The marriage of the Yu-Gi-Oh! universe with strategy-based combat is an addictive one, making this game one that even the curious fan should check out.

It can't provide the immersive realism of its console counterparts, but it does manage to recreate all the fun of playing with ants and matchbox cars -- especially if you liked blowing them up and setting them on fire.

Offers a plethora of options, online play, and no innovation to a game that doesn't really need innovation (except to my own twisted imagination).

If the appeal of its gameplay has worn thin, as it likely has for most fighting fans in 2004, then all the gorgeous graphics and new costumes and online play won't overcome that fact.

If the thin plot of games with similar mechanics bothers you, this could end up as your favorite in the genre.

Ace Combat 5 is not a major leap ahead of 2001's "Ace Combat 4"...But if you liked that game's impressively detailed presentation and instantly playable controls, then strap in and get ready to take off.

Like Mario Bros., the Famicom Mini version of Dr. Mario suffers from a single terrible flaw: it was completely obsolete long before it was ever released.

It's a short quest, but while it lasts it's a genuine challenge that promises to kick you in the pants and make you like it.

Adventure of Link might be more for completists than its predecessor was, but you can certainly find plenty here to keep you busy for some time.

For $10 more, you can get the exact same thing in the form of a free bonus [in "Metroid: Zero Mission"] with a top-notch remake of the game that brings its graphics, level design and story up to contemporary standards along with a cool bonus section that serves as a valuable prelude to the subsequent games. Now which one would you rather have? Think hard, now.

There's an undeniable appeal to nailing that perfect drift, sliding in past the finish line with just a few seconds to spare. Especially in a Ferrari with a cute girl in the passenger seat.

Bigger, longer, more complex levels and more challenging opponents (not just easily-destroyed peons and the occasional complex boss) are what could make this more than eye-candy -- the character system is already where it needs to be, and in fact it sometimes feels too detailed in comparison to the challenges on offer.

If you're hoping for something with the depth and substance of a true sequel to the likes of Ape Escape, the discovery that you're getting a party game is a bit of a letdown. It's like working up an appetite for a deluxe pizza and being given a plateful of "Bagel Bites" instead.

It's more flattering to look at Killer App as another handheld arcade collection with a great upgraded multiplayer version of Light Cycles and a simply bad adventure game thrown in as a bonus.

The selection of missions is a little sparse, and the game demands a near-perfect performance to unlock extra content, but that's far less of a problem compared to a control scheme that just isn't any fun.

There's no question that Crisis fans will want a copy of Crisis Zone for their collections, if only to give their dusty GunCons a little workout. But it's ultimately a mild diversion from the more substantial offerings of its predecessors.

It quickly degenerates into as absurd a mess as four turtles that are supposed to be ninjas with a rat for a sensei sounds like on paper. As Michelangelo might say, "cowabunga dudes, this is one gnarly game wreck."

It's a must-have for enthusiastic fans of the original, who will easily recognize the quality beneath the hostile surface. Everyone else may want to proceed with caution, though, because you'll probably be too busy having your butt kicked to have a good time.

That the game outperforms its 3D siblings seems to have happened almost by default: the other games are so poor that this mediocre product seems sterling by comparison. Taken on its own merits, though, it's just not particularly good.

A notch better on the PC than Xbox, thanks to significantly better visuals, but that's still not enough to push these valorous men past the paces of the best military games of this season.

Plain attacks with repetitive animations undermine any hope for the finesse that four unique characters could have afforded.

It quickly degenerates into as absurd a mess as four turtles that are supposed to be ninjas with a rat for a sensei sounds like on paper. As Michelangelo might say, "cowabunga dudes, this is one gnarly game wreck."

It's nice to see such an ambitious world presented with beautifully-animated 2D graphics and in such an uncomplicated manner: no tutorials or cinemas or dialogue, just pure platforming and exploration.

It's unfortunate that we'll probably never see what was originally intended to evolve out of Tribes 2...Vengeance is still a worthy heir to the throne, though, and it may convert more players to the Tribes style of online action than either of its predecessors managed.

It feels like a one-night brainstorming session came up with a whole bunch of random ideas thrown in a pot and clumsily stirred. There might be a good game in here somewhere, but it needs to cook a lot longer.

The most exciting RPG to come out this year. It has a different setting, a different focus, and different structure than anything else for consoles, and that's ultimately what makes it so appealing.

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).

Quirk enthusiasts will be disappointed, mainstream gamers will only find more to support their suspicions about those "weird" games, and Capcom is in danger of believing that small, strange games like this won't do well.