The action comes in waves, giving you time to catch your breath between massacres while catching up on the foreboding story. But once in a while, there are those marathon levels where you're shooting for 10 minutes straight, and loving every nerve racking second.

The delivered promise of video games to stand alongside cinema and literature as works of art. It accomplishes this through extraordinary graphical and audio prowess, wrapped around a riveting story and conveyed by unsurpassed gameplay...It is, bar none, the finest game I've ever played.

This reinventing of the wheel, so to speak, results in a fresher, more fast paced, and most of all more rewarding experience all around. Truly, everything old is new again... Resident Evil 4 is not only the new benchmark for the franchise, but for the genre as well.

The controls are brilliant, the presentation is spot-on, and the game is without a doubt one of the most entertaining titles to be released this year.

There is a strange depth to Link, a seemingly simple, shallow hero of adventures, which all Zelda fans recognize and fall in love with. That depth has never been more physically apparent in Link, despite the cell-shaded graphics and childish look.

These are by far the best console versions of the games (and are arguably better than the PC version). People who have an XBox and haven't picked these up yet for any other platform are in for a treat.

Analog stick feels and moves much better than the N64's, so moving Link is pretty easy. Lastly, the famous "Z targeting" system has been replaced with the L shoulder button taking on the targeting duties. All in all, the control scheme is near flawless.

Marty O'Donnell has done an incredible job with the game's audio, and it may stand alongside the multiplayer component as the game's best achievement.

From its characters and epic, if somewhat predictable story, to the gameplay itself, Twilight Princess is a terrific extension to one of the most timeless and important franchises in video game history.

It is a shooter of unparalleled grandeur and scale, featuring graphics that put the PlayStation 3 launch lineup to shame.

It is quite possible to blow through the game in 30 hours, but it is equally possible to play for 400 and still not have done everything there is to do in Cyrodiil.

The most notable addition over the first outing is the aforementioned Mission Mode, though since it does not become available until completing the game once, many players are likely to throw in the towl long before even seeing this new content. Some might call it a feature, but it seems more like punishment.

Chaos Theory offers a ton of replay value with the solo mode alone, and the multiplayer games are a blast. With additional bonuses like great graphics, sound effects, voice acting, and a great soundtrack for any console, it's a must-own for any fan of stealth/action.

We've been driving computerised cars around virtual racetracks for years now, but in Burnout 3 you do it so <I>fast</I>, and the enjoyment from going so fast comes so easily, that playing another racer is going to feel like driving a bus after taking a spin in a Ferrari.

If Snake Eater were likened to an exquisite pie, then Subsistence would be that pie with ice cream, a cherry, served with a bottle of fine wine.

It has raised the bar and raised our expectations of what an action/adventure title can be. This is one instance where the inevitable copycats from other developers will not only be welcome, they are highly encouraged.

We’ve been driving computerised cars around virtual racetracks for years now, but in Burnout 3 you do it so <I>fast</I>, and the enjoyment from going so fast comes so easily, that playing another racer is going to feel like driving a bus after taking a spin in a Ferrari.

On a technical level, I believe the game may be entirely without flaw. On top of that Ubi Soft has introduced us to a whole new breed of online gaming that did not exist before Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow hit the shelves. Their ability to pull that off has solidified them as the developer of the year and has made Splinter Cell an instant, must own classic.

The retail version of UT2k4 works on both Windows and Linux, with a Mac version of the game also available. This is something that I personally wish more companies would do with their games.

It’s the kind of game that can be played indefinitely and a player’s performance will continually improve.

Okami effortlessly perfectly captures each and every facet that it sets out to accomplish, while giving the player a fantastic fairy tale experience - there simply isn’t any other way to describe it than amazing.

The controls in Soul Calibur II are nearly flawlessly executed.

There are no clumsy cameras or complex controls to encumber the gameplay here. No, Viewtiful Joe is a video game made manifest into a work of art, and it stands as a shining example of what games should aspire to be.

If you're already accustomed to suffering under "Everquest" or "Dark Age of Camelot," WoW will be your familiar stomping ground minus a heaping helping of the stupid stuff you've already grown accustomed to putting up with. If you've never played an MMO before, WoW is the least of many evils you could start with.

The greater sense of immersion provided by the crisper graphics and big improvements to pedestrian combat make this a vastly superior version of the game.

The control is tighter than ever before and the entire exercise proceeds under a fluid sheen of reciprocal interaction: Input from the gamer equals output on the screen, religiously.

The PS2 controller provides a much more intuitive fighting game experience than either the Gamecube or Xbox.

Everything, from the flawless animation and stunning visuals, to the addictive yet intuitive gameplay screams for this game to be labeled an instant classic.