Turn 10 Studio of Microsoft Studios has given us a sneak peek at the next installment of the highest-rated racing franchise, "Forza Motorsport 4." If you thought the evolution of the Forza Motorsports series couldn't get any better, guess again! The latest version offers a commonality between car enthusiasts and gamers as it forms one into the other. No matter your level of interest in cars, this game will be exciting and entertaining for any player.

Killzone 3

Portal 2 ■■■■◧

WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 ■■■■□
Slather on the tanning oil, hike up your Spandex, and get ready to rage-the alpha male fantasy is back. Among its welcome additions: more convoluted plot twists, an improved grappling system, and dynamically evolving story lines with outcomes you freely control. Strike up rivalries and alliances at whim, or pop up backstage at the oddest times and razzle-dazzle opponents with gravity-defying assaults. Despite obvious similarities to past releases, with over 100 match types and extensive character customization options, it's still the undisputed virtual wrestling champ.
THQ / www.thq.com / PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360

Little Big Planet 2
Splitting the difference between psychedelic platform-hopping adventure and software creation toolkit, this catchy outing now lets you create stand-alone games in addition to single levels. By coupling programmable circuit boards with heroes and objects, you can assign behavior patterns, animations, and actions, as well as build custom puzzle games, arcade outings and more. Designs are easily shareable online, so you can download new ways to play, or just share your latest X-rated invention with other dirty-minded dweebs the world over.
Sony / www.playstation.com / PS3

EA Sports Active 2.0 ■■■◧□
Sweating to physical diversions like Dance Central or Sports Champions is one way to torch those love handles. But for those too lazy to commit to a gym, this interactive personal trainer may prove a more effective way to drop a couple pants sizes. Shipping with its own heart rate monitor (hint: lay off those Red Bulls), it offers over 70 exercises from squats to lunges and thinly-disguised fat-fighting activities including boxing and mountain biking. Albeit less game than workout, it's still reasonably good belly-busting fun.
Electronic Arts / PS3, Wii, Xbox 360 / www.easports.com

NBA Jam ■■■◧□
Slam, bam, thank you ma'am . . . old-school arcade b-ball action lives again in this triumphant, if largely predictable, remake of the arcade and SNES/Genesis classic. Gravity-defying two-on-two hardwood action reigns as huge-headed caricatures of top all-stars execute physically impossible dunks and rule-breaking blocks, clocking point tallies more akin to SAT scores than actual shots counted. Still, while everything feels a mite too familiar, there's no faulting extras like boss battles, piles of hidden secrets, and motion control support in terms of putting points on the board.
Electronic Arts / Wii / www.easports.com

Civilization V ■■■■□
The latest installment in the engrossing strategy series takes familiar concepts you know and love (e.g. shepherding a civilization through the ages via diplomacy, trade, and warfare) and adds even deeper play elements. Ditching square-based map tiles for hexagonal ones, plus streamlining combat and other in-game functions, it offers even more strategic options and replay value for fans old and new alike. Alas, the title's depth can still prove overwhelming, making it a potentially massive time sink for armchair despots.
2K Games / www.2kgames.com / PC

Dead Rising 2 ■■■■□
Offering a tip of the hat to Dawn of the Dead's zombie-squishing setup and campy attitude, this gonzo gorefest moves its setting from out of the mall and onto a fictional, Las Vegas-style strip. Using a variety of household objects combinable in multiple ways (see: chainsaw-equipped dirt bikes, homemade propane bombs), shoot, slice, or saw your way through legions of shuffling corpses. Surprisingly entertaining, it's a great source of stress relief, and a solid fit for anyone who loves straight-to-DVD movies.
Capcom / www.capcom.com / PS3, Xbox 360

Dead to Rights: Retribution ■■□□□
Score one for absurdity-this is the first game we've ever seen that lets you play a crotch-biting dog awarded "scrotality" props for snacking on thugs' genitals in grisly fashion. As for the rest of it, which sees rogue cop Jack Slate clearing rooms with bone-crunching melee moves and gore-spraying, slow-motion gunplay while spouting the crappiest one-liners known to man, well . . . when it comes to shamelessly ripping off every film noire cliché in the book, let's just say that this one's guilty as charged.
Namco Bandai / www.namcobandaigames.com / PS3, Xbox 360

For: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC

Alan Wake ■■■◧□
Feeling paranoid? It's a common sensation in a town where, as a psychologically tormented suspense novelist, your own nightmares leap off the pages and come to life. Fear the shadows: That's the lesson taught as you stroll, flashlight in hand, through gloomy glens and over creaking floorboards, waiting for creatures hidden in the darkness to strike. While its blend of taut suspense and underwear-filling scares won't be for everyone, this harrowing adventure nevertheless manages to qualify as worth a peek, if only to satisfy your morbid curiosity.
Microsoft / www.microsoft.com / Xbox 360

Lost Planet 2 ■■■■□
A slicker ode to Starship Troopers than the weak-ass blaster bearing its official license, this sci-fi run-n-gun opus-sending you on bug hunts through steaming jungles and parched deserts-never fails to wow. Thank pitched battles that see one to four players cooperatively leveling machine gun, robotic suit, or RPG against grotesquely-rendered insects the size of small car parks. So testosterone-soaked, the game even features cameos by Gears of War's Marcus and Dom, and its titanic boss battles are the stuff of pest control legend.
Capcom / www.capcom.com / PS3, Xbox 360

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - ■■■■□
Taking massive open-world environments crammed to the gills with commandos and vehicles, then giving you the power to topple entire buildings or cop impromptu helicopter and ATV joyrides, the only thing predictable about this gorgeous grand-scale blaster-a heady cocktail of nail-biting tactical showdowns and giddy suicide runs-is its penchant for pyrotechnics and breathless modern-day military showdowns. For maximum enjoyment, fire up online options, pop a few energy drinks, and watch the fatalities climb.
www.ea.com / PC, PS3, Xbox 360

Army Of Two: The 40th Day
Enjoy hosing heavily armed opponents down with hot lead, then reveling in the primal rush of an inseparable ally's post-massacre fist bump? Then check the successor to one of the earliest games to champion trigger-mashing co-op action's flow. With aid from a buddy or computer-controlled teammate, help death-mask-sporting anti-heroes Salem and Rios survive devastated Shanghai streets by using creative two-man strategies and an arsenal of customizable guns. Inventive level design focused on dual-pronged approaches elevates it above the usual mindless bloodbath.
www.ea.com / PS3, Xbox 360

Nook
Eat that, Amazon! Aimed at unseating the Kindle, Barnes & Noble's celebrated eBook reader ups the ante by adding a 3.5-inch color touchscreen LCD that lets you effortlessly browse books by cover photo. While volumes themselves are displayed in grayscale, support for the open ePub format ensures compatibility with thousands of volumes. Better yet, you also get one-million-plus wireless on-demand purchase options (books, magazines, newspapers, etc.), WiFi connectivity, and 2 GB of memory to store your favorite Judy Blume works.
www.barnesandnoble.com / $259

My Book World Edition II
Now that disk space goes for a song, it's easy to find plenty of room for your collection of adorable kitten photos or Norwegian slasher films. Backing these precious memories up, though-that's a little more difficult. Enter an external hard drive that kills both birds with one stone, providing continuous and mirrored digital archival, readily safeguarding against data corruption and serving as a warehouse for treasured files. Even cooler, content can also be accessed online, ensuring you'll never have to leave precious info behind.
www.wdc.com / $399.99 (2TB); $699.99 (4TB)

Gurkha
No New Year's celebration would be complete without the proper stogie, bottle of bubbly, and midnight Frenchie-lip action. While you can't buy the latter (for a decent price, anyway), you can get it on with an Archive cigar from Gurkha for less than the price of four gallons of premium. Smooth, tasty and in commemoration of Gurkha's 20th anniversary, lighting this bad boy up might be the most action you'll see all NYE.
www.gurkhacigars.com / $10.00

My Touch 3G
First came the G1. Now we get the next smartphone to utilize Google's open-source Android platform. Beyond hundreds of downloadable apps, adding a range of functionality from social networking to restaurant recommendations, bonuses include a sharp 3.2-inch touchscreen display and 3.2mp camera. Speedy Internet surfing is also a given, as is WiFi capability and video playback/recording, with support for enjoying music and photos integrated, too. Slightly above-average feature readout aside, extensive third-party support really makes it worth keeping on speed dial.
www.t-mobile.com / $199.99

Prime
True-Bluetooth headsets are a dime a dozen. But how many come in eye-popping colors like lime, scarlet, yellow and purple? Although we still wouldn't wear one everywhere like those yuppie douches you see jabbering away at Starbucks, behold a fashionable alternative to the usual clunky ear wart. The accessory's beauty isn't just skin deep either-it boasts excellent noise reduction and wind cancellation features, as well. Just promise us you'll take it off while using public bathrooms, K?
us.jawbone.com / $129.99

Eurolight
There isn't much choice when it comes to headlight color. You have your standard clear and its darkened alternative, smoked. Boh-ring. For those looking for more flavor, Tourenn offers their Eurolight dye kit giving you the option of customizing your headlights six different shades: Ice Blue (pictured), violet, dark blue, Lux Green, dark green, and good ol' black. If you want to change or revert back to stock status, the kit comes with removal liquid, giving you the option of going back from black . . . or any other color for that matter.
www.myeurolight.com / $59.99

The Sims 3
Call the game home to little computer people, artificial intelligence (AI) constructs or the only friends you've got--however you choose to classify the world's most intricate simulation of everyday life itself, let's be honest: It's basically the modern-day equivalent of futzing around with a dollhouse. Only now, you can leave your mark on entire neighborhoods populated by dozens of complex individuals, each of whom benefits from snazzy 3D visual upgrades and additional emotional qualities. Virtual adoration, here we come!
www.ea.com / PC

Eat Lead:The Return Of Matt Hazard
Joke's on you: although bursting with ironic self-awareness, this half-baked send-up of software industry clichs won't leave anyone laughing but its creators' accountants. More running gag than game, the hackneyed 3D shooter--whose ultra-formulaic and -repetitive gunplay pits a faux old-school video game star against zombies, Russians and sci-fi troopers--proves a weak knee-slapper at best. Genuinely goofy shticks (e.g. an effeminate, huge, sword-waving warrior that only speaks in text bubbles) notwithstanding, asking $50 for the title is its funniest blooper yet.
www.d3publisher.us / PS3, Xbox 360

Slotradio
Most buy tunes the smart way in 2009--via services like eMusic, iTunes and Amazon MP3, which offer individual songs at steep discounts. But technophobes have another idiot-proof option with this current contender: a beginner-friendly music player with a 1.5-inch OLED screen and FM tuner that runs microSD cards preloaded with 1,000 tracks, representing multiple genres. Just pop the joints in (one comes prepackaged, with extras running $39.99/card) and you're ready to rock and roll... even if fixed, pre-selected soundtracks prove a sour note.
www.slotradio.org / $99.99

Buttkicker Kit
Sweet, just what we needed: A DIY toolkit that lets you turn your easy chair or couch into a thrill ride that vibrates with every thump and explosion echoing from your TV. Dubious as the idea of exposing one's precious cheeks to the coarse rumblings of a wireless subwoofer sounds, hey... It's the perfect gift to help take Left 4 Dead standoffs to the next level. (Or convince relatives you've gone stark raving bonkers, but who are we to judge?)
www.thebuttkicker.com / $299.99