Square Enix

Raiding Tombs in an All-new Way

HIGH Some of the best cooperative action I've ever experienced.

LOW Not being able to instantly retry failed challenges.

WTF Why was online co-op not ready to go at launch?

Game Description: Experience the first ever co-op action-adventure game featuring Lara Croft. Team up with a friend or go at it alone as you traverse and solve deadly traps, fight hordes of undead enemies, and collect over 60 artifacts and relics. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light offers fast-paced action and breathtaking visuals shown through an isometric view.

Project Gestalt

HIGH Seeing a group of friends actually behaving like a honest-to-goodness group of friends for maybe the first time ever in a video game.

LOW The extra cut-scenes in the second playthrough were uncharacteristically melodramatic.

WTF Watching big, manly Nier land on his butt like a clumsy five year old after a big fall.

Game Description: Nothing is as it seems in Square Enix's latest action adventure game, set in a crumbling world plagued by disease and dark, unrecognizable creatures. Players assume the role of the unyielding protagonist, NIER, resolute in his quest to discover a cure for his daughter, who is infected with the Black Scrawl virus. With powerful allies and a mysterious book, NIER encounters things that will confound even the mightiest of warriors. With NIER, experience seamless in-battle cinematics and explore hauntingly familiar lands, intense action-packed battles, and storytelling like only Square Enix can do.

It's Been a Long Time Coming

HIGH The pitch-perfect ending.

LOW Easy endgame battles that lasted five minutes anyway.

WTF 1 Boomerang + 20 Sturdy Bones + 6 Particle Accelerators = +6 to attack?

Game Description: From the creative minds behind FINAL FANTASY VII and FINAL FANTASY X comes the latest installment in the critically acclaimed series. As FINAL FANTASY VII was for PlayStation, and FINAL FANTASY X for PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system, FINAL FANTASY XIII will be the first numbered FINAL FANTASY title for the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360, and will look to once again reestablish the series as the RPG brand. Players will follow Lightning, Snow, and the other heroes who are dealt a hand of fate by the god-like fal'Cie. Cursed and regarded as enemies of society, they have the world against them and nobody to rely on but each other. Will they find the strength within themselves to break free of their curse and determine their own fates, or will they succumb to this higher power? With a story that is sure to connect with players' hearts, diverse new characters from world-renowned creator and character designer Tetsuya Nomura, and exciting new gameplay features centered around an evolved Active Time Battle system, FINAL FANTASY XIII will be the pinnacle in gaming experiences.

A Nice Place to Visit, but...

HIGH Insane chopper-to-chopper grappling hook action.

LOW The sheer number of missions to finish before credits roll.

WTF Falling 10,000 feet and grappling towards the ground for safety.

The Year of Living Tediously

HIGH Some of the best graphics I've yet seen on the Nintendo DS.

LOW Beautifully-designed bosses you can barely see due to a lousy camera.

WTF The fourteenth member of Organization XIII?