It's apparent that the story and atmosphere of the game is much more important than actual gameplay.

It's apparent that the story and atmosphere of the game is much more important than actual gameplay.

NBA 2K10 is an excellent basketball game that's full of nagging technical problems. It's a shame that some players probably won't be able to look past the inconsistent frame rate, online issues, and A.I. quirks, because NBA 2K10 does many things very, very well.

Though that simplicity can be an asset, in many ways it's the game's greatest weakness as well. The personality will carry you through the campaign, but repeating battles of attrition wear thin too quickly; Ronimo has some great ideas in this little package, even if the end result falls a little short of becoming an RTS classic.

I just wish the game's signature (and somewhat watered-down -- go Teen rating!) Fatalities ("Heroic Brutalities" for the politically correct DC heroes) appeared in each character's move lists, as I'd rather not look up a button combination every time I want to shoot my opponent in the face or drop a Mortal Kombat arcade cabinet on his head. You know, the important stuff.

An uneven effort, MotoGP '08 is a decent game that should please most newbies and occasional riders but proves that Milestone has a ways to go before it fully grasps the handlebars.

Still, while the setting, strategy, and sprite-based visuals -- this wouldn't have been impressive in 1998, let alone 2008 -- are a tad disappointing, they're also all quite serviceable.

While I have some issues with the difficulty, which is maddening at times, Comic Jumper is a genuinely fun game.

Aside from a handful of disappointing puzzles, however, I still see loads of potential in Puzzle Agent. Its goofy, Coen-brothers-do-Twin Peaks storyline kept me glued to my computer monitor for the roughly three hours it takes to finish the game.

It's neither "Konami SuperStar Athletics," nor is it exactly the arcade game you remember from the '80s -- New International Track & Field straddles the line between both, and it turns in a respectable portable performance of its own.

Unfortunately, the "shallow" moniker does apply in some respects, as the single-player Career mode is quite brief and represents the bulk of the game; plus, the absence of online play does nothing to help this. Given the slim pickings for racing fans on the Wii, though, it's easy to recommend NFS: Nitro, as it brings a solid (if however spartan) arcade racing experience to a system that clearly should have had one a long time ago.

The promise of a portable and blockbuster RE is mostly realized, and the control improvements and sense of scale translate effectively, but I sincerely hope Capcom chooses to skew from RE's cheesy past and make more memorable adventures moving forward.

It's a slight advancement over its predecessor, VT 3, but its biggest weaknesses, the online and single-player modes, mire an otherwise satisfying experience.

All that said, Young Thor -- when you're not repeating the same levels over and over -- is an enjoyable, pick-up-and-play romp-fest.

An uneven effort, MotoGP '08 is a decent game that should please most newbies and occasional riders but proves that Milestone has a ways to go before it fully grasps the handlebars.

While it maintains its easily accessible, casual gameplay, obsessive players (like myself) can still work hard towards getting 100% on all dishes. This blend is exactly what makes me love Cooking Mama in general, and Cooking Mama 3 is a great, if occasionally exasperating, addition to the series.

Despite the faults in character variety, you get a good Ninja Turtle fighter using a proven engine, but maybe Ubisoft will do one better than the Konami of 1994 and produce a sequel worth wishing for.

Lost Planet's sophomore effort attempts to improve on past faults while shifting direction into an entirely new territory, but the overall feeling is muted. The game can be an enjoyable, fun adventure, but only if you're willing to share the experience with friends (or strangers).

Bookworm lacks a bit of the addictive magic that draws me to PopCap's other titles, but this spelling game still offers an enjoyable distraction for wordsmithing on the go.

Though not a great game on its own, Patrician IV has all of the things that make good trading games interesting and challenging.

But ultimately, even though a lot of things about MUA2 aggravate me, the moment-to-moment gameplay of superheroes beating the crap out of robots/mutants/soldiers with fists, mystical hammers, repulsor rays, giant tongues, and what-have-you feels solid and enjoyable.

Shuffle Dungeon's strength lies in its level designs, which are cleverly crafted so as to force tough choices at the spur of the moment. The limited structure grows a bit long in the tooth once you've been playing for a while...but even so, it never stops pushing you to make those snap decisions.

An uneven effort, MotoGP '08 is a decent game that should please most newbies and occasional riders but proves that Milestone has a ways to go before it fully grasps the handlebars.

But my biggest problem with Keflings is its lack of...well, a soul.

Extreme 2, though, offers little to differentiate itself. It's a coincidental callback to 1979's Space Invaders Part II: most of the improvements will matter to those who were already obsessed. For some, that's probably enough for a buy, and if you haven't played SI Extreme before, now's the time, as you're still getting an enjoyable rewrite of an arcade classic. But those who had a passing fancy before can pass it up for the time being.

It's hard not to be a little disappointed with MotorStorm: Arctic Edge -- it plays just like its siblings on the PS3, and I mean just like its siblings. While that's likely good enough for many, the "been there, done that" feel of the game means that it gets old quickly.

While it's not the most fantastic thing ever, a couple of its components -- namely the stylish presentation and the battle arenas -- are brilliant. Wet has the makings of a universe I'd like to revisit, but I'd want to see the same amount of polish that's been afforded to the wrappings in a follow-up.

The game suffers by comparison to stronger titles that are similar enough to make such a comparison unavoidable.

Originally, the biggest problem I had with Afrika was that there wasn't more of a narrative. I like having the freedom to explore beautiful virtual worlds, but I also appreciate some story to bring it together. But as the game progressed, I felt that maybe a game like this doesn't need a bunch of drama attached -- a picture is worth a thousand words.

The upside is that Ultimate Match is based on the Dreamcast port of KOF '98, which gives you the option to replace the original backgrounds with new 3D backgrounds as well as customizing and saving individual color configurations for each character.

Although VOOT's endemic control woes aren't impossible to overcome, it keeps the game from being the truly pleasurable adrenaline blast it should be.

As a product, this package is recommendable to anyone who hasn't experienced the first game, or wishes to add it back to their current library. It also includes a surprisingly fun multiplayer suite, with the Riddick vs. Everyone Else mode "Pitch Black" as the main attraction. But as single-player games, the unsatisfying Dark Athena should be played as a curiosity and then put back where it belongs: in Butcher Bay's shadow.

A good JRPG that tries to do something new with its battle system. It's not altogether successful, but any PC Square fans should at least check it out and experience it for themselves.

All 4 One provides some fleeting co-op fun with characters you know and love, though it's not necessarily the kind of Ratchet & Clank game that fans like us were looking for.

NBA 2K10 is an excellent basketball game that's full of nagging technical problems. It's a shame that some players probably won't be able to look past the inconsistent frame rate, online issues, and A.I. quirks, because NBA 2K10 does many things very, very well.

It's an acquired taste. And for die-hard pirate fans, it's the only MMO that offers eye patches and peg legs as rewards. What are you waiting for?

It's telling that my main criticism of Band is its meager song count, as it's a feat for any game that actually made me love jamming to Fall Out Boy.

The problem is that Hell's Highway doesn't make me care about the characters as much as the other installments did.

In the end, did Eternal Poison frustrate me countless times? Absolutely. Does it include inexcusable, easily fixable design flaws? Certainly. But its haunting style and twisted atmosphere also inspired emotions that'll stick with me for a long time to come -- and that's precisely why we play games, isn't it?

As soon as you hit the city, the game's pace drops off, and the sub-par graphics and poor controls steadily bog down an otherwise terrific idea.

You probably won't put too much alone time into the game, but TV Party's an enjoyable pick-up-and-play option if you can get few friends or family members on board.

It's just a shame that, due to Sega's mismanagement of its properties over the last decade or so, Superstars Tennis comes too late to fully resonate with today's gaming audience.

An uneven effort, MotoGP '08 is a decent game that should please most newbies and occasional riders but proves that Milestone has a ways to go before it fully grasps the handlebars.

Pro Evo feels more like real soccer, but it doesn't really look like it a lot of the time.

Pro Evo feels more like real soccer, but it doesn't really look like it a lot of the time.

While Army of Two does have its high points (an attack on an aircraft carrier being one), levels often lack excitement and instead deliver much of the same over and over. As mentioned before, it's not bad gameplay, but it never builds to much of anything. In fact, the entire game is rather anticlimactic.

An unfocused baseball game that neither excels as an arcade experience nor as a baseball game -- it's only an average player in the bigs.

Unplugged's gameplay and high-fidelity music fits the PSP almost perfectly, but for all the big features that are mysteriously missing, the developers didn't pay enough attention to the small details, either.

While the controls are frequently irksome, Exit DS is a challenging, rewarding, cleverly designed game for any puzzle fan.

The PES-versus-FIFA bout is always tough to call, but while neither disappoints, I'll narrowly side with the glitzier, überlicensed competition this season: FIFA 09.

The odd bit of slowdown and mostly forgettable minigames (aside from the amusing Big Brain Challenge) further detract from the experience, but with great presentation and a genuinely funny narrative that recalls the zaniness of "Earthworm Jim" and "Dead Head Fred," I cannot help but be charmed by Teenage Zombies.

Personally speaking, though, Axis is unbearable: A hodgepodge of ideas with no aesthetic consistency. It includes practically every Tetris derivative mini-game to have been pushed out the door by various licensees over the past decade, both good and bad, making it a sort of omnibus. At the same time, the whole thing feels cheap and generic, and there's very little visual consistency from mode to mode.

An open-world zombie game has far more potential than what Techland is putting on display. There's certainly a lot of fun to be had on Dead Island, but don't be surprised if tedium sets in once you've murdered a zombie in every way imaginable (estimated time: 20 hours).

An open-world zombie game has far more potential than what Techland is putting on display. There's certainly a lot of fun to be had on Dead Island, but don't be surprised if tedium sets in once you've murdered a zombie in every way imaginable (estimated time: 20 hours).

Even with its frustrating controls, if you found yourself hooked on Cooking, you'll feel the same about Mama's adventures in Gardening -- with the same sense of accomplishment when you ace her assignments, and the same swearing and stylus throwing when things go horribly wrong.

On a theoretical level it achieves a significant design accomplishment in pulling everything together into a cohesive package. As the person holding the controller, though, it stumbles too often on its inability to turn its potential into a consistently fun game.

Clone Wars' appeal may reside more with the younger audience than that of the more dedicated gamer -- there just isn't enough of a challenge here for most. As such, this version of the game works better as a substitute to those who can't play the excellent console iterations, or who want something else to play on their 3DS until a more substantial title arrives.

It's damn near a flight sim, with tons of controls and HUD elements (a bar for your health and your shields, and a bar for the charging time for your special weapon -- which is more special if you shoot it with your main guns).

I love this franchise, and playing it in 3D was enough to keep me entertained for hours. I just wish a new Ridge Racer game was more of an event like it used to be.

If you can get over a cast of characters talking and talking and talking but not really saying much of anything, you may find Solatorobo much more enjoyable than I did -- though the game's patronizing insistence on holding your hand through just about every challenge can be just as frustrating.

Inferno's a significantly less annoying experience in its PlayStation 3 iteration.

The genre isn't in its infancy anymore, and developer Funcom doesn't have the trailblazer status that would grant easy deflection of criticism about unimplemented features and crippling bugs... Right now, Age of Conan is fun game to play -- this summer, it might be ready for the MMO pantheon.

A bit more ambition could've made this a true classic (how about some Wi-Fi co-op?), but as it stands, it's the next best thing to cramming GBA cult classic "Ninja Five-O" into your DS.

What we're left with is an unfocused baseball game that neither excels as an arcade experience nor as a baseball game -- it's only an average player in the bigs.

This is a game for Ninja Gaiden fans, who will play it on the toughest difficulties and upload their best playthrough videos online. For those purposes, it excels; for less devoted action-adventure fans, it's more of a violent curiosity than something to get invested in.

Though Lost in Blue 3 will probably never be anyone's first pick for their ideal "desert island game," it manages to be more enjoyable than the sum of its repetitious parts.

It's really a shame that these technical problems detract from what is an otherwise outstanding experience.

It's just a shame that, due to Sega's mismanagement of its properties over the last decade or so, Superstars Tennis comes too late to fully resonate with today's gaming audience.

The PES-versus-FIFA bout is always tough to call, but while neither disappoints, I'll narrowly side with the glitzier, überlicensed competition this season: FIFA 09.

The biggest problem for Madden at this stage in its existence, though, is that it seems to lack a clear direction or vision of what it should be. Instead, it's listing back and forth, rudderless, between attempts at being a serious simulation and trying to attract a more casual audience, and it's not doing great service to either.

Diehard COH multiplayer fans will want this by virtue of being able to use the new units that all the other veteran players will be using with their copies. But the player who either wants a great offline experience, or simply another fantastic COH expansion, might feel a bit cheated and disappointed with how paltry this expansion feels.

The biggest problem for Madden at this stage in its existence, though, is that it seems to lack a clear direction or vision of what it should be. Instead, it's listing back and forth, rudderless, between attempts at being a serious simulation and trying to attract a more casual audience, and it's not doing great service to either.

A game unsure of what it wants to achieve. When it lets itself, it's a fantastic adrenaline rush through well-constructed set-pieces and gloriously fun-to-watch violence. But it too often drags itself down with overly structured situations and restrictive, strategy-heavy gameplay.

Provides a visually interesting world, with competent gameplay mechanics, but it ultimately fails to completely draw the player into the depths of its promised insanity to satisfaction.

Rondo of Swords can be a frustrating game. But those frustrations feel like an intentional part of the design; it's not meant as a cakewalk.

A game unsure of what it wants to achieve. When it lets itself, it's a fantastic adrenaline rush through well-constructed set-pieces and gloriously fun-to-watch violence. But it too often drags itself down with overly structured situations and restrictive, strategy-heavy gameplay.

Dog Days ultimately feels less like a typical crime shooter, and more like a player-directed version of the Crank movies.

Metal Slug 7's a mostly faithful sequel that works on the DS, especially considering that there hasn't been a commendable portable installment since the NeoGeo Pocket days. But if you've got an Xbox 360 at home, the ol' "wait and see" approach probably wouldn't hurt.

Tumble isn't anything super special with its austere and generic looks, but it's also a completely competent, decently challenging, motion-controlled block puzzle game.

Provides a visually interesting world, with competent gameplay mechanics, but it ultimately fails to completely draw the player into the depths of its promised insanity to satisfaction.

Dog Days ultimately feels less like a typical crime shooter, and more like a player-directed version of the Crank movies.

While Army of Two does have its high points (an attack on an aircraft carrier being one), levels often lack excitement and instead deliver much of the same over and over. As mentioned before, it's not bad gameplay, but it never builds to much of anything. In fact, the entire game is rather anticlimactic.

Yes, FIFA is the superior offering this year -- but it's a lot closer than you might initially think. If Takatsuka's team tackles the animation issues and online hiccups next year like they addressed the graphics, presentation, and Master League this year, we could have a 2010 videogame footballing derby worthy of Premier League titans Liverpool and Man United.

For this season, consider it the way you would a September game with your team already eliminated from the chase: If you're the type that wants to check out the young prospects called up, you'll probably be right at home. If you've already been watching preseason football for a few weeks and are enjoying the first NFL games, it might not be your ticket.

The problem is that Hell's Highway doesn't make me care about the characters as much as the other installments did.

Play Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes 2 -- The Phantom Fortress for its entertaining battles, not for the tiring story. But if you do play for the story, remember this awesome tip: Change the voice option from English to Japanese so you won't have to hear Naruto scream his ineffable catchphrase. Believe it!

As a product, this package is recommendable to anyone who hasn't experienced the first game, or wishes to add it back to their current library. It also includes a surprisingly fun multiplayer suite, with the Riddick vs. Everyone Else mode "Pitch Black" as the main attraction. But as single-player games, the unsatisfying Dark Athena should be played as a curiosity and then put back where it belongs: in Butcher Bay's shadow.

The game's still fun and unusual, and it's worth checking out if only to enjoy some of the more clever writing in gaming. But don't forget your patience -- you'll need lots.

The effects are also the biggest difference between this WiiWare version and the Flash original, which shared most of the game mechanics but lacked the visual appeal.

A few poor design choices keep this game from being easily recommendable to all. Everything but the unforgiving boss fights get repetitive quickly; the game can be light on explanations, leaving a lot to your own deduction; and the pathfinding is terrible.

The designers put all of their eggs in the city-design basket and forgot about actual mission design.

Atari's Alone in the Dark is so busy being experimental -- giving players the tools and rules to solve problems on their own -- that it neglects the alluring experientialism of earlier titles in the series, which set a tone and pace that sparked the survival-horror genre off years before "Resident Evil" hit the scene.

Clash of Ninja Revolution 3 is a step up from Clash of Ninja Revolution 2, but nagging problems keep the game from reaching its full potential.

Unlimited Codes is a competent 2.5D fighter that's bound to raise interest in the fighting game community, for better or worse. Newcomers will enjoy the game's simplified inputs, but may grow tired and frustrated when learning strategies for high-level play and advanced combos.

Possibly due to the lack of any real danger/reward progression, or perhaps because of the inherent visual cacophony -- which hits even harder in the perfectly playable, yet crazily hectic, two-player multiplayer co-op game -- Galaxy eventually feels more than a bit repetitious.

The lack of variety is actually a good thing. In an area of game development where being overly ambitious can destroy you, developer Luxoflux has instead created a smart, focused, and (most importantly) polished effort that should delight young fans of the film.

Space Marine isn't a disappointing game, it's just an uneventful one. As such, fans of the series may find more to salvage here than the average gamer...If the pacing problems could be addressed, the addition of a campaign co-op mode, and more multiplayer maps leave a healthy amount of room for improvement for the future of this series.

With nothing in the encyclopedic manual or pithy tutorial that actually explains how to game this highfalutin data cube, Supreme Ruler 2020 tends to play like smashing into a wall: break something, fall back wincing, and repeat.