LittleBigPlanet PS Vita has a compelling story and is a joy to play through. Its ability to successfully integrate so many of the Vita's hardware functions makes gameplay both challenging and entertaining. Allowing players to contribute to its world by building their own levels is simply the cherry on the sundae.

Dishonored gives you a beautiful, fascinating, new world to explore, and then makes it your playground for grand misdeeds. Its story of political intrigue and betrayal is told at exactly the right pace, balancing information with action in a way that keeps you interested, but not overloaded.

Mists of Pandaria looks and sounds simply beautiful. And it knows it, providing ample opportunity to ride massive kites or giant jade dragons and ogle sculpted monuments and tiered pagodas all while listening to an epic orchestral soundtrack or a nearly flawless monologue delivered by talented voice actors.

A must-play for any PlayStation owner, The Unfinished Swan is a short but brilliant exercise in broadening perception, and utilizing simplicity.

Rather than pushing off being sneaky to sections or merely offering it as an option, Mark of the Ninja is a return to form for the stealth genre where bypassing an opponent is just as thrilling as killing them.

Assassin's Creed III lets you jump into an intriguing point in history, and it succeeds on nearly every level with nimble combat, fun diversions and the chance to captain your own ship. Connor might not be an altogether likeable hero, but the New World he's fighting to protect is one you won't forget.

A game worth buying a 3DS for.

This is the Tomb Raider you've wanted for years. It needs a few more puzzles, but that's a small gripe when cast against such a marvelous adventure.

Darkstalkers Resurrection isn't just a re-release of two classic fighting games, it also stands as the best example to date of how to revive games from the 1990s on modern gaming hardware.

Bioshock Infinite is both a breathtaking achievement in videogame storytelling and a marquee example of a game that will stick with you long after you see everything it has to offer. Calling it simply a first-person shooter is practically an insult. If you can make it through the game without being emotionally affected - or even experiencing a bit of an existential crisis - you need to check your pulse immediately.

LA Noire is the type of game we jump up and down over - full of story and style and oozing playability and charm. Unfortunately the single, awkward mechanic of the interrogations mars what could have been a flawless recreation of a classic genre.

Infamous 2 improves upon the original in nearly every way with a fantastic setting and great mechanics but the story just wasn't quite a home run.

If you're a fan of adventure platforms like Metriod and Castlevania, but you always felt they could be a little more sandbox, Terraria is a must have.

Catherine is oftentimes agonizing, but like the blonde vixen that bewitches Vincent, it keeps you wanting more, just the same. The story, helped along by beautiful animation and first class voice acting, never stops being interesting. The puzzles test your mettle with genuinely clever design.

Bastion is an intriguing and eclectic action-heavy RPG with great audio and visuals, and it mixes some interesting mechanics with tried and true gameplay. $15 might be a little steep for some gamers, but this is a game you ought to play, particularly if you care about replayability.

A worthy sequel to one of the most celebrated PC games of all time. Aside from a few, easily overlooked missteps, this is easily one of the most enjoyable games of the year.

A visually stunning game with simply fun action and challenging platforming, El Shaddai is only slightly marred by the death system and unoriginal mechanics.

A brilliant remake, Star Fox 64 3D sports all the fun and fast-paced action of the original with an excellent visual redesign and only a few minor drawbacks.

If you know you're the kind of player that can appreciate the depth and difficulty of Dark Souls' experience, you should run out and buy it right now.

Playing as NBA legends in their prime is awesome, and the My Player improvements are great, but the amalgamation of modes and features doesn't transcend the genre like last year's game did.

Another Professor Layton game, another bit of puzzling brilliance. Some of the brain teasers feel a bit recycled - instead of foxes and chickens, you're shuttling dogs and cats across the river, for example - but there's more than enough variety to warrant doggedly tracking down every last one. But if you only solve the ones you need to move the story forward, that's ok, too.

An action-heavy realization of what makes Batman such a compelling hero, complete with a fascinating world, a smart story and loads of rewards for exploring it all.

A brilliant romp. The controls can be frustrating at times, but the overall journey is exceptional.

Steelport is a glorious sandbox with fun around every corner and the well-written story and easy-to-use design make Saints Row 3 a fantastic package.

Much like its predecessors: a bombastic but brief single player campaign coupled with laser-focused multiplayer.

Super Mario 3D Land is a great platformer with lots of gameplay and fantastic visuals, slightly overshadowed by some awkward camera issues.

Few other games with as many miles under their belts look and feel this good. A fresh coat of paint is all this game needed to remind the world how Bungie brought shooters out of the stone age.

Rayman Origins is a beautiful looking platformer with a wide variety of levels, but is marred slightly by a handful of pacing issues.