The strides it makes with co-op however -- along with its point accumulation system as well as some very tense and unique multiplayer modes -- makes this a great game to play with a giant bucket of buttered popcorn, a large Coca-cola, and some friends. This is your video game summer blockbuster.

The strides it makes with co-op however -- along with its point accumulation system as well as some very tense and unique multiplayer modes -- makes this a great game to play with a giant bucket of buttered popcorn, a large Coca-cola, and some friends. This is your video game summer blockbuster.

You ought to at least give Raising Hell a rental, as the expanded content adds plenty of value to an already good game. Besides, I can't think of a better way to indulge that evil streak in all of us.

Warhead's a clear demonstration that Crytek learned its lessons from Crysis. Sure, it's still got some troubling flaws, but they're not as big as Crysis' "this awesome sandbox game became a corridor shooter."

Fat Princess' greatest strength is its comical presence, from the title screen to the ending credits.

If anything, Alan Wake reminds me of the first Uncharted. It is a great, but flawed work (hello ugly daylight, quirky animations, and a script that mocks the viewer even more than Lost or Twin Peaks) that lays the foundation for what could be an absolutely amazing follow-up. I just hope it doesn't take another five or six years.

Even in the few sections of ITSP that ape the Metroid series more directly, it rarely falls flat simply because the formula is so solid. The game really excels when it changes things up with puzzles and boss fights.

Once Upon A Monster won't fulfill the role of the traditional killer app for the Kinect; it instead fulfills the oft-neglected role of "great title to introduce children to games without making them ragequit." I'd rather remember playing this as a kid than my current memories of Smurf for the 2600.

Therein lies the paradox of Fight Night Champion: it both points the way forward for sports gaming with a smart, surprising new approach to the genre, and serves to remind us of the tired conventions that make that new direction necessary in the first place.

Currently, online is too inconsistent to be taken seriously. Without the quality online play, the Tekken community will have to take their battles offline, limiting the potential for community growth. And the small details Namco Bandai neglected hurts the overall experience. Tekken 6 is excellent, but with better netcode, it would have been outstanding.

Therein lies the paradox of Fight Night Champion: it both points the way forward for sports gaming with a smart, surprising new approach to the genre, and serves to remind us of the tired conventions that make that new direction necessary in the first place.

This one's still really good and a lot of fun; you should buy it. Partly because it's a blast, but also because I really want to see Housemarque use this engine for a brilliant sequel.

But Revolution's greatest omission is testament to just how addicting the game is. It's disappointing not having the option to play "one more turn..." after a victory condition is achieved and continuing to build (or rebuild) your empire.

You'll assuredly have plenty of fun with this, even if Nintendo's play-it-safe, dumb-it-down approach will make many longtime players yearn for something more ambitious and risky.

Nintendo and Intelligent Systems succeeded in making the first Fire Emblem more casual, and is an excellent choice if you either found the previous games intimidating, or have never played one. Still, those looking for a hardcore strategy game will be sorely disappointed.

Fable 3 is even simpler than its predecessor while remaining utterly and distinctly charming when compared to the rest of the 360's library -- it just isn't quite as magical as Fable 2.

It's a fantastic installment for newcomers to the Prince of Persia series, but those who've been Persia fans since Sands of Time may find The Forgotten Sands mildly forgettable.

Call it a first-person Diablo, an evolution of Resistance 2's co-op mode, Monster Hunter for the west, or a party game for FPS gamers. Call it the best example of the transformative power of multiplayer. Whatever you designate it, Borderlands is a decent single-player FPS/RPG that simply becomes great -- when playing with others.

Prince of Persia delivers well-crafted gameplay that borrows elements from its predecessors (and plenty of other titles) but makes great strides in developing a new identity for a series -- and a character that isn't as completely annoying as you might think from the first few lines of dialogue -- that seemingly lost its focus over the past few years. Of course, some issues here and there disrupt its goal in surpassing "The Sands of Time", but it's an incredibly enjoyable journey nonetheless.

Even if most of the modes are just variations of existing ones, they're still a hell of a lot of fun to play. Chopper versus Chopper mode and the Road Rash-style races breathe new life into GTA4's multiplayer, and additional apparel gives you new options for customizing your online persona.

Thrilling on the ground, downright heart-stopping in the air, and beautiful throughout, Pure's a blast from start to finish. A career mode would've gone further than the game's "World Tour" in fully eliminating repetitiveness, but Black Rock has otherwise built a real winner here.

Despite the aforementioned pacing problems and slowdown that occurs when more than a handful of characters appear onscreen, Rune Factory 2 solidly integrates two disparate forms of gameplay in a lengthy, elaborate experience.

So much of the dialogue and story changes depend on your choices that it's absolutely worth revisiting at least once after the credits roll.

The main quest is entertaining enough to justify the $9 or $10 investment (based on your platform of choice), but the new and revised bonus elements really make Strong Badia the Free a comprehensive experience.

Joint Strike is a great way to kill a short period of time...just like an arcade game should be.

It doesn't stand on its own quite as well as some of this year's other music titles, but it's still a fun, quick romp through pop music seen through a Lego filter.

The best news, though, is that for all its departures from "conventional" racing titles, Baja gives you just as many customization and tweaking options as those games do.

While it does have a few shortcomings (mostly in the pacing), Wargaming.net really has a lot to build on with Order of War, and I would be thrilled to see a follow up -- perhaps even one taking place in the Pacific Theatre.