It's amazing how well Bully nails a huge assortment of activities. Everything, from midway games to English class, is fun. [Dec. 2006, p.146]

Splinter Cell still offers the most unique multiplayer around, and Double Agent will keep me happily entertained for quite some time--probably well past Fisher's retirement party. [Dec. 2006, p.121]

DAH2 still suffers from its share of frustrating escort missions, cross-map fetch quests, and ugly graphical pop-up, but Pandemic's strides make second contact more pleasing than the first. [Dec. 2006, p.138]

We can't pretend that Justice League is anything but a mindless beat-em-up. [Dec. 2006, p.138]

Anyway, 07 plays just fine, but once again this edition leaves you wanting (and expecting) much more. [Dec. 2006, p.132]

Why my laziness? Because some of the "minigames" here are actually mind-numbing test of mental endurance, about as fun as working in an Indonesian sweatshop. [Nov. 2006, p.134]

We can't pretend that Justice League is anything but a mindless beat-em-up. [Dec. 2006, p.138]

DAH2 still suffers from its share of frustrating escort missions, cross-map fetch quests, and ugly graphical pop-up, but Pandemic's strides make second contact more pleasing than the first. [Dec. 2006, p.138]

As with the previous MK installment, Midway again augments the core fighting action with binus modes. Unfortunately, they suck. Konquest mode, a rudimentary action-RPG, and Motor Kombat, a widly unfun kart racer, both look and feel like PS1 budget titlees. [Dec. 2006, p.140]

I admit it's no blockbuster, but Summoner, like Ms. Hilton's opus, still makes for a fine guilty-pleasure rental. [Nov. 2006, p.124]

Abbyss defaults to basic roleplaying conventions too often to be unique, but it's hard to hate this well-rounded, classic RPG. [Dec. 2006, p.142]

Hardcore quirky-game fans will want to slow down for a peek at this car wreck, while everyone else is better off speeding on by. [Nov. 2006, p.125]

As with the previous MK installment, Midway again augments the core fighting action with binus modes. Unfortunately, they suck. Konquest mode, a rudimentary action-RPG, and Motor Kombat, a widly unfun kart racer, both look and feel like PS1 budget titlees. [Dec. 2006, p.140]

"GTA" cribbed from Scarface and Scarface returns the favor, except Scarface has better controls on-foot, in-car, and in-boat. [Nov. 2006, p.122]

"GTA" cribbed from Scarface and Scarface returns the favor, except Scarface has better controls on-foot, in-car, and in-boat. [Nov. 2006, p.122]

It is simply a portable piece of ugliness that lacks humility, wit, or any entertainment value whatsoever. It is singularly unpleasant in the way it handles its subject matter, and it lacks the style or panache to carry its inadequacies with any dignity.

The finicky grappling hook controls lack the intuitive ease you'd like from such an integral control element (never mind the fact that you can't hook onto buildings or trees...wha--?). Even by the game's end, I'd still stumble when trying to sling from car to passing helo.

A spectacularly unrealistic collision of "Grand Theft Auto's" swipe-anything-that-moves sensibilities and "Mercenaries'" revolutionary warfare.

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

Finally, a Japanese role-playing game for everyone who hates how talky and slow-moving the genre has become--Silmeria thrusts you into an action-packed quest laden with complex dungeons, tricky puzzles, and plenty of intense, strategic combat. [Sept. 2006, p.104]

What this amounts to is a classic example of how a simple yet typically enjoyable experience can fall apart due to poor game design. [Nov. 2006, p.132]

A game of chess could take forever, but when you pick up a piece, it doesn't take an hour to move it. But that's what Souls' slowdown-laden mess is like. Souls is one of the worst-optimized PS2-to-PSP ports I've played.

The finicky grappling hook controls lack the intuitive ease you'd like from such an integral control element (never mind the fact that you can't hook onto buildings or trees...wha--?). Even by the game's end, I'd still stumble when trying to sling from car to passing helo.

I like how it's pretty easy to complete any of the levels, but achieving a gold star on each and collecting all the various coins and cards require strategy that's just challenging enough to stimulate the noggin here and there. [Nov. 2006, p.139]

In the end, Live 07 reminds me of Shaq at the charity stripe: It throws up way too many bricks. [Dec. 2006, p.126]

The game plays substantially better than last year's 360 debut, with a greater sense of rebounds and loose balls being tipped around and more control on defense. [Nov. 2006, p.119]

It's just a shame the wonky battle system forces this game to fold. [Nov. 2006, p.132]

Okami developer Clover obviously put a lot of love into its creation and, as you travel the countryside, painting barren landscapes into bloom, that love radiates from the screen. [Sept. 2006, p.100]