10 titles for your new console

1. Destiny

Launched this month

Destiny is a sci-fi shooter that feels and plays a lot like Halo. However, it also combines elements of World Of Warcraft that are designed to make players sacrifice sleep to grind their way to the best guns and gear.

Casual players who just want to enjoy a good game without worrying about the complex details can still have a good 30 to 40 hours of gameplay, shooting through a horde of alien enemies while exploring the beautifully crafted worlds of Moon, Venus, Mars and war-ravaged Earth.

Players choose from three races and three classes. Whether you are Human, Awoken or Exo, your choice of race has only a cosmetic effect. For classes, Titans resemble the tough warrior, Hunters can mete out plenty of damage in close combat or from afar, while the wizard-like Warlocks can unleash from a distance a ball of light that can take out an entire enemy group.

2. Forza Horizon 2

Launching next month

The original took place in Colorado, United States. Now, its successor takes you to southern Europe through the Italian riviera. Forza Horizon 2's driving area is about three times bigger than the original, letting you explore the vast and picturesque region.

The interactive game world has a dynamic weather system - a first in a Forza-series game - and takes place day and night. Other features include Bucket List, which lets you drive luxury cars, such as the McLaren P1, to complete some challenges.

3. Fifa 15

Launched 23 Sepetember 2014

Fifa 15, released just yesterday, offers several new features, including emotional intelligence, dynamic match presentation and next-generation goalkeepers.

The players display different emotions reflecting moments in the match. So players on the pitch or the bench will react differently to a bad tackle or missed chance with appropriate facial expressions and body language. Commentary with country-relevant chants can be expected.

The goalkeepers execute more realistic saves and make better movement adjustments.

4. Dance Central Spotlight

Launched this month

The fourth iteration of the hit motion sensing dance game now costs just US$9.99 (S$12.60) as a starter pack download instead of a full game.

The lower price delivers a slimmed-down game with 10 songs you can dance to, mostly recent dance hits, including Pharrell Williams' Happy and Counting Stars by One Republic.

Additional songs are US$1.99 each and there are more than 50 to choose from. The gameplay is very similar to its predecessors', but that is not a bad thing because it is still just as fun as before.

New features in Spotlight include alternate routines to each song, so you can dance to the same song in totally different ways. You must master the first set of steps in a song before the next set is unlocked.

5. Minecraft

Launched this month

Popular with kids, this game has reached the Xbox One platform. The aim is to use trees, ground, stone and just about everything around you to craft new items.

You must work fast because zombies come visiting at night and you have to build your first shelter before sundown, put a door on it and place torches around it to keep the zombies away.

Kids clearly know the game better than we do because they screamed in delight when they saw sheep near our shelter. Killing the sheep provides wool which is needed to make a bed. The bed is useful because if you should get killed, you respawn in your bed.

6. Watch Dogs

Launched in May

This action-adventure game puts you in the role of vigilante hacker Aiden Pearce, who was framed and looking to get back at those who wronged him.

Aiden can hack into many electronic devices tied to the city's central operating system (ctOS).

The game's fictional Chicago is a big open world that lets you roam around freely and interact with devices connected to ctOS, such as traffic lights and security cameras.

Coupled with cover-based third-person shooter combat and stealth elements, Watch Dogs is a game for geeks who want something more than just a shooter game.

7. Child Of Light

Launched in May

This is a beautifully hand-drawn adventure game in which you play Princess Aurora. Banished by evil forces to another world, she must find and restore the stolen sun, moon and stars, defeat the evil Queen of Umbra and find her way home to save her father before he dies of a broken heart.

Accompanied by soothing, if melancholic, music, the game sets the right mood for this dark fairy tale from the start.

It is essentially a platformer with role-playing elements. The princess will discover magic and new friends to aid her in her quest to fight the darkness.

The tale is told in literary splendour and every narrative is poetic, worthy of being remembered.

8. Titanfall

Launched in March

One of the most anticipated console exclusives for the Xbox One, this shooter lets you command giant mechs, or titans, as they are called.

You can jump into them to add extra firepower in this shoot-em-up game.

It does feel like a rip-off because there is no single-player campaign built for a game priced as a full game. But if you are a fan of multiplayer deathmatches, Titanfall offers a new way of playing by combining man and machine.

When playing the pilot, you can move faster, jump higher and use manoeuvrability to your advantage.

Even titans will fall to a barrage of rockets from the pilot's anti-titan arsenal. You can jump into a titan and decimate other pilots who are slow to hide.

9. Ryse

Launched in November last year

This Xbox One game was the poster boy for the console when it launched last year. With eye-popping graphics and blood-filled killing combos, this game was designed to evoke the visceral senses.

Many critics slammed the game for its repetitive combat but we loved the gory, blood-soaked kills.

You play the part of a Roman captain who discovers that his family has been betrayed. Seeking revenge and justice, you must fight through enemy lines and against all odds to discover the truth.

If visceral violence in beautiful landscapes is your cup of tea, Ryse is worth your time. But keep the kids far away from it.

10. Dead Rising 3

Launched in November last year

This is the second game we bought for the Xbox One. It has a wacky humour as you engage in non-stop zombie slaying.

You can combine ordinary items to create overpowered items that will decimate mindless zombies with a bang.

There is a storyline behind all this undead slaying but we would not pay too much attention to it.

You must enjoy plenty of mindless zombie-killing to like this game. If you do, this is for you.

This article was first published on Sep 24, 2014.
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