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CHICAGO – If you are excited for the upcoming Disney-Pixar film “Brave,” you may be interested to know that Disney Interactive Media Group announced today that a game is in production based on the upcoming movie. The game will be released on PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS, and Windows PC/MAC.

CHICAGO – I have long-defended 2K Sports’ “Major League Baseball” franchise, more commonly referred to as “MLB2K,” against the claims that it doesn’t compare to Sony’s more acclaimed “MLB The Show” and encouraged hardcore baseball fans to play both games. In fact, while I understood that “The Show” was a “better game,” recent installments of “MLB2K” actually took up more of my personal playing time.

CHICAGO – Back in 1993, Bullfrog Productions developed a game called “Syndicate”; an isometric real-time tactical game where the player is in charge of a corporation that sends cyborg agents on deadly missions. The player’s goal was to lead his agents on missions to benefit their own syndicate corporation and harm competing syndicates.

CHICAGO - Rating an RPG that feels more along the lines of a straight action game is a little difficult. “Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning” has a lot of things going for it in the heat of battle, but, unfortunately, there is a lot more to an RPG than how cool it looks when putting on the finishing kill of a giant monster. While the game is incredibly entertaining at some points, it is equally dull and uninspired at others.

CHICAGO – “The Darkness II” may not be quite as artistically successful as one would hope but it works for what it is — a gory, violent, extreme journey to Hell through the eyes of a vicious gangster who made a deal with the devil. Visual creativity goes a long way to alleviate gameplay repetition and a lack of interesting storytelling.

CHICAGO – The video game publisher Activision has never shied away from charging a little extra for the add-ons of their video games. The publishers of the “Guitar Hero” and “DJ Hero” series, Activision always seems to find a way to create fun and entertaining games that cost more than just the price of a disc.

CHICAGO – “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” passes the ultimate test of the best role-playing games — entertaining tedium. RPG fans have to be willing to spend hours grinding away to upgrade their character or sometimes just trying to get from point A to point B. There’s a fine line between repetition that feels worthwhile and that which feels boring. Even doing the most mundane tasks in “Skyrim,” one knows they’re playing a near-miracle of a game, one of the best RPGs of all time.

CHICAGO – Like a lot of video game critics my age, the original Sega Genesis “Sonic the Hedgehog” games hold a special place in my heart and my gaming history. Nearly as much as the adventures of Mario and Link, the time I spent with that speedy blue hedgehog impacted the way I would judge games like it forever. I was woefully addicted to “Sonic the Hedgehog 2.”

CHICAGO – EA’s “Need For Speed: The Run” features some adrenalin-pumping moments but they’re undercut by some truly poor mechanics and some awful development decisions. The concept behind the “story” of the game is clever and promising enough to warrant a rental, but the execution is flawed enough to steer clear of a purchase.

CHICAGO – “Saints Row The Third” is to “Grand Theft Auto” as “Machete” is to “No Country For Old Men.” They may feature similar themes but one takes the dramatic edge of the other and turns it into B-movie insanity. And I don’t mean that as a criticism. The third game in the surprisingly robust “Saints Row” franchise is a blast. A goofy, wacky, silly, dumb, crazy blast.