I just picked up the latest Electronic Gaming Monthly, its Holiday 2007 edition. In this edition, EGM reviews some of the latest games just in time for the holiday season. They also touch on the reasons behind delays of some much anticipated games.

The competion was tough in this month's reviews. There was actually a tie for Game of the Month between Mass Effect (XBox 360, BioWare) and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (XBox 360/PS3, Infinity Ward). Mass Effect received an average rating of 9.2/10, a high of 9.5, and a low of 9; while COD4 also pulled in an average of 9.2 and a high of 9.5 but was "dinged" with an 8.5 from Crispin. His main beef was with the "tin-duck mentality" of the enemy who seem to peep their head out without any thought and in the same spot every time throughout the battle field.

Other games rated include:
Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games (Wii, Sega) - 6.3 Avg., 7.0 High, 6.0 Low
Geometry Wars: Galaxies (Wii, Kuju) - 8.0 Avg., 8.5 High, 7.0 Low
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn (Wii, Intelligent Systems) - 8.8 Avg., 9.0 High, 8.5 Low
Need for Speed: Prostreet (PS3/XBox 360, EA Black Box) - 7.7 Avg., 8.5 High, 7.0 Low
Tony Hawk's Proving Ground (PS3/XBox 360, Neversoft) - 6.5 Avg., 7.5 High, 5.5 Low
Manhunt 2 (Wii/PS2, Rockstar Toronto) - 5.3 Avg., 7.0 High, 4.0 Low
Blacksite: Area 51 (XBox 360/PS3, Midway Austin) - 5.7 Avg., 6.0 High, 5.0 Low
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men (XBox 360, IO) - 7.2 Avg., 7.5 High, 7.0 Low
Uncharted: Drakes's Fortune (Playstation 3, Naughty Dog) - 8.5 Avg., 8.5 High, 8.5 Low
Naruto: Rise of a Ninja (XBox 360, Ubisoft Montreal) - 6.7 Avg., 8.0 High, 5.5 Low
Timeshift (XB360, Saber) - 5.7 Avg., 6.0 High, 5.5 Low
Contra 4 (DS, WayForward) - 7.8 Avg., 8.0 high, 7.5 Low
Cooking Mama 2: Dinner with Friends (DS, Office Create) - 7.5 Avg., 7.5 High, 7.5 Low
Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings (DS, Think & Feel) - 7.2 Avg., 8.0 High, 6.0 Low
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops Plus (PSP, Kojima Productions) - 7.3 Avg., 7.5 High, 7.0 Low

As for games that unfortunately are not going to be released this year, here are the latest expectations from EGM (let's hope they are worth the wait):
Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii, Nintendo) - February 2008
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3, Konami) - March 2008
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Wii/PS3/XBox 360, LucasArts) - Spring 2008
Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway (PS3/XBox360, Ubisoft) - Spring 2008
Burnout: Paradise (PS3/XBox360, EA Games) - Spring 2008
Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3/XBox 360, Rockstar) - March 2008
SOCOM: Confrontation (PS3, Sony CEA) - Spring 2008
Too Human (XBox 360, Microsoft Game Studios) - March 2008
Indiana Jones (PS3/XBox 360, LucasArts) - Summer 2008
Splinter Cell: Conviction (XB360, Ubisoft) - Spring 2008
Home (PS3, Sony CEA) - Spring 2008
Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (PS3/XB360, EA Games) - Spring 2008

That's it for now. Stay Tuned.