When all's said and done, Episode 6 (like its predecessors) doesn't stretch much past the two-hour mark, but it's all just as well, since the assorted puzzles never get tough enough to become frustrating, nor easy enough to insult you.

And even though the character float problem persists, the new tournament save option and improved aesthetics (some really nice lighting work can be seen in some of the outdoor courts) are worth the upgrade.

At times, Jak 3 seems to be scraping the bottom of the idea barrel...While this final chapter is not the platforming clinic of the first, nor the trendsetter of the second, it is an extremely satisfying finish for the series.

Its high-concept nature never translates into pretentiousness -- on the contrary, the English script is by turns hilarious and intriguing. Despite its imperfections, it's unique, daring, and occasionally strange.

Daisy-chaining raw resources to refined goods to end products hasn't been this gratifying in years.

Despite several technical deficiencies in this port, The Orange Box is still one of the most rewarding gaming experiences of 2007. We do, however, recommend you steer clear of the PS3 version unless you don't own an Xbox 360 or a PC with a moderate graphics card.

The AI in the single player game is also pretty weak. This works both ways; not only does it mean you can mow down waves of enemies without getting touched, but when you need your teammates to help you capture a point, they're usually nowhere to be found.

For the first time ever, Lara Croft controls fluidly -- her world isn't divided into little squares, and she can perform complex series of acrobatic maneuvers without a pause (and often has to, later in the game).

The game has all the things that have made "Battlefield" a PC favorite. In particular, the vehicles work well, maybe even better with the controller. Flying a helicopter with two sticks feels natural and the ground vehicles, like tanks and humvees, are a snap.

It's kind of like a junior sandbox approach that younger gamers will enjoy because they can just trundle around without crashing or waiting for loads and older kids will love because it allows them to explore a large area and find characters and items that they'll recognize from the movie.

The analog hitting is MVP 06's most significant addition, and it'll certainly be tough to go back to button-press swinging in the other upcoming baseball sims.

The frustration many hit during punishing sections in this sort of game is never allowed to develop. All the skill moves still require the right touch; the designers simply opened the window of what constitutes the "right" touch just enough to let everyone in (with some practice).

This is the type of game you can play to pass the time on the morning commute, while watching TV, or waiting in line for your husband to buy power tools. Touching is good, play well with others, etc. -- Nintendogs is a unique game that brings something new to the DS.

Sam & Max follows a formula, sure, but sitcom predictability is proving to be this series' secret strength -- it's rare to see a game conjure up such strong narrative continuity and familiarity in such short a time span. In Telltale's hands, recycled assets take on the aspect of recurring joys.

Sam & Max's design crew runs a well-oiled humor machine, and Ice Station Santa flaunts everything from suicidal alley rats to demented gift exchanges to a trio of time-displaced Christmas spirits who turn the expected feel-good story cliché on its head.

All the focus on the game's details comes at the expense of its questionable design and overall lack of cohesion. It's here that the latest Castlevania comes up short.

Although Nintendo has been visiting the WarioWare well fairly often of late, it still manages to feel fresh and addictive.

The Dracula X Chronicles isn't a perfect compilation; the original games suffer from some nagging issues, and the remakes aren't an across-the-board improvement. Even so, it would be a must-play for fans of classic action games even without its historical significance. As it is, fans of action games should play it simply because it plays well; fans of Castlevania should add it to their collections immediately and never let it go.

The most distinctive thing about the Taiko games is the bizarre cast of characters Namco has invented for the series.

At its best, the 360 version is the standout, but if you add up all the features, pretty much any system owner can be proud of their version and how it holds up against the others, which seems to be what Ubisoft had in mind. And which also is very annoying for those who want the single best version across the board.

The GameCube version has taken it on the chin, presumably thanks to disc space limitations -- eight of 28 music tracks are gone, there's no choice of voices for the main character (compared to six options on other platforms), the framerate suffers from occasional hiccups in crowded stages, and there are spots of very poor texture detail.

You won't spend as much time with True Crime, but that time will be spent enjoying nicer visuals and a very deep story experience, as opposed to flipping cars across parking garages.

And even though CAC is enjoyable in single-player and online multiplayer, it really is one of those games that shine when it's you and your buddies sitting on the same couch and playing on the same TV...And yelling. And throwing elbows.

It's all down to the style and irresistible cheerful feeling you get when you play these games.

The content itself is rock-solid, and offers an absolutely unique take (visually, as well) on years of carefully refined multiplayer notions. Undertow isn't quite a must-buy, but it's easily one of the more sensible ways to spend $10 online.

A very respectable entry and a much better game than last year's version, even with a few unresolved issues.

Logan's Shadow, like "Dark Mirror" before it, doesn't quite stack up to the better Metal Gears and Splinter Cells, but it's absolutely worth a look for stealth-action fans yearning for something to tide them over this year.

But for all its fire and flash pyrotechnics and soulless premise and execution, there's a delightful source of naiveté powering the proceedings here -- like a raw, juvenile fantasy torn straight out of the id and slopped wholesale onto our PCs. [*Single-Player review]