God of War: Origins Collection, Rocksmith and More - Plug N Play

1. God of War: Origins Collection
For: PlayStation 3
From: Sony, playstation.com
Buckets of blood burst from the screen as the gory Greek tragedy’s two handheld installments—Chains of Olympus and Ghost of Sparta—get a high-def, 3D TV-ready makeover in this value-priced anthology.

2. Rocksmith
For: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
From: UbiSoft, ubisoft.com
Plug a real-world guitar in and strum along with a catchy rhythm game controlled via actual instruments, not cheap plastic knock-offs. The only catch: You’ll actually need talent to sound any good.

3. Rage
For: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
From: Bethesda Softworks, bethsoft.com
The latest from id Software, creators of classic run-n-gun outings Doom and Quake, splits the difference between furious first-person shooting and scrotum-shriveling vehicular showdowns in a stunning post-apocalyptic world gone mad.

4. Music Games Rock
From: Power Play Publishing, musicgamesrock.com
A definitive history of music video games—including the weird, wild and WTF—yours truly’s new book (a free download) charts the field from its ‘70s origins to Guitar Hero’s meteoric rise and fall.