IGN

• PS3
• X360
• 6.5 / 10
• États-Unis

Thief has some strong stealth mechanics going for it, and getting away unseen with a big haul of loot can be an enormous challenge, but doesn’t always put that to good use. Between the hit-or-miss missions is an extremely annoying city hub map and a weak story full of bland characters, and Garrett himself isn’t as sure-footed as a master thief ought to be. Ignoring the story and cherrypicking the best side missions is the best way to approach it.

• PC
• PS3
• X360
• 6.5 / 10
• États-Unis

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 appears to be a product of over-thinking. I commend any developer that wants to do something different, that doesn’t want to rest on its laurels. It’s just that in doing so, MercurySteam abandoned much of what made the original Lords of Shadow such a stellar game, Castlevania or otherwise. Lords of Shadow 2 may have gained an open world, but a poor story, uninteresting enemies, and a bland cast of characters came with it. Combat might be improved, but forced stealth sections cause nothing but dismay and frustration. The end result is something that doesn’t come near the level of overall quality found in the original Castlevania: Lords of Shadow.

• PC
• PS3
• X360
• PS4
• XONE
• 7.8 / 10
• États-Unis

Garden Warfare respects its roots by preserving its characters and their humor and skillfully adapting their charm to a third-person shooter. A few clever twists on the standard modes give the action some fresh personality, and the co-op survival mode is a fun homage to the original games. Plus the solid controls, fun modes, and varied map design make it a good shooter to boot.

• PC
• PS4
• XONE
• 6.8 / 10
• États-Unis

Thief has some strong stealth mechanics going for it, and getting away unseen with a big haul of loot can be an enormous challenge, but doesn’t always put that to good use. Between the hit-or-miss missions is an extremely annoying city hub map and a weak story full of bland characters, and Garrett himself isn’t as sure-footed as a master thief ought to be. Ignoring the story and cherrypicking the best side missions is the best way to approach it.

• VITA
• 7.5 / 10
• États-Unis

Although Sorcery Saga’s roguelike elements and minor glitches made me feel incredibly frustrated at times, I still enjoyed the story and characters enough to power through its multileveled dungeons just to see what happened once the credits rolled. If you’re looking to expand your gaming palette, Sorcery Saga is a tasty little morsel for the Vita that offers both plenty of challenges and lots of laughs.

• PC
• X360
• PS3
• 3 / 10
• États-Unis

In a bowling alley arcade, circa 1997, a Rambo: The Video Game cabinet replete with a hulking plastic light machine gun smeared with Dorito dust and palm sweat might have been one of the better ways to lose several dollars. In 2014, the idea of slogging through an entirely scripted, arcade rail-shooter with a mouse or a joypad feels like an unmitigated waste of time for everybody involved.

• VITA
• 7.5 / 10
• États-Unis

Ys: Memories of Celceta is a welcome addition to Vita’s RPG catalog, even if it’s hamstrung by some questionable design decisions and a boring story. The fact that it’s built around something as simple as completing a map makes it accessible, but there are systems within – specifically when it comes to combat -- that make it dynamic and deep. It’s also a lot of fun to play. It’s just unfortunate that you have to cut through some nonsense to get to the heart of the matter. Even with several shortcomings, Memories of Celceta comes recommended to Vita owners hungry for another RPG fix in the wake of admittedly stronger games like Dragon’s Crown and Persona 4 Golden. It’ll keep you busy for about 25 hours; it’s just too bad it doesn’t bother to use the power of the Vita to make something more graphically appealing.

• VITA
• 8.5 / 10
• États-Unis

• X360
• PS3
• 8.2 / 10
• États-Unis

For some gamers, myself included, it will be enough just to rock out to Kansas' "Carry On My Wayward Son" on the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. The songs themselves and the TAB that accompany them are far and away the best part of this game, and if your goal as a guitarist or bassist is to learn how to play note-perfect renditions of songs like "Hard to Breathe" or "The Black Parade," BandFuse contextualizes that learning in a format that's fun and genuinely productive. If your hope is that the Shred U teaching component will further strengthen your general technique or theory knowledge, you'll be significantly let down. You will make significant gains as a guitarist this way, but more because playing through the songs themselves is so fun.

• PS3
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

The two games in Tales of Symphonia Chronicles definitely feel their age, but that’s far outweighed by the charm and engaging battle system of the original Tales of Symphonia. The best I can say about Dawn of the New World is that it’s a nice extra, but it’s clear which is the better game here. Still, Chronicles as a whole is incredibly enjoyable and certainly a worthy HD port of a beloved JRPG.

• VITA
• 8.2 / 10
• États-Unis

Tampering with a classic doesn’t always go as planned, but TxK successfully navigates these potentially treacherous waters by sticking to Tempest’s time-tested mechanics while making everything else brighter, shinier, and louder. The updated art style proved overwhelming at times, but the winning soundtrack and forgiving save system were always there to encourage me to play through the frustration. In the end, I simply couldn’t put it down. See you on the leaderboards!

• PS3
• X360
• 6.5 / 10
• États-Unis

Earth Defense Force 2025, a game about fighting giant bugs, has been dragged down by significant performance bugs. I can forgive (and even enjoy) the quirky physics and awkward voice acting EDF is known for, but the terrible frame rate turns this fast-paced action game into a slow-motion chug-fest when it matters most. Killing bugs with these varied classes and weapons is still a ton of fun (especially in co-op) but not what it should be.

• PS3
• PS4
• PC
• X360
• XONE
• 7.5 / 10
• États-Unis

This reimagining of the original Strider establishes developer Double Helix’s firm grasp on the essence of the joy of movement that makes Strider Hiryu such a great character. It lacks environmental variety and a sense of fairness when it comes to some of the boss battles, but it shows great potential for a revitalized series.

• VITA
• 6.2 / 10
• États-Unis

There’s nothing horribly wrong with Toukiden, but there’s nothing especially great about it either. It’s a well put-together, decently entertaining, and entirely unambitious demon-slaying action game with neither the depth and character of Monster Hunter nor the arresting, gruesome strangeness of Soul Sacrifice. There’s better than this available on the Vita.

• WIIU
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is a great platformer full of tense sequences and tough levels. Boss battles are a huge highlight, and it’s packed with hard-to-find secrets and collectibles. Multiplayer could use some improvement, but I found myself laughing whenever my teammate and I wiped out on some of these unforgiving setups. But a rewarding sense of accomplishment stuck with me each time I overcame a new obstacle, and that feeling kept me going all the way to the end.

• PS3
• 9 / 10
• États-Unis

• 3DS
• DS
• 8.5 / 10
• États-Unis

WayForward has struck gold once again, as the studio continues to prove its skill at crafting superb game designs for Nintendo platforms. Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d You Steal Our Garbage? brings together all three of the studio’s key strengths into one package – it faithfully adapts a popular media property, it features incredible art and music, and its gameplay pays homage to a vintage Nintendo classic. Adventure Time fans couldn’t have hoped for more from the cartoon’s first true video game, and this adventure is so well done that I’m sure sequels will follow – hopefully with WayForward handling development once again.

• PC
• 9.2 / 10
• États-Unis

Even though you play on the same few maps with similar items, there’s so much depth and strategy going on that no two matches of League of Legends ever feel the same. It’s distinctive style encourages surprise attacks and frequent use of skill-shot powers, and its colorful art style makes everything pop on the screen. Learning how to make the most of its characters and to become an asset to a team is a long and challenging process, but once you’ve got it down, it’s incredibly satisfying to work together to destroy your enemies in this amazing MOBA.