True followers of the ATP will love the in-depth simulation of the pro tennis world, and any gamer who appreciates a well-designed, good-looking sports title will not be disappointed, either.

You may weary of war before you've won the relatively short campaign. And if you do slog on, you'll be "rewarded" with an even tougher difficulty setting.

Smart, different, and engaging, it gives action gamers something new to test their mettle with, both on and off-line.

All hype and scare-the-girlfriend jokes aside, Silent Hill 3 is a truly disturbing, frightening, and bloody experience (more or less in that order). This is the current high-mark of scary games, period, with production values that put most contemporary horror-flicks to shame.

The bonuses left us dissatisfied. Sure, new outfits and craft are cool, but they lose their novelty if they don't help your performance. You can earn enough points to buy a hot new ride, but the upgrade is purely cosmetic.

If you like boring, repetitive, badly done combat, then run, don't walk, to the store and pick this bomb up.

The alien infestation system is a great concept that suffers in its implementation. Conversely, the space marine controls are quite functional, but the story makes little use of the "Aliens" license. And the predator story is more of a "that would be cool" afterthought than a smart addition.

Its swing mechanism is sitting in the light rough, but veteran golf gamers will drive it out without leaving a divot. If anything, it's odd that a golf game with so much color is so not wacky. But between all the unlockable options and excellent multiplayer mode, this is one golf game that won't leave you screaming for a mulligan.

Though there are a few interface and gameplay quirks, "Shadow Magic" is immensely satisfying. Whether you're new to these games or a grizzled veteran, Age of Wonders: Shadow Magic"will keep you playing late into the night.

Gamers looking for a vast, expansive trick system like the one in the "Tony Hawk" games might find their wings clipped in Downhill Domination, but the responsive physics and no-rules mayhem work surprisingly well. It's fast -- perhaps a little too fast.

On a rudimentary gameplay level, Syberia is an average adventure game with average puzzles. But dig a little deeper and you'll find an experience that evokes a somber mood that stays with you long after you've finished playing.

The most complete and all-encompassing "Star Wars" gaming experience yet. Thanks to the nonlinear gameplay and extensive dialog, you experience everything firsthand, and the RPG battles let you direct "Star Wars"-like cinema in a way that's impossible with other genres.

In many respects, NCAA Football 2004 is deeper than its NFL counterparts. In fact, it's the best football game currently available for the GameCube. However, if you own multiple consoles, the PlayStation 2 version boasts inferior visuals but rather impressive online play, and the Xbox version has noticeably better graphics.

Combat looks patently ridiculous. How many shots from a blaster does it take to kill a fluffy space bunny, anyway?

The action comes up a little short when it comes to the visceral sense of combat. The game is devoid of blood, which can either be good or bad depending on your taste in such things. The lack of the red stuff is just one example of how the game comes across as overly sanitized and not quite as brutal as it could be.

This one has the looks, raunch, and laughs, but it also packs a solid volleyball engine. It's what "Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball" should have been.

We could go on to describe the pointless level design, sloppy controls, and graphical glitches galore, but how much more convincing do you need? Don't buy it!

Every bit as good as the original. The campaigns are wonderfully crafted. There's a good challenging story with plenty of new gameplay.

Even with its extras -- [it's] still a bit on the ditzy, simplistic side. It's appropriate really, since almost nobody wants an overly simulated volleyball title. As a raw game, it certainly plays better than the admittedly better-looking "DOA Extreme Beach Volleyball."

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.

It's a great platformer with a lot of the strong, fun play mechanics that are simply missing from a lot of the PlayStation 2's platformers these days. However, if you played the first game, Ape Escape 2 won't be a shining gem but just a fond reminder of the first time you played this series.

Improving your rider's living conditions aside, there's nothing here that hasn't been done countless times before.

A solid foot soldier, meeting gamers' expectations and occasionally rising above and beyond the call of duty. But like a new recruit, it misses the mark more than once.

If the core battle system was more robust and there was more to do than just fight and draw, Magic Pengel: The Quest for Color could have been a landmark title.

The questionable control layout makes actually enjoying the good points harder than it should be.

Tries hard to please RPG and strategy fans, but it spreads itself so thin in the process that it won't do much for either. It isn't terrible, but everything in it has been done to death.

The end result is strategy overload for the action gamer and action overload for the strategy gamer. Those in between won't be particularly impressed, either.

It's not great or inspired and almost everything in the game has been done many times before, but the action is engaging, the level design is impressive, and the weapons and aliens look good.