Left 4 Dead 2 is strongly suggested to everyone who prefers to play cooperatively with friends, sharing an adventure of horror and fear rather than fighting in the usual multiplayer FPS's: to complete the five different campaigns you'll have to act tactically and in strict collaboration with the other players.

Dark Souls is a game without compromises: you'll either love or hate it. The very high difficulty level could discourage the less undaunted players, but if you'll take your time to master its mechanics and "enter" into the game, you'll be rewarded with one of the most satisfying and memorable experiences in your life as a gamer.

A real surprise and one of the most interesting games of the year, with a great cyberpunk mood and an highly satisfying gameplay expecially for those willing to go the stealth/hacker way. It isn't flawless though, with problems like overcompressed cut-scenes - we'd preferred a multi-disk release to this - and the immersion-breaking bad lip-sync in the italian version dubbing, but it undoubtedly is an advised buy.

Probably one of the best music games yet: if you're The Beatles fans you'll love its great psychedelic style, and atmosphere. A real musical-documentary of the 60s, that allows us to imagine the years of a worldwide music revolution.

L.A. Noire isn't perfect, and some flaws even in core gameplay mechanics, like the interrogation system, keep it from being e real masterpiece. But thanks to the great advancements made in performance and storytelling, it's a must buy for every lover of story-driven titles.

Simply the best basketball game to date. 2K Sports achieved an unparalleled simulation level, giving us many play modes for a great longevity.

One of the best games on Live Arcade, capable of rivaling even many of the retail games out there. A great level design keeps the gameplay interesting and entertaining from start to finish, together with great visuals and very high overall production quality. Definitely a must buy.

Modern Warfare 3 is a great FPS and a satisfying ending to Infinity's trilogy. With an adrenalinic and spectacular campaign and very entertaining multiplayer modes, fans of the series won't be disappointed – though we would have liked if the developers pushed it more on the technical side.

A really surprising game, characterized by the great freedom given to the player and the high tension it can induce when crawling in the shadows. We would have liked a lengthier story, but it nevertheless remains a must-buy.

Great gameplay, very good graphics and a flawless online side make of NHL 10 a great hockey simulation, recommend to every fan of this sport. Little problems with the defense line management and somewhat clumsy goalkeepers keep it from obtaining an even higher vote.

Deeper gameplay mechanics with an added layer of tactics, a great story and a very original multiplayer experience make BioShock 2 worthy of the first game, and a must buy for every gamer.

A great FPS with a very solid engine, astounding sound design and great care for details. Its major flaw is the small number of multiplayer maps available, but as they're very big they'll guarantee plenty of online entertainment.

A very good simulation, with well-crafted gameplay, graphics and great longevity thanks to the many modes available.

A brilliant game with deep gameplay, great graphics, a highly involving story and, mainly, it feels like a game conceived for consoles rather than as a PC port. Undoubtedly one of the best RPGs on Xbox 360.

A great game, highly enjoyable both off and online thanks to new modes like the player-coach one and the goalkeeper career and a great improvement in player control and AI.

Criterion produced the best racing game of the year coupling great gameplay, stunning visuals and innovatinve and very compelling social features. A must buy for every arcade racing lover.

NBA 2K13 manages to build on the already stratospheric levels reached last year, confirming it as one of the best, if not the very best, sports game around. Unmissable.

Halo 4 is an emotional rollercoaster, an amalgam of epic scenes and memorable surprises with clockwork-perfect gameplay and a stunning artistic/technical production. The Halo everyone was waiting for.

A great rally game and natural evolution of the series keeping its soul in the middle between arcade and simulation approaches. An improved engine delivers some amazing sceneries and very detailed cars, with state-of-the-art physics and light effects. We apreciated the new features like the Gymkhana mode and the YouTube video upload, while the multiplayer modes proved to be very enteratining and varied. A suggested buy for every fan of the series and everyone looking for an awesome and adrenalinic racing game.

Treyarch finally comes out of Infinity Ward's shadow, producing the best CoD to date. An epic and intense game, with a very good story and and many ways to enjoy it other than the single player campaign.

Fight Night Round 4 is a real masterwork, a milestone in boxing simulations and a tough challenger for all future titles in this genre. If you like sports and boxing, there's not a single reason why you wouldn't own one of the best sports games of 2009 so far.

A frantic and highly satisfying mix of rhythm and platform game: an advised buy for sure.

Colin McRae: DiRT 2 established itself as one of the best racing games of the year. Jawdropping visuals and an over-the-top care to detail characterize a game capable to entertain both the motors passionates and those of you who are simply attracted by the spectacle of this kind of race. In a period monopolized by clean and shiny asphalt racers, this is a great mouthful of fresh air.

One of the best platform games of this generation: maybe it lacks Braid's innovation or Outland's challenge level, but it's got a great appeal thanks to an highly inspired artistic audio/visual production and a varied and constantly entertaining gameplay. A little gem that would be a shame to miss.

A little masterwork, something that will please all the lovers of 2D fighters.

BioWare partially failed to port to console a very classical PC RPG. The Xbox 360 version of the game is ruined by bad graphics and a flawed combat system, while some aspects like the great, multiple-branching story will delight many players. Despite its problems, Dragon Age: Origins remains the only good "old style" RPG on this platform, so if you're looking for something like this you should give it a chance.

Tomb Raider's reboot is definitely a success delivering a deep, adrenalinic and spectacular game with a new and charismatic Lara Croft. Our main complaint is with the lack of greater scale puzzles and more challenging ones, something the game should have retained from its predecessors.

If it wasn't for the poor online experience, Mortal Kombat would have been this gen's king of fighting games. The sheer quantity and quality of contents is staggering, greatly above genre standards, and the return to the series' proven 2D gameplay make this game a must buy for every fighting games lover.