I keep beating this drum, but it bears repeating: mid-size games are the ones getting buried while everyone stares at the blockbusters. So when MSN puts together a list of 10 double-A games worth your time, I'm going to point you at it, because this is exactly the shelf that needs the attention right now.

Double-A is that sweet spot I've loved since my raid nights in older MMOs taught me that budget doesn't equal soul. These are games made by teams big enough to polish things and small enough to take risks. They experiment. Sometimes they stumble. But when a double-A game lands, it hits in a way the big blockbusters rarely do anymore, because someone on that team had an idea and nobody in a boardroom sanded it down.

But fall release season is coming, and it comes for all of us. Once the big titles start stacking up, mid-size games vanish from the conversation entirely. The window for catching up on the mid-tier stuff closes fast, so the quiet-ish stretch before the rush is exactly when a list like this is worth your time.

Go play them. Now, while the calendar gives you room to breathe.

My own backlog, like yours probably, is less a list and more a monument to optimism, and honestly I've stopped feeling bad about it. Backlogs are just proof you believe good games keep coming.

The other reason this matters: buying double-A games is a vote. Every sale tells a publisher that a game made with care by a smaller team is worth making. I want that corner of the gaming world to stay healthy. Blockbusters will be fine. They always are.

So check the full list, pick two, and actually play them before the fall rush eats your free time. And then tell me which ones you picked. What's the best mid-size game you've played this year? I'm always collecting recommendations for the guild, and the guild has opinions, believe me.