As an action game, Lost Planet: Extreme Condition delivers in spades – even if it can be finished in under 8 hours total playtime.

Action fans owe it to themselves to play Otogi 2: Immortal Souls. Don't be fooled by its art house sensibility – this is non-stop action and it has everything you want, plus a little extra.

The interface and environment are familiar, the locations interesting, the controls easy to learn, and the challenge good.

What accounts for the less-than-perfect score is the extreme amount of tweaking it takes to get everything just the way you like it.

Manages to walk the line between hardcore RPG and straight action. It’s fun and it’s polished – definitely worth your time as well.

Basically the games are just like you remember them – in many cases, just as simple and just as difficult as you remember them – and anyone wanting to round out their video game knowledge and experience with one big package, this one is perfect.

Traveller's Tales has done a good job of fitting together multi-part, leap-frog puzzles to break up the tedium of punching LEGO men to pieces.

The music is amazing.

The tongue-in-cheek tone of the game almost seems to mock you as much as it mocks the real life despots of the Cold War. If you can shrug that off, you'll find a decent little sim.

Overall, for a game that was supposed to be more about the arcade experience of hockey it feels like a more complete solution than the “other product” and impressed me at every turn.

The game walks a very fine line in providing something that is familiar, with something that is new for those who like Nippon Ichi’s other strategy RPG effort.

Following excellent Sam Max, Strongbad and Wallace & Gromit episodic series, Telltale Games has done it once again. Tales of Monkey Island's first episode, Launch of the Screaming Narwhal, is a "yo-ho-ho and a barrel of laughs" P&C adventure game.

In the end, The Masters is, in the purest sense, a golf simulator. It does not require extensive practice, nor does it have enough to entice people who have no interest in the sport. For those that do, however, your devotion will be greatly rewarded.

An awesome game that reminds me more of an updated version of a classic than something new, but that’s exactly what I was waiting for.

This is the first time in the Sims that there’s an actual challenge gauntlet thrown down.

A great and humorous story, colourful environments, deep campaign and swappable characters make this a great game you shouldn't miss.

There are some great character designs and backgrounds (most noticeably in SFA2/SFA3). There are also some great character animations.

The game kicks butt too except for one big problem: the camera.

Tekken 6 may not be completely what I was hoping for, but it is a very solid entry to the series. Being able to fight others online is reason enough for any Tekken fan to make the purchase and newcomers will be treated by being introduced to a great game.

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

There are plenty of characters and each with their own unique storyline. Dissidia will surely last many hours before a FF fan will get bored of it. I highly suggest a purchase.

It’s not without minor flaws, but overall, it’s a really satisfying experience that broadens the horizons of console gaming.

There's a lot to see and do in Dead Rising 2, even after the credits roll. Loads of nooks and crannies to explore and strategies to develop. Money well spent!

Unlike the later games, Final Fantasy II showcases the most involved learning and experience system of the series - all weapons, shields, and spells have some associated skill level in using them.

Perfect for people that enjoy a low-impact game. It’ll score many points for being easy to get into and a leisurely way to pass the time, but people that like things to happen should steer clear.

More than just the typical tower defense game, CastleStorm packs a thunder and lighting one-two punch with a stellar single-player campaign that has plenty of strategy and old-school hack & slashing along with a solid online mode when it's time to test the tower defending mettle against human adversaries.

More, more, more. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 has more of everything from the original: more characters and costumes, more stages, more modes available already on the disc, simply more fighting possibilities than ever starring some of the most popular Marvel and Capcom characters.

Driver is a well made game and even though I sometimes got bored of doing side missions, overall it was better than I expected. It's a good addition to the series and shifting is a pretty cool feature that maybe not all people will like, but you'll just have to see for yourself.

After a slow-paced beginning, Baddest of the Bands finishes with an encore performance that rock and rolls past Episode 1 and settles right behind Episode 2.

Vastly improved is the sometimes-schizophrenic camera from Sam & Max: Culture Shock that would block the goings-on, especially cut-scene interactions. I didn’t notice one instance of that particular issue at all in Situation: Comedy.

All in all, Prototype 2 does a good job of creating an interesting combat engine, but falls short visually, in story-telling, and general mission design. Assuming that you are geared for some mindless death and dismemberment, this is a good way to spend the time until the new releases hit the open market.

Of course, broadband users get the best deal as all the modes benefit from more players. TMB was always about slightly controlled chaos, and it is hard to obtain that vibe with only one other user in the level.

SE4 biggest strength is the ability to flip a variety of options before the game even starts.

The level design makes up for much of the graphical shortcomings.

No matter how you tee it up, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07 is simply the best golfing game available today.

The Bright Side of the Moon has a stellar and hysterical script, which taken in the entirety of the season, simply cannot be topped today.

Overall, I was quite pleased with this title and you won’t go wrong picking it up. It’s not quite a slam dunk but it’s certainly no foul.

Plays a lot like a series of great chess matches with tons of new variables to learn.

While the tacked-on combat portions bring a blemish to the game’s identity, and the overall length is a bit on the short side (although there are plenty of speed runs and time trials to encourage multiple playthroughs to master each area for the best online time), Mirror’s Edge is still a breathtaking adventure that has brought a new immersive experience to players along with the thrill of the hunt(ed).

Once more, gamers won’t be able to find a more smartly and funnily crafted story along with the usual Sam & Max hijinks to enjoy.

Play for a little, get a hit of Mario nostalgia, challenge your brain, and continue with the rest of your day. Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem makes for a great gaming fix.

When you're playing Black you won't be thinking about anything but the incredible gameplay, unfortunately it will also be over before you know it.

All in all, I enjoyed Final Fantasy XIII-2 – it was a fun RPG game to play, looked spectacular and ate up a significant amount of my free time. It didn't give me everything I wanted out of the experience, but I still had fun.

A solid "racing" game with good entertainment value. It has solid pick-up and play control, wide-open levels, good graphics and multiplayer options, and the return of FMV!

It's like RPG comfort food. You've been here before, you know what to expect, so sit down – grab your stylus, and prepare for another journey.

It's an old school run-n-gun shooter that perfectly captures the flavor of the best "bad sci-fi" movies out there.

Prey has enough setpieces to make it worth checking out, even if it’s not particularly compelling overall.

Despite Gothic II’s problematic inventory system, as well as its sometimes-difficult battles, it is still a very fun RPG.

With a strong AI, a tried and true game concept, and beautiful graphics and sound, Port Royale is a great game.

The collected cutscenes are funnier 100 times over than an episode of "Friends" and on par with "Monty Python" for being off-kilter.

Outrun 2 may not be the best racer out there but the infusion of nostalgia, speed and fun make for a satisfying arcade racing experience.

While its old school side-scrolling shooting action may not appeal to younger gamers, an older GBA-playing crowd will appreciate Metal Slug Advance and its high challenge level.

If you like beat'em ups, horror themed games, and witty (though oft-repeated) one-liners, Buffy is the only stop on the Xbox express.

Heavenly Sword will run you about 6 – 7 hours but as an action game that’s about all we can really expect from a title that wants to tell a spin a narrow tale.

Would I recommend Tales of Vesperia? Sure, to a gamer that has no experience in RPGs or to try and entice an action junkie into the genre. Otherwise, hardcore RPG gamers will find it a bit too thin of an experience.

Provides a great new breath of fresh air into the game. The pets are so much fun to interact with, you may just start to ignore other areas of Sims living.

An expansion pack done right; it breathes some new life into the game with various extras and will have players heading back to the servers. It isn't flawless, but it's definitely a lot of fun and far better than "Road to Rome."

While Arctic Edge may not be the penultimate title to propel the series past its cult status, it still maintains the polished pedigree and crazy crashes that makes the series a well-respected franchise.

The game runs beautifully at about sixty frames per second with no slow down. Lots of the environments are nicely detailed and well lit.

Worth checking out for Gears of War fans.

Players looking for a game that will consume them for the next while should consider Don't Starve. The whole process of gathering supplies, and making a go of surviving in the wild while fending off starvation, madness, and predators is quite entertaining.

While it might not be a bad game, it can never be a great game due to its extremely limited appeal.

A very good game in its own right [and] the best movie-to-game conversion in recent memory.

It is still pretty stunning to me that I can lay on my couch with a wireless hand-held and play total strangers from across the globe.

Geometry Wars Galaxies is good for long and short play sessions, but it’s the latter of these that make it perfect for times when you don’t really want an extended play session.

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

DD's biggest failing is the audio. There are four different types of musical sets you can listen to while racing. They’re all lame and performed by bands that are not known very well.

For fans of fires or fans of just wasting away time staring into a dark monitor, EFR will be your "Game of the Year". For other video gamers with at least a half-mind, look elsewhere for your fire controlling needs.

Blue Dragon is a harmless, lighthearted role-playing game at its core with too many cutscenes but with some really great strategic battles.

I have mixed feeling about whether anyone should have to pay for features that should have been included in the original release and have already been included in countless patches.

Does a marvelous job of bringing the tension and suspense of being a silent device of death to the PS2.

All of the above adds up to a game that is fun, with enough depth to the action and strategy to keep Mario Strikers Charged in regular rotation, particularly when I need a game to cleanse the palette during and after the 4th Quarter.

In the age of the fantasy sports league craze, football fanatics with time to play their GBA during their daily on-the-go activities will want to get Maddened, especially with the addictive Season Mode.

I suppose the upshot of it is, is that I would recommend The Simpsons: Hit & Run, particularly to those that may have been let down by prior Simpsons games.

TellTale has been using and refining the same engine over multiple games and there are still some really awful bugs. Not game breaking by any means, but when non-interactive character models appear, stock still, in the middle of a room it breaks my focus on the story

It only falls short of the peak of excellence due to the somewhat unoriginal enemy alien design.

The major problem is Traxxpad is that it's not really sure who it's aimed at.

Considering Alien Hominid's humble beginnings as a web-based flash game, the game we get here is as good or better than most side-scrolling shoot "em ups in recent memory.

Overhaul Games didn't ruin the goodness in their effort to be loved, but they did make it harder to get to and enjoy. As a game, it's not what I would call the definitive experience, and I can't recommend people going with it when there's a better path out there.

Unfortunately we don't get any creative new monsters but, we do get a new multiplayer mode in Capture the Flag.

With plenty of characters to choose from, solid combat, and the ability to customize items without the whole process becoming overwhelming the game manages to be highly accessible to a wide variety of gamers.

Despite some schizophrenic and disagreeable at times controls, with a few new console-centric additions to the already excellent life simulation gameplay, The Sims 3 does a great job of retaining the awesome aura of the PC game while appealing to the console gaming crowd.

But for long time role-playing fans, the game is familiar enough to feel comfortable with; and there’s enough depth to the combat and twists to the story (especially with the relationships that develop over the course of the game) to keep them interested.

Gurumin is a pretty short game, and these trinkets help encourage replayability, especially at the higher difficulty levels.

A somewhat eclectic game, Big Bang Mini offers all the spectacle of fireworks with plenty of visual attraction paired with an old-school-tough level of challenge and classic arcade-style gameplay.

A great adventure with an interesting story that will keep you wondering throughout just what will happen next. If adventure games are your style, you won’t be disappointed with this one.

Prototype is about mucking around in a sandbox filled with viscera and it certainly excels at it.

Those without a network adapter are left in the dark as Project: Snowblind unfortunately contains no split screen multiplayer.

There’s almost a complete absence of soundtrack and it really works in creating a sense of dread (coupled with the sporadic nature of the thing attacks, at least in the early going).

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

If you liked the original, it’s hard to imagine why you wouldn’t like this expansion. It is the same mix of RPG action and puzzle-solving and even has a story that is more compelling than the original game.

It’s amazing how much difference a year can make and MLB 2005 is a perfect example. MLB 2005 might re-kindle your devotion to the franchise.

Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D is a step in the right direction when it comes to reaching out to the "hardcore" audience, but there are too many strikes against the title to make it one I'd recommend. Unless you like crazy.

If you weren't swayed by its predecessors, then move along, but for everyone else, this is another standout entry in a series that stubbornly yet successfully stands by its trusted traditions that makes the series a continued classic across the world.

The standards are accounted for: jumping, things to collect, different environment, secrets to find and bosses to defeat. But jumpin’ monkeys is this game hard!

You can certainly play this game offline, but you'll find that the artificial intelligence leaves a bit to be desired (as is often the case) meaning that the minions you face up against are pretty easy to defeat. The online play works well and is easy to get into with the matchmaking abilities built in.

Repetition aside, Rabbids Go Home is still a worthy title just short of becoming a Wii classic.

All the added features of the nicely-priced expansion pack provide an absolutely enjoyable and unique city-building gaming experience that will keep you entertained each and every visit you make to the sunny beaches that make up the sultry and sometimes dangerous paradise of Tropico.