Sadly, match types come in just two flavors: artifact raids or kill sprees, which makes $60 seems extortionate. [Aug 2007, p.78]

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.

Newbies will find themselves abandoned and bored on am ugly, lonely level treadmill that doesn't even introduce basic gameplay concepts. [July 2006, p.88]

I love this game’s stinkin’ fast-pitch delivery. Facing a 98 mph heater has never been so intimidating (at least, in a video game). [Feb 2002, p.158]

It's not really a title to play for extended periods but instead something to dip into for five minutes at a time. [Nov 2007, p.112]

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.

Finally, a game that embraces the inherent homoeroticism of pro wrestling. [Jan 2005, p.132]

If anything can bring your romanticized WWII fantasy crashing back to reality, it's inconsistent A.I. [Aug 2003, p.119]

It's "SSX Tricky" on water. [Jan 2003, p.176]

There's entertainment to be had with Extinction, but expect a lot of hair-pulling to go along with it. [Sept 2003, p.116]

Though most of the game is well balanced, the last few missions become unfairly hard.... But a fine effort indeed. [Feb 2004, p.110]

Too bad about all that aimless wandering, which would be annoying on its own but is even more bogged down by the frequent battles and their requisite load times. [Nov 2005, p.156]

Funny writing (courtesy of an ex-"Ren & Stimpy" scribe) can't save this uninspired rehash of antiquated Crash antics with lackluster visuals. [Dec 2004, p.170]

With 2K Sports nabbing the exclusive third-party baseball-sim rights to the MLB license, it had a golden chance to nab the hardball crown from EA's NCAA-license-relegated MVP series. Instead, we get this scattershot effort. [May 2006, p.94]

AM could've been the next great PS2 racer, if only Capcom had hired a mechanic who specialized in handling. [June 2003, p.131]

With a slightly bigger budget, a lot less slowdown, and better dialogue, Report wold be a great game. As it is, it's just a good survival-horror game without the horror. [Mar 2003, p.116]

The fighters here look great in a shiny Ken doll sort of way, but the gameplay and general presentation are merely passable. [May 2003, p.134]

But mostly the gameplay comes down to trading fire with enemies who have way too much health and not ennough variety in battle tactics. [Nov. 2006, p.140]

When forced to blindly jump, die, then discover what you missed, where I come from, that’s just cheating. [Dec 2001, p.238]

Sure, the controls aren't perfect--selecting units usually boils down to an all-or-nothing strategy--but that issue aside, UAW is a triumph. [May 2008, p.85]

It's the most fun I've had flying online since "Crimson Skies" for the original Xbox. If only the single-player game flew as high.

Highly frustrating missions pepper the game, usually filled with cheap enemies who have impeccable aim and a superhuman ability to absorb multiple shotgun blasts at point-blank range. [Apr 2004, p.116]

If I only owned this game, I'd watch more television. [Mar 2006, p.102]

Problem is the game is about as friendly as a Cylon; there's no tutorial to ease you into all those moves or the different mission types, and the difficulty spikes at odd moments, making some levels painfully tedious.

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

SRS just lacks the certain something that made "Need for Speed Underground" so exciting. It's disappointing, because SRS covers all the bases except for the two most important in this genre: There's no real sense of speed, and the handling lacks weight or feel. [Oct 2004, p.98]

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]

Reducing the story to talking heads turns the once-engaging plot into a drab, formulaic mess. [Jan 2004, p.138]

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]

The worst problem is that certain jumps are damn nigh impossible - it's not even a question of skill. [Nov 2003, p.176]

Other than striking character designs by an insanely talented artist (Hyung Tae Kim) and a flashy, complex combat system, it's business as usual in Magna Carta.

In more than 20 years of playing games, I have never seen a console game as obviously unfinished and rushed to market as Enter the Matrix...This game is a complete mess, and that's the only complete thing about it. [Aug 2003, p.114]

I swear, for every 10 minutes of dungeons and monster-grabbing, I had to sit through 20 minutes of characters yammering at each other. Sure, I like the dialogue, but it was still too long to sit through. [Mar 2007, p.94]

The action on the track is mediocre, especially once you realize you'll have to wrestle with the touchy control on the same tracks in the same cars over and over. [Jan 2004, p.124]

While something is lost in the translation [from the arcade], the irreverent goofiness and addictive gameplay remain pleasantly intact. [Aug 2006, p.91]

I usually have a hard time falling asleep on long flights. But I really did conk out during one of Delta Strike's many dull, virtual-lullaby cinema sequences. [March 2004, p.115]

Geez, how many disappointing "Mana" titles will we have to suffer though before Square Enix puts this once-proud franchise out of its misery? [Sept 2007, p.100]

Prophecy is little more than an endless procession of switches. [Feb 2003, p.158]

It almost seems the developers spent too much time crafting Enclave's wicked-looking environments, then skimped on the actual game, which needs better puzzles and more compelling character development. [Sept 2002, p.152]

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

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]

Why must Neo Contra be so short? I want to see more giant plant-things with baby heads and talking dogs wearing Kaiser helmets. [Holiday 2004, p.117]

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]

This game's simply schizophrenic; it attempts to be all these things to all people, so in the end result is in dire need of polish and focus. [Oct 2008, p.88]

It's too poky and awkward to work as a new-age light-gun shooter, too shallow to work as an RPG, and too mediocre to merit attention.[Mar 2008, p.74]

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

Though the fighting's great (even when it's on the slightly confusing four-player variety), I can't help but be disappointed by the rest. [June 2004, p.108]

Online is almost dauntingly packed with options, and the roll move is still kind of broken, but it's hard to argue with the price. [Holiday 2007, p.88]

In typical Treasure fashion, the screen is almost always littered with enemies, and the challenge level is absurdly high for a beat-em-up. [Nov 2004, p.152]

OK for kids, but more sophisticated players will get bored quickly. [Jan 2002, p.229]

An addictive and charming game. It could have used a lot more modes and maps, but I enjoyed its simplicity, fast-paced action and great controls. [Dec 2001, p.250]

It's like "Morrowind," minus the best part - exploration... The gameplay simply isn't fun. [Sept 2003, p.122]

Compared to smoother, more realistic titles such as "High Heat" (and to a lesser extent, "All-Star Baseball"), this is an embarrassment. [June 2002, p.114]

Brawlers offers incredible customization, but the front end looks like, well, an NES game. [June 2008, p.87]

Taps that bizarro vein and sucks it dry, with funny (intentionally and otherwise) voice acting and quirky characters. [May 2002, p.108]

It's too simplistic. While the game gives the illusion of Splinter Cell-style freedom in how you want to take out your enemies, Batman only really ever has one course of action: knock something over, scare the bad guys into dropping their guns, then come in punching and kicking.

A horrible camera often shakes uncontrollably like a drunken Corellian, and sloppy controls tend to make you feel just as uncoordinated. [Feb 2003, p.138]

Highly frustrating missions pepper the game, usually filled with cheap enemies who have impeccable aim and a superhuman ability to absorb multiple shotgun blasts at point-blank range. [Apr 2004, p.116]

Light on story, this Onimusha saga spin-off is almost all slice and dice. Think of it as "Super Smash Bros." with Bushido instead of butt stomping - simple fun for four players, with strategy based not so much on <I>how</I> you swing your sword ("Sword Calibur" it ain't), but when. [Apr 2004, p.119]

It is fair to compare MVC2 to the less pixilated, more balanced, online-enabled, and just plain superior "Capcom vs. SNK2." Against that heavyweight, this codger has no chance. [June 2003, p.112]

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

Most gamers, however, will be immediately overwhelmed - it's just so hard to get into, and quality results demand a monumental time commitment. [Dec 2003, p.216]

Viking simply doesn't do enough to stand up to the more polished action experiences out there. [June 2008, p.86]

First, it provides an engaging story (told through beautiful cut-scenes that kept me on my toes till the very end. Second...building up each legion's stats keeps the action from feeling monotonous. [July 2003, p.112]

Kane & Lynch is a fun game to fly through in a couple days on "Aspirin" (easy) mode, but not deep or hardcore enough to hold up long term. [Holiday 2007, p.75]

Opoona's flaws are hard to ignore, but I at least had a decent time with it. [may 2008, p.78]

Sorry, but the near total lack of horror in this survival horror game bored me plumb to sleep. [July 2003, p.116]

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

This is the toughest game the series has ever offered, and the extreme challenge will annoy, frustrate, and ultimately eradicate nearly every gamer who attempts to tackle it. [June 2003, p.120]

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]

Don&#146;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]

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

What a dreadfully bland disappointment this turned out to be. [Apr 2006, p.107]

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]

I thought I&#146;d sooner see Sasquatch ride a Chimera bareback through the streets than a bland series like Mega Man X last through six installments. [Feb 2002, p.172]

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

Straightforward run-and-gun action gets the blood pumping...Until you have to stop to check the map, which is all the time. That's a problem because looking at the map doesn't suspend the action. [June 2004, p.94]

Playing Tao Feng is a lot like diarrhea; the longer it lasts, the more irritated you get. [May 2003, p.134]

Bandai gets so much right with this new Gundam role-playing game that the stuff it gets wrong really, really hurts. [Mar 2006, p.106]

If I only owned this game, I'd watch more television. [Mar 2006, p.102]

Once I got used to the orchestral score, Mad Maestro was surprisingly enjoyable, long and difficult (which isn't exactly the norm in the genre). [May 2002, p.107]

Later sorties throw so much annoying crap at you&#151;too many enemies who pop out of nowhere, too many mission objectives. [Jan 2002, p.222]

Heat's mushy [control] scheme relies too heavily on context, making your beach bunny set when you intended an unstoppable spike, and its overbearing interface banishes guesswork (and psych-out strategy) from the game. Still, the virtual volleyball action is fast-paced fun. [Sept 2003, p.112]

It's all style and relentless action so over the top it makes "Doom" look like "Mary Kate and Ashley: Girls Night Out." [Oct 2002, p.179]

Besides the poor enemy A.I., the paint-by-numbers gameplay (requiring surgically precise cursor movement for actions like jumping or climbing) makes the action feel canned. [Dec 2003, p.195]

The minigames are simply too short - newbies might find a game ending just when they've gotten the hang of it. [Jan 2006, p.125]

The game boasts some delightful hi-resolution 1080 Snowboarding on-crack graphics, and a fantastic create-a-player mode. [Mar 2002, p.139]

What a thermonuclear disappointment. To someone like me, who loved all three Fallout role-playing games on PC, this is a power fist to the face - an insult. [March 2004, p.114]

The game looks so unspectacularly similar to an N64 game at times, you&#146;ll wonder if the PS2&#146;s graphics chip went on vacation. [Oct 2001, p.148]

Though most of the game is well balanced, the last few missions become unfairly hard.... But a fine effort indeed. [Feb 2004, p.110]

It's like an old-school Sonic game minus anything that made those games good. [Jan. 2007, p.106]

Stringent pilot-training courses and competitions seem dull at first, but as you unlock cooler aircraft, the fun blossoms. [Apr 2003, p.111]

Missions degrade into mindless, clunky combat, in which imprecise fisticuffs and useless, fragile weapons abound. Don't bother. [June 2004, p.92]

Unfortunately, it feels a bit dull after performing your 50th 200-hit combo. [Nov 2005, p.146]

SRS just lacks the certain something that made "Need for Speed Underground" so exciting. It's disappointing, because SRS covers all the bases except for the two most important in this genre: There's no real sense of speed, and the handling lacks weight or feel. [Oct 2004, p.98]

You'll have to complete a few too many fetch quests, and listening to the in-game tunes is about as pleasant as Sandshrew's nails on a chalkboard. Even so, if you haven't spent quality time with Pikachu for a while, Gale is a good series re-entry point.

Once you slide past something you need, you can&#146;t back up &#150; that sucks. [Jan 2002, p.220]

The Incredibles game had some great material to work with, but the energy and humor that really made the movie great just isn't there - out-of-context voice clips and poorly connected cut-scenes certainly don't add anything. [Jan 2005, p.132]