Rainbow Six Vegas 2
PlayStation 3, Windows PC, Xbox 360
It could have gone some other way, but Rainbow Six Vegas 2 exemplifies the sequel done right. It's new but not radically different from the original, adding instead just a few key mechanics that you didn't know you wanted, subtle yet key and forever required hereafter.
MLB 08 The Show
PlayStation 3
Making great leaps forward from last year's Sony-made baseball game -- which had great potential but came off the bat as an double rather then a homerun --, MLB 08 for the PlayStation3 still doesn't not knock it out of the park, but it's a solid stand-up triple.
MLB 08 The Show
PlayStation 2
Meet the new Show. Same as the old Show. But you'll get fooled (again?) by the updated rosters, the new cover athlete, and the price tag insinuating "new Show."
Ninja Reflex
Wii
If you're old enough to remember the Karate Kid and that catching-flies with chopsticks bit, EA has published a game of it. If you're not old enough to remember, just know that catching flies with chopsticks is pretty cool -- for 15 minutes a day, at least.
Lost: Via Domus
PlayStation 3, Windows PC, Xbox 360
If you were trapped on a deserted island, you would definitely want to have a copy of Lost: Via Domus with you. You'd need it to keep the fire going.
Frontlines: Fuel of War
Windows PC
Frontlines: Fuel of War is certainly a competent near-future warfare shooter. It even sports a cool ROV gimmick. However, considering the glut of great shooter games out there these days, Frontlines does little to stand out.
Army of Two
PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
As the title suggests, Army of Two features a dynamic duo of contract killers doing their thing, one-man-army style, except with two (duh). Play by yourself and buddy is an idiot. Played with a real live buddy and maybe not so much with the idiocy, though that depends how idiotic your friend is or isn't. Or how idiotic you aren't, for that matter.
Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer
Nintendo DS
Don't let Mystery Dungeon's brightly-colored, superdeformed, non-threatening, Zelda-esque, top-down presentation (on your still-shiny DS) lull you into a false sense of security: This game is an old-school wolf in new-school sheep's clothing, and it is out to kick your ass. The only question is, do you deserve it?
Geometry Wars: Galaxies
Nintendo DS
The success of Geometry Wars, that old school, 2D space shooter first making it's mark as an afterthought Xbox Live game, may have taken the world by storm, but it certainly didn't take long to the powers that be to bottle that tempest and then milk it for all it's worth. Not a bad idea, in this case.
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Wii
A new game that has already sold about a billion copies, third in a series that has collectively sold about a trillion, Super Smash Bros. Brawl clearly has massive appeal to those freakish loyal Nintendo fans out there, all zillion of them.