For what's ostensibly a collection of minigames, Feel the Magic seems amazingly cohesive.

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.

Even though gameplay is pretty much the opposite of innovation (with the exception of the multiple characters, and more chances to drive a tank compared to the PC version), the presentation is second to none. [Jan 2005, p.124]

There's nothing in particular that demands to be played or can't be found elsewhere. [Jan 2005, p.136]

Gamers weaned on faster smackdowns and who aren't turned on by the idea of a showdown between Megalon and Destoroyah should proceed with caution. [Holiday 2004, p.106]

Three times superior to its predecessor. Though still well shy of very good. [Feb 2005, p.100]

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

If you want a taste of the gritty underground fight scene depicted in the movie "Fight Club," you'd be better off paying somebody 50 bucks to beat you to a bloody pulp than wasting money on this game. It's unpolished, unfinished, and just plain bad. [Holiday 2004, p.102]

If graphics and gameplay are more important to you than story, by all means dive in. [Holiday 2004, p.134]

Even though gameplay is pretty much the opposite of innovation (with the exception of the multiple characters, and more chances to drive a tank compared to the PC version), the presentation is second to none. [Jan 2005, p.124]

The game's overall length and number of hidden surprises is downright daunting, yet the story is so paper-thin, the series still lacks the impetus necessary to motivate casual racers through nearly 50 hours of gameplay. [Holiday 2004, p.96]

The game's overall length and number of hidden surprises is downright daunting, yet the story is so paper-thin, the series still lacks the impetus necessary to motivate casual racers through nearly 50 hours of gameplay. [Holiday 2004, p.96]

If anything is a disappointment, it's the all-new multiplayer mode; the game's lock-on targeting just doesn't lend itself very well to a four-player fragfest, and the options are severely limited. So why am I still giving Echoes such a high score?...The main game is that damn good. [Holiday 2004, p.136]

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

By ironing out the wildly unfair difficulty spikes, cutting down on the dullsville between-mission backtracking, and offering kinder, more frequent mission midpoints, Jak 3 (unlike Jak II) succeeds at making you not want to snap it in half.

The streamlined motives are a tremendous improvement in alleviating tedium - so why the heck is the skill advancement so painful? [Holiday 2004, p.108]

The package feels a bit light (only six levels and two very similar modes)—a bit more like an arcade game than a console game. Still, it's an authentically new experience in a sea of holiday sequels.

From the huge gameplay twist early on, to taking down a giant walking tank, to way late in the game when you team up with certain...teammates, all the way to an end that'll leave you with the same breathless feeling you had when you first watched "The Empire Strikes Back"...moments like these turn a fun game into a monumental experience.

The streamlined motives are a tremendous improvement in alleviating tedium - so why the heck is the skill advancement so painful? [Holiday 2004, p.108]

The streamlined motives are a tremendous improvement in alleviating tedium - so why the heck is the skill advancement so painful? [Holiday 2004, p.108]

Playing solo does grow old, and a few of the minigames are more tedious than fun, but the solid gameplay will have you and some buds up till all hours of the morning to get in more more round. Good times. [Holiday 2004, p.140]

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]

If you were to lock a group of mad scientists in a room and force them to come up with a formula for a diabolically addictive platform game, chances are the result would play a lot like Up Your Arsenal. [Holiday 2004, p.123]

It's the kind of game you'd make your mom play to show her that not all videogames involve stabbing hookers. [Jan 2005, p.135]

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]

Gamers weaned on faster smackdowns and who aren't turned on by the idea of a showdown between Megalon and Destoroyah should proceed with caution. [Holiday 2004, p.106]

An RPG that deftly copies "Final Fantasy X" but is burdened with a story that plays more like a "deleted scenes" bonus DVD than anything coherent. [Holiday 2004, p.104]

Diehards may call foul, but the looser grip on reality really ups the fun quotient. [Jan 2005, p.134]