Having both a professional and unprofessional interest in Darksiders, I can acknowledge the many claims that Darksiders mimes The Legend of Zelda’s gameplay (with focus on Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess’ style).

Army of Two: The 40th Day, Electronic Arts’ sequel to 2008’s original release Army of Two, is a cooperative (co-op) third-person shooter (TPS) video game that produces fun and creative gameplay from each player’s dependence on one another.

After selling 4.7 million copies in North America and the UK alone and racking up 310 million dollars within 24 hours of its release, Infinity Ward’s critically acclaimed Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 needs no introduction.

Gearbox’s new release of the game Borderlands for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows has proven to be a great in the shooter genre.

Long has it been since a PlayStation 3 exclusive title stood over its competition and claimed glory for its console. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, the widely well received third-person action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog, broke that curse on Oct. 13 with its addictive cinematic gameplay and enticing plot developments.

When it comes to first-person shooter (FPS) games on the consoles, the Halo franchise has definitely been iconic. It’s hard to believe that six years have passed since the original release of this would-be cultural phenomenon on the Xbox.

It has been almost four years since the original Guitar Hero transformed the gaming world with its innovative plastic guitar controller and gameplay reminiscent of the seminal game Dance Dance Revolution. Since the introduction of the drum set and the microphone, the multiplayer cultural phenomenon that is enjoyed by a large audience has become one of today’s leading franchises in gaming. Guitar Hero 5, the latest installment of the series, was highly anticipated since its announcement, and the game, released in the U.S. on Sept. 4, has indeed lived up to both its reputation and expectations.

In the two years since the full-band rhythm genre was launched with Rock Band, the popularity of musical rhythm games has started to decline, with unit sales dropping almost 50% this year versus last year. It is certainly understandable; there are only so many plastic instruments a person needs to buy. The novelty of the genre has largely worn off as well, with the saturation point long having been exceeded by Activision churning out four full Guitar Hero games this year alone.

After a year and a half of anticipation since the original, the much belated second installment of Level-5’s Professor Layton series on the Nintendo DS, Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, finally hit North America this year on Aug. 24.