If anything, my largest complaint about this game comes from the fact the number of wrecks onscreen sometimes means that winning a race has a s much to do with good luck as skill. [Dec 2004, p.168]

Everything, and I mean everything, from the ammo pickups littering the ground, to the lack of weapon reloading, to the super speed in which your character moves, to the silly side comments he’s always making, to the general lack of story, and even the random level themes make this feel like a freeware game I would have stayed after school to play in the computer lab.

I have no idea why this title was even made. [Apr 2006, p.118]

Handily working around some technical issues (the scheme is ingenious), the new Prince of Persia Revelations has a lot to offer fans of "Warrior Within." [Feb 2006, p.111]

While Industria’s atmosphere certainly nailed what it was going for, the monotonous gameplay and rushed story left me dissatisfied. Still, I loved the ambiance and backdrop, and I wouldn’t mind if Bleakmill took another crack at it – the rest of this world just needs a few more cogs added to its machine.

Oogie's Revenge stacks up against the original about as well as "Devil May Cry 2" or "Blues Brothers 2000." [Nov 2005, p.149]

The main single-player mode remains way too clunky for me to award this game high marks. That said, the great parts of this game are really something to experience.

Matt Hazard’s debut missed the mark with gamers, and though this entry isn’t a bull’s-eye, his aim has gotten a lot better.

Using the Dual Shock 2's pressure sensitive buttons is ingenious, and Maestro has a good deal of extras. [Apr 2002, p.77]

The difficulty wouldn't be so frustrating if you could quickly retry the mission, but the load times are unforgivably long. [Dec 2001, p.93]

I still wish this game was sexier. The play is serviceable - the control scheme grows on you - but the character models are quite shoddy. [Aug 2003, p.91]

The coolest, most bad-ass new character I've seen in a game since "Devil May Cry"'s Dante. [Oct 2002, p.85]

For kids just getting into video games, it's a great place to start. [Nov 2001, p.123]

A Sound of Thunder is chock full of some of the worst box-pushing tasks I've ever seen. Then again, it's also home to some of the worst driving controls and blandest graphics I've seen, so I guess that shouldn't shock me. [Apr 2004, p.110]

With originality and gameplay variety fueling every second of play, Rogue Ops is a mission that's worth taking. [Nov 2003, p.157]

With a history including games like Knights of the Old Republic II and Neverwinter Nights 2, the team at Obsidian Entertainment knows role-playing. Alpha Protocol isn't necessarily a counter-point to that expertise; the RPG systems under the hood are solid. I just wish that I could experience them in the context of a compelling espionage adventure, not a last-gen third-person shooter.

Once again, Codemasters has created an F1 game that's true to the studio's driving pedigree, but fails on other fronts. It looks nice and drives well, but unless you're so caught up in the F1 season that you absolutely have to sate your cravings with a video game, you may have already played this game and put it down.

It's simplistic, and unlikely to entertain for too long, but the concept is clever enough to deserve a look. [June 2007, p.119]

While Danger Zone undoubtedly sets the world ablaze, it also requires thinking along different lines. Danger Zone's more open levels and moving traffic creates situations requiring a more calculating kind of destruction.

There are plenty of better ways to do a bunch of crap with your friends that isn't ay fun and doesn't make any sense, like hiding batteries in people's shoes. [Dec 2005, p.178]

Essentially the video game equivalent of sleeping with your eyes open. [Nov 2004, p.149]

Isn't a horrible game in the end, but you shouldn't even think about playing it until you have beaten "Advance Wars 2" and "Final Fantasy Tactics Advance." [Oct 2003, p.144]

Perhaps it's due to Gear Club's mobile roots, but this title is more form than function, which does not give it a strong foundation.

If you're an FPS-loving Wii owner that doesn't care about single-player, or someone who adored the original Conduit, you may be able to squeeze some entertainment out of this game. Everyone else should pass.

This games intricacies are well worth the reward. [Feb 2006, p.111]

Sure, the gameplay is incredibly deep, but I wanted more emphasis on the military aspects of the game. [Apr 2003, p.95]

Graphically, Winter X is sufficient, but the gameplay is just pretty blah. [Mar 2002, p.79]

Certainly a respectable entry into this genre, and is funny enough to bring a few holdouts into its fold. [Feb 2004, p.101]

A good story, solid controls and graphics, and tons of interesting gadgets. [Feb 2004, p.103]

Concocting potions and humiliating dark wizards is fun for a while, but once the novelty is gone, Hogwarts loses all of its magic.

Metroid Prime: Federation Force features strong shooting mechanics, diverse missions, and a high level of challenge, but the frustrating matchmaking infrastructure and lack of checkpoints prevent it from truly achieving the greatness of its namesake.

Beware, waggle controls go from amusing (hammering with the dropship) to pesky (the shoulder-dislocating astro punch).

The rhythm-based combat and malleable difficulty set Way of the Passive Fist apart from most brawlers in an interesting way. But while it starts strong, the combat doesn’t carry it over a host of issues. Without other ways to keep players busy it isn’t worth going back to after the first unsatisfying playthrough. Way of the Passive Fist offers an interesting alternative to the mash-happy games of the genre’s past, but after the novelty wears off, it fails to connect.

Pokémon Quest delivers cute moments, but the novelty wears off fast. By the time I reached the later stages, I was disenchanted by the necessary grinding and random elements permeating nearly every aspect. I enjoy parts of Pokémon Quest, but the adventure never amounts to anything memorable.

I have a hard time putting together what exactly happened in the The Silver Case, but it’s a testament to the writing, characters, and mood that I want to figure it out. Portions are often slow, dense, and overbearing. However, the relatable character moments, intriguing short stories, and strong visual style eventually won me over, even if I had to wade through some rough edges to get to them.

Other than brief moments, no part of The Crew 2 is captivating enough, including the rubberband-based gameplay, the events themselves, and the overall setup of the open world.

Arcania isn't what anyone thought Gothic 4 would be. It's a marginally competent action/RPG with all the depth of a kiddie pool, not the huge open-world role-playing epics the series was previously known for.

Like an antithesis to Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, it proves that two great flavors don't always taste great together. [Issue#203, p.87]

With the game's core of boring combat, however, these latest tactical additions aren't enough to make the game's transformation from a lump of coal to a diamond complete. [May 2006, p.111]

The base gameplay is decent, although the inclusion of power-up attacks and platforming obstacles only serves to muddle the experience, making success feel more like a matter of blind luck than skill.

Frogwares doesn't pull any punches in its irreverent yet thoughtful portrayal of the detective, and is similarly unflinching in the intelligence and attention to detail it demands of players. The Testament joins that small, respected group of M-rated games that actually require maturity from players; recommending this case to adventure game fans is elementary.

Urban Trial Freestyle may throw in the occasional little tweak, but they aren’t enough to elevate the game past the level of a flattering wannabe. If you're into the idea of a platforming-heavy motorbike game, stick with the tried and true Trials series.

Gat Out of Hell comes up short in mission variety, but concludes in a tantalizing way: with five different endings. Could one of them point to the future of the series? Time will tell, but if this is indeed the last hurrah for this continuity of the 3rd Street Saints, it’s been a hell of a ride, Volition.

Many virtual-reality titles feel more like technical demos than fully formed experiences, and Robinson: The Journey belongs on that list – though it tries to fool you into thinking it doesn’t. A few elements add the illusion of depth, but they feel like shallow afterthoughts. This journey is just a linear tour of the world with no meaningful deviations and barely functional controls, all for the dubious benefit of seeing some cool VR dinosaurs.

An excellent flight simulator, but a poor action game. [May 2003, p.83]

Alias, in essence, boils down to an age-old sentence in the gaming review business: Fans will mostly dig it and newbies won't be terribly disappointed. [Apr 2004, p.94]

There are few games I would sooner recommend to parents for their kids, and if those parents happen to be gamers, they might very well be sneaking down after bedtime to get their own fix. [Sept 2004, p.107]

Going after Koei this aggressively certainly proves that Capcom has celestial-sized gonads. [Nov 2005, p.161]

When Wizards Unite is trying to do something new, it can be good fun. Most of the content sadly ends up feeling like a strange version of Pokémon Go, giving players flimsy reasons to catch or zap ‘em all.

The high-contrast art style lends a cool flair to characters and environments, but works against you on the gameplay front.

Unfortunately, these new features don’t overcome the horrible driving controls, laughable braking, poor draw distances, and the complementary pop up. Only die hard fans of the Dreamcast series should give this game a look.

Need for Speed: The Run is by no stretch a bad game; it just fails to capitalize on its chances. San Francisco to New York is a long haul, and it's even longer when not enough happens in between. [Dec 2011, p.112]

The racing itself is pretty good, and the rest of the game feels like a total hackjob. [Oct 2004, p.123]

Thankfully, the satisfaction you feel when the pieces start falling into place makes it worth the effort – providing you don’t expect any real action out of the gameplay.

I think it's worse than its predecessor. [Nov 2005, p.163]

I don't regret my time with Silent Hill: Downpour, but mediocrity hung over most of my playthrough like a fog. [Apr 2012, p.82]

Despite debuting as part of PlayStation Plus' Instant Game Collection, the barren lobbies and long matchmaking times tell you everything you need to know about the state of Secret Ponchos. No one wants to play a laggy, imbalanced, and punitive multiplayer-only game, even if it's free.

If you enjoy challenging games or simply enjoy getting your ass handed to you, Shaun Palmer is a dream come true. [Dec 2001, p.93]

Junction Point's obvious affection is the most redeeming element of this sequel; from the structure of puzzles to the implementation of the cooperative experience, nothing ever coalesces into consistent entertainment.

Treachery in Beatdown City didn’t work for me, but it’s a far more creative and ambitious project than many of its contemporaries. Its subject matter is timely, and I enjoyed the attempt to reinterpret some of city life’s biggest problems through the lens of old-school games like Double Dragon. The idea of RPG-style menu-selected moves in a beat-em-up is very clever, even if the implementation here didn’t hit the mark. As it is, even with a lot of creativity on display, it’s just not a city I recommend visiting.

Controlling your hero directly, action game style, is a neat gimmick even though it's in poor execution. [Aug 2006, p.88]

This game is like your favorite team going from a 5-11 season one year to a 6-10 record the next. Regardless of whatever improvements have occurred, you aren’t going anywhere with that kind of record.

The Wii version looks just like the DS version, which is to its detriment since the DS visuals don't look very good blown up on a big screen. [Apr 2009, p.82]

I might have recommended this simplistic formula for younger gamers except for the fact that encounters with Omnidroid are some of the most tedious and unforgiving bouts I've ever fought. [Jan 2005, p.118]

The Vita is a great home for many games, but this is not one of them. As a standalone product, this version of Borderlands 2 has little value, living in the shadows of its superior iterations. It gives dedicated vault hunters even more ways to spend time on Pandora – but if you love the core gameplay that much, its implementation on Vita is bound to disappoint you.

For the God of War completionist, there is a story incentive to play through Sons of Sparta. It builds on Kratos’ character well, shows a part of his life we have not had the chance to experience, and there is at least one small detail related to modern Kratos and his son that I am glad I learned. But it underwhelms on nearly every aspect of Metroid-inspired design without outright failing. Controlling Kratos, fighting, and exploring just isn’t particularly fun on a basic level. A just below perfunctory genre experience alongside characters and in a setting I admit I like spending time with.

Plagued by rampant balance issues, miserable AI, and more focus on attacking prone, defenseless opponents than I've ever seen, Maximum impact makes a lot of rookie mistakes. [Nov 2004, p.158]

Long story short, this is a flawed game through and through. Even the most devout Spyro fans should avoid it.

It's a pretty loaded disc, but how much do you want to eat at a buffet where everything tastes like crap? [Feb 2006, p.109]

What was an average nostalgic sword-slashing game on the PS2 has become a choppy, awkwardly-paced handheld adventure with a soundtrack player and a couple of new minigames tacked on to throw you off the obviously evil scent. [Apr 2006, p.133]

White Knight Chronicles was a disappointment for me, especially coming from a quality developer like Level-5. Some of the studio’s trademark customization helps to give the game some legs, as does its hefty multiplayer component. However, for interesting combat, deep characters, and an engaging fantasy, I’d look elsewhere.

Biomutant consistently shows glimmers of promise but it takes patience and a pair of rose-colored glasses to see them. I genuinely loathed my first several hours with the game, but once I made cooler weapons that made combat more tolerable or admired another postcard-worthy sight, I felt more disappointed than anything. Biomutant has all the ingredients of a unique, entertaining adventure. It just spends too much time doing everything possible to try and impress its audience instead of polishing its handful of strengths.

Nothing stands out here to make this a must-play title in any sense of the word. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying some average-quality anime-infused hack n’ slash, though.

I would easily put it above "Mace Griffin" and "Return to Castle Wolfenstein."... Most definitely one of the top FPS games on the PS2. [Nov 2003, p.140]

If nothing else, AEW: Fight Forever has potential. I’m happy to have a more arcade-style wrestling game, especially one based on a major promotion. The gameplay has a strong foundation, and when it's firing on all cylinders, the action channels the simple fun of the ‘90s and early 2000s. The rest of the package just needs to catch up. Until it does, even the most passionate AEW fans may have a hard time sticking around for this main event.

Fans will probably dig the game’s cool set pieces and the story, but the save points are placed too far apart, many puzzles require too much random experimentation, and the dialogue system seems like an afterthought. [Nov 2008, p.118]

There’s certainly a lot here to love, and a lot more that you want to love, but most of your time in Kane & Lynch is spent shaking or scratching your head. The problems are just too visible for it to be taken seriously as a gritty thriller.

The NASCAR Heat series is three years in and is just now hitting its stride. This year’s addition to the career mode is a solid foundation that pays off in the present and sets it up for the future. I don’t think the game has necessarily locked down each of its main components – gameplay, online, and career mode – but it’s making its way through the pack.

Crimsonland feels like an incomplete game. It has all the gameplay mechanics in place, but its backgrounds, character assets, music, and general presentation look and sound like they were put in for testing purposes while awaiting the real art and music to arrive. The twin-stick shooting at the core is fun, but the experience can’t help but be diminished by nearly every other aspect of the game.

Few remember the old Silpheed games, and few will remember their slightly respelled 360 sequel – but those who do will do so with fondness.

This is the first licensed game I've played that is actually shorter than its movie. [Aug 2007, p.93]

Combat is stale and repetitive outside of boss battles, and several stages are filled with copy and pasted sections and artificially lengthening collect-three-gems-to-open-door setups. [Feb 2009, p.87]

As beloved as the subgenre and the original Nexuiz mod are among a certain crowd, this Xbox Live Arcade remake is nothing more than a haphazard port of a 2005 mod for a game that came out 10 years ago – except you have to pay money for it. Those of us older folks who are nostalgic for the gameplay Nexuiz emulates likely have a PC that runs any of the dozens of excellent alternatives, and the younger console crowd has plenty of more modern shooters to choose from.

You could have a worse time than banging the boards with NBA Live, but htis offering does nothing to service fans. [Dec 2005, p.164]

If you're really in the market for a stealth shooter, there are plenty better out there. [Apr 2003, p.95]

In what seems like a profoundly misguided step, four players can't play as the Fantastic Four. [Sept 2005, p.101]

Midway tried really hard to inject humor into the characters and cutscenes, but as is often the case in games, it comes up short. If there aren't developers who can be funny, I suggest companies hire somone who can. [Aug 2003, p.98]

Alias, in essence, boils down to an age-old sentence in the gaming review business: Fans will mostly dig it and newbies won't be terribly disappointed. [Apr 2004, p.94]

The finale focuses on your legacy and what you want to leave behind with Javier, who made his share of mistakes before the apocalypse. Seeing the man he grows into is satisfying, especially knowing you had a hand in influencing his relationships and choices. However, it all leads back to Clementine in the end, making this adventure just feel like a side story in her larger arc.

Merging pinball and puzzles isn't a bad idea, but the balance between the two aspects simply feels all wrong. [July 2005, p.119]

Even though you are the coach in this game, you're still little more than a bystander. [Aug 2006, p.84]

Soured by some nagging flaws, Legacy isn't a title that will appeal to everyone. However, its willingness to try something new deserves some healthy praise. [Jan 2007, p.92]

Moments of interesting presentation appear here and there, but too many other aspects of Tiny Brains are sloppy and incomplete.

The chuckles along the way make it worth the trouble for fans, but if you don’t know Arman Tamzarian from Disco Stu, most of the game’s redeeming elements will fall on deaf, bored ears.

The overall presentation is cute, with a virtual Pac Room that you can deck out with unlockable items, and a sticker album that you fill up by completing challenges. Namco missed a critical opportunity, however, in putting all the games into a greater context.

Mario and his pals starred in some great sports titles back in the Nintendo 64 days, but gameplay like this just doesn't cut it in 2011. [March 2011, p.93]

Here's a classic case of a good game with a bad control scheme. [July 2002, p.83]

RPG fans will love the open-ended feel of the game, but more casual gamers may be put off by the lack of guidance and the game's few minor control issues. [Sept 2003, p.123]