When the core gameplay is lacking, any variation on "blah" comes out as "bleh." [Jan. 2007 p.52]

The rules are poorly applied, the interface is clumsy, and the pacing is very, very slow.

There's a few clever puzzles scattered throughout the levels; unfortunately, there's also a few incredibly painful flying and driving sequences as well. [Jan 2003, p.77]

Moscow to Berlin is almost slavish in the way it sticks to the formula and gives no sign of wanting to be anything more. [Oct. 2006, p.76]

Given the charm, elegance, and imigination of designer Benoit Sokal's best-known work, "Syberia", it is a crushing disappointment that these qualities are almost entirely absent from Paradise. [Sept. 2006, p.58]

Simply isn't interesting enough to merit sticking it out that long.

The combat is too simple, the resource system is too complex, and the small flashes of brilliance get lost in the mediocrity of the rest of the design. [July 2005, p.67]

Quite possibly the most unpalatable role-playing game concocted in recent memory...A gooey mess of reflex-driven combat, muddled interface, cliched dungeon designs, and useless player decisions. [Nov 2003, p.95]

The developers have hand-placed absolutely everything, robbing the whole game of any sense of exploration or freedom. [June 2003, p.85]

Not even Hitler's plan to fight the war on two fronts was this painfully ill-advised. [July 2006, p.63]

This isn't a quick play, and games can drag out for ages, making the battles either a labor of love or just plain laborious. [May 2004, p.68]

In its present state, however, playing it is about as enjoyable as walking the plank in shark-infested waters. [Nov. 2006, p.72]

With good physics, respectable graphics, an interesting city to explore, and lots of good stuff to shoot, Starsky & Hutch is way better than it should be. [Jan 2004, p.84]

Spartan's 3D battles look great, and the freer camera control give you a new perspective on hoplite warfare. [Sept 2004, p.74]

Although the game lacks some of the amenities of the long-established "FIFA" series, it also lacks a lot of the baggage that the EA Sports monolith has accumulated over the years. [March 2005, p.86]

A very linear game. Like a puppet on a string, you are pulled along a straight path between cut scenes and have almost no control over the sequence of events. Couple this with a rather short story, and you have a release that provides an excellent entry point for those who are new to video gaming.

The graphics engine just isn't up to the task. Clipping errors abound, the animation quality is generally poor, and you'll see weird things like floating dogs or soldiers firing their machine gun from two feet away.

What makes the name so highly appropriate...is the constant assault that the game wages on your patience and sanity. [Sept 2004, p.68]

It's simple and initially somewhat fun, but after a while it grows pretty monotonous.

The X-Files repeatedly bellies up to near-greatness but always slips back to mere above-adequacy.

But this isn't so much a racing game as a slapdash splash of smeared color that never quite captures the feeling of hurtling down a track. [Jun 2006, p.92]

At least you can thank Bet on Soldier for making it easier to go back to boycotting Starforce. [Dec p.62]

You buy the potions and upgrade your skills and weapons in order to keep winning the chip wars, the Sisyphean point of which is to afford superior preparations for the next war, and so on. [Jun 2006, p.83]

The legacy at hand offers only frustration and disappointment. They made it so. [Apr 2007, p.62]

Thanks to dreary daily training and eating sequences, this might be the dullest game ever made about vicious duels to the death. Morituri te salutant, indeed. [Oct 2005, p.90]

Lacks the slightest spark of life or inspiration. It has no character, both literally and figuratively, and its action is stilted and crude. [Jan 2004, p.65]

But stripped of its hype, what's most shocking about the game is its mediocrity.

When getting yourself wet, your vehicle seems intent on steering itself, making what you are really trying to do more difficult than it should be. [Mar 2004, p.82]