"FIFA 15," "Forza Horizon 2," "Super Smash Bros." and More [GAMES ROUNDUP]

It’s one of the toughest times of the year for gamers to keep their wallets shut. Just about every week from here to Black Friday will deliver at least one jaw-dropping release that demands you divert your rent money. And some weeks bring out three such temptresses. For 3DS owners, Super Smash Bros. is the game they’ve waited all year — if not years — for. To gearhead speed-freaks, Forza Horizon 2 is the godsend. And soccer nuts hurting from World Cup withdrawals will get hot and bothered for FIFA 15. And comic book obsessed kids of all ages will drool over Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Superheroes.
Reviews by Phil Villarreal. Phil is an author, blogger and Twitterer. Publishers provided review copies.

D4: Dark Dreams Don’t Die

(Xbox One, $15, Mature)

Swery, the demented Japanese game developer responsible for the mesmerizing monstrosity that was Deadly Premonition, goes all-in with the weird vibe for an updated take on the point-and-click mystery genre. Playing as a detective who is out to solve his own murder, you choose between two sets of equally awkward controls. I avoided the hit-and-miss Kinect motion and voice commands in favor of the crude, tank-like button-and-stick setup. Maneuvers as simple as moving your character from one spot to the next are a tedious sequence of highlighting a destination, moving a cursor and selecting your  spot of choice.
If the intent here was to help you identify with an awkward, confused character by simulating that awkwardness and confusion, the game nails the feat. The loopy, time-skipping storyline plays into the feel of bizarre disorientation, and takes sadistic pleasure in leading you down one train of thought before throwing you for a loop. Witty dialogue, wacky plotting and charmingly blocky visuals all play into the found art-style feel of the affair, which rounds up all the oddities of Deadly Premonition but takes away that game’s confounding save system and needless backtracking. Since Xbox One owners are so hard up for software, D4 is a pleasant dollop of weird rather than a forgettable trifle it might have been on a more established system.

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Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Superheroes

(PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, PS3, Xbox 360, $75, Everyone 10+)

Taking a hard right turn from the whimsical cast of characters from last year’s game, this year’s Disney Infinity — the Mouse House’s toys-to-life take on Skylanders — goes all in with Disney’s ownership of the Marvel universe. Rounding up superheroes such as Iron Man, Spider-Man and Black Widow, the game has more in common with the X-Men Legends dungeon-crawler series. Couch co-op is the draw here, assuming the role of your favorite hero by plopping its action figures on a portal and setting them free to hack, hammer and obliterate armies of enemies.
Creative move sets, loads of intriguing upgrades and detailed visuals make the game a pleasure to play through, both through the campaign and to mess around with in a sandbox manner. A top-shelf bonding experience between parents and kids, Disney Infinity is also poisonous for the way it taunts you to buy new characters and add-ons to let you explore more heroes, move sets and environments. It’s nearly impossible to stick with the initial three characters that come with the game and not long for more. That’s a sign of solid design, but also, like Skylanders, a nefarious way to get you to cough up hundreds of dollars to get the most out of the game. At least games like this leave you with physical toys — rather than just a hard drive of invisible DLC — to show for your ill-advised impulse purchases.

FIFA 15

(PS4, Xbox One, PS3, Xbox 360, $60, Everyone)

After last year’s impressive start on current-gen systems, FIFA 15 focuses on refining and tightening mechanics rather than going for giant leaps forward. Passing and on-ball defending are more fluid and nuanced, and the presentation, commentary and replays get beefed up in an effort to simulate a TV broadcast. As far as looks go, there is hardly any improvement over the spectacular visuals and detail of FIFA 14. FIFA Ultimate Team also gets a once-over, evolving into a card-based RPG-style team-building simulation hybrid that has started to come into its own as the main draw rather than an interesting side mode.
Given that FIFA 14 is less than a year old, and EA Sports also delivered a World Cup-based game this year, it’s possible that even the staunchest soccer fans are suffering FIFA fatigue at this point. Other than the usual major overhaul of roster updates and license additions, FIFA 15 doesn’t offer single-payer obsessives much that last year’s entry did not. But FIFA as a franchise thrives on the insanely competitive global multiplayer scene, and those who want the best online action will have to pony up for this edition. It’s the best FIFA ever created, sure, but only marginally better than last year’s excellent entry.

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Forza Horizon 2

(Xbox One, $60, Everyone 10+)

Last year’s Xbox One launch lineup was pretty pathetic, but the lone shining bright spot was Forza 5. Microsoft’s signature racing series improved by leaps and bounds over previous entries, becoming more accessible while maintaining its sense of realism. Now comes Forza Horizon 2 — the new chapter in the fun, open-world-oriented series offshoot — to capitalize off of that success. Set in Southern Europe, all artificial walls have been torn down, letting you romp through  the countryside in the manner of Burnout Paradise. Toggling between online and offline challenges comes with the tap of the button, and even offline races seem lifelike, thanks to artificial intelligence that is continually modified by quirks and mannerisms pulled in from the cloud.
A deep and lengthy game that’s filled with escalating challenges and lust-inducing unlockables, Forza Horizon 2 manages to outmaneuver Forza 5 at every turn. Although some players may get lost in its loose, freewheeling campaign setup, which is populated with pick-up races and discoverable challenges, it’s the exploration-oriented mentality that helps the game capture the appeal of the open road. If this weren’t the year that Mario Kart 8 came out, this one would be an easy front-runner for racer of the year.

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Super Smash Bros.

(3DS, $40, Everyone)

Nintendo’s crowd-pleasing fighter franchise has always stuck with home consoles, yet it somehow feels like it belongs on a handheld. The roster overflows with the usual, surprise-filled roster of heroes and villains both well-known and obscure, all diverse and zany but somehow balanced. You start off with a dizzying array of characters and levels to choose from, then unlock a constant flow of new stuff. Whether you are plugging along in training mode, one of the campaigns or online, you are always piling on more unlockables into your treasure trove. The sense of continual progression, blended with the sheer fun of using a supersized, powered-up Mario to bash in a Pokemon’s head, makes the game tough to put down.
This is the beefiest 3DS online multiplayer entry yet, surpassing even the addictive, community-thriving wonders of Mario Kart 7. Tournaments, challenges, team and individual battles make Super Smash Bros. seem like an endless playground filled with like-minded Nintendorks, intent on throwing down with Zelda, Samus, Donkey Kong and Bowser for bragging rights. Sure, the mechanics may be pretty much the same stuff the franchise has been dealing out since the Nintendo 64 days, but as with Mario Kart, there is something to be said for sticking with what works and benefiting a classic structure with modern advances in controls and visuals. Super Smash Bros. stands as the definitive version of one of the most fun and creative fighters in existence.