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Soul Calibur V leaves a good first impression, but after putting some time into the game, one discovers that this (mostly) sword-fighting game is not going to earn itself a place in the book of legendary titles.

The latest chapter in the Soul Calibur series begins with a quite impressive opening scene that builds a desire to jump right into the game. Soul Calibur V's story mode is typical for a fighting game. The hero goes through a series of battles until you reaching an
over-the-top end guy. Where Soul Calibur V starts to fall short, however, is in the development of the hero character, Patroklos. He comes off as whiny, ill tempered and it seems as though
he kills innocent people because he believes them to be "malfested." These traits make it
very difficult to get behind the character and root for him to win.

Square Enix's FF13 was a controversial title to a number of longtime fans of the flagship series. Much has been made of its heavily linear area designs, overly long tutorials, shallow world, and its twitch-centric combat system. To more than a few, for a game expected to carry the series forward, it seemed to be heading in the wrong direction.

FF13-2 wants to change all of that. Or at least head back in a direction that won't burn as many bridges behind it. Boasting a new story packed with all of the ludicrously beautiful visuals that HD televisions squee with delight over, Square Enix took much of what was criticized about the first game by focusing on hammering out the rough edges.

It's not the first time that they've followed up on one of the series' major chapters in this fashion as FF10-2 can testify, but it is probably the first time that the changes aren't so much experimentation as they are a belated do-over of what didn't work as well the first time around.

Sonic Generations is an amazing gut punch to the malaise that the Blue Bomber's career has been in lately. Not quite a knockout blow, but longtime fans might not care as they race through two decades of Hedgehog history.

Gotham City Imposters, a downloadable FPS in which players play as characters pretending to be characters from the Batman universe, has been delayed from a January release to a February release.

The game is set to be available for PC download, PlayStation Network and XBox Live.

Warner Bros. Games announced the postponement today. The game looks nothing like the publishers popular "Arkham" series of Batman games. Instead, it looks a bit like the vigilantes who Christian Bale's Batman mocked in "The Dark Knight" for fighting crime while wearing hockey pads got a bunch of guns and started shooting at people dressed like the Joker, who also have a bunch of guns.

In other words, the game's aesthetic looks more like a Team Fortress-style wackiness instead of Call of Duty-style this-is-so-hardcore-ness.

As far as whether the game turns out to be any good, I guess we'll find out in February.

NFL Blitz, the game in which NFL football players can catch fire and compete against robots while playing a 7-on-7 game, is available for download today.

The intentionally ridiculous game started as an arcade title and evolved into a console game. Stores sold console versions from 1998 to 2003, and NFL Blitz now returns as a downloadable game for PlayStation 3 and XBox 360.

The game costs $14.99 on PlayStation Network or 1200 Microsoft Points on XBox Live.

Tech-Out conducted a highly unscientific poll of its team of contributors to name 2011's best game, and "Batman: Arkham City" took the top prize.




Current and former staffers for The Sun and Inland Valley Daily Bulletin newspapers comprised the majority of our panel. We don't get to cover games full time (I spend most of my days as a business reporter), but we like games and like to share our opinions on which titles are worth playing . As for Arkham City, here's what contributor Reggie Carolipio, who also reviewed the title, had to say:

Arkham Asylum resurrected the Dark Knight's career in gaming in much the same way that Christopher Nolan's Batman resurrected his onscreen legend, and Arkham City delivered even more high-flying crimebusting and street-level beat downs than its predecessor. Squeeze in a who's who of bad guys ranging from the Penguin to Two-Face, a host of storied side missions, the Riddler, and Arkham City isn't so much of a sequel as it is a new chapter in the Caped Crusader's career.

We liked other games, too. The runners up are after the jump.

Rayman Origins is one of the best games of 2011, and it's a shame that so few people have bothered to notice it.

The game, a 2D platformer, succeeds in its absolute refusal to be anything like most of this year's most popular games, while staying true to the traditions laid down by many a classic from the 8- and 16-bit eras. Rayman Origins is a game in which nothing has to make sense, but everything is supposed to be fun.

The title also earns distinction as one of the most beautiful releases for the current or any generation of console games. Rayman Origins' rich, painterly character designs and layouts are as vibrant as the sights one may see in the best animated films. Indeed, playing the game is like playing a cartoon.