NEED FOR SPEED : HOT PURSUIT (2010)

PLATFORMS: PS3, XBOX360, PC, Wii, iPHONE, AND iPAD

GENRE: RACING

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Operating system: Windows XP (SP3) / Windows Vista / Windows 7
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 ® 2.6 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000 + or better
Memory: 1.5 GB Windows ® XP / 2 GB Windows Vista ® - Windows ® 7
Graphics Card: GeForce 8800 GT or ATI Radeon HD 4700 (or better)
Hard Disk: 8.0 GB

Like all the best video game locations, Seacrest County is a completely ridiculous place. The roads are universally pristine and peppered with awesome shortcuts. The national parks are gloriously free of gigantic RVs. And when people decide to break traffic laws, they do it at 200mph in exotic supercars. If that sounds like a slice of heaven pie to you, then you're going to want to check out Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit, a reboot of Electronic Arts' cops-and-speeders driving series from veteran developer Criterion Games. 

 The concept of Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit could have been dreamed up at a middle-school boy's sleepover party. What if there was a place where both cops and the illegal street racers drove Lamborghinis, Mercedes, Bentleys, Porches and other drool-worthy marques around a gigantic network of roads at supremely high rates of speed? Oh, and wouldn't it be sweet if they could crash into each other and drop spike strips and call in helicopters and run each other off the road? And when you crash into someone, it should drop into ultra-slow motion and give you a ton of points! 

You can play as a cop or a racer, and you increase your rank or wanted level as you run people off the road, drift around corners, drive into oncoming traffic (as a racer), and generally behave like a motoring maniac. Along the way, you'll earn Bounty to unlock new cars, expand your arsenal of weapons/gadgets and open new sections of the Seacrest County map. The more you drive, crash, smash and win, the more cool stuff you get. It's simple, and it works. 

    Criterion has created a racing landscape that feels alive. Traffic (all licensed vehicles) comes and goes, aircraft fly by as you're driving, weather effects are realistic and dramatic, and the buildings along the roads just seem, well, real. Hop into Freedrive mode, and you can hop into any car you've unlocked and just tool around the entirety of Seacrest County. As you motor along, weather will come and go, the sun will rise and set, and the world will just sort of roll along. 

     Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit is pure over-the-top driving entertainment. The cars and environments are gorgeous, the crashes are spectacular, and the new Autolog feature breathes new life into the time-honored tradition of video game competition among friends. The single-player races can become somewhat repetitive and there are some presentation issues, but overall, Hot Pursuit is a blast. If you’re looking for a high-octane racer that grabs on tight but doesn’t take itself too seriously, give this one a shot.

BATTLEFIELD : BAD COMPANY 2 - VIETNAM

PLATFORMS: PS3, XBOX 360 AND PC

GENRE: FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Processor: Quadcore
Main memory: 2GB
Graphics card: GeForce GTX 260
Graphics memory: 512MB
OS: Windows Vista or Windows 7
Free HDD space: 15GB for Digital Version, 10GB for Disc Version (BFBC2)

DICE released what I consider the best multiplayer shooter of 2010 with Battlefield: Bad Company 2. Somehow, while pumping out a steady stream of free content updates to Bad Company 2 proper, developing a co-operative add-on for the game, and creating the multiplayer component for Medal of Honor from scratch for EA studio mates Danger Close, DICE has found the time to deliver Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - Vietnam, and with it, what might be their best multiplayer experience for the year 2010.

    Rather than adding a few new maps and shoving it out the door, DICE has created a complementary but separate experience to Bad Company 2. Bad Company 2 - Vietnam is set apart from Bad Company 2's original multiplayer mode in the menu - it even has its own separate title screen. The expansion winds back the clock and places players in the midst of the Vietnam conflict amidst recognizable battles and period specific music. Black Ops this isn't; Bad Company 2 - Vietnam feels like it takes place more than 40 years before the main game, and there aren't any weird anachronistic pieces of future tech around to break the illusion. 

   The underlying mechanics are the same as Bad Company 2 - the squad based dynamics, the vehicles - but some seemingly minor changes result in an experience that feels distinctive. DICE has taken thematic elements of the Vietnam War in popular fiction - trenches, tunnels, bush hiding spots, rice paddies, and the like - and used them to make Bad Company 2 feel and play differently. 

Anyone who played much Bad Company 2 was likely made quite familiar with the sniper-like accuracy of medics with long-range scopes attached to their machine guns, and I'll admit to being aggressive from across the map as an engineer with the aid of a red dot sight. In the absence of these weapon tweaks, the combat dynamic has changed considerably from Bad Company 2. Fights are closer and more vicious more often, which is assisted by environments and level design that break up most long lines of sight and which provide a ton of hiding places. 

   Whether you're new to Bad Company 2 or have been repairing, healing, and blowing up other players since March of this year, Bad Company 2 -Vietnam is among the best multiplayer experiences this year. The ability to contribute and succeed and unlock additional levels in ways that don't have to include shooting other players and the reliance on strategy over twitch gameplay clicks just as well in Bad Company 2 - Vietnam. Meanwhile, the re-balancing of character classes and level variety might actually trump Bad Company 2 proper. Battlefield fans will probably argue over whether to play Bad Company 2 or its expansion in the months to come. But when it comes to choosing between arguably the best multiplayer game of the year and its excellent expansion, that seems like a good problem to have.

WORLD OF WARCRAFT : CATACLYSM

PLATFORMS: PC AND MAC

GENRE: PERSISTENT ONLINE RPG.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Windows XP 32bit (SP3), Windows XP 64bit (SP2), Windows Vista 32bit (SP1), Windows Vista 64bit (SP1) Windows 7:
Dual-core processor, such as the Intel Pentium D or AMD Athlon 64 X2
2 GB RAM (2 GB for Vista users)
3D graphics processor with Vertex and Pixel Shader capability with 256 MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600 or ATI Radeon 2600 or better
DirectX-compatible sound card or motherboard sound capability
Broadband Internet connection
Multi-button mouse with scroll wheel recommended

A couple months ago some weird stuff started happening in Azeroth. Sinister characters began to infiltrate the main cities, and as time progressed, giant, angry elementals began to wage war on the forces of the Horde and the Alliance. This was all the lead up to the release of the third expansion for Blizzard Entertainment's massively successful MMO: World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. Blizzard uses this opportunity to take a broader look at their six year old game and figure out what needed to be updated to keep World of Warcraft relevant. They used the emergence of a main lore character, the massive evil dragon Deathwing, from his place of slumber to terrorize the mortals as the catalyst for the changes. Apparently, Blizzard figured a lot needed updating, because almost all of the old game has been completely redone. 

From the very start, the experience for players who pick up World of Warcraft now will be vastly different from the experience players had when the game launched in 2004. Quests, once splintered and sending players aimlessly across the map, are focused and quick to complete. Tales of having to kill fifty boars for three boar hides are done away with, and storylines -- actual storylines! -- populate the game world. It's a newer, friendlier Azeroth, and these changes span the entire original game.
Buying Cataclysm also unlocks the Worgen race for the Alliance and Goblins for the Horde. The Goblins begin on the technocratic isle of Kezan, led by the seemingly malevolent Trade Prince.The Goblin race showcases World of Warcraft's more lighthearted side. The opening quests are all centered around greed and mafia-style beatings, all done very tongue-in-cheek.The Worgen seem frankly a little less powerful. They've got an increased critical chance and a sprint ability on a cooldown, as well as nature and shadow resistances.

Finally there's Archaeology, the new secondary profession. It's really just an extra thing to do to kill time and won't really give you any real benefits. It does a good job of sending you to parts of the world you may not have ordinarily visited, and as you complete ancient relics (which you do by collecting relic shards scattered across the map), you get neat little insights into Azeroth's history.

 If you include the vast changes to the core game, Cataclysm is far and away the most impressive expansion to an MMO ever made, but if you just isolate what Cataclysm itself gets you, it's ultimately less content than Wrath of the Lich King. It's also better content than Wrath, with engaging storylines, inventive quests, and some very striking visuals. Even without the core Azeroth changes, Cataclysm is an excellent expansion in its own right, and worthy of your attention whether you're a veteran of Northrend or a grunt just getting your toes wet for the first time.

ASSASINS CREED: BROTHERHOOD

 PLATFORMS: PS3, XBOX360, PC, iPHONE.

GENRE: ACTION 
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Intel processor core 2 duo E6750 2.66 GHz
AMD processor- Athlon 64 X2 Dual core 5800+
NVidia graphic card-Radeon HD 3800 series
RAM memory- 3GB
Hard disk space- 8GB
Direct X-9 

Assassin's Creed II is definitely one of my favourite games of the last 12 months. It was a meaty gaming meal that took several steps towards fulfilling the promise of the original, with new mechanics, more variety in gameplay, and an alluring new setting: renaissance Italy. It was a big leap, in other words: a worthy sequel in all regards.

Brotherhood, on the other hand, will have a slightly harder time proving its worth. Rather than moving to a new time period, it continues directly on from the events of Assassin's Creed II, only with the action shifting almost entirely to Rome. Like previous titles, there's also a modern-day component. The game is once again framed by the on-going battle between the Templars and Assassins, and players are actually assuming the role of Desmond, who lives in the present day and is able to experience the memories of his ancestor Ezio using a device called the animus. The game cuts between the two time periods but the bulk of the gameplay occurs in renaissance Rome.
The gameplay on offer here is solid, but by and large the bulk of the missions are pretty similar in nature to those we've already experienced in depth in Assassin's Creed II. It really feels like treading the same old ground, without great improvements. The missions where Ezio must tail a target are still frustrating, for instance, thanks to the small sweet spot at which the player must stay away in order to follow - but not alert – his target.

Rome is a dynamic and interesting world, with all sorts of systems that can impact upon Ezio and be used by players. Run around killing fools in public, for instance, and your notoriety goes up. Guards will instantly pay closer attention to you. Want to lower it? You can do that by ripping down wanted posters, bribing heralds or killing witnesses. Mind you, you could always avoid attention altogether by disappearing into crowds. While it's still a little less seamless than I'd like, Ezio can blend in with groups walking through Rome, plus he can hide in plain sight by sitting on a bench or standing with a group. These elements are an integral part of the game's rich playground, and will be a source of delight for new players, but anyone who played Assassin's Creed II will know all about them.

Brotherhood is a great game, but it’s hard to wholeheartedly recommend. This is really a title designed for fans of Assassin’s Creed II, as it’s a continuation of that story, but the reality is that people who finished that game want something new – or that at least represents a clear step forward. Brotherhood doesn’t deliver that. The game doesn’t advance the wider narrative very far, the new mechanics don’t really add a great deal and the mission designs rarely explore new gameplay possibilities.

That said, Brotherhood really looks the part, with a step up in the graphics department – particularly on PS3, and a massive and varied city to explore. It also introduces an innovative multiplayer suite, for which the team(s) should be applauded. At the end of the day, it depends what you’re looking for. If you’re new to Assassin’s Creed, this is a solid entry, but picking up the threads of the convoluted story may be a challenge. If you’re an experienced assassin, on the other hand, expect to tread pretty similar ground to the last title.

PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2011

PLATFORMS: PS3, PC, PS2, PSP AND XBOX360

GENRE: SPORTS.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Windows XP SP3, Vista SP2, 7
Intel Core2 Duo 2.0GHz or equivalent processor
2GB RAM
8GB free hard disk space
8x DVD-ROM Drive
DirectX 9.0c compatible video card. 512MB Pixel Shader 3.0 (NVIDIA GeForce 7900 or AMD/ATI Radeon HD2400 or better)
DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card
DirectX 9.0c or higher (included on Disc)
Multiplayer: TCP/IP Broadband Internet connection
Windows compatible USB Gamepad
1280 x 720 monitor resolution

"Engineered for freedom". No, it's not another eye-rolling tagline for the latest car TV ad, but the back-of-the-box headline for the 10th outing of Konami's annual feast of football. You might be forgiven for thinking that this is the usual marketing bulls**t. After all, did we not have the full 360 freedom to manually pass last year? Well, yeah, but let's not ruin a good slogan.

In PES 2011, positioning and timing is absolutely critical, and if you can get the right side of your man, the chances are you'll reap rewards. Call another player into the fray to close the player down and tackle, and it's a game where you're less likely to get punished for arbitrary, basic mistakes, but one where you can be passed into oblivion if you give opponent too much space. But while you can generally rely on your defenders getting tighter to the man and generally being less suicidal than previously, keepers can still pull a Robert Green when they want to. They'll probably blame the new balls...
Long term PES fans are also likely to be pulling their shirts over their heads and running around the living room at the thought of an online Master League. Needless to say, time limitations and the fact that the servers only went online on September 30 prevent us from giving detailed first-hand experiences, but you'd bet your house on it, given how well it works offline. Bidding against each other for the best players, in particular, will give an already hugely addictive, absorbing mode an entirely new dimension. Traditional online play, though, we were able to test just prior publication, and found it extremely easy to get up and running, and pleasingly lag tolerant. On the downside, it's a little short on options for an online game in 2010, and is definitely an area Konami could improve dramatically in the future.

After the promising strides made by last year's reboot, PES 2011 feels very much a realisation of that potential. With its emphasis on fun still apparent, the added realism provided by control, animation and AI enhancements improve and broaden the package's appeal no end. Factor in the added tactical flexibility and the addition of the online Master League, and it's easy to see why PES' return to form will be widely celebrated. Some may prefer FIFA's more studied approach to football realism, but when it comes to pick-up-and-play fun and intensity, PES 2011 gets my vote this year.

GOD OF WAR: GHOST OF SPARTA

 PLATFORMS: EXCLUSIVELY ON PSP.

GENRE: ACTION-ADVENTURE

Set between God of War and God of War II, Ghost of Sparta picks up right at the end of God of War, with Kratos sitting upon his newly claimed throne looking appropriately grumpy. After all, becoming a god didn't remove the disturbing memories of his past, but now he's being plagued by a vision we've never seen before -- an old woman lying sick on a slab of stone. Convinced he can actually change this vision, Kratos sets off for Atlantis on a quest that eventually takes him back to his home of Sparta and into the realm of Thanatos, god of death.

Ghost of Sparta is gorgeous. Graphically, it looks better than a big chunk of PS2 games, and is absolutely the best-looking game on the PSP thus far. Detailed environments featuring constant rain and cascading water and lava create beautiful backdrops and really bring the world to life. Kratos looks wonderful as well. In fact, his character model was rebuilt from the ground up to add more detail for this game, such as the fact that he can be bathed in blood during battle, like he could in God of War III.
The game is filled with all the blood and gore, the great voice acting and dramatic music we've come to expect from a God of War installment, as well as the most ridiculous sex mini-game the series has ever seen, where a whole of swarm of women jumps in on the action. There are also more gigantic bosses than in Chains of Olympus, giving the game more of the awesome sense of scale that's a hallmark of the console versions. Upon beating the game, there are a number of challenges that become available, as well as the Temple of Zeus, where players can sacrifice red orbs in order to purchase concept art, videos, and enemies to battle in the combat arena, a free-play area where players can customize a number of settings and rip apart enemies to their hearts' conten.

Unbelievably, the developers at Ready at Dawn managed to top what they did with Chains of Olympus, delivering a longer, deeper, and more graphically beautiful game than even they thought was originally possible. Ghost of Sparta is, without a doubt, one of the best games available for the PSP. Just when I thought I had Kratos figured out, I’ve been given insight into another piece of his past that makes his anger much more understandable. The path less traveled as far as characters and locations makes Ghost of Sparta a very significant chapter in Kratos’ story. There’s nothing hugely different about the gameplay, but there really didn’t need to be. Combat works perfectly, and while I could have stood a bit more challenge in the puzzle department, that’s basically the same as saying I could have used a bit more chocolate sauce on my totally awesome delicious dessert.

SAM & MAX: THE DEVIL'S PLAYHOUSE

 PLATFORMS: EXCLUSIVELY ON PS3

GENRE: ADVENTURE COMPILATION

Sam the straight-shooting dog and Max the hyperactive bunny have been solving mysteries and fighting crime together as the Freelance Police for quite some time now. Since the anthropomorphic pair has been under Telltale's care, they've been embarking on point-and-click adventures divvied up into episodes. The latest season, The Devil's Playhouse, is a great offering for fans of the franchise and people who love adventure games.

Narrated by a plump man with crazy awesome hair in a setting reminiscent of the Twilight Zone, the season begins with Sam and Max aboard a spaceship shaped like a monkey head. The ship is owned by evil space ape General Skun'ka'pe' (or, as Sam and Max call him, Skunkape) who's focused on collecting the "Toys of Power" to gain control of the world. Y'know, the typical evil space ape motivation. After banishing the General to the Penal Zone (best name for a prison ever), it turns out that the whole scenario was actually a visualization of the future. It appears that the seemingly harmless View-Master toy Max picked up in an alley was actually one of the Toys of Power and touching it sparked his psychic potential and granted him the power of seeing the future.

If you’re looking for an adventure game that packs a lot of humor, interesting puzzles and psychic powers together in a Twilight-zone/science-fiction skin, you should give Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse a try. Although the beginning and end don’t seem as polished as the middle portions, the season in its entirety tells a fanciful story complete with an awesome cast of characters.