Halo 3

Xbox 360

This review would have been published sooner, but that would have required setting down the controller and taking a break from Halo 3, the sci-fi video game that pits players against aliens (or other players). The conclusion to Xbox’s most popular trilogy delivers on all the hype. With a storyline that puts this summer’s blockbusters to shame the game brings all the old nemeses and friends back, along with a few new ones. The graphics are exceptional and the landscapes are diverse and hauntingly beautiful. As a first-person shooter, Halo 3 certainly doesn’t reinvent the genre, but landing a single shot in the back of a Hunter to send it hurtling to the ground or spraying hundreds of bullets across an oncoming army of Flood has never been so fun. An extensive re-playable single-player mode and infinitely entertaining online multiplayer options will keep you busy for years.