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Our favorite games of 2012

"Dishonored" mixes the best elements of the parkour of “Assassin’s Creed” and the stealth combat of “Splinter Cell” and adds a host of interesting mystical abilities. Courtesy of Bethesda Softworks
By Brian Bowers and Sam Laney
Published: December 29, 2012
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The choices you make determine the fate of a plague-torn world in “Dishonored.” Improvise and innovate to craft your own style.
Courtesy of Bethesda Softworks

The past year has brought a bounty of terrific sequels, but it was a new name that turned out to be the best of the bunch.

The “Halo,” “Call of Duty,” “Mass Effect,” “Assassin’s Creed” and “Far Cry” series all came up with games that were exceptionally good — even by the high standards set by many of their predecessors. However, the game that delivered the best combination of gameplay, story and adventure was “Dishonored,” by Bethesda Softworks.

Holiday rush

Life in a tropical paradise isnt exactly peaceful in Far Cry 3. Courtesy of Ubisoft
By Sam Laney
Published: December 19, 2012

The holiday season is a bittersweet time to be a gamer — and especially a game reviewer. Stars and Stripes gamers had their hands full with all of the AAA goodness we expect for this time of year, but no matter how much holiday cheer you can muster, there’s never enough time to play it all.

First up is “PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale,” a game so addictively good that it just “wouldn’t let go.” This Smash Bros.-style game got extra credit for its extensive cast of Sony favorites and special moves.

 
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Good Game Archives
2013 (4)
2012 (10)
2011 (7)
2010 (9)

About the Authors

Brian Bowers is Stars and Stripes’ Assitant Managing Editor for Europe and Mideast and one of its video game reviewers. He joined the newspaper in 1992 in Germany, where he worked on the news desk and the city desk. He has a wife and three children, who are always eager to help him test games.

Sam Laney joined Stars and Stripes’ in 2007 as a copy/layout editor, and slowly convinced upper management to support his video game habit. Since then, he’s added game reviews and previews to his list of duties and moved on to the iPad. When he’s not rocking newbies in “Left4Dead2,” he covers PC and Nintendo systems.