A mostly average button masher that has the good luck of being associated with the hottest kids' property to come along in years.

Quaint graphics, recognizable characters, easy gameplay, and many mini-games give Barnyard some staying power with its target audience. For older gamers, the game is entirely standard and boring.

Even though fans of the series will have seen most of this before, Battle Network 5 is a very strong game in a technical sense.

You might enjoy the tough love of the strategy phase, or you might be so furious at unclear missions that the game doesn't feel worth it. The graphics are unimpressive, and the gameplay will be too simple for hard-core flight jockeys, but the good-looking replays are worth a mention.

As mentioned before, the grid-based battlefield is a big part of the problem.

A likeable platform game, but as it progresses, its lack of variety makes it dull.

The lack of multiplayer action combined with the rather unrefined combat, annoying save game functionality (or lack thereof), and frustrating jumping problems all take their toll on the overall play value.

The gameplay is easy to grasp, but while good for some short-term fun, it ultimately falls short.

Either Nintendo has decided to become the laziest publisher in the gaming industry or they have so many killer titles in the pipeline that they just couldn’t be bothered to put an ounce of effort into justifying the existence of Power Tennis. Adding sub-par Wii controls to a five-year-old GameCube game without adding anything new in terms of modes, gameplay or story is not acceptable.

Clunky controls and one-hit kills, along with a strangely absent option to either quit to the main menu during a game, or have a second player join any time are all annoying. More annoying, however, is that the game just doesn’t feel like a retro revamp of a true classic.

Had the missions were more expansive, and the multiplayer broader, this would have been a must-buy—especially on the PS3. As it is, Armored Core 4 is the best in the series, and a decent action game.

The game is that well constructed, and when it's firing on all cylinders there' nothing out there that can beat it for sheer satisfaction.

The highs of the added features are sacked by the lows in basic gameplay.

Various goodies you can unlock and a multiplayer option save the game from being a total washout, but this title is otherwise an uninspired take on a sport that ought to be played at the extreme.

A game with this much customization and apparent depth is sure to have its fans, and the extent to which you'll enjoy Custom Robo largely depends on your willingness to overlook the simplicity of the story mode and sink your teeth into the somewhat repetitive battles.

Fans of the anime will love the look, but the game just retreads the plot. Aside from the fantastic dismemberment, Afro Samurai doesn't manage to be anything loftier than essentially the same beat 'em up that we've been playing since Double Dragon. On the other hand, it is fun in short doses, looks great, and can be hilarious.

Need for Speed: Undercover is a game that both satisfies and disappoints on a regular basis. While the chases provide top-notch thrills and spills, you can’t help but feel like you’ve just done it too many times to really care anymore.

Simply an awful game and isn't deserving of your time or money.

There's something inherently insipid about a game that simulates something already simulating something else. You can't help but wonder if fans wouldn't simply rather race RC cars instead of playing this game.

The game is both visually interesting and colorful, running at a consistent 60 frames per second, and the quality of animation looks like something you'd see on a Saturday morning cartoon.

Not a terribly friendly game. It has a wicked learning curve that will cause casual gamers to contemplate walking the plank. But if you're tough and self-reliant enough -- RPG-nerd points count here -- there be treasure here.

As a single-player game, Legion Arena is entertaining in small doses, but lacks that compelling "just one more turn" quality that the best strategy games have.

New players are likely to feel totally lost in a sea of hostile troops and jittery unresponsive allies who can walk through walls but not fire through hedges. Not a game for the uninitiated.

Unexpectedly, the best mode is Wayne on Wayne, in which most of the game's rules go out the window in favor of arcade matchups.

But you know what? Big deal. We already know the Wii can do this. This console has been out long enough to warrant something that takes better advantage of its strengths. Frankly, these “Wii-makes” are really starting to wear thin.

I feel bad for Bond game developers the same way I feel bad for Quantum of Solace. Not just because it’s a mediocre shooter that offers some quick thrills and a decent multiplayer experience, but because it has to compete with so many far superior, must-own titles that have either already been released or are going to be released soon.

The gameplay is surprisingly tight.

For most players, however, sifting through Dark Motives is much like real forensic work -- arduous and repetitive.