QCF: Skylanders Giants

Skylanders Giants is a deceptive game; originally piloted by the notoriety of having Spyro’s name attached to the previous entry, this latest installment has made a name for itself within a little over 12 months. Say what you will, but Skylanders Giants is still a game and not just some commercial. To be fair, there’s no doubt that it cleverly implements an ulterior layer of marketing that would make most micro-transaction models found in any shameless MMO blush. Nevertheless what may be viewed as a string of money-hats is something that is, in reality, so much more. Underneath all the coy marketing lies a game that utilizes these initially unscrupulous concepts and turns them into one of the most charming pastimes in games today.

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QCF: Unchained Blades

In another story of a niche publisher taking on a heavy labor of love to localize a hit JRPG to the North American masses, Xseed Games brings us Unchained Blades from FuRyu. A collaborative effort of Japanese game development’s A-list talent, the game's creators include Takashi Hino of Grandia fame, and Toshio Akashi, known for his work on the Lunar series. Even Nobuo Uematsu himself contributed some hot licks for the soundtrack.

All things considered, Unchained Blades is still an assumptive write-off among other by-the-numbers JRPGs destined to be overlooked. But upon further inspection, Unchained Blades breaks most of those expectations and delivers some real hope that the genre has plenty of life left in it.

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QCF: Game of Thrones

The HBO adaption of George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire line has made waves with prime time television this last year. So much so, that Atlus picked up the license rights to publish a video game -- a video game about the Game of Thrones, simply called Game of Thrones. Developed by Cyanide, the Seven Kingdoms enter the realm of modern gaming, catering to fans of the medieval drama. But while the appeal has support from the show’s following, Game of Thrones is, at best, a mediocre fantasy RPG, whether you’re a fan or not.

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QCF: The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings Enhanced Edition

I’ve never really had a super powerful computer, so when The Witcher 2 hit PCs late last year and started gathering a hefty following, I was unfortunately unable to play it. With this release, CD Projekt Red made some concessions in order to bring this epic rpg to consoles, so people who don’t own a $1,000 pc can get a chance to guide the mighty Geralt of Rivia through his adventures in the north. But could they bring this graphical powerhouse down to what is essentially six year old hardware and make it work?

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PAX East 2012: Becoming A Pathfinder

The Penny Arcade Expo is well known for being the destination for fans from across the globe to gather and play the latest in console, PC, and mobile games. However, it is also a place where collectible card games, board games, and pen and paper RPGs have as much a place and purpose as their digital counterparts.

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