The game perfectly captures the expansiveness of frontier life and the gritty gunplay of spaghetti westerns, rightfully earning its place alongside the great Western films and the best Rockstar games. [Issue#206, p.86]

The game's quality stays consistently outstanding throughout; there isn't a minute of filler content to be found anywhere in single-player or co-op.

My favorite aspect of Infinite is the one about which I can say the least: story. The build-up is slow, but it works wonderfully thanks to the small ways other elements flow into the narrative.

The game's quality stays consistently outstanding throughout; there isn't a minute of filler content to be found anywhere in single-player or co-op.

Modern Warfare 2 is a masterpiece of careful iteration, with an unmatched presentation and a well of content that will take months to run dry.

This game does retain its glory, but you actually have to work, and work hard, to find it. [Dec 2002, p.106]

The gameplay is a tour de force that feeds off of your skills and unleashes hundreds of intense battles. The graphics, while somewhat disturbing, are beautifully designed, becoming transparent when Dante veers behind an object.

Start to finish, online or off, Call of Duty 4 is solid gold. Some might decry the single-player’s short length or that it’s more of the same, but its amazing quality and the Arcade mode...more than make up for it. Infinity Ward has delivered on every front, and there is no question in my mind that this is the best action shooter that I have ever played.

Madden is even deeper this year with the return of the Create-a-Team and the Two-Minute Drill, but that's not why my jock is still on the field. Tiburon could have merely made these additions, but it went the remaining nine yards to make a football game that is that much closer to perfection, if it hasn't already got there.

This game could be one of the biggest and most enjoyable time sinks of the year. Arkham City not only lives up to the standards set by Arkham Asylum, it bests its predecessor in every way and stands tall as one of Batman's greatest moments. [Nov 2011]

The loss of RPG elements may hit some people hard, and the repetition in minigames may lead to yawns and tired eyes, but none of these faults hold Mass Effect 2 back from being a work of bold ambition, and one of gaming’s most exciting sequels.

My new favorite way to play one of my top 10 games of all time. Its updated visuals look great in 3D, the touch-screen streamlines inventory issues, and aiming with the gyroscope feels like much more than a gimmick. [July 2011, p.92]

BioShock was undoubtedly the best game of 2007, but after a year with so little extra polish, its luster has diminished slightly.

Reliving the choices of the first Mass Effect as an interactive comic book pales in comparison to importing your own Commander Shepard. However, aside from that consistency in the universe, Mass Effect 2 is just as good on PS3 as it is on 360. [Feb 2011, p.98]

It may be management freaks like myself who derive the most from this year's Madden. [Sept 2003, p.105]

This is one of the best co-op games I have played, especially when you crank the difficulty past Casual and up into the Hardcore and Insane levels. Working with your buddy to flank and outwit the enemy is a blast.

The bar for the next generarion of RPG's has been set. [May 2006, p.92]

Dealing with themes like religion, racism, and xenophobia, Columbia is a richer and more nuanced setting than even Rapture, and the unveiling of the city’s culture is masterfully executed.

Start to finish, online or off, Call of Duty 4 is solid gold. Some might decry the single-player’s short length or that it’s more of the same, but its amazing quality and the Arcade mode...more than make up for it. Infinity Ward has delivered on every front, and there is no question in my mind that this is the best action shooter that I have ever played.

Overall, Bungie has crafted another masterpiece that serves as a fitting end to the trilogy (no big cliffhanger here).

Even if you already have a copy of the original game in your library, Black is an absolute necessity. [Oct 2005, p.140]

The bar for the next generarion of RPG's has been set. [May 2006, p.92]

A distillation of everything the genre does right. It delivers the intensity of competition and the thrill of victory, all through elegant techniques that are easy to learn and difficult to master. Street Fighter IV is more than mere nostalgia - it's the best thing to happen to fighting games in years. [Mar 2009, p.82]

We finally have a high quality port of the game that is probably my favorite ever: "Super Mario Bros. 3." [Nov 2003, p.176]

Writing in video games is a subject that doesn't get a lot of attention, but Chaos Theory features a simply great script. Not only is it complex and deep, it's also surprisingly funny. [Apr 2005, p.112]

With incredibly realistic damage modelling transforming every crash into a work of art fit to be framed and hung on the walls of Paris' Louvre museum, Burnout 3 is a visual dynamo that will floor players with its speed and gorgeous vistas. [Oct 2004, p.122]

I'm glad that games don't have feelings. If they did, Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence would be the over-achiever that makes the games around it feel embarrassingly inadequate. [Apr 2006, p.121]

Modern Warfare 2 is a masterpiece of careful iteration, with an unmatched presentation and a well of content that will take months to run dry.