‘DEAD SPACE 3’ (M) ***1/2 Electronic Arts Xbox 360 Most popular game franchises nowadays like to play it safe, with tiny, incremental changes from one entry to the next. So it’s admirable how willing EA was to mix up the tried-and-true survival horror formula with its “Dead Space” threequel. And

‘HITMAN HD TRILOGY’ (M) ***1/2 Square Enix Xbox 360 It took six long years for “Absolution,” the latest installment in the “Hitman” series, to reach stores, so those new to the realm of stealth assassinations probably haven’t played the earlier games, which came out reliably at two-year intervals throughout the

‘NI NO KUNI: WRATH OF THE WHITE WITCH’    (E10+) **** Namco Bandai PlayStation 3 When Level-5 (the game developer responsible for the “Professor Layton” series) and Studio Ghibli (the animation house responsible for “Princess Mononoke” and “Spirited Away”) team up, you know the result will be something special, and “Ni

‘DMC: DEVIL MAY CRY’ (M) **** Capcom Xbox 360 It’s the age of the reboot, and even gun-toting demonslayers are not immune to the occasional reimagining. Corny, albino-haired Dante has been reborn as aloof, brunette Dante amid the objections of outraged fanboys everywhere. However, those who abstain from this latest

‘ANARCHY REIGNS’    (M) ***1/2 Sega PlayStation 3 Compared to “Anarchy Reigns,” other action games look like simulations of watching paint dry. In an average moment of play, you might find yourself halfway through a complicated combo with your chainsaw-swinging brute, only to be interrupted by a quick stiletto-heel kick to

‘The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series’ (M) ****1/2 Telltale Games Xbox 360 Adventure games always have to strike a balance between the narrow constraints of a structured narrative and the infinite possibilities afforded by player freedom. We want to experience a great story, but also to feel like we

‘BLACK KNIGHT SWORD’    (M) **1/2 D3 Publisher PlayStation Network “Black Knight Sword” begins with closed red curtains and the murmur of an audience anxious for the show to begin. Then the curtains are drawn to reveal the stage, across which the titular knight will sidescroll for the duration of the

The Top Five Games of 2012

1.) ‘JOURNEY’ (E) Sony Computer Entertainment PlayStation Network The best game of the year can be finished in a single sitting. In fact, it has to be. You don’t get to kill anything, and nothing you encounter can kill you. You never learn the name of your avatar or the

‘FAR CRY 3’ (M) ****1/2 Ubisoft Xbox 360 Jason Brody and his fellow vapid trust fund kids have parachuted into the wrong tropical paradise — one in which the locals dabble in narcotics manufacture, human trafficking, and — most recently — ransoming vapid trust fund kids. “Far Cry 3” is

‘PLAYSTATION ALL-STARS BATTLE ROYALE’ (T) ***  Sony Computer Entertainment  PlayStation 3  A lot of people are going to dismiss “PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale” as a “Smash Bros.” rip-off, and not without reason. Nintendo rounded up all of its proprietary characters for a silly, no-holds-barred smackdown, and now Sony has done