Game of the Month - November 2015

There were plenty of great games vying for our attention in November, especially during the first half of the month. Fallout 4 arrived early on, a short five months after it was officially revealed at E3 2015. While dated in some respects, Fallout 4 offered a dense world, ripe with complicated characters and lore that drew us into a society torn apart by conflict and strife.

On the same day, Square Enix unleashed Rise of the Tomb Raider--the follow-up to 2013's impressive reboot of the long-maligned series. The Tomb Raider series began its life on PlayStation, but Rise of the Tomb Raider came to Microsoft's consoles first, and to the delight of Xbox owners, it proved to be an incredible experience that built upon the successes of the last game, delivering a focused adventure set in a collection of beautiful and dangerous environments. Tombs came back in a big way and gave players a chance to flex their puzzle-solving skills and relive the glory days of Lara's earliest adventures. It's the envy of PlayStation 4 owners, who have to wait until this time next year to get their boots dirty, but anyone with a gaming PC can explore Lara's latest adventure in early 2016.

Blizzard closed the book on the second chapter of its exceedingly popular real-time-strategy series with the release of Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void. It brings the campaign to a close in a satisfying, if campy way, with the introduction of a new, all-powerful threat. Perhaps more importantly, it's tweaked how PVP matches begin by giving players more resource gatherers, and thus, a faster start at building out their bases--a critical change that will significantly impact competitive Starcraft 2 players. Blizzard also introduced a new co-op mode where two players share a single base, which is the perfect venue for new players to learn the ropes with a capable friend by their side.

Rise of the Tomb Raider came to Microsoft's consoles first, and to the delight of Xbox owners, it proved to be an incredible experience that built upon the successes of the last game.

Of the games we reviewed in November, Undertale was the most surprising of all. It's an unassuming RPG that resembles 16-bit games like Earthbound, but beneath the surface lies an adventure filled with unexpected twists on traditional RPG elements. Despite it's lo-fi appearance, Undertale's substance is inarguably modern, and clever where it matters most.

When reflecting on the best games that came out in November, we keep coming back to Fallout 4. Bethesda's open-world RPG is a champion for several reasons, but the way it envelops you in a grim world that reveals its depth and beauty over time makes it a truly memorable experience. It has low lows, but also incredible highs, and its crowning achievements in crafting lore and making you feel a part of its world, makes it our selection for November's game of the month.