Mini-games are a blast! I think I ended up playing them more than the actual racing.

I was hoping for a revolution, but instead, I found an excellent evolution.

At heart, Shadow of the Colossus seems to me a bit like the work of a Transcendentalist in that it begs us to examine the world the hero lives in and leaves us unsure of whether we made the correct choice in our interactions with nature.

If you’re a gamer with a very heavy interest in war games, and a ton of patience then Sniper Elite is a game worth checking out.

I suggest a purchase for anyone who has a PSP and likes Action RPGs. You do not even have to be a hardcore X-Men fan to enjoy this one.

Simply lacks any lasting appeal. While it may be tempting to say that long-time fans of the series may get a kick out of the game, if they’re purists they’ll likely have a problem with the gameplay tweaks added for this installment.

A deceptive "kiddie" game that brought back frightening memories of the mental anguish I battled after losing race after race to a 16-year old Japanese school girl while playing "Mario Kart 64."

It’s not often that well made games based on movies come along; this is one of them.

Furthermore, their solution to the lack of known teams and players was clever and, most importantly, works.

You're not going to find a better beat 'em up, action game leading up to Christmas than The Warriors. The language is a little salty, but it has so much going for it – especially the fact it doesn't descend into repetitiveness and has an interesting story to tell – that it would be shame if you missed it.

The plot is full of fantasy cliches, so you can expect your fair share of dragons and lost princesses and Black Knights.

The defense and prosecuting attorneys aren't merely suits with expensive educations, they're presented as warriors fated to opposing sides due to their professions.

The environments are massive compared to "SOCOM II."

Just doesn't live up to its pedigree which, given the cheaper prices of the older games, are by far better values for those unacquainted with the series.

March Madness 06 is no Madden and no NCAA Football, but EA is getting very close to making a very good college basketball game.

Although there are multiplayer options included, just as with Doom 3, you can tell that the focus was definitely on the single player aspect of the game. While the storyline isn't exactly gripping, the gameplay is.

Between the exploration and customization, players will have plenty to keep themselves busy for a very long time.

Almost like you're careening down the hills of San Francisco's city streets in a car with its power steering out of commission.

Partnered with the excellent look of arenas is the aura that only comes with a frenzied crowd.

In a move that will surely infuriate some, Capcom included a dancing/rhythm element to boss battles.

Resurrection of Evil isn't such a hot multiplayer game. There are a few different deathmatch modes but co-op mode has been eliminated. However, co-op still exists in the original Doom titles.

The game is gorgeous, features great depth and affords some neat strategic elements. But as time wore on I couldn’t stop myself from thinking that I’d like to be playing a game that is less boring and includes more in the department of "doing things".

This game might not be a hardcore hockey fan's portable dream game, but the less pickey gamers might want to give this game a shot.

You need to work a little more to figure out the game, but once that little epiphany happens, you’re golden.

For the deep-thinking gamer, Diplomacy fits the bill. It's definitely not without its faults, but fans of turn-based action will fully appreciate what Diplomacy has to offer.

Armchair managers will undoubtedly love the marvelous simulation mode.

Saccharine, ultra kid-friendly situations and plot lines.

The real downside, other than a relatively steep learning curve for newcomers to the genre, to Blitzkrieg 2 is the poor choice of music.

As an adventure game on-the-go for younger gamers, Trace Memory offers a solid challenge and a very good presentation and use of the touchscreen.

To push an untested franchise out the door, when the game is full of problems, during the season when we get the most games, in a year where we'll be seeing a system launch, well, that's just silly.

In this reviewers opinion it meets or exceeds Halo 2 in every category.

There are a lot of better stealth-action games out there, but die-hard stealth-action fans should give Cold War a try.

Those who haven’t played the first two games can hop right in without feeling alienated, and those who have followed the Sly series from day one can feel safe that the game’s quality hasn’t ebbed in the least over the years, while still enjoying the little in-jokes peppered throughout Sly 3.

Even though NBA Live 06 apparently uses a new rendering engine, the graphics are pretty average.

All the games suffer a similar problem when it comes to the basics of control. No steering wheel.

In short, it's a little on the boring side – it's only the aesthetics that will keep you playing.

Picking up both and playing straight through all the campaigns is what I would prescribe for RTS gamers unimpressed by the current offerings from other studios.

Sometimes the game throws a bit too many gameplay ideas at the player through its constant switching between playing as Lucas and the cops, as well as the over emphasis on action sequences, but they aren’t so awful as to ruin the game.

Even though Indigo Prophecy is grim, it’s also engrossing.

The production values are perfectly tuned to the game's style as the graphics and audio are beautifully implemented. Quite simply, I loved the game.

The single player mode is quite bland and lacks a much needed punch, while the multiplayer provides some excitement.

It's not really a better game than the original, as the controls are still a little bit wonky, but it is more creative, and you have to give props to the developers for giving us some humorous reasons to play the same (excellent) game again.

Gretzky NHL 06 showed some serious improvement graphically over last year’s version but otherwise all the same flaws remain untouched.

It's just about everything a fan could want even if it's more popcorn than a "serious" RPG.

Xbox Live gamers will enjoy the online play (if they select a character that can fire weapons- or powers-based projectiles) and it's nice to have a brawler/fighter that showcases the Marvel universe so well, but an imperfect storyline that just doesn't draw gamers into the Marvel Nemesis realm very far and a weak A.I. challenge in the single-player story mode hold the game back from reaching the heights of previous Marvel-based games.

But the same advice I offered for "Crusaders still applies: it's "a rewarding experience if you're willing to put in the time." It also doesn't hurt if you can withstand a moderate amount of frustration.

It's just about everything a fan could want even if it's more popcorn than a "serious" RPG.

Prepare to be challenged like you've never been challenged before to complete an action-adventure game. If you make it through Ninja Gaiden Black, be proud, because it definitely is one of the hardest games to complete that you'll ever play.

It won't appeal as much to fans of the Mario Golf/Outlaw Golf/Hot Shots arcade-style golf game, but if you're looking to play "real" golf on a console, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 clubs the competition off the tee.

A solid game that gets bogged down far too often to be considered great.

The control aspect takes a bit of practice and some of the longer, tougher missions take a bit of patience to replay a few times to find the best points of tactical advantage, but Battalion Wars succeeds on being both an action game and a game of strategic pondering.

Besides the lack of historical extras Tecmo hasn't even included online score tracking.

On a technical level, the control scheme is a pain in the ass!

If dating is your game and "partying" is your middle name, then dance on downtown with Nightlife, where the nighttime is the right time for loving and partying hearty all night until the sun rises in the morning.

With its extensive list of events and near unlimited replay value, Burnout Revenge still maintains the visceral carnage that fans (and angered commuters) everywhere have come to expect.

A textbook case of a good idea gone horribly wrong.

The brilliant twist of the encouragement to crash cars for gaming pleasure and reward pushes the petal to the metal and zooms Burnout Revenge past the average racing game.

On the Easy difficulty settings you might get an equivalent challenge against a patient recovering from a massive coronary or an unplugged controller.

NHL gamers will cheer loud for NHL 06, which again proves to be the most playable and engrossing NHL game around, with a very good control scheme and better A.I. than ever along with online play that brings a new level of competitive gameplay to the forefront.

It is definitely not for snobby role-playing twits. However, there is still a lot of fun to be found and this game should be given a fair shake.

NHL 06 may not be the greatest hockey game I've ever played, it's leaps and bounds above last years offering.

This is one of the best rosters in all of the KoF games, and longtime fans will probably not be disappointed.

A must-buy for both the NASCAR Nation and "casual" car-racing gamers alike.

Unlike Midway's Arcade Treasures series there's nothing in the way of background, historical or inside information on the titles.

Taken altogether, it isn't hard to recommend Pump it Up Exceed to a number of groups: those that love DDR and have played through all of those games, those that are looking for a DDR-like game with a well-made dance pad, and those who are looking for a game to use as a weight-loss tool.

Anyone on the lookout for a fast-paced, cutesy arcade baseball title which happens to feature famous Nintendo mascots need look no further.

The ability to take this many arcade-perfect ports on the go (legally) makes this a good buy.

This game does a good job in retaining its cartoony look and it does that well.

It has its shortcomings, like the enemy "swarming" and a camera that sometimes gets blocked by buildings, but there's too much to like about Ultimate Destruction – the feeling of being the Hulk, a great comic book storyline, lots of stuff to do, a deep combo system – to dwell too much on the downsides.

If you let it, Nintendogs will warm your gaming heart. Nintendo put more than enough content into Nintendogs to keep your kids and, lets face it, you engrossed for many hours.

If you let it, Nintendogs will warm your gaming heart. Nintendo put more than enough content into Nintendogs to keep your kids and, lets face it, you engrossed for many hours.

If you let it, Nintendogs will warm your gaming heart. Nintendo put more than enough content into Nintendogs to keep your kids and, lets face it, you engrossed for many hours.

Dual Strike does just about everything right – in fact, the only thing I can really complain about is that it sucked up (well, currently still sucking-up) huge blocks of my time.

After playing the game for a few 3 hour sessions, the gameplay seemed quite repetitive, and there was little challenge either mentally, strategically, or in twitch reflex.

Certainly the best EyeToy game on the PS2.

Possibly the single most important factor for a kid's game is control. The game will likely be inaccessible to kids under five unless you spend a lot of time coaching them.

There's really no way around it; while Geist offers some neat ideas, it's an entry level shooter with an okay story and few interesting gameplay elements.

This is definitely a great football game, even though it could reach a hall-of-fame level of excellence with better presentation values (particularly in the announcing booth and by possibly using the ESPN license it confiscated from 2K Sports and replicating the ESPN studio analysis that was part of ESPN 2K5).

Superior controls and artificial intellect go a long way to making this a quality simulation of NFL football on the field.

A relatively simplistic shooter.

The wacky characters, impossibly upbeat music and insanely addicting party management, will have strategy gamers obsessed long after the doldrums of the summer months have passed. Makai Kingdom isn't the best of the bunch, but it holds its own quite nicely.

The online setup is great, supporting an in-depth ranking system and easily accessible online options.

Wave after wave of deftly animated and designed enemies target your ship with a never-ending barrage of laser fire.

After learning to take Darwinia in bite-sized pieces – say 45 to 60 minutes a time – it didn’t take long for me to begin to anticipate playing it.

There's no doubt that NCAA Football 06 lives up to the pre-release hype and keeps the dynasty going by staying on top and garnering yet another title as the best college football game around.

There's no doubt that NCAA Football 06 lives up to the pre-release hype and keeps the dynasty going by staying on top and garnering yet another title as the best college football game around.

Because like all art, it's subjective – I may not know art, but I know what I like. And I don't like this. For something truly "art wothy" try "Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem."

If you had any doubts that Halo 2 is the ultimate Xbox Live title, this map pack will make you a true believer.

The DS isn’t lacking when it comes to puzzle games but if you were disappointed with the puzzling of Mr. Driller Drill Spirits or Yoshi Touch & Go, Meteos firmly supplants both as the premier puzzle game available on the DS.

Any way you slice it, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory is a poor game and you’d have to be Sam Fisher’s number one fan to grab this rendition of the franchise.

A 3D fighter for people who hate 3D fighters.

Fantastic 4 doesn’t pretend to be anything more than a straightforward beat ‘em up, action game.

As long as you can stand the loading times, I see no reason why I would not suggest picking up Midnight Club 3.

A competent, if somewhat unremarkable, beat 'em up. Fans of the comics who weren't angered by the movie will definitely find enjoyment out of a rental, but there's not much more than an a few hours of brainless fun to be had.

A trip through his cerebral mass would be an interesting journey, just to see where Schafer comes up with his characters and their quirky realms.

If you've already played the single player Conker, it's a little hard to recommend paying full price for this one.

With some great-looking explosions, a comfortable control scheme, good action and mission variety and structure, and, of course, genuine fun and humor, Destroy All Humans! is a highly recommended summer title.

There are just simply too many things done completely wrong with this game. They need to take a step back and remember how the true Arc the Lad games were like.