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.