What are you doing after the apocalypse? Video-game creators have been asking that question for years, with results ranging from Bethesda’s sublime Fallout 3 to id Software’s forgettable Rage. Ukrainian developer 4A Games fell somewhere in between with 2010’s Metro: 2033, based on the bleak fiction of Russian novelist Dmitry … Continue reading →

Video games came of age in the 1980s, a decade that was also the heyday of cheesy Hollywood action movies. Thirty years later, you don’t have to look hard to see the influence of one medium on the other. The ultraviolent power fantasies that seem so corny today — movies like “Rambo,” “Commando” and “The Delta Force” — … Continue reading →

“Arena,” a 1967 episode of “Star Trek,” features the original series’ most laughable fight scene, an epic duel between Capt. James T. Kirk and a rubbery lizard-man of the Gorn species. Now Canadian video-game developer Digital Extremes is paying tribute. Continue reading →

Zombie stories never have happy endings. So when the heroes of 2011’s “Dead Island” made it out alive, you knew there had to be a catch. The catch is that any video game that isn’t a complete flop gets a follow-up these days. Continue reading →

Who would win in a fight, Superman or Batman? While this argument will live forever on the playgrounds, message boards and comic book stores of the world, players finally have a chance to back up their claims in a one-on-one DC Comics fighting game from the makers of “Mortal Kombat.” Have you spent the last five years trying to convince your friends that Aquaman does not, in fact, suck harder than a whirlpool? Continue reading →

What if you could take up swords against the Lannister family on Game of Thrones ? Or solve mysteries with the NCIS crew? Or pitch an ad campaign to Don Draper on Mad Men ? And then: What if you could watch the consequences of your actions on TV the next week? Continue reading →

Nowadays, it feels as if America is coming apart. The political left and right seem to be drifting further and further away from each other every day, and rhetoric about certain states succeeding from the Union or forming separate societies that hold the values of the founding fathers fills our airwaves. What if those so-called traditionalists actually left … Continue reading →

No one in video games likes taking on big political ideas more than Ken Levine. In 2007’s BioShock, Levine and his team at Irrational Games tackled objectivism, building an undersea utopia-gone-bad from the theories of Ayn Rand. In BioShock Infinite (2K Games, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, $59.99), Levine aims at … Continue reading →

Despite being one of the most well-known video game characters of all time, for many years Lara Croft was little more than an accent, a pair of pistols and a set of unrealistic measurements that would make Barbie blush. With “Tomb Raider” the series -- and Lara -- undergo a gritty reboot that mixes the gunplay and explosive … Continue reading →

While the “Street Fighter” series has gone on to become a household name, hardcore fighting gamers have been calling for the return of another of Capcom’s great fighting series, the fast-paced, horror-movie-themed “Darkstalkers.” With the release of “Darkstalkers Resurrection” the werewolves, vampires and creatures of the night that make up the “Darkstalkers” world are getting some well-deserved spotlight. Continue reading →

Blockbuster game franchises like Epic Games’ Gears of War don’t just fade away — even if the primary antagonist, the voracious Locust Horde, was obliterated at the end of the initial trilogy. Not to worry. With Gears of War: Judgment (for Xbox 360, $59.99), Microsoft takes players back in time to the … Continue reading →

Over the past eight years, those cute little Lego people — minifigs, as they’re known — have virtually traveled to Middle-earth, Hogwarts, Gotham City and a galaxy far, far away in video games developed by TT Games. Continue reading →

Crysis 3 (Electronic Arts, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, $59.99) is a gorgeous game. Its creator, the German studio Crytek, has lived up to its promises that it will set a new benchmark for computer graphics. On a state-of-the-art PC, it’s spectacular. You probably don’t have a state-of-the-art PC, but that’s OK. I played … Continue reading →

Give a kid a stick and chances are he will start swinging it around like a sword. Give a former kid a video game in which the main character is a cyborg ninja who uses an electromagnetically charged samurai sword to slice apart his robotic enemies and feast upon their fuel cells and he will cackle with geeky glee. Continue reading →

It has been seven long years since the raccoon thief known as Sly Cooper last appeared in a game of his own, and with the creator of the original “Sly” trilogy now working on the superhero-themed “Infamous” games, many fans feared that they had seen the last of their furry friend. Sanzaru Games picks up where the series … Continue reading →

Sometimes, being a cult hit isn’t enough. Sometimes, the powers that be take a franchise with well-defined identity and, in a bid to broaden its appeal and rake in the dough, slap on a bunch of new features that not only dilute the original flavor, but result in confused chimera of a game. “Dead Space 3” is a … Continue reading →

Isaac Clarke has grown over the first two “Dead Space” games from a troubled systems engineer into a full-fledged action hero, so it would be naive to think that the series would not morph alongside its protagonist. “Dead Space 3” (Electronic Arts, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC, $59.99) has blossomed into a more polished … Continue reading →

Do you enjoy the animated films of venerated Studio Ghibli? Films like “Kiki’s Delivery Service,” “Princess Mononoke” and “Spirited Away?” If so, then I have two nuggets of good news for you. Continue reading →

“DMC: Devil May Cry” is so much more than just another gritty reboot of a beloved franchise. It’s a dirty boot to the head; a shot of good whiskey; a graffiti-filled alley; and the oversaturated, fevered dreams of a hard rock addict. Continue reading →

At the beginning of “DmC: Devil May Cry” (Capcom, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, $59.99), demons run amok through a seaside amusement park. Arcades are yanked from their foundations, rides spin out of control and a Ferris wheel breaks loose and rolls down the boardwalk. Continue reading →

It’s that time of the year when the line for an elliptical machine at your local gym stretches a bit longer thanks to freshly motivated folks who’ve resolved to start 2013 by shedding pounds and shaping up. Why wait to work out — or even leave your living room — when you can get your heart rate up at home with these recently released fitness games? Continue reading →

While many kids are hoping to find a Wii U under the Christmas tree next week, some of the season’s most absorbing Nintendo games are available on its other system, the portable 3DS. “Paper Mario: Sticker Star” ($39.99) takes the cherubic curves of the Mushroom Kingdom and flattens them into an ever-folding papercraft world. Continue reading →

The holiday season is a good time to catch up with old friends. If you’re an Xbox fan, you’re probably getting reacquainted with galactic warrior Master Chief in his new adventure, Halo 4. If you’re a Nintendophile, you’re probably frolicking with Mario on your new Wii U. Sony, meanwhile, has expanded its holiday guest list … Continue reading →

Holiday-season TV ads would have you believe that lots of people get brand-new cars for Christmas. With giant bows on top. I hate to play Scrooge, but you’re probably not one of those people. But why settle for one real car when you can buy one video game with dozens of virtual rides? Plus, when you take these vehicles out on the highway, you don’t have to worry about insurance, gas prices or speed limits. Continue reading →

We always knew Agent 47 had ice in his veins. Apparently, the guy’s got a heart, too. In “Hitman: Absolution.” 47 is entrusted with the safety of a young girl named Victoria, and the cloned assassin’s icy exterior melts a bit when he realizes she may have been subjected to genetic experimentation in the same way he was. Continue reading →

You’ve always had to play the good soldier in Call of Duty games: The only path to the end was to follow orders, from defending a key position to killing off certain enemies. Continue reading →

Microsoft’s wildly successful foray into console gaming begins with two words: Halo and Bungie. “Halo: Combat Evolved” and its sequels have been selling Xboxes since the original machine launched in 2001. But developer Bungie has moved on, leaving the franchise in the hands of Microsoft and in-house studio 343 Industries. Continue reading →

Once upon a time in a sleepy little village named Torchlight there came a quirky little fellow known as The Alchemist. Arriving in town he quickly realized all was not right. The people were frightened, and a massive battle was under way near the entrance to the Ember Mines. The Alchemist threw himself into the battle, pledging … Continue reading →

Video games promise to take us to new worlds, but few have lived up to that idea as well as “Assassin’s Creed III” (Ubisoft, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, $59.99). Its new world is, well, The New World, and its recreation of colonial America feels entirely fresh. Continue reading →

Video-game aliens have gotten bigger, uglier and meaner over the years. Think of the Covenant warriors in Halo or the Locust Horde in Gears of War : huge, dumb, slobbering brutes who can soak up plenty of bullets before they pounce on you and crush your skull. The extraterrestrial invaders in XCOM: Enemy … Continue reading →

When the Kinect system was unleashed two years ago for the Xbox 360, there were promises that the camera-based, gesture-detecting gadget could turn users’ bodies into paintbrushes, allow them to chat with a virtual lad named Milo, transform real-world skateboards into digital ones and transport wannabe Jedis to a galaxy far, far away. The reality has … Continue reading →

Dust off your boxing gloves and prep a training montage, because the next installment in one of the most popular fighting game franchises is back and bigger than ever. With over 50 characters to learn and a complex and fun new tag-team mechanic, “Tekken Tag Tournament 2” is a massive fighter that will keep the thumbs of would-be karate kids busy til kingdom come. Continue reading →

The Wii created a bona fide frenzy when it was launched six years ago. Now, most Wiis are gathering dust on back shelves, if they haven’t been unplugged and thrown away. As Nintendo gears up for the holiday release of the Wii’s successor, the Wii U, new games for the old system have been nearly nonexistent. “The … Continue reading →

Big-budget video games are becoming more and more like Hollywood blockbusters — plenty of spectacle, but not much room for small, personal stories. Independent game designers, like indie filmmakers, are trying to fill the gap. “Papo & Yo” (Minority Media, for the PlayStation 3, $15) takes place in an unspecified South American slum, a setting we gamers usually see … Continue reading →

The “Virtua Fighter” series is the grandfather of 3-D fighting games, but despite critical acclaim, its popularity has been surpassed by flashier games like “Tekken” and “Soul Calibur.” The latest installment of the series, “Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown,” is the best one yet. Though it may lack the electric fists and karate-fighting bears of its rivals, the … Continue reading →

If there’s one medium where the glory of excess still reigns supreme, it’s video games. Leading the charge of hyper violent insanity are the games of Goichi Suda, a Japanese auteur who makes games about talking demonic guns, elderly assassins with energy cannons disguised as shopping carts and football players who pilot giant robots. Miraculously, Suda and his … Continue reading →

EA Sports has rolled the dice on a major overhaul of its best-selling “Madden NFL” football franchise this season — and most of its gambles have paid off. “Madden NFL 13” (for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, $59.95) swapped out the booth announcers, switched to a more classic presentation, overhauled the menu system and crafted a … Continue reading →

Whenever video-game companies stretch out popular franchises for financial reasons rather than creative ones, disenchanted customers call it a “money grab.” It’s a charge Nintendo has largely been immune to, even though its most popular character, Mario, has starred in hundreds of games. That changes with “New Super Mario Bros. 2” (Nintendo, for the 3DS, $39.99), which … Continue reading →

We all know the apocalypse is nigh. Surely you’ve heard about the Mayan calendar coming to an end in December. Perhaps you’ve seen the political ads promising Armageddon if you vote for the wrong guy. Maybe you’re stuck without air conditioning in 100-degree heat and just wish we’d get it all over with. In “Darksiders II” (THQ, … Continue reading →

It doesn’t take the deductive skills of the world’s greatest detective to figure out that Legos and superheroes are an irresistible combination to any red-blooded kid. With simple gameplay, a silly story, and play-as-long-as-you-like optional multiplayer, “Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes” is the perfect game for the geek who wants a video game they can play with … Continue reading →

It’s no secret that most massively multiplayer online games take place in either fantasylands, sci-fi galaxies or apocalyptic dominions, which is why it’s so refreshing that “The Secret World” is ambitiously set in a twisted take on our own world where apparently everything that ever happened on “The X-Files,” ‘’Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Fringe” is real. Continue reading →

When I was a boy, my parents were always spoiling my summer vacation by making me go outside. Kids today have it easier: As long as you can sneak your iPad out of the house, you can stay entertained until the battery runs dry. Who needs the wonders of nature when all you need is a few bucks and a connection to the App Store? Continue reading →

It’s been five years since Spider-Man’s previous appearance in movie theaters, but Marvel’s webslinger has been plenty busy on video-game consoles. Since 2007, he’s headlined four games and made guest appearances in at least four more. None of them have been particularly outstanding. Continue reading →

Sometimes I dream I can fly — but it isn’t the majestic soaring of an eagle, Superman or even R. Kelly. It’s awkward, like something I’ve forgotten how to do and have to learn all over again. I can barely control my altitude or velocity, so I never know when I’ll plummet to … Continue reading →

Military video games are generally so gung-ho about combat they might as well be recruiting posters for the armed forces. There isn’t much time for rumination when you’re racking up the kill streaks and body counts — you have to assume the cause you’re fighting for is just. Kill ‘em all and let God sort ‘em out. Continue reading →