Krome has done a fine job of translating this fantasy into the video game sphere. Legend of the Guardians sticks to a couple of core experiences and executes them well. You could do a lot worse than flying the skies protected by these stalwart owl defenders.

Strange missteps abound in Heroes Over Europe, but glimmers of fun WWII arcade flight shooting shine through from time to time. [Oct 2009, p.90]

The action is satisfactory, and the multiplayer options are robust. [Nov 2005, p.148]

This expansion is nothing more than the quintessential extension of the base game. [Oct. 2006, p.106]

Almost every texture in the game is soaked in bright neon colors to deliver a stylistic sci-fi setting. Unfortunately, where Alter Echo excels in graphics and gameplay, it comes up short in plot and personality. [Sept 2003, p.107]

There are way too many technical problems to list, but it makes up for them with a cool theme, fun environmental interactions, a decent story, and gameplay that's, well, fun. [Apr 2004, p.106]

Unlike a lot of titles geared toward the younger set, this one is actually fun and well designed, with great graphics and good sound. [Aug 2003, p.93]

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

The good news is that the game, as dull as it gets, doesn't last for more than five hours. It's quick and dirty. [Apr 2009, p.77]

Without getting too fuddy duddy, the low-stress charm of building your skyscraper is hard to really knock, expecially for fans of casual simulations. [Jun 2006, p.119]

Long story short, this is a flawed game through and through. Even the most devout Spyro fans should avoid it. [Jan 2009, p.69]

Basically, play it for the multiplayer, or don’t play it at all. [Dec 2008, p.110]

While WRC 5 offers a decent experience, it lacks bite or any distinguishing characteristics.

Character progression is interesting at first, but the game quickly becomes trivially easy. [Issue#203, p.95]

Mafia III is a missed opportunity to put an important time in American history in the spotlight, and ends up being one of the most lifeless and one-note open-world experiences I’ve come across. You can see the potential for a great game here, but it sticks to safe and simple gameplay and storytelling conventions, and ends up being a bloody bore.

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

Agents of Mayhem is cheesy, rarely funny, and generally ridiculous, but I was eager to play for long periods of time. The action is frenetic and fun, with room for strategy using all the characters’ assorted abilities. Even if Seoul ends up being a bland backdrop, I enjoyed being in the world and causing explosions in at every opportunity.

Strikes a great balance between simplicity and flexibility. [Dec 2005, p.165]

In theory, these randomly created dungeons should add a level of unpredictability and replay to the experience, but in practice it renders the level design so incredibly tedious and dull that I could barely force myself to keep playing. [Aug 2004, p.99]

With a skippable story mode, a poorly implemented in-game currency system, and shallow multiplayer offerings, Super Bomberman R is not worth your time. It's a better multiplayer game than a single-player game, but it's not a particularly good multiplayer game either.

It just seems that the team spent a lot more time coming up with ideas for the game than they did executing them properly. [Dec 2003, p.183]

The Matrix vibe is in full effect, and I can give you my personal guarantee that you won't be able to put it down until you've seen all the new footage. [June 2003, p.100]

On the gameplay end, it's still a little shallow in the moves department, but it's tighter on the whole. [Feb 2003, p.105]

The lack of multiplayer on or offline seems truly misguided. The occasional challenging dogfight and the thrill of the open countryside below may entertain for awhile, but if I were you, I'd just go beat "Crimson Skies" again. [Nov 2004, p.163]

If you want a good wartime shooter, "Medal of Honor: Frontline" is far superior to Desert Storm. Look at that - I just saved you $40. [May 2003, p.87]

When a game is unpredictably rendered unplayable, spending even one minute with it is one minute too long. [May 2005, p.132]

The combination of a solid racing framework with the Ferrari license could have worked out, but this is a zero-sum game that appeases nobody. Ferrari Racing Legends does not exhibit the best of what the sports car brand nor the developer have to offer.

Battles in War of the Vikings can be quick and enjoyable, but those flashes of fun aren’t enough to keep the experience interesting.

I had a good time behind the wheel in Destruction AllStars, even if I don’t know that it has enough to keep me around forever. That’s not to say there isn’t anything to do; there is a decent-enough selection of modes and activities between online and offline, with more on the way. And I appreciate the instantly satisfying action that’s as easy to drop in and out of as the cars themselves. Even if the novelty of vehicular mayhem isn’t enough to sustain my interest for many more long-haul sessions, I’m looking forward to taking it for a quick spin every now and again.

So even though Monster House is better than your average kid's movie game, I just have to imagine most kids will put this down long before I did, and go do something more meaningful, like climb a tree or read a book. [Oct. 2006, p.110]

I think this desire to innovate in the genre comes at the expense of what's ultimately good abuot pinball itself...There's not one individual stage that has that incredibly addictive "I could play this until I die" feeling that you get from a well-made traditional pinball machine. [Oct 2004, p.147]

While any pinball game should have an element of randomness, there are times in Odama when an accidental ball bounce floods a river and sweeps your entire army away in one fell swoop. [Mar 2006, p.112]

It's sad when the best thing you can say for a game is that it's not broken, but that's about as positive as I can be about Silverfall. [May 2007, p.93]

Your Shape featuring Jenny McCarthy is a decent title, but it's in dire need of a shot in the arm. [Jan 2010, p.87]

If your preference is single-player or co-op, Dog Days' lack of personality (both in the characters and on the battlefield) results in one of the blandest shooters out there. Given how little the story matters, Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck could have been swapped in as the protagonists and I probably wouldn't have noticed.

TNA Impact reminds me of a bratty little kid. You know the type, always running around making bold claims, kicking people in the shins, and talking about how big and strong he’s going to be when he grows up. Since he’s just a kid, you have to give him the benefit of the doubt — someday he might accomplish impressive things. However, right now he’s still just a punk.

Dangerous Driving has some hiccups like momentary pauses in tunnels, rare unexpected car swerves (both yours and the A.I.), slowdown, and inconsistent crash determinations, but these aren’t even why the game misses its target. Previous Three Fields titles like the Danger Zone series and Dangerous Golf had a reason for their destruction, but I can’t find it in Dangerous Driving. The racing itself has some thrills due to its sometimes insane sense of speed, but neither it nor the crashes make their mark.

The leader in sports [ESPN] and the company behind "Metal Gear Solid" should just go their separate ways. [Mar 2002, p.85]

A foul dead fish aroma surrounds every gameplay aspect. The techniqes of casting, jigging, setting the hook, and landing the fish are miserably executed. [Sept 2004, p.115]

Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice is a big step in the right direction for the spinoff series. While it still has quirks, it's a fun, easy experience that anyone can play. Though I still vastly prefer the classic Sonic games, Fire & Ice is an enjoyable spinoff title that brings some great elements of those games back into the forefront.

Simply put, this game is bad and I hate it. [Nov. 2006, p.140]

I love this title’s core idea of using custom-leveled heroes and their squads of minions to conquer the world (or defend it; same difference) in a turn-based framework. Until I can do that without attending to details that I don’t care about through bland menus, though, I’ll be sticking with "Fire Emblem."

Mario Party should be about fast-paced fun, which is why I prefer to get my kicks with the spastic, oddly humorous "Rayman Raving Rabbids."

The pacing isn't perfect, and some elements will leave you befuddled, but the twisting narrative holds up to the end.

Mario Sports Superstars delivers five fun, surface-level sports experiences in one package. Individually, these sports would be unable to stand on their own. However, as a compilation, the variety helps compensate for the lack of depth. Still, the more I played, the more this package felt like a collection of minigames than a value-packed compilation.

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]

Disintegration’s core idea of blending a first-person shooter with a strategy game is neat, but it takes so many missteps that the promising concept gets lost. The action is repetitive, and the basic mission design is tired – you can’t even save the game mid-mission, which is particularly baffling. Amid the tedium, I had an occasional moments of fun in Disintegration, but those moments were fleeting.

Pretty uninspiring stuff, but I guess if you’re a parent looking for a (relatively) harmless game to pick up for a small child it might do the trick. I’d like to think your kids deserve better.

Button timing and mashing is fine, but it would be great if Konami could expand snowboarding (and even figure skating) into a more combo-laden affair a la Tony Hawk. [Mar 2002, p.79]

With choppy play, no strategy, and an asinine betting system (bet on the most dunks and you'll win every time), Street Hoops is a tall guy paper doll simulator at best. "NBA Street" wins in a rout. [Sept 2002, p.81]

For those of us that loved the original, Manhunt 2 is a trip that’s worth taking, even if it’s not nearly as memorable or enjoyable. While I applaud the series for it’s uncompromising take on morality and violence, it’s hard not to notice that recent titles like "Mass Effect" and "BioShock" have covered similar territory in a more mature – and much more enjoyable – fashion.

Metal Saga is like a bastard mash-up of Mad Max and Lawrence of Arabia...tanks, deserts, and a post-apocalyptic future that manages to be super boring. [May 2006, p.101]

Enemy AI is as dumb as a crumbling brick wall and there are no shadow or cover effects. [Oct 2004, p.136]

While I like the added emphasis put on replaying older levels, I am frustrated and baffled that the action-stopping tutorials from the earlier levels persist on repeated playthroughs.

In the world of games, it deserves a body bag. In the world of 24, it's just as good as the show. [Apr 2006, p.122]

While the first "Rumble Roses" game was a fun, solid wrestler with some cheese-cake amusement, XX simply feels aimless, dull, and a little offensive. [May 2006, p.104]

Overall, I didn't like this as much as the first game, but there's still plenty worth checking out when you get around to it. Rearmed 2 isn't a "must-play instantly" game by any means, but it still ranks above Spencer's awful console reboot.

If you like this franchise's simple brand of mind-numbing hack 'n slash action, then Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires will deliver exactly what you want: more of the same. [May 2006, p.98]

Full of more holes than Swiss cheese. [Nov 2002, p.119]

Saying that Big Mutha needs more freedom and faster driving may sound damning. However, the game's got a great head of steam going already, and it's definitely got more teeth than the other slack-jawed truckers already on the road. [May 2003, p.82]

Somewhere between "The Sims" and "Civilization," Northland fills a unique gap in the strategy genre. [Mar 2004, p.113]

If I had more space I could detail the game's numerous flaws in control, design, and AI, but I don't. Thank God. [Jun 2006, p.112]

Each level follows the exact same progression path, and this dull repetition ultimately makes what could have been a great tornado game nothing more than a funnel cloud.

If you like brawlers, platformers, or both, Alter Echo should be on your list of must-plays. [Sept 2003, p.114]

Although using the analog stick or d-pad doesn't compare to the arcade joysticks of old, I appreciate being able to tweak the number of lives you get for each game. [Oct 2005, p.128]

This tries to be Super Smash Bros. with some new bells and whistles, and much less-beloved characters. [Dec 2005, p.178]

Sometimes you don't have the car to beat, and you end up point racing for whatever you can get. Eutechnyx's effort here is appreciated, but it's not championship material.

The potential sweetness of participating in a globe-spanning conflict between thousands of players is huge. [July 2004, p.122]

While We Happy Few is dragged down by irritating missions, scarce-but-necessary resources, and technical blips from time to time, it’s a fun adventure that combines an eerie atmosphere and a gripping narrative to great effect.

Between the receivers’ lack of ball awareness and the game’s horrendous slowdown – which interferes with just about every play – this title is anything but high octane.

If I had more space I could detail the game's numerous flaws in control, design, and AI, but I don't. Thank God. [Jun 2006, p.112]

Quotation forthcoming. [Aug 2006]

The game controls often feel unresponsive in real-time, but using the Clash meter slows the action down and allows you to make cuts that spell the difference between torn tendons and touchdowns. If senseless violence and arcade football are your passions, Blitz is the league for you.

A monstrous letdown. [Dec 2004, p.165]

I don't think I've ever been as bored as I was playing Warship Gunner 2. [Apr 2006, p.124]

Don’t forget to go into the sound options and turn off the god-awful music.

Sometimes you don't have the car to beat, and you end up point racing for whatever you can get. Eutechnyx's effort here is appreciated, but it's not championship material.

I had to do a good bit of tutorial research before I knew what the heck I was doing in this game. [Feb 2002, p.94]

The scope of this title covers the final third of the Legacy of Goku storyline, but it does so in splotchy, episodic segments relying on the most generic "walk around, talk to people, and fight things" formula. [Oct 2004, p.147]

Worth owning if you're an RE freak or new to the series, but everyone else can rest easy knowing this isn't a must-have. [Apr 2003, p.89]

Divinity II isn't without its charms, but weak game design sullies the thrill of digging into the many secrets of its outstanding world.

This final moment with Breakpoint sums up the game perfectly. There was a sense of victory, and then it all fell apart and became a maddening mess. I had some fun playing with friends, but constantly found myself wondering how this follow-up could go so wrong.

For better and worse, Riptide plays almost exactly like its flawed-but-fun predecessor. The melee-centric gameplay is still weighty and satisfying. Landing deliberate blows on a zombie’s head or limbs feels great, especially when you break an arm or lop off a head. Dead Island’s undead are just threatening enough to keep you on your toes without ever becoming too frustrating.

The action is satisfactory, and the multiplayer options are robust. [Nov 2005, p.148]

Enemy AI and targeting are very suspect. [Jan 2003, p.113]

Gripes aside, this game can be balls-out fun when it wants to. Tearing through the sky at Mach 3 to sink a battleship and a couple of subs, then doing a 180 to shoot down a sky full of bogeys gets the heart going every time.

While the story of what happens to the main characters is unfulfilling, the descent into the hellish world of Here They Lie is, on its own, worth taking. Its dreary, evocative environments, dark tone, and horrific imagery would stand out even outside the realm of VR games. Some of its places, acts, and monsters will stick with me for a while. It creates a strong sense of place, and while I wouldn't say VR is crucial to experience, it definitely amplifies it.

In spite of its lack of polish, I enjoyed The Good Life. It has some rough edges, but these can contribute to its charm, and it’s undeniably entertaining when the story is purposely silly or when I had time to just breathe in the world. The Good Life has heart, even if its features don’t always work together and its design holds it back.

I can see FPS fans having fun with BlackSite since it provides all the standard FPS rollercoaster thrills, but most of us have been up and down those hills a few too many times.

Strange missteps abound in Heroes Over Europe, but glimmers of fun WWII arcade flight shooting shine through from time to time. [Oct 2009, p.90]

Don’t confuse Wave Rally for a Baby Ruth floating in the PS2 pool – It’s a turd. [Feb 2002, p.84]

Good fun - nothing more, nothing less. [Feb 2005, p.113]

There is some decent music and graphics that don't make me want to die. I guess that's the highest recommendation I can offer on this one. [Jan 2005, p.125]

Where X2 really makes its rushed development cycle known is the camera, collision, and enemy AI. [June 2003, p.109]

A virtual compendium of platforming conventions, almost to a bizarre (otherworldly perhaps?) degree. [March 2005, p.137]

The Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins experience is like asking for a complex Lego set for your birthday and finding a box of Duplo under the wrapping paper instead. It’s technically similar, but the differences are critically important.

Even serious fans should rent before buying this half-baked cash in. [Jan 2009, p.77]

Offers plenty of variety and a faithful presentation. [August 2002, p.79]