Brink has quite a few flaws, but the most frustrating one is the spawn-die-spawn-kill-die repetition in single player mode. At best it's a little banal and tedious, and at worst, it's downright rage-inducing. Your AI teammates and enemies often act strangely, exhibiting poor awareness of their surroundings, but they will unleash laser-accurate gunfire once they notice an enemy. This makes playing the game, especially at the start of the Security campaign, a real chore.

Class balance is currently way off but is slowly being put back in line - this is mostly evident on the game's two Player vs. Player servers (one of them is a race-based team server, while the other is a free-for-all between any players).

Earth Defense Force 2017 is not really a good looking game, nor is its sound anything to hold in high regard, but it gets a lot of its gameplay right, and somehow this quirky title always seems to show up at just the right time on a system to let us know that yes, loot-heavy action RPGs are still a total blast to play - even if other publishers out there haven't bothered to fulfill our wishes for more of them.

Deadly Premonition, while lacking in the aesthetic aspect, is a surprisingly entertaining game.

The Ball is good effort with some interesting ideas. Unfortunately, the good things are undermined by some questionable combat mechanics, a bothersome, half-obstructed first person point of view and a half-baked story concept.

Its elegant simplicity will keep you engaged for hours without shooting, powerups, upgrading, leveling, dialog trees or versus play. The game's artwork delights and its music transports, making for three to four hours of pure gaming bliss.

The ending to Viking is a pretty big disappointment, but at least the game is a ton of fun on the way there.

Aliens, cowboys, robots, zombies (sorta), and samurais are included and do spice up the experience, but if you really want to crank up the craziness, Bethesda, we'll need some pirates and vikings, too.

I really can’t recommend this game enough.

The graphics are about as good as we'll likely get anytime soon on the PSP, and a pretty nice set of songs and the full range of levels are here.

Rebellion had the right idea with AvP, but they just didn't fit all the pieces together properly.

Overall, I found this game to be entertaining with some issues that definitely get in the way of good game play. Hopefully, a future sequel or similar style game will improve on the issues that have been pointed out. Lostmagic has a great core to build a future game around – hopefully Taito takes the chance to do so in the future.

The Run's attempt to use a cross-country road race to break free of conventions comes packaged with a few crippling flaws, the biggest of which is simply that even with its tense moments and high-powered supercars, it's just not as exciting as it should be.

With Fire and Sword adds difficulty without an equal level of satisfaction for winning, and the inclusion of firearms makes the results on the battlefield feel much more random than we've gotten in the past games in the series. If you're looking for a new multiplayer experience unlike any you've played, this is a good place to start, but if you want a complete, exciting, and altogether more "winnable" campaign, you might be better off sticking with Warband.

In closing, I have to say that despite the beautiful graphics, it's hard to ignore the game's shallow narrative which fails to take advantage of its rich, original literary source. That said, RPG fans may overlook this marked lack of fictional creativity and the game's few monotonous aspects, to enjoy its considerable hours of solid RPG play.

While I commend the developers at Ubisoft for trying to do new and original things in this sequel - one that comes only a year after its predecessor - it seems that the Rayman Raving Rabbids idea just isn't quite good enough for a real franchise.

Overall, I'd still recommend this game, despite its higher-than-expected price point. You'll still have a good bit of fun for your gaming dollar.

Despite a few iffy choices and some frame rate issues, this new, fresh version of an FPS semi-classic breathes new life into the classic shooter genre. Even if you didn't grow up playing these games in the early-mid 90s, I think you'll still value the kind of action that Rise of the Triad provides.

Ultimately, Nier is more remarkable for the things it does wrong than for the things it does right.

I'd recommend Harmony of Despair only to the savviest of Castlevania fans, as they'll probably stick with the multi-player long enough to appreciate its moderate value and admirable, but flawed evolution of the classic formula.

There's some good stuff here if you dig in for a while, but even if you do, don't expect to be blown away.

Still, this is a damn fun title if you're interested in a deep action-RPG, especially if you expected very little after the wildly strange, often severely disappointing first game. And if you can get past the rough parts, it's exciting and addictive in all the ways you probably expect out of a good European RPG.

With a much improved frame rate and new gameplay modes, the racing and action are more interesting and fun.

Overall, Squad Command is an excellent pickup for a strategy fan. You get a nice and difficult campaign to play through with a wide variety of weapons to rain destruction upon your enemies.

Overall, Cooking Mama is an oddly entertaining game.

Interplay's Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel is an action/RPG title that seems like it's less than the sum of its parts. Not only is the action disjointed, but it's just a bit too much of a chore to bash your way through it.

In the end, though, I really can't recommend this game to anyone other than those that are already fans of the Tales games.

Overall, the actual game itself is pretty fun. The magic and tech abilities are good fun and, while the weapons don't have much variety, they are at least balanced. However, the lack of variety when it comes to game modes and maps is what makes this game a mere shadow of what it could have possibly been.

It may not be the huge, serious undertaking we’ve generally come to expect from most Square games, but Crystal Bearers is still an entertaining and worthwhile investment (it’s also one of the prettiest Wii games yet), particularly for the more casual FF fan

Overall, MLB 2K6 is a worthy replacement to the beloved MVP MLB franchise. While there are some occasional hiccups and glitches and the fielding is off, these are all issues that can be ironed out over the next year - the game is still pretty fun to play.

Is Dawnguard worth your money? Yes because it's more Skyrim, no because it's really only that: a bit more Skyrim. For twenty bucks, I was expecting more.

Honest Hearts is one of the better DLC packs Bethesda has released yet, and it comes down to the combination of an interesting landscape and original story along with unique RPG choices, then layering the signature Fallout brand (at least, since Bethesda took over) of slightly off-kilter, but still intensely entertaining FPS combat on top.

The game's biggest flaw is that the gameplay, despite the multi-character approach, feels dated.

The presentation is excellent overall, but this does not make up for what seems to be yet another rushed movie-license game. Rent it first.

So the classics have been resurrected in one nice package, and while it's not a total home run, it'll scratch that itch you might've been feeling for something - anything - like the original Tony Hawk games.

I can't say I disagree; while this game serves up some very unique and gritty visuals, the story and action just don't come together like they should.

A fun game. While it is often incredibly difficult, you’ll eventually get through the dungeons.

For every great idea, like low-penalty deaths that don’t force you to replay sections, there’s equally flawed ones, like the lush, alternate-reality cyberspace you occasionally visit for light puzzling, that would’ve best been left on the cutting room floor.

So here we go: Remember Me will either be remembered for being a flawed start of an original and probably eventually very fulfilling and fun game franchise, or forgotten for its reminder of many tired video game tropes that we hope developers can start finally retiring soon. I hope it's the former, but I fear it'll more likely be the latter.

If you enjoy wicked style and simple, yet satisfying combat, mature content that’s more than a script full of unnecessary F-bombs, and more gore than you’ll see in all five Saw films combined, then Afro deserves a spot in your game library.

Overall, MillionHeir isn't a bad game but it lacks the interest of a Phoenix Wright, the challenge of a Professor Layton and the depth of a classic PC adventure game.

Pirates of the Caribbean is a tough game; it might mislead some buyers into thinking it shares much more than a name with the Hollywood movie.

As a top-tier shooter, QoS doesn’t make the cut, especially in light of the many better games raising the bar this season.

Be warned: anyone not a hardcore Gundam fan should leave this one on the shelf.

With a completion time of under eight hours and a few half-decent extras, one has to wonder if Batman Begins was essentially targeted directly as a rental game.

Simply put, the price tag is too high for what amounts to little more than a patch for a four-year-old game.

While Impostors is a blast to play for a good several hours at least, it lacks those few rudimentary building blocks that gives PC games the types of communities that last for years. It's unfortunate, too, because this game deserves better.

If anything, Operation Anchorage is a good hint of what's to come from Bethesda in future downloadable packs.

Despite some boring missions, the customization and online fights were great fun, to say the least.

Overall, Band Hero on the DS is a step in the wrong direction for portable music games. They've tried to go big on the peripheral front, but in doing so they've excluded a huge chunk of gamers in a wide range of ages.

Secret Files: Tunguska is a strong PC adventure game that's made a very successful transition to the Wii.

XBLA and PSN are probably the right place for Matt Hazard to be, but with this entry clocking in at $15, it's hard to recommend it for all of its missed opportunities and ho-hum action. Maybe next time, Matt!

Alpha Protocol suffers from a lack of focus and its insistence on eccentricities over basic, solid action.

Overall, this game's got more than you might expect for the price, but it's still missing things that serious retro gamers on the go are looking for.

Either way, Defiance gives off a bad first impression, but it still holds up well on its own with continued play.

Ravaged is far from perfect, but it certainly has its moments, and those are easily worth the price of admission.

For the fans that AvP was very obviously made for, however, the high production values, attention to the universe’s detail and generally smooth gameplay make it a worthy addition to the franchise.

While much care was taken to create a complex story and extensive artwork to support it, repetitive combat mechanics, tedious level design and exclusionary side quests undermine story and aesthetics, resulting in an uneven RPG experience.

In the end, Painkiller HD is only a half-measure, and it doesn't do everything it could have to modernize the classic fast-paced action of the original. It's worth the twenty bucks if the overhaul you want is visual, but otherwise, it's best to pass.

In the end, though, the game fails to become a megahit because of controls that are lacking, performance snags in some areas and a story that is really not much more than standard RPG fare (albeit, in a space shooter).

SimCity is a brilliant, accessible yet very deep game - at no point do we deny this conclusion. But for now, EA's infrastructure makes it a sometimes-broken, severely disappointing example of how good intentions with regards to DRM, monetization, and anti-piracy can backfire and create problems for gamers and publishers alike.

While Roads to Victory is pretty polished, it's neither very exciting nor very original. And in this rather tired genre, originality goes a long, long way.

Even though there's almost a complete lack of strategy required to race, some wonky visuals on the console editions, and a conspicuous lack of split-screen play, I can still offer a pretty hearty recommendation for nail'd.

Alpha Protocol suffers from a lack of focus and its insistence on eccentricities over basic, solid action.

While I like the idea of online play with real voice chat (as opposed to most PC versions of the game), Tikgames' rendition of the game is just too basic and empty to be worth it to most Xbox Live players.

Combat frustrations, silly switch hunts, and a barebones multiplayer all combine to make this one somewhat disappointing to play.

The sad part is that the most exciting portion of Spider-Man 3 is still the ability to swing around the city at high speeds. And since the swinging system hasn't really changed since the last game, it's frustrating to see the game's best feature be overlooked by the developers.

This one simply has almost no replay value and its action isn't as refined as I expected it to be.

This is a mostly-linear romp that's shorter than Old World Blues, less interesting, and feels more, well, lonely than any Fallout game ever made.

With no replay value of any kind and no cooperative or multiplayer action at all, Jericho is practically begging me to tell my readers that this game is only worth a rental.

Gothic 3 feels like a missed opportunity. It's the biggest RPG tragedy I've seen in years, honestly, as this game could have been so much more enjoyable without all of these issues constantly plaguing it.

Puzzle Agent 2 is by no means perfect but it does improve on the first Puzzle Agent and demonstrates the potential of the series.

I can't say I disagree; while this game serves up some very unique and gritty visuals, the story and action just don't come together like they should.

Overall, Code Lyoko is one of the better cartoon-based games I've played lately.

King of Fighters XII is just not ambitious enough of a project. If this were a highly successful series with millions of sales, maybe SNK could get away with this middling revival of classic action.

I don't think that this DLC's partial failure is necessarily a bad sign for the third game, but it seems clear that all the new ideas and original content are going into ME3 rather than something like "Arrival".

Overall, Broken World makes for a good, fun expansion. While I feel that the new skill trees should have been added differently, I don’t see it as anything game-breaking.

This is a mostly-linear romp that's shorter than Old World Blues, less interesting, and feels more, well, lonely than any Fallout game ever made.

WireWay is a surprisingly entertaining little game. While the main Quest Mode is a bit short at about four hours, the game offers considerable replay value with its Challenge and Versus Modes.

In the end, Mario Party 8 is a fun game that I'd recommend to most Wii owners. Given that, this review was written from the perspective of having multiple people playing the game. With that out of the way, I'll just say one last time – Pick this one up, you and your friends will have a great time with it.

Rearmed 2 is far from a bad game and it can be a decent value at $15, but it never really excels past the standard set by its predecessor.

Lineage 2 is a brilliant game with a few very brutal rules that will wind up being its undoing.

Microbot is one of the most creative "space" shooters seen in a while.

This is not a game that was ever going to ingratiate itself well to Super Serious Video Game Critics, but I think that in the right frame of mind and with the right people, it can prove to be a hell of a lot of fun.

If you're looking for the video game equivalent of War and Peace, look elsewhere; if you're looking for a few hours of unapologetically over the top, gross-out-heavy escapism, Splatterhouse is just the ticket.

Everything from poorly-executed multiplayer modes that no one cares for, to the formulaic and dull shooting, to the car sequences that will get you excited for far too short of a time - Blood Stone is better than mediocre, but the only thing it really excels at is the Bond atmosphere and style. And that's simply not enough to carry a video game, especially one that its publisher left out to pasture.

Best played in short bursts. The game is nowhere near as deep as what many have grown accustomed to and is over in a few hours if you just sit down and chew through each of the cooking challenges.

The result is an uneven hodge-podge where the ninja concept isn't particularly fresh and where the good bits are undermined by the game’s undeniable issues in the areas of feedback, controls and targeting.

Overall, Wanted: Weapons of Fate won't win any GOTY awards, but it's still a major improvement for movie-licensed games and serves as an example for how to truly do a movie-game right.

Overall, Stacked is a mixed bag of experience.

Following the first game's successful expansion of the universe, TFU2's narrative direction is a Death Star-sized let down. Thankfully, its polished gameplay generally overshadows this flaw.

In the end, Elite Forces: Unit 77 is an uneven effort that takes you on a roller-coaster ride of lowered expectations, a reasonable level of fun, a bit of trouble with the clunky pathfinding, a note of admiration for the level design and finally a feeling of defeat at the seemingly built-in annoyances.

The biggest issue with Dead Island Riptide is that it's a glorified expansion pack sold at nearly full price ($40 US on PC, $50 on consoles); there's nothing wrong with a developer doing this if they're adding lots of features and are building on top of a near-universally beloved game, but the simple fact is that neither of those conditions really apply here.

I recommend this one only for fans of the movie—and only after the price is cut in half.

It feels like a budget game and it really should have been one. Unless you're just dying to play yet another shooter with the same old stuff you've seen in all the rest, then just avoid this one.

As a whole, Arkanoid is addictive and even though it's not the only retro title Taito has released lately, for my money it's the best one.

Zeno Clash II isn't amazing, but for twenty bucks, it gets the job done - if only barely.

Developers like Bethesda and Bioware seem to have found something that works with console RPG fans the best, and if Risen was an experiment to see if they can be pushed further in the direction of discovering the game all by themselves, I think we can call this one a failure.