A no-nonsense, straightforward, old school, GameCube-exclusive RPG.

The only reason you’re compelled to come back to it time and again is because you had fun the last time you played with it. In that sense, it’s the perfect toy.

Interface problems, relatively brief and inconclusive gameplay, repetitive backtracking, and uneven puzzles detract from your enjoyment.

It’s a satisfying strategic adventure if you have the persistence to overcome its quirks and nuances, but it’ll frustrate you senseless if you don’t want it bad enough.

Perimeter sets itself apart by not relying on what has come before, but by not making changes for the sake of change, it’s also engaging and fun to play.

I love Aura, as it’s the kind of visually and intellectually stimulating challenge that I crave and that’s so rare these days.

It’s the subtle establishment and cultivation of The Phoenix that really gives the game its punch. You know that the antagonist isn’t real, but you’ll still be kind of creeped out because you’ll begin to understand him.

Its graphics are outstanding, and the interesting single-player campaign should provide a good basis for those looking to spend countless hours in its challenging multiplayer.

Players looking to enjoy some wild arcade style longball, or at least a combination of the two approaches, can’t go wrong with Midway’s latest.

It’s crippled by horrendous A.I., murky movement speeds, agonizing loading times, dated graphics, quirky controls and poor network code.

The professional mode imposes every rule of the Indy Racing League, making for a truer simulation of actual driving conditions.

The on-foot aspect is near abysmal and takes the wind right out of the sails. The numerous graphical glitches and bugs don't help matters, either.

The new link system makes it possible to incite huge skirmishes and deal unprecedented amounts of damage to your enemies while opening up new strategic possibilities within your squad, and the addition of voiceovers brings the characters to life like never before.

Arguably the most cinematic shooter on the market, and though the gameplay is flawed in some respects, the lengthy, engrossing single-player campaign is still worth the price of admission. The offline multiplayer component can provide a few small kicks as well, but Xbox Live owners should beware, as online play is dodgy, to say the least.

The campaign is a bit short even by today's standards, but has phenomenal replayability and enough bonus content to keep you busy for quite some time.

Strategy war game buffs will find plenty to keep themselves entertained even though some may find the puzzle-like presentation off-putting. If you don’t mind a good strategy puzzle, however, this is your game.

The graphics, while dated, hold their own thanks to the fantastic lighting, and the audio work truly should be experienced.

Every single aspect of the game falls short of the industry average. What was supposed to be an adrenaline-fueled trip through the heady yesteryears of prohibition and mob rule is instead a tedious grind through repetitive and uninspired drudgery.

Primal tries to interest gamers with its Viking and fortress theme, but without smooth camera controls and decent pathfinding, the effort feels a bit wasted.

Playing Full Spectrum Warrior over Xbox Live can become a dangerously addictive hobby, but even without it, the game is an absolute blast. The only thing that I could have asked for is more – more tactics, more weapons, more grenades, more missions, more everything.

The Chronicles of Riddick looks great, sounds great and the gameplay is a perfect amalgamation of shooting, adventure, platforming, role-playing and stealth. Though I'm certain to be crucified for my blasphemy, this variety and skillful execution makes Riddick equal to, and in some ways, superior to the single-player component found in "Halo."

Even though some of Ion’s design decisions, like the removal of the rope arrow and the inclusion of the third-person camera, will disappoint purists, it would be difficult for anyone to deny what a splendid experience this release is.

It falls back too often on the war weary build-a-base mechanic as its core, but the robustness and depth of the civilization tree will help ensure many hours of gameplay for RTS and series fans alike.

As an atmospheric "Devil May Cry" knockoff, Van Helsing is a notable success, despite the fact that the experience is only marginally longer than the movie’s running time.

There are some good ideas, like the grouping banner and the ability to plunder, that should’ve come off a lot better, but instead thwarted the gameplay.

If you have access to a broadband connection and take well to online co-operative games, then The Omega Strain might just be worth your time and money, primarily thanks to the massive collection of cool unlockables. However, the single-player aspect is so unbalanced and unpolished that the each mission quickly becomes a chore, a menial, labored process.

While it’s unlikely that the inferior graphics and sound would turn away any serious strategy RPG fans, boring gameplay mechanics and glitchy implementation should do the job.

The gameplay isn’t particularly groundbreaking, but the variety and extras found in the single-player campaign, combined with the enjoyable multiplayer mode, give the experience a healthy dose of replayability. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Not only are its production values low, but also its design decisions are questionable. None of the many highly touted injected wrinkles - the mini-games, Euphoria mode slowdown, cash purchase system, or whip-toting sidekick - have the desired positive effects on the gameplay.

My conundrum is that despite the issues and glaring oversights, Beyond Divinity is still fun to play.

When all is said and done, every session leaves you feeling like you’ve just read the latest issue of your favorite comic book. I can think of no higher praise than that.

The retractable library research toolbar notwithstanding, there’s no single feature that makes Thrones and Patriots a must have, but if you enjoyed the original title, the precise strokes in this expansion only add to the enjoyment of an already superlative RTS experience.

For anyone new to the genre, this isn’t the best place to start due to the technical flaws and PvP griefing. Even veterans of the online role-playing genre will find the many errors impeding their fun.

The graphics are fantastic, the score is excellent and the gameplay offers a great variety of fast-paced combat and brain-teasing puzzles.

While it’s hard for UFC fans to go too far wrong at that price, Sudden Impact isn’t exactly a joy to play with its dull visuals, antiquated sound and clumsy, monotonous gameplay mechanics.

Siren has a few basic problems that keep it from being truly exceptional, but its groundbreaking mechanics and brilliant execution of fear make it something survival horror fans won’t want to miss.

It has times where it bogs down in the monotony of endless waves of enemies that do nothing but cluster on your position, but it balances itself out with a great deal of depth in what they do.

Visually striking and completely engrossing, EA's latest for boxing fans is tremendously faithful to the sport. Granted, the artificial intelligence is a little lacking in certain areas and Xbox owners deserve an online component.

Solid graphics and music, decent level design and clever use of vehicles. The Achilles' heel is clearly the squad mate artificial intelligence, which virtually ruins the whole play experience.

War Times struggles along and ultimately becomes a casualty of its own conflicts. The shallow tech tree, paucity of unit types, ineffective pathfinding and tedious gameplay make enjoying it a losing fight.

The graphics and score are outstanding, but ultimately, the gameplay falls flat with heavy-handed mechanics and tedious goals.

With a decent story, authentic backdrop, intriguing personalities and classic puzzles, there’s a lot to like here.

The graphics and music are still great, showing great polish and attention to detail, but the story and gameplay are a bit of a letdown. What is missing here is the diversity and twists and turns, as well as the mystery, complexity, and enchantment of the outstanding original.

The foul language, twisted humor, nudity, gore and violence are beyond what most gamers will appreciate, unless "Postal" is your idea of fun. When compounded by the obscure hotspots, redundant puzzles, archaic control system and strictly linear gameplay, the audience for which this offering would be a treat becomes really small.

Frequent issues with controlling your avatar coupled with broken quests keep this gem from truly shining up to its full potential. The good news is there’s nothing so wrong with it that a few patches can’t fix.

A superbly sculpted hybrid of genres, crafted in a very logical, yet organic way.

Neither the graphics, sound nor gameplay are categorically bad, but each is consistently below average.

Massive non-linear playing fields, astoundingly intelligent enemies and a gorgeous setting make Far Cry a solid hit that sets the bar higher for the games that will follow it.

The real attraction, however, is the Xbox Live component, which is so original and compelling that even staunch critics of the first title may want to give Splinter Cell another opportunity.

The way in which science fiction elements play a major part in your exploration and puzzle solving is an absolute treat.

The gameplay is pitch-perfect, and everything has a rich and polished feeling about it. The variety of the styles of play is deep and incorporates some of the best multiplayer fragfests to date.

Basically the same old product with a few new bells and whistles. Nobody is calling that a bad thing.

The offering boasts masterful artistic design and a beautiful score, but fails in the most important aspect - gameplay.

Everything that makes a game good is featured here: Worms 3D looks amazing, plays like a dream and is drenched in fun and funny.

Though the visuals may be showing their age, the gameplay in Return From Darkness is just as strong as it was in the PlayStation 2 version, if not stronger thanks to the Xbox-exclusive features.

The atmosphere is tangible and the story and action are tied together so perfectly that the game rarely lags during lengthy periods of adventure.

The best baseball game that’s hit the PC in a very long time. It’s pretty, it’s smart and it’s packing a deep pool of gameplay options that’ll keep you going well after this year’s World Series is put to rest.

If what you’re hoping for is an intense and challenging shooter that harkens back to the classics, with lots of interesting monsters and a few wrinkles added in the form of special abilities, then you’ll be largely satisfied by what you find.

Its logic flaws and thoroughly vexatious difficulty are so omnipresent that any gains made via technology are completely overshadowed. In trying to mix strategy with action, a sense of identity got lost in translation.

With a superb story, three challenging modes of gameplay, plenty of side quests and missions that can climb to almost an hour apiece, Drakengard could easily consume up to 50 hours of one’s time.

The combat system is deep, varied and insanely addictive thanks to dozens of fantastic techniques and plenty of memorable enemies. The adventure is superb and the number of collectibles and hidden items keep the gameplay fresh.

Borrows some ideas from the original game, mixes in lackluster graphics and sound, and tops it with awkward design choices.

Graphically stunning, infused with a rich storyline, and so full of subtle touches your head will spin trying to keep track of them all.

Prettier, deeper, lengthier, and more challenging than any other dungeon crawler out there, Champions of Norrath is the definitive game for hack-n-slash aficionados.

While few titles will ever again brutalize the player as "Shinobi" did, the still relatively high level of difficulty coupled with refinements and improvements to the gameplay should make Nightshade a keeper for fans of the series.

Contrary to what many hardcore gamers frequently assume, I believe there are still a lot of people who would enjoy this kind of brain-free, white-knuckle virtual leisure activity that brings back the simplicity of earlier days.

If you enjoyed the original Echelon, you will no doubt get enjoyment out of this sequel. However, there is not much here that is innovative or that really deepens the gameplay from the original. With little story, mundane missions, and significant control deficiencies, Echelon: Wind Warriors has little to attract new players.

The multiplayer cooperative mode is the real reason to own Crystal Chronicles. Solving puzzles and overcoming foes requires absolute teamwork, and this sense of camaraderie is inexplicably addictive.

If you can find ways to ignore the RTS component and the confusion brought on by the other generals, Joan of Arc is a great hack-and-slash that plays like a 3D version of a championship arcade game.

It’s a very serious niche simulation that’s got some lumps which will be unappealing to the average player. If you want to “get it,” you’ve got to be willing to pour the time into learning the nuances of the title.

Additional equipment and spells are nice, and the characters are now much more versatile, but design and pacing problems abound.

The gameplay is flawless and the presentation is both beautiful and full of character. Army of Zin is neither the most innovative title on the market nor is it the most awe-inspiring, but it accomplishes the difficult task of translating the form and spirit of a classic into a worthy modern successor.

Anybody who even kind of liked "Jagged Alliance" or its sequel should have already left by now for the store to pick up a copy.

Less is more in the case of Sonic Heroes, as convoluted exploration concepts are abandoned in favor of pure speed and exhilaration.

Diehards won’t find enough here to make it worth the overzealous retail price point because, while the single-player mode and the deleted scenes are a fun diversion, they’re not enough to warrant the investment listed on the price tag.

Blade & Sword has style. Style enough to make up for the shortcomings of completely unoriginal mechanics, style enough to compensate for the excessive difficulty and style in such quantities to make other developers turn green with envy.

For those of us with excess patience, though, the rewards could be great. Battlegrounds looks fantastic and sports a startling degree of replayable fun. Best of all, in establishing a wide beta tester program early on, Diversions Entertainment set the groundwork for a fanatically loyal player base that will be the key to success in the long run.

Without robust developer support in the way of patches to add more content, enable dedicated Internet servers and fix disabled features, there’s little hope for RC Cars in the long term.

Despite the fact that Crimson Butterfly is much longer than the original, it might have been preferable to trade the extra length for a little less backtracking, as it often slows the progress of the adventure.

While the ability to purchase new vehicles by completing challenges isn’t an original idea, it’s executed to near perfection. Admittedly, poor artificial intelligence, sometimes-awkward controls and a fairly small selection of vehicles all keep the game from rivaling titles such as Project Gotham Racing 2, but Evolution is an fine title nonetheless.

Improves on the original in almost every respect, from an enhanced presentation to superior controls and a broader set of skills. However, the fighting mechanics are still a little simple and the ability system is too restrictive, which makes the game feel rather shallow.

What gaming is all about: fun. With a constant variety of goals, the more I played, the more I enjoyed it.

X2 contains a great sandbox adventure complicated by an ignorable single-player story and fiendish menu driven control system.

The gorgeous visuals and music, great story, responsive controls, excellent level design, and - most importantly - superb implementation of action moves make this a true winner.

I prefer to think of Invisible War as a flawed diamond rather than a better-than-average lump of coal, as the sheer depth of its storyline and superb graphical quality make up for a multitude of shortcomings.

It adds a gigantic single-player campaign and a plethora of new monsters, spells, character classes and items. The expansion also significantly updates the overall graphical quality, potentially adding to the life of the franchise without getting in the way of what made the original fun.

There are some interesting ideas here and it is fun to play, but the clouds billowing over the AI, graphics, and gameplay never let the bright spots in these same areas ever fully shine.

The complete freedom of movement, absorbing storyline, gorgeous graphics, entrancing musical score, and, yes, brain-melting puzzles make this a real treat for your mind and your eye.

The developers may have been trying to recreate the success of "Devil May Cry," but instead found themselves in the realm of its disappointing sequel, as an underachieving, run-of-the-mill action title.

With great story, action, and adventure, presented with beautiful graphics and audio and an intuitive control scheme, this carefully crafted science fiction title fosters genuine caring about what goes on, making it an absolute pleasure to play.

More than just a gimmick. Sure, the brutal animations are great fun to watch, but the true satisfaction lies in getting to that point and finding a way to overcome even the largest obstacles.

It all boils down to short playtime with tons of reused content, and a shallow storyline. Whereas I usually spend upwards of 70 hours to finish a Final Fantasy, I had this one licked in under 40, with plenty of side-quests and exploration included.

Gets marks for depth and scope, but unfortunately so much of the detail goes to waste due to the frustrating interface, horrendous learning curve, and sparse gameplay options.

Mastering Counter-Strike is no simple task, as there’s a wide variety of highly detailed maps to learn. The graphics could’ve used more attention, but those looking for the ultimate in team-based gameplay need look no further.

Each aspect of Metal Arms illustrates the greatness of which the fledgling Swingin' Ape Studios is capable, but sadly, a number of faults keep the product as a whole from being outstanding.

It may be friendly to newcomers with its simple combat mechanics, but the depth and replayabilty found here is unlike anything else currently available for the PlayStation 2.

The plot is absorbing, the graphics are wonderful, the sound and music are enthralling, and the puzzles are challenging. However, interface problems, relatively brief gameplay, and the absence of the critical online component are significant deficiencies.

It’s a noble attempt at a solid strategy / action hybrid, but Defender of the Crown feels more like an amalgamation of disjointed gameplay elements than a single, coherent experience.