3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one (part 3)

December 4, 10:01 AMPC Game ExaminerBryan Edge-Salois

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Here are three more PC games sure to bring a smile to any gamer's face -- and one game guaranteed to ruin Christmas.

Fallout 3 (RPG)
Fallout 3 is the most recent installment of the highly venerated Fallout series. It's an outstanding RPG, offers plenty of gaming hours for the buck, and guaranteed to bring a smile to any RPG fan's face this holiday season.

Read Gamespot's Fallout 3 review (9/10)
"Fallout 3 is a profoundly engrossing role-playing game just waiting to reveal its deep, dark mysteries."

Read  Gamespy's Fallout 3 review (5/5 stars)
"Bethesda's post-apocalyptic RPG is one of the finest games of this generation."

Visit the Fallout 3 home page to learn more 

World of Goo (puzzle game)
You may not have heard of this award-winning game, but you should. World of Goo is a physics-based puzzle and construction game. Your job is to use Goo Balls to build structures and help their Goo brethren traverse terrain to the end of each level, where a pipe sucks them up. This game is very family and kid-friendly, and it's inexpensive -- $19.99 if you order through Valve's Steam service. (You can also purchase via PayPal directly from the World of Goo home page.)

Read Gamespot's World of Goo review (9/10)
"Independent developer 2D Boy has hit the jackpot, turning what appears to be a simple building game into what could just be the next casual-gaming obsession right up there with classics such as Tetris and Lemmings."

Read IGN's World of Goo review
"Absolutely phenomenal"

Visit the World of Goo home page to learn more 

Callof Duty: World at War (first person shooter)
Call of Duty: World at War is an outstanding WWII shooter that re-invigorates the seminal Call of Duty franchise. Just when you thought WWII first person shooters were all but dead (or at least not en vogue any more), COD:World at War comes along and revives the genre--in a big way.

Read Gamespot's COD:World at War review (8.5/10)
"World at War brings proven Call of Duty mechanics back to WWII with great success."

Read Gamepro's COD: World at War review (4.5/5 stars)
"It's a great follow up to Modern Warfare and proves that World War II is still a viscerally charged conflict to live through."

Visit the Call of Duty: World at War home page to learn more

For all those naughty gamers, the 'lump of coal' award goes to:

Beauty Factory (uh, "cosmetics strategy game")
I admit I had to dig for this one, but the fact that all the reviews seem to be from European game sites is probably a good sign--namely, a sign that this POS hasn't made it to American shores. This game is all about running a cosmetics company -- a  concept that was likely the product of a marketing brain trust that thought "it's a great game concept for girls!" At least if you have the misfortune to pay for this game, you get the satisfaction of getting a whole lot fugly for your buck.

Read Eurogamer's Beauty Factory review (2/10)
"My wife insisted on having a play as she was intrigued by the idea, although after five short minutes she declared, "What the hell's the point of this?" and went back to playing The Sims 2. Which just about sums it all up, really."

Read Acegames Beauty Factory  review (1/10)
"If hatred and anger could be distilled, encoded and burnt onto a CD, the end result would be remarkably similar to this vile abomination."

Looking for more good games (and maybe some games to avoid)? Check out these articles:

Read Part 1 of 3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one

Read Part 2 of 3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one

Read Part 4 of 3 great games for Xmas -- and 1 crappy one