Bastion

Bastion has been floating around on XBLA since last summer.  But only after it recently popped up on sale did I finally bite the bullet and make the purchase.  The only thing I regret is not buying this game sooner.

Bastion puts players in control of the main character known simply as "The Kid".  The Kid wakes up after a vague event called the Calamity which has left his world fractured into floating pieces of land.  The Kid must fight monsters to collect pieces of a monument that helps to rebuild his home world's sanctuary, The Bastion.  Most residents of the world have been turned into Pompeii-like statues, but there are a few that survived and help along the way, most notably the older character, Rucks.  Rucks also acts as the narrator of the entire game and his deep voice solidifies the sense of great story telling and helps to draw the player in.

The fighting is really easy to pick up on and pretty smooth.  There are plenty of fighting options that include guns and melee attacks as well as some minor magics.  The normal game setting was tough enough to keep my attention but easy enough that I was never stuck or overwhelmed.  For those who are looking for a more difficult experience, there is a shrine that can be activated to empower enemies or lower the players power.  For those who have younger kids or anyone that just wants the story with less struggle, there is a No-Sweat Mode.  This offers up unlimited lives and enough perks to essentially make the player invincible, the player still dies but there is no restarting the level or even going back to checkpoints.  Between the level of somewhat cartoon-ish violence and the ability to lower the difficulty, this is a great game for that age when young players are getting bored with petting animals or hanging with Dora, but aren't mature enough or skilled enough to play the adult games.

Yes, you can fall of the edge, but no, it doesn't kill you.

I thought this game was extremely charming and very engrossing.  Depending upon your skill, each level can take anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes to complete.  I don't think I spent more than 10 minutes on any given level so it fits great into short amounts of time like first thing in the morning or the 15 minutes of energy you have left before bed.  The graphics were detail and clear, the story was interesting, and the game play was fun.  I definitely recommend downloading Bastion.