A kinder control and save system would've been nice, but as is, Gladiator will test the limits of your gaming patience.

The game itself is polished and, for a while, a lot of fun -- it's just that, unfortunately, there isn't that much game here.

MS Saga lies just below the threshold of a good game, and the shine of its customization and gripping boss combat is dulled by lackluster, rote storytelling and lifeless presentation.

Considering the production values and repetition, Wild West Guns is probably pushing it with a $10 price point, but for those looking to swap their virtual crossbow for a slightly less-enticing six-gun, this throwback shooter very nearly justifies the investment.

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.

It's been a busy year for shooters, but even as everyone else tries to hybridize the genre, Overdose cleverly and creatively embraces its purity.

The all-new telemetry system and be-the-receiver feature are interesting additions that enhance the fun derived from Arena Football, but they are not enough to push the game over the top.

Oogie's Revenge isn't a particularly great action game, the story's hackneyed beyond belief, and there are plenty of reasons to be upset about the game's music, easily one of the reasons people are so crazy about the original film. In the end, though, it is a sequel to The Nightmare Before Christmas.

As rewarding as Choplifter HD can be, it demanded a few too many hours of trial and error for me to enjoy the game past the introductory levels, but the more masochistic amongst you will undoubtedly find something to love.

Nintendo's portable system is the popular girl in school these days, which makes Cookie & Cream an embarrassing photo from back in junior high. Back when she had acne, braces and Coke-bottle glasses and hung out with the kids who weren't cool enough to be on the chess team. Let's put those dark days behind us, shall we?

Despite those nice touches, BBB could have been more fun had it adopted a few modern touches and included online multiplayer (co-op is limited to local play only). Instead, it feels like more effort was spent on ensuring that the Team Fortress 2 section looked exactly like the Dustbowl level than on making sure the game played as well as possible. At $15 BBB is just $5 too expensive to justify picking up.

The story progression, variety of missions and locations, appropriate alternate costumes and great controls make it easy to buy into this world.

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 problem with Mario Party is this: the downtime is completely ridiculous. In a game where the sole purpose is to entertain you in a party-like environment, sitting out for periods of up to 10 minutes at a time, waiting for everyone to roll the dice, run around, shop for items, use said items, compete in stale, single-player mini-games, pointless microphone games and other random events drives one to tears of boredom.

A competent strategy RPG that sadly doesn't push the genre in any significant way.

All that can be said for sure is that this otherwise fine and dandy game is simply missing something that it needs.

Of the 11 included games, every version of Asteroids is awful; Centipede and Millipede are physically uncomfortable; Pong is neat -- in one game mode, anyway -- but like Super Breakout, the controls have been lost in translation; Missile Command and Lunar Lander are good games revamped to somehow look worse than the originals; and Tempest, Battlezone, and Warlords just might be worth buying.

Most importantly, though (especially for fans of the PC Fallout), you've got an RPG without any sort of enticing story.

All of this is handled well enough, but there's nothing special to it.

The space theme could've been carried further, and the weapons need way more originality, but that doesn't stop A Space Oddity from being one of the most refreshing Worms in quite some time.

Any port that makes me consider giving the source material another spin is worth the price of admission any day.

The survivor mode is like the game itself in a microcosm. It's rote and uninspired, a desultory thoughtless collage of bits and pieces surgically removed from the movies and dropped lifelessly into a dated engine.

The Spiderwick Chronicles is a standard licensed game -- it's got just enough content to make a virtual reenactment of the Human/Goblin war worthwhile for fans of the franchise.

"Dynasty Warriors" is an excellent series, but Devil Kings is just downright exciting to play, and there's something about being able to remember the names of the characters that's nice too.

Fare Wars would be a respectable conversion of the arcade and Dreamcast classics had the developers managed to keep the speed -- and thus, the excitement -- in the game. Now Crazy Taxi just feels slow and clunky, and all the minigames and extra cities to explore in the world can't fix that.

The Run takes an awkwardly serious approach to its story, eschewing the over-the-top fun and wackiness of its clear inspirations -- movies like the Cannonball Run series and classic arcade games like Cruis'n USA --to deliver a cross-country campaign that's sometimes exhilarating, but often frustrating and surprisingly banal.

Time Hollow may be light on gameplay, but the story's competent enough for fans of point-and-tap adventures.

And the staggering amount of collectible Pokémon and items will preoccupy you for weeks, if not months.