After finishing Lollipop Chainsaw, I was left with the same feeling I had after playing other titles from creative director Suda 51. Like Killer 7 and No More Heroes, the premise is exciting and imaginative, but the gameplay execution has too many holes to embrace completely. However, also like those previous games, I'm glad I played Lollipop Chainsaw.

The number of crafts and items available with which to outfit your ship are nice, but the gameplay seems to keep Naval Ops on a short leash - one that will ultimately keep this title from a lot of mass-market appeal. [July 2003, p.107]

The game itself is good, but not stellar. It looks most like a late-era PSone game, but has a fairly solid camera, great dialogue, imaginative level design, and a definite emphasis on platforming rather than fighting action. [Oct 2003, p.118]

The most glaring deficiency in this title is in the variety of units and factions. There are only two options of who to play as, and neither is comparable to anything in current RTS titles. [Jan 2004, p.156]

Graphics (especially on Xbox) are sharp and colorful, the characters and areas from the movie are represented well, and the licensed songs are far more impressive than most similar fare. [Dec 2004, p.168]

Releasing Bounty Hunter is tantamount to being held down while someone farts in your face. [Feb 2003, p.101]

But the slow pacing and bad combat tarnish what otherwise might have been a portable gem. [May 2008, p.99]

It is a fun game with some cool ideas, just one with its share of problems. If nothing else it tries a few new things, which is more than you can say about many games. [Oct. 2006, p.93]

White Night adeptly merges survival horror with noir to create an alluring visual style and atmosphere. However, neither the story nor the puzzles are exceptional, and the game comes up just short. It has substance to its style, but it also doesn't satisfactorily build off its base components – as well done as they are. In the end, like many noir stories, this game exists in the grey.

I went into Sniper Elite V2 with one desire: Disfigure Nazis from hundreds of meters away. The game delivers on this core mechanic beautifully. While I would have preferred enemies with less superhuman vision and better stealth options, at the end of the game I couldn't recall a scenario I didn't enjoy. Sniper Elite V2 is a must for anyone interested in a smart shooter with an emphasis on gore.

It ends up feeling formulaic by modern standards.

Quotation forthcoming.

While SOCOM 4 is one of the few "hardcore" titles to implement Sony's PlayStation Move, I wasn't impressed when playing the game with motion controls. The Sharp Shooter peripheral is heavy and cumbersome to use, even if the trigger action is admittedly satisfying.

Hands down, WRC is some of the best racing on the PSP. [Apr 2006, p.132]

I appreciate the new freedom that Blood Ties affords combos, but there isn’t much else in place that dramatically changes up the formula from what we’ve seen before.

With so many genuinely good action/RPGs that aren't riddled with archaic missions and gameplay, I have trouble recommending Nier solely on the basis of a decent (but unevenly executed) story.

If you don’t mind playing a game for six or seven hours before getting to the good stuff, Web of Shadows eventually packs a nice little punch. However, if you want instant gratification from your games, this experience won’t do much for you.

While I can forgive The Wreckateer for lacking innovation, I can't forgive these lapses in execution – especially in a game that demands so much of the player. I enjoyed the game despite its flaws, but it's a missed opportunity for developer Iron Galaxy and Microsoft.

Unfortunately, the game looks a tad dated and isn't quite as smooth as its PC counterpart. Great action, but mediocre production. [Dec 2001, p.95]

The RPG-style fights are uninspiring, and the storyline is simplistic. Still, the graphics are bright and inviting, with menus that are easily navigable. [June 2004, p.138]

Story-wise, the game is interesting, but the difficulty of the missions themselves will probably serve as a massive barrier for the gamers who want to find out what happens next. [Nov 2002, p.142]

While Legends does offer you the most comprehensive Rocky experience to date, it just plain fails to deliver in the ring. [Dec 2004, p.165]

The frantic fighting and creative spell-casting are highly addictive, and the difficulty is where I'd want it to be. [Oct 2002, p.86]

Doesn't quite live up to its potential, mostly due to very mechanical control and a shallow trick system. [Dec 2003, p.159]

Episodic games can be tough to evaluate without seeing the story as a whole, since effective storytelling relies on narrative peaks and valleys. I don't expect every chunk of a multipart tale to knock my socks off, but this abrupt shift in density and quality of puzzles is tough to ignore. I'm hopeful that the series is able to conclude on a high point, and that this was just an unfortunate misfire.

WWE 2K18 features some incremental additions, but the action is largely similar to last year’s game. In fact, there were moments where I worried that I’d accidentally booted up 2K17. As it stands, 2K needs to do more to expand its reach beyond the hardcore audience that comes back year after year.

Gotham Knights didn’t wow me with its overly familiar objectives, combat, and activities, but it didn’t leave me sour. It’s fun to control some new heroes as they brood over Gotham from its building overhangs and uncover hidden plots against its people. Those heroes are right to wonder if they’re living up to a vaunted legacy. And even if they’re not quite up to snuff, Gotham has enough baddies to punch to make for a good time, whoever you are.

This quirky RPG port of a PSone title has a reworked turn-based battle system that makes the already simplistic experience mind-numbingly dull.