300. “Caffeinated Consciousness” – TV on the Radio
299. “The Piano Drop” – Tim Hecker
298. “Go Ahead” – Banjo or Freakout
297. “Jake and Eggars” – The World/Inferno Friendship Society
296. “Sleep Dealer” – Oneohtrix Point Never
295. “Calamity Song” – The Decemberists
294. “Hunger Song” – The Middle East
293. “Before” – Washed Out
292. “Children” – The Rapture
291. “The Circle Married the Line” – Feist
290. “Return to the Violence of the Ocean Floor” – Moonface
289. “The Last Living Rose” – PJ Harvey
288. “Human Qualities” – Explosions in the Sky
287. “17” – Youth Lagoon
286. “Flare” – Boris
285. “Forever 28” – Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks
284. “Memories of the Future” – Handsome Furs
283. “Bumper” – Cults
282. “I Found a Reason” – VHS or Beta
281. “Calgary” – Bon Iver
280. “Adam’s Plane” – Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
279. “Shift Operator” – Obits
278. “The Bay” – Metronomy
277. “Reunion” – M83
276. “One Hand Loves the Other” – Bodies of Water
275. “Sundome (ft. Yamantaka Eye)” – Battles
274. “Birth of Serpents” – The Mountain Goats
273. “Before the Bridge” – Future Islands
272. “Be the One” – Moby
271. “Hurting” – Friendly Fires
270. “Two Cousins” – Slow Club
269. “Monkeys Uptown” – Iron & Wine
268. “Berlin” – Is Tropical
267. “Give Up the Ghost” – Radiohead
266. “Suicide Demo for Kara Walker” – Destroyer
265. “Don’t Stop” – The Dodos
264. “The Birds” – Elbow
263. “Rox in the Box” – The Decemberists
262. “New Beat” – Toro y Moi
261. “Itchy Fingers” – Junior Boys
260. “Cape Dory” – Tennis
259. “Audio, Video, Disco” – Justice
258. “Odd Soul” – MUTEMATH
257. “Seekir” – Zola Jesus
256. “Life Is Simple in the Moonlight” – The Strokes
255. “Unless I’m Led” – Mates of State
254. “Hold My Breath” – Holy Ghost!
253. “Sister” – The Black Keys
252. “Que veux-tu” – Yelle
251. “City Grrrl” – CSS
250. “Austere” – The Joy Formidable
249. “Slow Motion” – Panda Bear
248. “Parenthesis” – The Antlers
247. “Holy Holy” – Wye Oak
246. “Breaking Down” – Florence + the Machine
245. “Mona Vegas” – Starfucker
244. “Power of Persuasion” – Oneohtrix Point Never
243. “Coming Up” – Asobi Seksu
242. “Lose It” – Austra
241. “Chasing It Down” – Mother Mother
240. “Steve McQueen” – M83
239. “Mona Lisa” – Atlas Sound
238. “Blue Cassette” – Friendly Fires
237. “Cannons” – Little Scream
236. “Tree by the River” – Iron & Wine
235. “Knuckle Down” – Man Man
234. “Tripped and Fell in Love” – YACHT
233. “Let England Shake” – PJ Harvey
232. “Keep Your Heart” – TV on the Radio
231. “Inn Keeping” – The Sea and Cake
230. “Hounds” – The Antlers
229. “Plainclothes” – Cymbals Eat Guitars
228. “The Bad in Each Other” – Feist
227. “Come Back to Me” – The Rapture
226. “Otis (ft. Otis Redding)” – Jay-Z and Kanye West
225. “Fun Girl” – Jessica 6
224. “How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep” – Bombay Bicycle Club
223. “All in a Summer Day” – VHS or Beta
222. “Pharaohs & Pyramids” – Cut Copy
221. “High Hawk Season” – The Mountain Goats
220. “Perfection” – Oh Land
219. “Brick by Brick” – Arctic Monkeys
218. “You Know What I Mean” – Cults
217. “Towers” – Bon Iver
216. “Secretary Song” – The Go! Team
215. “Jump on My Shoulders” – AWOLNATION
214. “Rise to Me” – The Decemberists
213. “Vessel” – Zola Jesus
212. “The Wall” – Yuck
211. “Whale Song (Song Instead of a Kiss)” – Moonface
210. “Helix” – Justice
209. “Black Dunes” – This Will Destroy You
208. “Inchworm” – Battles
207. “Morning Mr. Magpie” – Radiohead
206. “South Pacific” – Is Tropical
205. “Blood Pressure” – MUTEMATH
204. “Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out” – The Antlers
203. “In the Grace of Your Love” – The Rapture
202. “Aileron” [Heavy Rocks version] – Boris
201. “Diamonds and Death” – VHS or Beta
200. “Spectrum” – Florence + the Machine
199. “Idiot Rain” – Banjo or Freakout
198. “Cheerleader” – St. Vincent
197. “We Bros” – WU LYF
196. “Second Chance” – Junior Boys
195. “I Don’t Want to See You Like This” – The Joy Formidable
194. “Running Away” – Friendly Fires
193. “Hysterical” – Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
192. “Half Moon” – Iron & Wine
191. “Ixode” – Zola Jesus
190. “Follow the Leader” – Sloan
189. “Gold on the Ceiling” – The Black Keys
188. “Simply Simple” – Mother Mother
187. “Do It Again” – Holy Ghost!
186. “The Hellcat Spangled Shalalala” – Arctic Monkeys
185. “By Your Hand” – Los Campesinos!
184. “Leave It” – Bombay Bicycle Club
183. “Pulse” – I Break Horses
182. “New Map” – M83
181. “Black Cloud” – Little Scream
180. “No Widows” – The Antlers
179. “I’ll Take My Chances” – Is Tropical
178. “Last Known Surroundings” – Explosions in the Sky
177. “I Want Results” – Obits
176. “Machu Picchu” – The Strokes
175. “The Future” – Austra
174. “Saying I Love You” – Girls
173. “In the Heat” – Jessica 6
172. “Home Is a Fire” – Death Cab for Cutie
171. “I Am Sick of People Being Sick of My Shit” – The World/Inferno Friendship Society
170. “Pink Light” – Asobi Seksu
169. “New West” – Cult of Youth
168. “In No Time” – MUTEMATH
167. “Queen of Hearts” – Fucked Up
166. “Most Wanted” – Cults
165. “Bury Me Standing” – Handsome Furs
164. “Chimie physique” – Yelle
163. “Julius” – Starfucker
162. “Belong” – The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
161. “House” – Patrick Wolf
160. “When Will You Go” – The Dodos
159. “Get Some” – Lykke Li
158. “No Light, No Light” – Florence + the Machine
157. “Cannons” – Youth Lagoon
156. “Party Boy” [New Album version] – Boris
155. “Splendor” – M83
154. “How Come You Never Go There” – Feist
153. “Stutter” – Yuck
152. “A Truly Happy Ending” – Junior Boys
151. “Strange Mercy” – St. Vincent
150. “Abducted” – Cults
149. “Two Lovers” – The Rural Alberta Advantage
148. “I Might” – Wilco
147. “Little Black Submarines” – The Black Keys
146. “A Heavy Abacus” – The Joy Formidable
145. “Putting the Dog to Sleep” – The Antlers
144. “Black Night” – The Dodos
143. “Adult Goth” – Gang Gang Dance
142. “The Look” – Metronomy
141. “Never Gonna Die Again” – The Rapture
140. “Make Some Noise” – Beastie Boys
139. “Africastle” – Battles
138. “White Gold” – Ladytron
137. “Let Me Back In” – Explosions in the Sky
136. “Separator” – Radiohead
135. “Jam for Jerry” – Holy Ghost!
134. “Down by the Water” – The Decemberists
133. “Spooky Jookie” – Man Man
132. “Trails” – Asobi Seksu
131. “True Loves” – Hooray for Earth
130. “Le grand saut” – Yelle
129. “Escapee” – Architecture in Helsinki
128. “Shuffle” – Bombay Bicycle Club
127. “The Greatest Light Is the Greatest Shade” – The Joy Formidable
126. “Something Came Over Me” – Wild Flag
125. “Attention Please” – Boris
124. “Allies” – MUTEMATH
123. “Last Night at the Jetty” – Panda Bear
122. “Newlands” – Justice
121. “Kimmi in a Rice Field” – Twin Sister
120. “Curl of the Burl” – Mastodon
119. “Kill Your Heroes” – AWOLNATION
118. “Second Song” – TV on the Radio
117. “In My Head” – Dum Dum Girls
116. “Such a Sad Puppy Dog” – WU LYF
115. “Alex” – Girls
114. “Take Me Over” – Cut Copy
113. “Open Rhythms” – Bodies of Water
112. “Don’t Sit Down ‘Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair” – Arctic Monkeys
111. “Sway” – Mates of State
110. “Goodbye Kiss” – Kasabian
109. “What the Water Gave Me” – Florence + the Machine
108. “I Kill Your Love, Baby” – I Break Horses
107. “Art of Almost” – Wilco
106. “No Feelings” – Handsome Furs
105. “Little by Little” – Radiohead
104. “Lorelai” – Fleet Foxes
103. “Überlin” – R.E.M.
102. “My Machines (ft. Gary Numan)” – Battles
101. “Every Defeat a Divorce (Three Lions)” – Los Campesinos!
100. “Flikr of Ur Eyes” – Swarms
99. “Breaking Bones” – VHS or Beta
98. “Super Duper Rescue Heads!” – Deerhoof
97. “Hold On” – Holy Ghost!
96. “Prisoner of Love (ft. Antony Hegarty)” – Jessica 6
95. “Comme un enfant” – Yelle
94. “Perfectly Crystal” – Asobi Seksu
93. “Corner of the Sky” – Cut Copy
92. “Taken for a Fool” – The Strokes
91. “Capybara” – Farewell Continental
90. “Polish Girl” – Neon Indian
89. “Don’t Carry It All” – The Decemberists
88. “Shivers” – Zola Jesus
87. “Surgeon” – St. Vincent
86. “Sick of You” – Cake
85. “Rabbit Will Run” – Iron & Wine
84. “Muscle Relaxants” – The Rural Alberta Advantage
83. “Balance” – Future Islands
82. “Quarantine” – MUTEMATH
81. “Glass Bubbles” – All Tiny Creatures
80. “Futura” – Battles
79. “In the Dark Places” – PJ Harvey
78. “Money” – The Drums
77. “L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.” – Noah and the Whale
76. “All Die Young” – Smith Westerns
75. “Buy Nothing Day” – The Go! Team
74. “Everybody” – VHS or Beta
73. “After the Moment” – Craft Spells
72. “Marathon” – Tennis
71. “Fast Peter” – Moonface
70. “I Follow Rivers” – Lykke Li
69. “Dead and Gone” – The Black Keys
68. “The Greeks” – Is Tropical
67. “Static on the Wire” – Holy Ghost!
66. “Night Air” – Jamie Woon
65. “Virgin” – Manchester Orchestra
64. “The Heron and the Fox” – Little Scream
63. “Hits Me Like a Rock” – CSS
62. “Missing Pieces” – Boris
61. “Killed the Lord, Left for the New World” – This Will Destroy You
60. “Dystopia (The Earth Is on Fire)” – YACHT
59. “Sails” – Hooray for Earth
58. “She’s Thunderstorms” – Arctic Monkeys
57. “Woods” – The Rosebuds
56. “Baby Don’t Dance” – Mother Mother
55. “Intro (ft. Zola Jesus)” – M83
54. “Canon” – Justice
53. “Sun God” – Cut Copy
52. “Days Are Forgotten” – Kasabian
51. “Shook Down” – Yuck
50. “On’n’on” – Justice
49. “Prytania” – MUTEMATH
48. “Gangsta” – tUnE-yArDs
47. “Cradle” – The Joy Formidable
46. “Go Outside” – Cults
45. “Thirteen Years Without Peter King” – The World/Inferno Friendship Society
44. “Death as a Fetish” – Starfucker
43. “Unkind” – Sloan
42. “Shake It Out” – Florence + the Machine
41. “Act on Impulse” – We Were Promised Jetpacks
40. “How Deep Is Your Love?” – The Rapture
39. “Leave the Drummer Out There” – Asobi Seksu
38. “Confetti” – Cold Cave
37. “Beat and the Pulse” – Austra
36. “Romance” – Wild Flag
35. “Shangri-La” – YACHT
34. “Holocene” – Bon Iver
33. “Bay of Pigs” – Destroyer
32. “Under the Sun” – VHS or Beta
31. “Some Children (ft. Michael McDonald)” – Holy Ghost!
30. “Don’t Try and Hide It” – The Dodos
29. “I Don’t Want Love” – The Antlers
28. “Civilian” – Wye Oak
27. “Lonely Boy” – The Black Keys
26. “Live Those Days Tonight” – Friendly Fires
25. “Graveyard” – Feist
24. “White Horse” – Jessica 6
23. “French Exit” – The Antlers
22. “Wait” – M83
21. “Repatriated” – Handsome Furs
20. “East Harlem” – Beirut
19. “Days” – The Drums
18. “Contact High” – Architecture in Helsinki
17. “Postcard from 1952” – Explosions in the Sky
16. “Lotus Flower” – Radiohead
15. “One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley’s Boyfriend)” – Wilco
14. “We Have Everything” – Young Galaxy
13. “The City” – Patrick Wolf
12. “Circuital” – My Morning Jacket
11. “Cruel” – St. Vincent
10. “Whirring” – The Joy Formidable
9. “Bury Us Alive” – Starfucker
8. “Will Do” – TV on the Radio
7. “Ice Cream (ft. Matias Aguayo)” – Battles
6. “Walking Far From Home” – Iron & Wine
5. “Civilization” – Justice
4. “Under Cover of Darkness” – The Strokes
3. “Need You Now” – Cut Copy
2. “Midnight City” – M83
1. “Banana Ripple” – Junior Boys

Anniversary is a remake in the visual department only, and the enhancements actually make Halo a worse overall game. You can avoid this by switching over to Classic Mode, but then you might as well just save yourself a healthy chunk of money and download the original game off XBLA, unless you think it’s worth paying nearly three times the price for widescreen support.

Taken as a counterweight to the flood of steely grey shooters littering the market, Origins is weaponized bliss. It’s also freakishly difficult, and that’s where Ancel and I have our differences.

A month after X-Men: Destiny was released, it was reported that developer Silicon Knights was forced to lay off 45 of its employees, at least half of its workforce. Now that I’ve actually played the game, I must ask: Only 45?

When the game ends, we’re right where we started, only now we have a general idea of where the writers will take us in the next entry. Christ, it’s like Dragon Age II all over again.

It reminded me of the first time I played Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, not just because it’s awesome – though it certainly is – but for how thoroughly it explores the potential of its fictional, decades-old universe in the context of interactive entertainment. This is the definitive Batman game; if you were to take out the franchise-specific characters and settings and leave the design itself intact, it would still feel distinctly like a Batman game.

Having suffered through this once and contended with a fanbase that’s quickly becoming the gaming equivalent of bulky dudes who drive enormous trucks because they feel insecure about themselves, I can finally say: I give up. Not because it’s too much for me to handle, but because I’m not having any fun and I already know better than to expect the “sense of accomplishment” to win out in the end.

We’ve cared so little for these characters, their conflict or the world they inhabit that years from now, when the next big shooter craze arrives and Gears finally becomes obsolete, I can’t help wondering if we’ll look back on this trilogy with a collective shrug. Gears 3 is simply a great shooter, and for now, that’s enough. I love great shooters almost as much as I hate missed opportunities.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution so astutely recaptures the spirit of the 2000 original that I’m amazed an outside developer is responsible for it. Compare it to Invisible War, the slicked-up, dumbed-down sequel that still has fans reeling, and you could conclude that Eidos has a better understanding of what makes this series tick than the people who got it running in the first place.

We see human communities in which everyone contributes, everyone does their part and everyone looks out for one another. We see people sitting around fires, sharing drinks, and playing music. We see soldiers risking their lives for their comrades. Not all good things have been lost, and these frequent reminders are what keeps Metro 2033 from becoming as oppressively bleak as its spiritual brethren.

The game’s steadily ramping barrage of obnoxious design choices almost feels like an endurance test as you inch closer to finishing the game. “Oh yeah?” the developers seem to say. “Well, how would you like a platforming sequence with an electrified floor? What about a boss that spawns smaller enemies indefinitely? How about an underwater level with clumsy controls and distorted vision, in which you have to keep constant tabs on your oxygen supply? How about an underwater boss?"