The 25 Best Video Games Of 2012

Developer: Digital Reality/Grasshopper Manufacture
Publisher: Microsoft Studios

Sine Sora was praised for its stunning visuals, 2.5D gameplay (the environment and objects are rendered in 3D, while the gameplay runs along a 2D plane), and steeply rewarding difficulty levels all helped the title round out our 2012 Best Of list.

Developer: Vigil Games
Publisher: THQ

Getting to ride a steed named Despair, slaying your way through Hell and back, and just being a damn ton of fun to play Darksiders II made it onto our list. Puzzle solving and RPG elements all made this sequel worthy of another entry into the franchise.

Developer: United Front Games/Square Enix London
Publisher: Square Enix

Anyone who loves the double-fisted, gun-busting action of Hong Kong crime movies will instantly understand what's going on in Sleeping Dogs. Originally set to be a sequel in the once hailed True Crime games, Sleeping Dogs mixes martial arts with gritty street drama for an adrenaline charged and at times frustratingly difficult ride through HK's underbelly. What can we say, we're gluttons for punishment.

Developer: Yager Development/Darkside Game Studios
Publisher: 2K Games

Just when we thought it was going to be yet another shooter, Spec Ops: The Line tossed a curveball with an engaging storyline and seamless gameplay that brought the cut-scenes and actual play together perfectly. Without a doubt, this foray through gunplay is top notch stuff.

Developer: High Moon Studios
Publisher: Activision

One of the first games to pay true and full homage to old-school Transformer fans. Fall of Cybertron was a huge exploration of the Generation 1 universe, introducing new fans to classic characters and settings. A beefy two-sided campaign and an improved multiplayer still have us playing the game.

Developer: Namco Bandai Games
Publisher: Namco Bandai Games

The eighth entry into any franchise would be reason to give pause, but Tekken Tag Tournament 2 proves that the series is still strong. Featuring the largest roster of fighters, pretty much everyone from the previous seven titles,Tekken Tag Tournament 2 surpised everyone by claiming a spot for a fighting game on the Best of 2012 list.

Developer: ArenaNet
Publisher: NCsoft

Everything a massively-multiplayer online RPG should be. Epic in scope, featuring a storyline that is responsive to player actions, and a beautiful world that begs to be explored. Fantasy genre devotees and MMO freaks came together to make Guild Wars 2 sell over 2 million copies, and lockdown over 400,000 subscribers.

Developer: Lab Zero Games/Reverge Labs
Publisher: Autumn Games/Konami

For what seemed like eternity, we waited on the arrival of the anime-inspired brawler. When it finally came to XBLA and PSN, we found it to be more than anticipation could imagine. Skullgirls wasn't overly complicated, it was raw, primal ass kicking at its best.

Developer: ArcSystem Works
Publisher: Atlus

It was a pretty full year for fighting games and Persona 4 Arena dropped right in the middle of it all. With Street Fighter X Tekken, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and Mortal Kombat slugging their way into the spotlight, the RPG spin-off caught everyone by surprise with it's colorful graphics and over the top moves.

Developer: Rockstar Vancouver
Publisher: Rockstar Games

When Rockstar took over the franchise rights for the Max Payne series, we all knew something awesome was brewing. Moving the story from New York to Brazil, Rockstar may have changed the setting, but kept all of the bullet dodging gun-play in place. No load screens across gameplay and cutscenes was also a huge plus over the previous titles.

Developer: CD Projekt RED
Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive

One of the most highly anticipated sequels,The Witcher 2 challenged even the hardiest of veteran gamers. Treating players like adults, through a learning curve that is sometimes considered sadistic, was one of the biggest draws of the action role-playing game sequel. Reprising your role as the monster slaying witcher Geralt, players are rewarded through the use of sword-play, guile, and subterfuge. Also, dying. A lot.

Developer: Polytron
Publisher: Microsoft Studios

Even people that have no idea about video games, know about Fez this year. Thanks to the film Indie Game, and a legion of patient fans, Phil Fish's puzzle-platformer was embraced by everyone as a massive hit. Recieving nearly universal praise, and a dope soundtrack by Disasterpiece, we will be seeing much more of Fez in the future.

Developer: BioWare
Publisher: EA

While some players may have taken umbrage with how the third installment may have ended, EA's space opera was still a monstrous success. Mass Effect 3 found us all battling The Reapers and ignoring our personal hygiene.

Developer: EA Tiburon
Publisher: EA Sports

Released every year to a frenzy of die-hard fans, the Madden series will be around for many moons to come. Madden 13 intergrated franchise, online franchise, and superstar modes as well as historic players into one gameplay option, making a behemoth even more robust. Also, we were able to 'Tebow' for the first time in a football game. ThanksMadden 13!

Developer: Blizzard
Publisher: Blizzard

Crawling dungeons for loot and weapons can get old after awhile but leave it to the geniuses at Blizzard to make it fun all over again with Diablo III. All "Error 37" jokes aside, we spent countless nights helping the crew of Tristramians in their quest to kill the grand puba of evil.

Developer: Arkane Studios
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks

The thing that set Dishonored apart from its peers was the fresh take it took on the concept of stealth games. While other titles just made ducking and dodging enemies a convenience, Bethesda's new star awarded you for it. Talk about a brain bang right? Just when you've gotten used to running head on into battles, the rules switch and you have to avoid conflict. Too bad most of us threw all of that to the wind anyway.

Developer: Gearbox Software
Publisher: 2K Games

New classes, new skill progression, and more potty humor all combined to make the return trip to Pandora more fun the second go around. We know Borderlands 2 fans couldn't wait for the sequel, and with DLC that's just as awesome as the single-player story, there's plenty of game left on the plate.

Developer: Visual Concepts
Publisher: 2K Sports

Hard to mess with a franchise that stepped up their game as much as NBA 2K13 did this year. Jay-Z as executive producer, the rights to use the 94 Olympic Dream Team, and a career mode that can quickly swallow up your life all combined to make an all consuming sports title.

Developer: Treyarch
Publisher: Activision

The filet mingon of first person shooters gun kissed awaiting fans by going slightly into the future with high-tech weapons, insanely graphic warfare and a beefed up zombie mode that made all of the Call of Duty releases before it seem like training missions. The developers at Treyarch set out to pack in as much heat as they could and won with it. Over $1 billion in sales means they're doing something right.

Developer: 343 Industries
Publisher: Microsoft Studios

Master Chief showed us all yet again that when he comes through, the rest part ways to let him go by. When Halo 4 dropped, the world lit up with hungry fans feverishly emptiying their wallets to get in on the Spartan action. Heavily merchandised and chock-full of hype, gamers were not disappointed with the anticipated sequel that kicked off a new story and hotter Cortana.

Developer: EA Canada
Publisher: EA Sports

It was no surprise at all that EA Sports would maintain their dominant position on top of the futbol food chain with this year's release of FIFA. For 13, the hyper realism and attention to the sport's subtle nuances helped it to win a top ten spot on our list of favorites. Even if you aren't a soccer hooligan, FIFA 13 is just as enjoyable as if you fantasized of being David Beckham (with or without) Victoria.

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft

Not even the head-scratcher of a trailer using Diddy Dirty Money's "Coming Home" was enough to deter us from racing home to pop the epic scaled Assassin's Creed III into the console. Can you remember when you first found out that the game was going to be set during the American Revolution? There was a good chance that sales of adult diapers skyrocketed as a result. Ubisoft, we salute you.

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft

Crazy-ass Vaas returned to terrorize us in the third release of the Far Cry saga. This time around we played as a carefree bro thrust into a life of skinning wild animals and climbing dizzying heights to take on war-hardened pirates with big guns. The open world gameplay and much welcomed access to vehicles to get around made Far Cry 3 one of the biggest reasons to make us smile.

Developer: ThatGameCompany
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment

As one of the games that insured the longevity of indie games, Journey proved that gamers would welcome a title that didn't go bang or boom. Part puzzle, part silent movie, we traveled through a barren land with only the ability to run and jump into visually breathtaking worlds. Journey was something that we had never, ever seen before and it was awesome.

Developer: Telltale Games
Publisher: Microsoft

After much deliberation, we finaly came to the decision of giving our number one spot to the title that snuck up and sucker punched us into fandom. Telltale's zombie slaughterfest had us redeyed and nerve shattered the most. Though one would assume it to be impossible to breathe new life into the pile of undead-themed video games, The Walking Dead reinvisioned our entire view of the beloved sub-genre.