Stiff controls and lengthy load times hold it back from being as good as it could have been, but it proves that there's still some life left in massacring the undead.

A good platformer buoyed by some interesting gameplay concepts and hindered by certain design flaws.

The game tries to adapt the various keypad functions, and you can use an on-screen virtual Intellivision paddle, but neither works as well as the original hardwired controllers did.

An average title, with just enough charm to make it worth recommending.

Despite issues with the feel of the ship controls and combat, there’s enough depth and gameplay modes to make it worth a look. The game looks fantastic, and with so many ships, battles, and options to play with, there’s more good than bad here.

Visually, the game has a rather muddy and faded look -- it just isn't up to snuff. Although car damage can affect driving, none of it shows up in the visuals.

If you can't go anywhere without your Chococat pencil case, go ahead and pick up Roller Rescue. We're sure you'll manage to delude yourself into thinking it's great.

Suiko IV’s stilted pace and dated RPG idiosyncrasies leave a whole lot of slack. Whether you’re willing to bend over to pick up this slack is entirely up to you.

Crippled by a lack of online play and a horrible camera system. Yet despite the problems, the core game is so good that it's still worth playing, as long as you have human opponents to compete against.

If this whole review sounds a little down on what appears to be a competent video poker game, it's because in this reviewer's opinion, World Poker Tour is missing the two key ingredients in any good poker game. Money and intimacy.

A decent party game with a great cast of cheesy giant monsters, but it's just not scaly or radioactive enough to command much respect.

A sequel isn’t supposed to be softer, poorer, slower, weaker, but that sadly sums up FIFA Street 3's questionable content.

Like so many other licensed games, seems to focus more on the presentation and style of the characters than the actual game itself.

This isn’t the first time an RPG has had trouble with the challenge of team combat in real time, and to its credit, Spectrobes comes up with an unusual way of attacking the problem.

First on the menu is Big Bumpin’, a bumper-car romp through four different game modes that totally sucks if you’re playing with yourself, but loads of fun if you’re playing with a few friends. So Big Bumpin’ is pretty much a metaphor for life in general.

NBA 08’s small improvements do not cater to the hardcore NBA fans that drop hefty amounts of cash every year for a great basketball sim. The game lacks a solid TV presentation and feels very rushed.

For a budget title, Will Rock will paralyze you with excitement and is a true test for the first-person shooter hard core. No thinking allowed.

All the timed events, amusing physics-based puzzles, likeable characters, and strange contraptions will be a treat for fans of the books and movie.

The team-building aspect and gambling mechanics are great, and give the game a bit of a role-play feel, which serves to nearly offset the horrible load times and mediocre fighting action—but not quite.

Despite lots of shooting action, the unresponsive controls and below-average mission design lead to a distinctly dull experience.

Although technically sufficient, the deliberate pacing and occasional trial-and-error nature may turn some players off.

Van Helsing really isn’t a good game. Which means, in the context of flick-based titles, it's about average. If you’re tired of the "Devil May Cry" clones, then Van Helsing is definitely not for you.

Console-style role-playing badly needs to move forward, and games like this are just keeping it stuck in the last century.

Fans of the character and the action sequences will likely find plenty to enjoy, but anyone expecting something more will be disappointed.

Sure, it's a bit disappointing to have another traditional game on such a non-traditional system, but it's still a fun experience. In trying so hard to make Snowboard Kids a true DS game, though, it feels like Atlus went too far in the other direction.

The enemies almost seem to know you’re at a disadvantage, control-wise. They’re far from the brightest opponents, often standing around seemingly bored when they have clear shots at you. This does keep things from becoming frustrating, but in this era of challenging AI in games like "FarCry" and "Gears of War," Red Steel can sometimes feel like a throwback.

Sadly, I don’t review games based on what they might eventually become. This is the game the developers put out (and already patched twice), and this is the game that was reviewed. It still feels unfinished, it has tons of technical problems, it takes forever to get into games, and given the number of high-profile titles coming out over the coming months, there just isn’t any room for eventual quality.

The action and violence are satisfying enough to make the game marginally recommendable, but only barely. Add in the complete lack of any multiplayer options, a terrible ending, and Clive Barker’s Jericho feels like a game where the good parts are overwhelmed by the shortcomings.

It’s a glorious mess of an RPG with incredible potential, but released much too soon, and therefore bound for the bargain bins.

Even as a generic 3D platformer Pac-Man World 3 fails to satisfy.

The textures are model, character models are laughable up-close, and the game has a toylike look that doesn't really pay homage to the historical backdrop.

The repetitive races keep it from a higher score. Still, the snarky attitude and sweet physics model of the go karts make for a good deal of fun.

Blazin' Trails needs more user-friendly control and a graphical overhaul--we're talking almost original PlayStation visuals here--but at the end of the day it's still a really enjoyable game.

The core idea is worth further development, but leave this import in the garage while repairs are being made.

A classic that deserves being reborn, and the remake is even bigger than the original. There are more levels, more beast forms, and a multiplayer mode for those who own a link cable.

The action and violence are satisfying enough to make the game marginally recommendable, but only barely. Add in the complete lack of any multiplayer options, a terrible ending, and Clive Barker’s Jericho feels like a game where the good parts are overwhelmed by the shortcomings.

Considering the game’s budget price tag of $20 is less than the green fees for most public golf courses, the repetitive nature of the sound and animations is hardly an issue if you don’t mind some spanking, slapping, grinding, stroking, and gyrating in your golf.

Final Fantasy II is the first to truly deliver that experience of being transported to a world filled with fluffy yellow birds and medieval flying machines.

But all of this good stuff is marred by the technical issues. This is especially true concerning the AI, which doesn’t offer up a convincing challenge.

It's sad to see the interesting features such as light versus dark and co-op play get shunted to the sidelines in favor of the same stuff we've been experiencing for years.

The game could also benefit from more dynamic camera angles and a more exciting presentation with color stat overlays, sideline close-ups, and so forth. The developers opted for a realistic, on-court feel by removing play-by-play announcers, but the crowd and music fail to pick up the slack.

Has its moments, but it doesn't offer enough reward for braving the flames.

It has an undeniable, nostalgic charm to it. While nothing here is creative or original, it’s still a mostly fun little adventure.

Those who are already into this stuff, or already have a complete understanding of the rule set will love this game. Those who are trying it out for the first time will be overwhelmed very quickly, and should definitely rent before buying.

This updated, retooled (and downloadable, $30) version of the blazing fast hovercraft battle racer sports eight new tracks, tighter controls, sharper visuals and a new training section where all of you panic-prone Cougars out there can now hone your skills and become the Mavericks of your dreams – minus the killer abs and with a bit more Star Wars than you were probably expecting.

Co-op also makes the bad camera even worse. It's better included than not, but if you want great multiplayer, play the deeper and more fulfilling X-Men Legends or one of the Baldur's Gate games.

There's no sense of continuity since you have to keep stopping and starting. And where are the puzzles or something other to do besides shooting at hard-to-see robots?

With spot-on controls, solid graphics, and a highly accessible structure, Seek and Destroy is perfect for players craving a quick action fix.

The best thing that can be said for OUaK is that there's plenty to do. The RPG and RTS games are distinctly different and each are enjoyable for several days of time you'd otherwise waste watching "Gilligan's Island" reruns or possibly eating.

Introduces far more gameplay problems than solutions.

The greatest crime depicted in the game isn't Syndrome's machinations, but the speed with which the lame design renders dull action out of such cool characters.

Some stuff in Gangland, like building up your crime family, works great. Other parts, like the pace of combat, unhelpful camera angles, and useless vehicles will make you wonder if the developers should have radically rethought all the squad-based stuff.

A fun arcade-style racing game that could have benefited from more features, like the ability to customize cars (you can only choose color and transmission type), compete in tournaments, or embark on a dynamic career mode with cash prizes instead of trophies.

Fracture is an aptly titled game, since many of its components don't fit well together. The single-player campaign seems unfinished, boss battles lack ingenuity, an awkward controlling vehicle sequence seems to have been tossed at random, and the automatic augmentation system offers few meaningful enhancements. The game's high production values aren't enough to make you want to revisit the campaign, leaving Fracture's long-term appeal in the hands of the multiplayer community.

Its poor replayability and lackluster production values ultimately make this game a curiosity rental and nothing more.

Sure, it might be tempting to focus on the game's weaknesses, such as its repetition or limited focus, but in the end it's hard to dislike such a well-made package.

Optional chapters, multiple endings, and being able to replay stages amount to a game that's certainly lengthy, but they multiply an already great repetition factor. If you're willing to sacrifice depth of gameplay for depth of story, you may find that Drakengard is a worthwhile purchase.

Even the graphics have remained relatively the same as the Dreamcast version.

None of these small gripes would kill anyone's enjoyment of the game, but given the lack of multiplayer, and the weak single-player, ModNation Racers: Road Trip is a huge missed opportunity for the casual fan, but the mod-tools are strong enough to appeal to the already converted fan of the franchise.

Many faults in control, AI, and presentation, all of which should be at a higher level considering this is the fourth game in the squad-based series.

It’s unfortunate that it didn’t try harder to give players a truly satisfying quest.

Amusing enough for an Old West-themed shooter, but the so-called new features are either gimmicks, or, as in the case of the auto-aiming, outright annoying. The game is decent for the most part, but doesn't do the great subject matter justice.

Even the bosses are cliché. They're all pattern-based, take three hits to defeat, and are unlikely to pose a challenge for anyone but the younger set who will find some of the platform action too hard.

The course selection is world-class.

If you never leave the garage, or enter a race, this game will satiate you just fine. But if you absolutely need an updated street racing game, try holding out for the latest "Midnight Club (the DUB Edition)."

If you still own an Xbox or PlayStation 2, there's absolutely no reason to purchase this game. Especially since it'll cost you $10 more and offers about 25 percent of the content.

Nothing in it really drives you to play. The RPG elements are watered down, the dungeon and monster designs are boring, and even with all the different weapons and combat options, the fighting is just too simplistic.

The real lesson here is that there's a place for a run-of-the mill shooter. Just keep those aspirations modest. Throw in teammates and base defense, and you can throw your entire project into turmoil.

What frustrated us most about Republic is that we can see a hint of greatness. We saw many ways to influence the game, but they're all reigned in by the mission design. In its current state Republic: The Revolution plays more like a failed coup.

Though you can certainly do worse than Wings of War at its budget price point, the gameplay ultimately has more holes than the Red Baron’s adversaries.

It's not deep, nor especially challenging, but if you want to take that vintage Mustang to the generic California streets and choke your enemies with exhaust, it's a fun ride.

Lacking in virtually every area. The graphics are terrible, the controls are clunky, and the gameplay is uninspired.

Though certainly not perfect, especially given the rather extreme slowdown and bland landscapes, this is a deep action game with plenty to grab you.

Odama's craziness is not for everyone. And even the people who like it won't find it to be more than a brief diversion.

Fix the navigation system, ease back on the creature auto-leveling, patch the game, and you’d be closer to something that rated three or even four stars than this unfortunate mess of a "Diablo" wannabe.

There might be a competent game hidden somewhere in Aedis Eclipse. But between the byzantine interface, frequent load times, dull battles, and boring story, why bother?

It’s safe to say that we’re all getting a little sick of mini-games on the Wii, but Mario Party 8 delivers a pretty good batch wrapped up in some interesting board designs. Perhaps they’ll work out the rest of the kinks in time for Mario Party 9.

The greatest crime depicted in the game isn't Syndrome's machinations, but the speed with which the lame design renders dull action out of such cool characters.

Metal Saga won’t go down in history as one of the greatest RPGs ever made, but it’s a decent time-waster while you wait for something like, say, Final Fantasy XII.

The game’s haphazard strokes fail to paint a complete picture, and you’ll suffer frequent pauses as you shoot and solve your way to the end.

The gameplay experience is a little too ho-hum, even with the many different mini-games. It’s a nice effort, but a fairly average experience.

Trying to take dirty pictures with a bondage queen has its place, but shouldn't improving the basic-as-tomato-soup gameplay be first on the to-do list?

Factor in the ability to play the Summer Leagues and NBDL, and the game's shortcomings seem minimal.

Combine one part action, one part tactical strategy, and one part dodgy AI, add a pinch of RPG-style customization, wrap it up in a third-person perspective, and what have you got? Cold Zero has its good moments, but they are few and far between.

Big things lie in store for the series -- but not in its first incarnation. Take this beginning episode with a grain of salt and save it for a rental.

To put it bluntly, anyone who values things like tight control and a fair challenge over button-mashing anarchy is going to have second thoughts about getting their hands dirty in Red Hot Rumble.

A gorgeous boilerplate game with little innovation and many sections of tedious play.

A decent party game with a great cast of cheesy giant monsters, but it’s just not scaly or radioactive enough to command much respect.

Tag Force had a chance to reinvent itself and blew it by not adding in elements missing from the series and making room for extras that no one wanted in the first place.

No one will mistake the visuals of Resident Evil 3 for anything other than a GameCube port of a Dreamcast port of a PlayStation game. But considering the source material is over three years old, it could've been worse.

A terrible game... It may not be the worst game of the year, but it is the most disappointing.

Heatseeker is a very fun game to play; it’s just not one that you’ll want to play for long. The simple gameplay and tight controls feel spot on but everything else built around them fails to live up.

Constant camera-fixing is still a big problem, however. Add to that the uninspired gameplay, and it's just not enough that the game looks good.

The theory of evolution may not apply to Tork as a character, but it should darn well apply to video games.

An average game that is easy enough for anyone to play, but it lacks the overall depth and variety needed to keep you coming back for more.

Larry's longevity will be directly proportionate to the amount of laughs you derive from bodily functions great and small.

Fracture is an aptly titled game, since many of its components don't fit well together. The single-player campaign seems unfinished, boss battles lack ingenuity, an awkward controlling vehicle sequence seems to have been tossed at random, and the automatic augmentation system offers few meaningful enhancements. The game's high production values aren't enough to make you want to revisit the campaign, leaving Fracture's long-term appeal in the hands of the multiplayer community.

Though the Wayne vs. Wayne mode is an interesting, if not disturbing, idea, it’s not enough to justify a purchase for most hockey fans.