The gameplay feels nearly identical to "Crash Team Racing's" (PS1), even down to the speed-boosting wumpa fruits, so if you loved it before, you'll still love it, and if not...not. [Jan 2004, p.110]

Shockingly decent. [Dec 2004, p.170]

Killzone is either A) two years ahead of its time, or B) on the wrong hardware. The PS2, bless its little heart, just cannot do consistent justice to the game's ambitious design. [Holiday 2004, p.124]

Sure, the core game gets the job done, but you might still consider waiting for a brighter spot of strategic swords-and-sorcery. [Sept 2007, p.100]

Airblade sabotages everything it gets right with gameplay problems. [Mar 2002, p.135]

Gone is the great adventure, lost to the simple need to collect stuff, and in its place is the carrot and the stick - which even the most dedicated mule will only chase so far. [May 2004, p.88]

If you have a PS2 and are interested in a solid, addictive squad shooter...get "SOCOM II." Oh, you say you really want to play "Rainbow Six 3"? Then buy an Xbox and play that version instead. [May 2004, p.94]

While you'll now find more variety in supermoves, some are still wickedly unbalanced (especially the interception Gamebreaker). [Dec. 2006, p.140]

It's hard to recommend picking up Killer7, even as a curious experiment or artistic statement, when so much of the actual gameplay screams to put it down. [Aug 2005, p.108]

The Columns formula really isn't that fun. [Mar 2002, p.146]

So it's too bad that the missions themselves suffer major malfunctions. Despite their frantic firefights, they're completely canned, with enemies--and even your allies--going through the same motions every time.

Spends too much time trying to achieve a kind of “Nightmare Before Christmas”-level of cool weirdness, rather than keeping the player playing. [Dec 2001, p.244]

I love good golf games, and this is one of the better ones I've seen of late. [Oct 2001, p.158]

Save for a few additions to WOC, like some cool hamster-ball levels, it's almost identical to its predecessors. [May 2002, p.113]

Even within this genre, we should've gotten a bullet-packed, blow-everything-to-hell experience like teh arcade classic "Smash TV." Instead, we get Nick at Night reruns of the "Golden Girls." [Feb 2003, p.144]

Dual screens don't do much for the original game, but Pressure mode makes you constantly switch focus between screens, ratcheting up the intensity and confusion. [Jan 2005, p.141]

As a gritty, militaristic first-person shooter, Delta Force features detailed environments (by PS1 standards) and plenty of cool effects to drive home the point that you're an elite shooter loaded with nifty gadgets. [Sept 2002, p.162]

If you've played one sci-fi shooter, you've played 'em all. Nothing echoes this sentiment quite like Pariah, a story-driven shooter that never really comes together as a satisfying package. [June 2005, p.104]

Derivative or not, Punisher suffers from the same crippling problem: The extreme gunplay gets old after you've capped your first 50 felons. [March 2005, p.118]

While the fantastic Worms formula stays intact here, it becomes infinitely more difficult to gauge distances, wind, and all that in 3D. For that reason alone, I can't recommend this one over its 2D predecessors. [Apr 2004, p.116]

This new installment will totally baffle fans of the series. With its gloomy postindustrial setting, moderately complex platforming bits, and surprisingly different battle system, WA4 bears little resemblance to its charming, Wild West-themed predecessors. Once you get beyond that initial shock, though, you'll actually have a decent time.

Seriously, this one might as well be called Mario Hoops 1-on-3, as your teammates don't know the first thing about moving without the ball or helping out on D. [Oct. 2006, p.116]

Gamers prone to motion sickness might upchuck from the choppy visuals and squirrely camera, which flits around with a mind of its own. [May 2002, p.107]

Marble mania ought to be the final test for any aspiring surgeon due to its requirement for a steady hand and a high level of patience. [Apr 2007, p.79]

Once you've figured out how to keep your gal alive on her own and she gains gourmet-cooking prowess, life becomes a beach. [Nov 2005, p.162]

It's spoiled by painfully awkward gameplay, lobotomized recruits (on both sides), and a million annoying ways to die. [Apr 2006, p.95]

But it can't match San Andreas' scope, and as good as the game is, I found myself treading between boredom and frustration more than I'd like.

Success is 30 percent planning, 30 percent persistance, and about 80 percent luck--making for a challenging, infuriating, but deeply rewarding experience. [May 2008, p.89]

CT3 brings all the best aspects of the first two games together and packages them with a third city that's simply loads of fun to play. [August 2002, p.132]

The biggest problem, however, is the wonky stylus control. [Nov. 2006, p.140]

Shockingly decent. [Dec 2004, p.170]

PQ is meant to put your problem-solving skills to the test, and in that respect, it delivers. [Mar 2006, p.114]

Take this as a reminder that just because you can put SimCity on the DS doesn't mean you should. [July 2007, p.93]

For a Japanese role-playing game on the decidely un-Japanese 360, this turned out to be surprisingly predictable experience. [Oct. 2006, p.109]

Even scalpers don't get full ticket price for the encore. [Sept 2007, p.96]

Fun for about an hour, and after that I doubt you'll ever pick it up again. [Apr 2002, p.146]

The character is bland, the environments are stale and the fetch missions are tedious. [Dec 2002, p.236]

This is what gaming is all about: simple controls, nonstop action, and buckets of fun. [May 2007, p.84]

Rebirth is certainly more fun than its predecessors--whether that will last for the next two games remains to be seen. [Dec. 2006, p.142]

Sure, it's not challenging in the least, but hey, killing Ewoks was never about the challenge. [Jan 2006, p.127]

But it can't match San Andreas' scope, and as good as the game is, I found myself treading between boredom and frustration more than I'd like.

What a letdown! I had high hopes for March Madness this year, but this one's all sizzle and very little steak. [Jan 2008, p.90]

Chronicles has the classic formula I’ve come to know and love. Frustratingly good difficulty, cool extras – an oldie but a goodie. [Nov 2001, p.216]

What ruined it is that the pitching and fielding are so much slower than real life. [Oct 2001, p.152]

SSX vets will feel right at home with Downhill Jam. [Jan. 2007, p.60]

It'd be easy to write this one off as child's play, but it has a hidden depth that reveals itself over time. [Jan 2008, p.80]

Too bad it doesn't quite execute in the clutch though. [May 2006, p.98]

In the attempt to be all things for all kinds of gamer, each little mode lacks polish. [Jan 2003, p.173]

Just watch out for that crazy difficulty spike that happens about halfway through each title - and don't forget the Visine. [March 2004, p.120]

While Secret Rings does a decent job at stopping the bleeding caused by the recent 360/PS3/PSP Sonics, it's not quite there yet. [Apr 2007, p.76]

A bargain-bin throwaway dressed up like a million bucks. [Apr 2006, p.93]

Shawn's right about the wonky enemy A.I., and SWAT's crude, blocky graphics feel seriously dated. Some exciting teamwork potential exists (especially in co-op missions), but sloppy execution bogs it down. [Dec 2003, p.192]

I'm all for surreal games, so Mirage gets my vote in that department. But all of that weirdness aside, the game is extremely original and provides tons of depth. And when you couple that with the Treasure name you get something you truly special and fun. [Feb 1998]

Like the previous Def jams, Icon can't decide what kind of game it wants to be. [Apr 2007, p.88]

It's your standard third-person action-adventure game, sans cool gameplay hook, distinctive protagonist, or over-the-top concept. [Sept 2004, p.102]

Get past all the computer jargon (your sniper rifle is amusingly called the "LOL" gun), and you have a pretty typical first-peson shooter. [Jan 2005, p.135]

Developer Heavy Iron has captured the show's personality perfectly. The 3D characters look exactly like their cartoon counterparts, and it's stuffed with classic Doo touches to the bursting point. [July 2002, p.120]

Shawn's right about the wonky enemy A.I., and SWAT's crude, blocky graphics feel seriously dated. Some exciting teamwork potential exists (especially in co-op missions), but sloppy execution bogs it down. [Dec 2003, p.192]

The snazzy visuals will initially draw you in, but you'll stick around for the instinctive, responsive gameplay. [Dec 2003, p.201]

Some of the new minigames are a little stale, and some concepts are recycled, but the new capsule system functions well as the necessary fresh coat of paint. [Jan 2004, p.159]

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

Deciding whether to fend off those carnivorous foes or sic 'em on your human enemies adds a teensy bit of strategy to the otherwise typical run, gun, and reload approach. [Mar 2008, p.81]

Put simply, the story's not very good, it's short, and it just has too many small flaws to match Sony's game. [Dec 2007, p.104]

While the moves dazzle (slick-looking weapon strips, lightning-fast kicks to the face, dodging--and even stopping--bullets), the game does a poor job of showing you how to link these superhuman abilities together.

Silent Line has made me a partial believer; if they'd simplified the controls some, I'd be completely sold. [Aug 2003, p.113]

With its hokey, R.L. Stein thrills, much of the game feels like survival-horror lite for the campfire storytelling set. [May 2003, p.114]

The gameplay feels nearly identical to "Crash Team Racing's" (PS1), even down to the speed-boosting wumpa fruits, so if you loved it before, you'll still love it, and if not...not. [Jan 2004, p.110]

It all makes for an action game kinda like your typical Bond girl: fun to look at but shallow. With simple mission objectives, cinch puzzles, and autoaim (that you can tweak for more skillful shots if you like), this game practically plays itself.

Put simply, the story's not very good, it's short, and it just has too many small flaws to match Sony's game. [Dec 2007, p.104]

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]

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.

The fun is over too soon.

A bland-looking, simplistic fighting game. Inuyasha's button-mash gameplay feels stiff and dry, so even Versus matches aren't likely to hold your interest for long. [May 2003, p.136]

Long-term fun is doomed to extinction. Sure, you get a lot to do, but not many ways to do it. [Apr 2003, p.132]

It fuses a boring turn-based strategy game with a lackluster one-on-one fighter...In short, two half-assed components combine to make...well, you do the math. [March 2004, p.114]

Ten years ago this balls-out approach might've been considered fresh, but today it feels like an empty stereotype of the genre's past. Some might dig its old-school vibe, but I'll take a pass. [June 2004, p.93]

With the fog finally pushed back to a manageable horizon and smooth gameplay, this is the version to get. [May 2005, p.134]

While the crisp graphics and energetic battles work well, the dungeons are a chore and the plot is you usual Mega Man X bluster - weak in a five-hour platformer, unbearable in a full-length RPG. [Nov 2004, p.138]

The camera can be absolutely maddening at times. [Jan 2004, p.138]

Combat ranges from dull...to freakishly unbalalnced.., and it all gets old very quickly. [March 2004, p.130]

XGRA isn't as impressive as "Extreme G 3" was when it first hit PS2 and Cube. The graphics look roughly the same, it plays similarly, and it has the same main drawback: not enough tracks. [Nov 2003, p.174]

While the fantastic Worms formula stays intact here, it becomes infinitely more difficult to gauge distances, wind, and all that in 3D. For that reason alone, I can't recommend this one over its 2D predecessors. [Apr 2004, p.116]

Barely recognizable as a "Sims" game, MySims also lacks the compelling variety and randomness of "Crossing". [Oct 2007, p.84]

If not for some serious balance issues (some bosses can easily kill you in two hits), stupidly out-of-place stealth levels, and finicky weapon controls (it's really hard, for some reason, to hit someone with a stick), Honor might have been more than just a solid rental. [March 2004, p.120]

While I love Whiplash's over-the-top concept and humor, its gameplay and graphics languish in a sea of averageness. [Jan 2004, p.128]

As a car-combat game, it's passable but not exceptional. As a postacopalyptic "GTA" clone, it falls well short of the mark in terms of story, mission diversity, and replay value. [Nov 2003, p.171]

Second-string sturvival horror marked by puppetlike physics and way too many exploding barrels. [May 2005, p.124]

Passes and shots occur long after you've pushed the appropriate button, which in turn severely handicaps your ability to score and shut down the opposition. [June 2004, p.96]

Like the previous Def jams, Icon can't decide what kind of game it wants to be. [Apr 2007, p.88]

I wish more of the sprawling levels encouraged that kind of teamwork instead of sending you on dull hunts for switches. [May 2005, p.133]

While a pee-wee-sized version of Madden can't hope to compete with its big brothers, I'm amazed at all it does pack in, including solid gameplay, a decent season mode, instant replays, and PS1-level graphics.

As for enemy behavior, it's so embarrassingly bad at times, it's hard not to laugh. [Jan 2004, p.122]

The combat is so-so; it's tense and action-packed, but unforgiving summoning and attack systems drain most of the fun. [June 2003, p.113]

The original was an infamous flop, but the sequel is unexpectedly well crafted, nicely executed, and fun. [Jan 2005, p.137]

While the game remains highly conventional, the developers clearly understand what makes games like this interesting and have executed on that knowledge surprisingly well.

The best has to be Ash's undead sidekick Sam (never mind Crispin and Jon D.), since he serves to break up the monotony of the combat (you use him to solve puzzles) and gives Bruce Campbell someone to play off of for one-liners.

Derivative or not, Punisher suffers from the same crippling problem: The extreme gunplay gets old after you've capped your first 50 felons. [March 2005, p.118]

You can almost feel the snap of a bone as your opponents bend your elbow 90 degrees too far -- the other way. [July 2002, p.120]