Combat is sloppy, with poor hit detection and enemies that score cheap shots; all of the fun special moves have to be unlocked, which requires meeting unreasonably difficult time and health goals; and most of the levels devolve into tiresome thug/robot hunts.

Don’t get me wrong, I love weird games as much as the next guy, but SP never moves beyond what feels like an elastic 3D engine tech demo. [Sept 2001, p.144]

Played it, beat it, forgot it... Oh, and it has the worst unlockable secret ever - an art gallery of the load screens...that's right, the ones burned into your memory during the long load times. Gee, thanks. [Oct 2003, p.139]

Pretty levels and power chords can't hide Dawn of Fate's real weakness: crappy gameplay. [Nov 2002, p.304]

Too bad the actual b-balling action has been done before and better. [July 2006, p.92]

The repetitive challenges are uncreative, and the game's choppy graphics and collision-detection isues make the whole experience head-splitting. [Aug 2003, p.116]

Something is wrong with a football title when you spend more time laughing at the instant replays than actually playing the game. [Oct 2001, p.154]

Perhaps I wasn't clear enough the first time: THIS GAME NEEDS VOICE CHAT. [May 2005, p.135]

This Frankenstein seems to have been assembled from the Pariah spare-parts bin. [May 2006, p.104]

Control is stiff and floaty, while boss battles often require stubborn persistence instead of strategy. [July 2004, p.95]

What we have here is a title that tries hard to impress with its flash, yet stumbles over fundamentally busted gameplay. [June 2005, p.99]

Ostensibly a real-time strategy title, Future Tactics is really a glorified game of hide-and-seek: You either fall into your enemy's sights or manage to luck out for another turn. [July 2004, p.94]

The whole package amounts to a single "Vice City" car mission in which you tail jalopies along rigidly scripted trails, but without the room for improvisation you'd find in "GTA." [Nov 2003, p.173]

The controls are great once you get them customized properly*fire buttons on L1 and R1), with nimble movement and crazy bursts of speed seldom seen outside of anime, but this dexterity is wasted on short missions, bare-bones multiplayer, and the same ol' gameplay AC has been recycling for years. [Apr 2007, p.85]

The whole package amounts to a single "Vice City" car mission in which you tail jalopies along rigidly scripted trails, but without the room for improvisation you'd find in "GTA." [Nov 2003, p.173]

From the annoying time management of the schedule-based career mode to the ho-hum training minigames, Smash Court feels like a less entertaining "Virtua Tennis" knock-off. [Aug 2007, p.84]

The controls are great once you get them customized properly*fire buttons on L1 and R1), with nimble movement and crazy bursts of speed seldom seen outside of anime, but this dexterity is wasted on short missions, bare-bones multiplayer, and the same ol' gameplay AC has been recycling for years. [Apr 2007, p.85]

Ostensibly a real-time strategy title, Future Tactics is really a glorified game of hide-and-seek: You either fall into your enemy's sights or manage to luck out for another turn. [July 2004, p.94]

Control is stiff and floaty, while boss battles often require stubborn persistence instead of strategy. [July 2004, p.95]

The action isn't bad - just appallingly generic. [Jan 2004, p.110]

The edgy cartoon trappings kept me interested in this game far longer than its actual gameplay. Which is to say, about an hour - or maybe three, if you count the two times I had to restart because I was still figuring out the Story mode's rules that don't let you retry events.

An epic adventure is hiding in here somewhere, but AI3 doesn't bother getting around to it till it's done boring you. [June 2007, p.91]

In other words, it's prescribed, with reservations, for patient <i>The Longest Journey</i> zealots only. [Jun 2006, p.115]

Where Ape Escape Academy should feel like a festive minigame extravaganza, it comes off as more of a collection of half-assed prototypes due to the overly complex challenges, unresponsive controls, and complete lack of coherency. [Feb 2006, p.111]

While intriguing, the game is never captivating. [June 2007, p.94]

Played it, beat it, forgot it... Oh, and it has the worst unlockable secret ever - an art gallery of the load screens...that's right, the ones burned into your memory during the long load times. Gee, thanks. [Oct 2003, p.139]

The game is stupidly, punishingly difficult. And its save "system," pardon my Latin, blows syphilitic goats. [Jan 2004, p.108]

Too bad the actual b-balling action has been done before and better. [July 2006, p.92]

Ostensibly a real-time strategy title, Future Tactics is really a glorified game of hide-and-seek: You either fall into your enemy's sights or manage to luck out for another turn. [July 2004, p.94]

Many of the characters that are included in this game are awkward to control or just plain boring. The gameplay itslef is fairly bare bones. [Holiday 2004, p.115]

And like "Dynasty Warriors 4: Empires," it mistakes drastically overcomplicated tactical menus for strategic depth...but underneath, it's just another tepid hack-n-slash tour of ancient China. Wise man say: Learn some new tricks.

I dare people to enjoy NBA Live. [Jan 2002, p.216]

It&#146;s a solid game from a technical standpoint, but extraordinarily bland from a gameplay perspective. [Jan 2002, p.208]

The action isn't bad - just appallingly generic. [Jan 2004, p.110]

Even with my "I dig all things Star Wars" glasses on, I still realize this is an average-at-best game. [Feb. 2007, p.99]

What we have here is a title that tries hard to impress with its flash, yet stumbles over fundamentally busted gameplay. [June 2005, p.99]

The action isn't bad - just appallingly generic. [Jan 2004, p.110]

What could have been an awesome Predator game is actually one ugly motherf***er. [July 2005, p.111]

What could have been an awesome Predator game is actually one ugly motherf***er. [July 2005, p.111]

You can button mash your way to victory, trust me. Even the hardest of hardcore UFC fans should pass on Sudden Impact. [Bryan; July 2004, p.98]

With the bland levels, generic PS1-era platform gameplay, and cheap enemies, you shouldn't bother. [Sept 2005, p.116]

The game is such a generic experience, I wouldn't be surprised if it came in a plain yellow box labelled "Video War Game." [June 2005, p.106]

The game is stupidly, punishingly difficult. And its save "system," pardon my Latin, blows syphilitic goats. [Jan 2004, p.108]

Every good idea here is brought down by bad basic design, including a shoddy third-person camera, a too-slow first-person mode, and bizarre forced switching between the two. [Sept 2008, p.82]

The new "Incredibles"-esque visuals and accessible dribbling mechanics are welcome, but this arcadey pitch still needs grooming. [Mar 2008, p.75]

Why would you bother with its blundering ways with "Madden" and "ESPN" around? [Nov 2003, p.184]

If Superman spent more time flying around the city and zero time fighting repetitive enemies, his game would be way better. [Jan. 2007, p.102]

My biggest problems, though, are with the unevenness of the penalties called and shots that go in.

When a racing game's gimmick relies on un-seat-belted drivers forcibly ejected through windshields during crashes, you know you're in trouble. [Aug 2005, p.110]

The gameplay is the equivalent of chewing a piece of gum all afternoon - inoffensive, but you just want to spit it out after a while. [Sept 2004, p.99]

The manual flight controls are overly sensitive and take serious getting used to, forcing you to rely on autopilot. [Aug 2006, p.92]

Shooting centerfolds and putting together a magazine is halfway interesting, but the gameplay is nothing more than a third-rate "Sims" clone. [April 2005, p.114]

Remind me - what exactly is it about frantic, feverish, and somewhat random button-pressing that's...fun? 'Cause these minigames just aren't. [Oct 2004, p.114]

The gameplay is the equivalent of chewing a piece of gum all afternoon - inoffensive, but you just want to spit it out after a while. [Sept 2004, p.99]

If you need a simple gunplay fix this could maybe see you through a weekend... [July 2006, p.92]

The new "Incredibles"-esque visuals and accessible dribbling mechanics are welcome, but this arcadey pitch still needs grooming. [Mar 2008, p.75]

If you've already hacked through any of the "Champions of Norrath" or "Baldur's Gate" PS2 games, then you'll find little here to hold your interest. [Jan. 2007, p.80]

Suffers from a steep difficulty curve. Blame it on the excessive enemy quotient, the steep cost of healing, and the unwieldy inventory control. [Feb 2002, p.148]

It's a decent enough action-platforming romp, sure, but it's clearly not the product of the real Wario crew. [May 2007, p.87]

This game can't even show a bunt without a glitchy flaw or two. [May 2002, p.114]

Even crash-test dummies would yawn at this wreckage. [June 2004, p.96]

Ultimately, the game simply isn't that engaging: The unique FFVII setting feels totally wasted here, as you're often running through boring corridors looking for keycards. [Sept. 2006, p.103]

Screw fighting, I surrender--anything to keep me from wading through this awkward war game. [May 2007, p.81]

With all these hiccups, I'm shocked this war lasted one year, let alone 100. [Dec 2007, p.109]

With all these hiccups, I'm shocked this war lasted one year, let alone 100. [Dec 2007, p.109]

The killer visuals just can't disguise the repetitive levels and frustrating trial-and-error missions. [May 2004, p.108]

Gameplaywise, this is a disaster. [Jan 2004, p.154]

Unfathomably derivative. [Aug 2006, p.90]

Shooting centerfolds and putting together a magazine is halfway interesting, but the gameplay is nothing more than a third-rate "Sims" clone. [April 2005, p.114]

Apparently, someone out there was itching for a game that combines the witless banality of "Jake and the Fat Man" with the absurd chase scenarios of "CHiPS." [Apr 2006, p.106]

When a racing game's gimmick relies on un-seat-belted drivers forcibly ejected through windshields during crashes, you know you're in trouble. [Aug 2005, p.110]

With its bleak environments, surreal plot and button mashin' gameplay, Eve of Extinction is one big mess. [May 2002, p.106]

The boring, repetitive, annoying missions will only frustrate you. If you must drive a Mini, buy the much better (and much cheaper) Italian Job on PS1. [Sept 2003, p.121]

The game where yelling at the television is actually productive. [Jan 2004, p.189]

If you need a simple gunplay fix this could maybe see you through a weekend... [July 2006, p.92]

Without the strategy element to back it up, combat (by which I mean tapping the same button over and over) gets repetitive quickly. [August 2002, p.124]

When its fundamentals are botched this badly, not even Dragon Song's semidecent story can save it. [Nov 2005, p.162]

After Burner sports merely decent graphics while managing to suck all the fun out of a once-great franchise. [Apr 2007, p.92]

The moronic A.I. and repetitive missions will bore you, and the irritatingly humongous levels just prolong the torture. [Aug 2003, p.123]

A tough but unrewarding arcade-action game that's fun to look at and worth checking out..for about 10 minutes. [Nov 2004, p.144]

My Street challenges me to think of a single type of gamer who would actually enjoy playing it. [Apr 2003, p.116]

The restricted movement is tough to stomach. [Dec 2001, p.264]

Crown is entertaining only if your other option is taking an algebra test... You know, maybe I'll grab some pals and play "Risk" instead. [Nov 2003, p.175]

Any aspect of the game that apires to distinction is negated by mediocrity. [May 2003, p.126]

Crown is entertaining only if your other option is taking an algebra test... You know, maybe I'll grab some pals and play "Risk" instead. [Nov 2003, p.175]

A bland dish indeed, whipped up by chefs who were asleep, or perhaps dead, when lessons on taste and flavor were being taught. [Feb 2003, p.154]

What they've done is mash together a platform/coin-collecting game with a plodding kart-combat racer, then grafted on some escaped-from-a-cell-phone minigames. It's a Frankensteinian mess.

An overhead shooter mash-up of "Dead to Rights" and High Voltage's own "Hunter: The Reckoning", Fiddy's PSP game fails in the same way his songs succeed: by taking one element and repeating it over and over. [Oct. 2006, p.116]

It's just mediocre all around. [Jan. 2007, p.106]

Samurai Warriors 2 offers nothing new over any other single-button-mashing sequel. Pass. [Oct. 2006, p.110]

It's not bad, but it could have been much more. [Dec 2001, p.264]

The gameplay feels very unfinished. [Oct 2001, p.158]

The game deteriorates into a sloppy mess of nonsensical objectives, oh-so-awkward moments, and guards as brainy as microbes. [Oct 2004, p.110]

Mediocre at best. [June 2002, p.118]

"Need for Speed Underground 2" did two years ago everything this game does, but with much more style and variety. [Nov. 2006, p.124]

This is a well-put-together mini-game masquerading as sports entertainment. [Dec 2002, p.250]

Samurai Warriors 2 offers nothing new over any other single-button-mashing sequel. Pass. [Oct. 2006, p.110]

When it comes to graphics, it still almost looks like an N64 game&#133;It&#146;s worth renting QB Club 2002 just to play these mini-games. [Mar 2002, p.141]