presentation that showed us some of the PlayStation 4's grand features, specs, and social networking services, as well as games and the unfortunate truth that the system would not be backwards compatible – at least not in the traditional sense. Given the fact that Nintendo's console is already out with a relatively empty library and anemic sales, Sony looks to have the upper hand going into the 8th generation.

However, Microsoft has seen the cards and in one week's time it's their turn to show their hand. Given the current state of console gaming, the economy, and what Sony has shown us in the past few years, Microsoft certainly has a lot to prove if they want to make sure they get our gaming green.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Microsoft has a lot to Prove on the 21st - Article

I mentioned that Techland have created an open world zombie survival action RPG twice because that's precisely what they have done here. Dead Island Riptide isn't so much an upgraded and innovative sequel as much as it as an expansion of the original with identical gameplay in a new world with a story that's more of a second chapter in an ongoing story than its own self contained tale. There is a new character that focuses on hand to hand combat, and a few incredibly minor tweaks and added gameplay mechanics, but outside of the similar but different location and sequence of events that make up its story, it's basically the same game. For fans of the first, this will be okay, and I personally feel there's nothing wrong with a sequel that emulates the first but adds a new world to explore and story to unearth, but since they also failed to fix its bugs and for some reason failed to polish it up more, it feels like a wasted opportunity. I'm being a harsh critic not because I feel this game was poor or unenjoyable – It's a blast, especially with friends - but because I want the developers to see their potential, and the modern mentality seems to be that if people paid for it, it's good enough. I expect more. While I certainly enjoyed my time in Palanai, no compliment came without a caveat, an asterisk hovering over each sentence followed by 'but they could have/should have done better.'

Dead Island Riptide sees the four heroes of the original leaving Banoi on a military ship where they get screwed over by some corporate fat cats and meet up with a fifth member; the ship crashes into an island similarly named Panalai, where they meet up with even more survivors, fortify their defenses, and make their way through the hordes of infected so they may escape said island with their lives. Along the way you rescue others, run errands for natives and tourists in exchange for money, weapons, and materials to upgrade your equipment, and deal with betrayals that are the heart of most zombie media. So, basically, it's the exact same thing as Dead Island except set on a flooded island rather than a resort (hence the subtitle Riptide). In addition to the usual questing that various survivors urge you to embark upon, you must also do ongoing side missions where your allies (the main cast members not currently in use by co op partners) send you to gather materials to upgrade their weapons to help you out during the other significant gameplay addition in the form of a stronghold defense mission type wherein the hordes attack your home base and you must fend them off long enough to complete whatever mission is at hand.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Dead Island Riptide - Review

Terrarria has been around for a while, so most people tend to understand what it is on the surface: a 2D Minecraft clone. While it certainly appears to be such upon first glance, Terraria offers so much more than that. You mine your way through the world, building a home, making your bed, and inviting NPCs into your complex to sell you goods and offer you services, but there's also a bunch of different weapon types, accessories, and magic! In addition to the basics, Terraria has more pointed goals, boss battles, and a lengthy item trading/upgrading/finding system that makes it function not only as a 2D platformer, but also an RPG and adventure game. One could almost pin the 'Metroidvania' tag on it due to its insistence on having you trek across the land dozens of times, back and forth to find items, unlock bosses, get stronger weapons and armor, and find NPCs to trade with and invite into your home.

Where Minecraft has no real direction outside of your own imagination, the adventure elements of Terraria give it purpose. It is open ended, in that you don't have to follow those directions and can just build a home and populate it with NPCs if you wish, but the missing third dimension does limit what you can build appropriately, and you still have to figure most of the game out on your own. There is a tutorial teaching you the basics, like how to move, navigate menus, mine for ore, and use work benches, but it's really only an introduction to what the world has to offer. That's okay, though, since you still have access to plenty of materials and building options, which is great because in Terraria you just need to be near the proper crafting table and have the materials to make your clothes, accessories, weapons, spells, and decorations; they just show up on a list when you have acquired at least one of each material needed, the rest is completely up to you. You are, however, going to need to look up the combos online if you want to learn all of the recipes, combos, and options.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Terraria (PS3) - Review

But April 2nd 2013 is the day the music died. That's right, Don McLean's American Pie is the final track to be released for the platform; a fitting end to a series and genre that helped an entire generation appreciate the musical stylings of bands such as Rush, The Who, Queen, and The Beatles.

I started out with Harmonix sometime in mid-2005, between the releases of Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero II. I didn't like DDR, so I thought I would dislike Guitar Hero as well. Luckily I was wrong. I quickly took to mastering that fake plastic guitar like it made me a star, just like everyone else between 2005 and 2009. I was there day one to pick up Guitar Hero II, and just like that I was well and truly hooked. I also picked up Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, but I don't think anyone feels that that was a particularly great game - an expansion in an era and on a system that didn't facilitate expansions. It wasn't until the great war of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock versus Rock Band that things really heated up.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Rock Band: The Day the Music Died - Article

The Bridge is a puzzle platformer modelled after the visual style and optical illusions of MC Escher, as well as his likeness (I think). The controls are very simple: A and D to move, W to enter doors, the left and right directional arrows tilt and spin the world, and the spacebar is used to reverse time when you mess up. It's the mashed up, artistically Frankenstein'd love child of Echocrome and Braid, except much harder and prettier than either one. The object of the game is simply to twist and turn the world to get to your destination, collect keys, and avoid obstacles. The main game is fairly easy and consists of 24 levels spread across four chapters, but it's the post game content that will have you throwing your keyboard or laptop across the room due to the finicky nature of the puzzles in the mirrored chapters.

Puzzles and solutions are pretty ingenious throughout, as they utilize slopes, gravity, traps, vortexes, and optical illusions to an amazing end. The simplest modification of the physics of the world allow you to rotate the entire stage a full 360 degrees without limitation, but there are many other ways to alter the physics as well. Buttons turn vortexes off and on, certain colored items have unique gravity fields that you can alter and compete with, and you can even invert yourself and your colors to affect different objects in the world, a gameplay mechanic that perfectly blends the simple black and white art style derived from MC Escher's more famous works. There are even times when you control multiple professors at once. The various mechanics and features are all implemented perfectly to give a detailed, brilliant puzzle game that starts off rewarding but ends up being more frustrating and trial-and-error based towards the end.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - The Bridge (PC) - Review

To get yourself up to three plots of land, you must impress the Jarls in three of the holds that don't yet offer you a pre-made home, including The Pale, Falkreath, and Hjaalmarch. You can actually buy all three plots of land and make three homes, but given the massive amount of time, money, and materials needed to fully customize just one house, the best way to enjoy Hearthfire to the fullest is to start a new save game and dedicate much of your time to these three homes instead of the pre-made homes. Truth be told, Breezehome in Whiterun will forever be my home, but with the addition of Hearthfire plots, I could see that changing very quickly.

Once you've bought your plot of land, you travel to said plot and see that there is a bench, a crafting table, and an anvil just to the side of where you are to build, as well as clay and stone deposits that never run out. From the bench, you decide what part of the house you're working on, then you move over to the crafting table where you can build - in a linear fashion - the series of items needed to create that area of your new home, starting with the foundation, then walls, then roof. Once you're done, you can return to the bench and decide what to do next. You start with a small cabin as well as a bunch of outdoor amenities - like a stable, a garden, or a smelter – before moving onto the main hall. From here you can add three additional wings to your home, each with three distinct options, which means you get to pick three of nine potential specialized rooms and additions. Coupled with the fact that you can buy all three plots, this means you can have all nine potential additions to your home, albeit in different locations. Such wings include an enchanting wing, an alchemy wing, a storage wing, a bedroom, a library, and so on. All pretty simple stuff, but they're key elements for an adventurer. If it seems confusing, don't worry; there's a book sitting on your crafting table that gives you all the details you need.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Hearthfire (PS3) - Review

As told by the narrator in the opening menu, and experienced throughout the course of the game, the city in Urban Trial: Freestyle is an absolute mess and you must escape it on your trusty trials bike before it literally collapses around you. On your way out, you ramp, climb, jump, and flip over obstacles en route to your destination, while collecting cash, amassing points, and sometimes even racing other bikers - well, ghosts of other bikers. The object of the game is to acquire as many points as you can, which in turn give you stars that you use to unlock more areas on your journey beyond the city's walls.

There are five different areas, each with eight stages (for an overall total of 40 stages). While I adored the 40 stages and felt that, for the most part, the level design was impressive, Urban Trial: Freestyle loses some points for re-using levels and simply adding a new stipulation to completion. Most levels can be played in three modes, which for review purposes we'll call Freestyle, Race, and Stunts. Each of these modes per level comprises a new stage, but the collectibles are shared between different variations of each stage; once you've gotten that bag of cash stashed under the train in one level, you've collected it and it won't return for other stages that share that level.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Urban Trial: Freestyle (PSV) - Review

As in the first two games, you play as Isaac Clarke, a space engineer who keeps getting in over his head in a conspiracy involving mystical alien artifacts that are turning people crazy and urging them to start a new religion that revolves around the idea of turning everyone into a space zombie known as a necromorph. This plot kind of worked in the first game where the 'religion' in question was more or less confined to the Ishimura, but once it spread to human civilization, surely it should have been eradicated. I repeat, it was a religion that revolved around the idea of killing everyone and turning them into space zombies. Are we really supposed to believe that future human civilization is capable of faster than light travel and galactic colonization, but isn't capable of destroying the so-called markers that are very clearly driving people to insanity? Are we supposed to believe that supposedly intelligent people find the idea of being turned into a necromorph in any way appealing? I've heard of some pretty weird religions throughout Earth's history, but I can't recall one that was so widespread and so very dangerous.

The very fact that every single one of these questions and many more concerning the story came to mind when playing Dead Space 3 says something about the plot. Willing suspense of disbelief can only go so far. I can imagine that Superman putting on glasses convinces people he's Clark Kent because the DC universe has traditionally been campy and not meant to be taken too seriously. I can accept the clearly evil, diabolical plots of the Umbrella Corporation because at this point Resident Evil is a parody of such exaggerated tropes, at least in my eyes. I cannot just accept that humanity has collectively devolved into a bunch of neanderthals despite mastering space travel because Dead Space 3 takes itself so seriously. At one point, when it became clear that Isaac had a new love interest, I knew exactly how it would play out, with the needless conflict and strife that would come from Isaac choosing her love over survival. Every note from every plot point is taken directly from the words of a 13 year old's Dead Space fan-fiction, and given a few extra curse words to make it seem mature. Every character in the game is unlikeable and as shallow as a street puddle on a hot summers day, and that's terrible when you're playing a game that tries hard to make you care about a romance that you know is doomed to fail.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Dead Space 3 (PS3) - Review

Let's tackle this one straight away: the PlayStation Vita costs too much. When you consider just what the system is capable of, it's a fair price (perhaps even a little bit underpriced), but the fact remains that people just aren't willing to pay $250-300 on a dedicated handheld. Even Nintendo could barely sell its handheld system at that price, and Nintendo's presence in the handheld market is second to none. It wasn't until Nintendo dropped the price of the 3DS down to $169.99 that sales soared and the handheld became a sales success. When you factor in the cost of memory cards, which cost between $20 and $100, the Vita begins to price itself out of the market for the average consumer. As some have said, the patient gamer is the smart gamer, and in the case of the Vita, most would agree it's better to wait until the price is cut and/or there are more must-have games.

Despite the high entry point, there are a couple of features that add value to the overall package. PS+ is now on the Vita which, if you're a subscriber, gives you games like Gravity Rush and Uncharted: Golden Abyss free of charge.; a nice incentive for people who plan on getting a Vita to compliment their PlayStation 3. Which brings me to Sony's Cross-buy option. Certain games that come out on the PlayStation 3 and Vita are sold at a 2 for 1 deal. If you buy the PlayStation 3 version, you get a free downloadable copy of it on the PlayStation Vita. It won't turn people onto the system, but it's a great incentive for those who are interested.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - The Playstation Vita: One Year Later - Article

 Ah crap, I just wasted two minutes of your time. I am a hack! Fire me!

 But in all seriousness, Big Sky Infinity is a cute, fun little procedurally generated sidescrolling twin stick shooter for the Playstation Vita; a title that makes great use of the hardware's increasingly impressive dual analog sticks but little else. There are a dozen different modes to play through and a full buffet of leaderboards and scoreboards to peruse, as well as an option to upgrade your ship to kick increasing amounts of ass. That's pretty much the extent of it, but every second of it is pretty awesome, from its sly English narrator to the mystery of wondering what boss the game will throw at you next, or whether you'll be lucky enough not to die in a black hole. The fact that it's procedurally generated, and the fact that upgrading your ship fully will take you forever, mask the game's lack of depth. The subtleties of the powerup system and the lack of outright explanation create an erratic learning curve.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Big Sky Infinity (PSV) - Review

Most enhanced ports were omitted from the running for Vita Game of the Year, but even without Mortal Kombat or Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention, there's still a great crop of fresh goodies to pick from. In fact I'd have loved to have added a few titles to the list of nominees, but not everyone can be on top. So, without further ado...

Here are the Nominees: 

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Best PlayStation Vita Game of 2012 - Article

Here are the Nominees: 

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Most Anticipated Game of 2013 - Article

Not only did we have to comb through our review database for games that were completely original, but we also had to choose our nominees based on their potential for being prospective franchises. What we decided on was a stealthy steampunk game, an open world anime-inspired sci-fi title, a music-based platformer, and a beautifully rendered, enigmatic experience. All of these games were wonderful and original, and choosing just one as a winner was a real task, and there was certainly some dissent amongst the crew, but after a battle royale, we managed to pick just one.  

Here are the Nominees:

Dishonored

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Best New IP of 2012 - Article

Here are the Nominees: 

Fez

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Best Download Game of 2012 - Article

Here are the Nominees: 

Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Best Remake or HD Collection of 2012 - Article

The mechanics of Uncharted: Fight for Fortune won't be too complicated for most seasoned card players to pick up on, but for others it might seem like a lot to take in at once. You make decks of summoned characters and creatures, divided into three factions: Heroes, Villains, and Mercenaries. Each of these cards has an attack stat, a defense stat, and a cost for use, as well as its own flavor text giving it specific bonuses, and a set of icons representing characters they can combo up with. As your turns go by, you gain points in each of the three factions. Once you've gained enough points in a faction you can summon a character from that category. For example, once you get 8 Hero points, you can summon Nathan Drake, who has 8 attack, 8 defense, and combines well with the character cards for Elana, Sully, and Marissa.

Once you've chosen the character you wish to summon, you put it down on one of five card slots to determine the card it will be facing off against. Once you've chosen a card the screen shifts and you get to choose from one of three hidden fortune cards that have pre-determined values. These cards can either be applied to your summoned characters or instantly discarded for 5 fortune points. Banking the 5 fortune points is quick and carries no risk, but equipping them on your characters has a higher risk as well as a higher reward. Equipping a fortune card on a faction card that gets destroyed by the enemy gives them the fortune points, but keeping it alive long enough or getting a modifier that lets you bank it instantly gives you the points. These points are used on resource cards that give faction cards extra attack or defense, and in some cases can be used as a status effect or direct attack on your rival.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Uncharted: Fight for Fortune (PSV) - Review

 Here are the Nominees:

Kid Icarus: Uprising 

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Best Third-Person Shooter of 2012 - Article

The Dragonborn quest line starts with an assassination attempt on your life by a group of crazed cultists who are trying to resurrect their saviour at your expense. Said saviour is a much more powerful Dragonborn, known as Miraak, who has been trapped in hell by Hermaeus Mora and wants back out. Your travels immediately take you to the Morrowind island of Solstheim and the daedric realm of Apocrypha, which is a Lovecraftian nightmare populated by squid men, black seas, and angry tentacles that are all trying to kill you. Getting to Solstheim is easy - all you have to do is visit one of the sailors in Windhelm and he'll ferry you to the island of Solstheim. As soon as you get off the boat, it's clear that you're not in Skyrim anymore. Morrowind's dunme architecture and landscapes are much more organic than the medieval fantasy that made up Skyrim, and it shows. Sweeping round buildings, crystalline clfffs, and towns made of giant mushrooms is commonplace in Morrowind, and it really gives the island of Solstheim an appropriately foreign feel that helps make this feel different yet similar. Even the sky's nighttime borealis is grungier and grosser in Solstheim than it is in Skyrim.

Enemies have changed greatly in Solstheim compared to Skyrim. Some are a real pain, like the hulking draugr. The ash spawn are able to throw fireballs and have immense physical attack and are made up of an anthropomorphic ball of resurrected ash. Reavers and pirates replace the more common bandits and forsworn. Betentacled beasts known as Netch are also out to get you. There are also modifications on existing enemies, like the albino or flame-borne arachnids that are much creepier looking than they sound and are surprisingly deadly if you're not careful. Everything about Solstheim feels foreign and scary, and it works remarkably well, given the theme of the expansion. However, none of the enemies are creepier or more effective than the cultists themselves.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Dragonborn (X360) - Review

Full Frontal Assault is certainly enjoyable, just like every other Ratchet and Clank game to-date. Every minute is full of a symphony of explosions and the clanging of bolts; enemies are still fun to dispatch, guns are fun to fire and level up, and traversing the levels with the hover boots and the ramp pathways is an absolute blast. The controls are stellar, save for some occasionally stiff camera work, and the game performs flawlessly even when there are hundreds of items and effects on screen. And, of course, the graphics are as crisp and pretty as they've ever been. Despite all of that, Full Frontal Assault feels lackluster compared to other entries in the franchise. It's a fun distraction, but lacks the depth and drawing power of the five main entries in the series.

I often found myself wanting to play A Crack in Time or Up Your Arsenal instead, or at least I was reminiscing about playing them. That was a time when each entry in the franchise was new and awe-inspiring. With Full Frontal Assault, by contrast, it feels like Insomniac are resting on their laurels. If this continues we may only have a few more entries before we say goodbye to our favorite Lombax forever. Insomniac hasn't done anything significant with the franchise for years, and knowing that they've passed the torch on in the case of Resistance doesn't bode well for Ratchet and his friends.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Ratchet and Clank: Full Frontal Assault (PS3) - Review

Based on the TV show of the same name, Transformers: Prime follows the Autobots and Decepticons as they try to piece together broken chunks of a mysterious asteroid that houses parts of yet another uber-mech that threatens to destroy the world. At least I think that's the story; there were no options to turn on subtitles and the 3DS's built in speakers can't compete with white noise even at max volume. It's really nothing out of the ordinary but does give players the option to enjoy what would make a decent two or three part season finale. The problem is, you'd be lucky to get that kind of longevity out of it. The game spans a grand total of about 12 stages, and each can be done in about 5 minutes or so for a whopping total game length of about an hour, depending on how many times you die. This would be acceptable for a $5 download or an iOS game, but for a full retail game it's an insult. Even with the tacked-on multiplayer modes that consist of local wireless or CPU-based free for all or deathmatch battles, you're not likely to even get two hours out of the whole experience (and that's assuming you can find other local friends who have it).

Despite the story being simple and the game being terribly short, the voice acting, score, and sound effects are all excellent. If I didn't know better I'd think I was listening to the show, if not for the hideous, dare-I-say broken visuals. In every cutscene, it looked like Optimus Prime had only loaded his base frame, and none of his textures or details had come through, making him look like an ugly, smudged-up mess. This is the case with all of the character models, so I'm convinced the developers ran out of time when they were about one third complete. The animations aren't any better, as even the humans in the game move like they're robots. It's a shame to see such a dichotomy between the audio and visual fidelity, but that's what happens with cheap games.

This is an excerpt from the full story which was originally featured on gamrReview, read the full version here - Transformers: Prime - The Game (3DS) - Review