MLB 2K8 is one of those games that hurts to play because you just know it could have been so much better.

Wolfenstein is a mediocre title from a franchise known to be innovative and exceptional in their offerings.

It’s a solid game but the Xbox version is so much better that it makes the PlayStation 2 version feel pretty dated. Why are the levels shorter and less interactive? Why can’t you play co-operative game types online? Why is the game far less attractive visually? The answer to all these questions is simple: the PlayStation 2 has certain technical limitations.

I think if you really took the time to delve into and test out the game’s options, then you could make it effective at simulating a modern Major League season, and if you're interested in other leagues (like the Japanese or Mexican leagues) or in historical leagues, then OTPB9 is just about the only option out there.

Control issues, load times and graphical hiccups do wind up making this a much better collection of titles for the console than for Sony’s handheld.

I applaud Arkane for switching up the Dishonored stealth/action formula here, and for addressing a few of the issues Dishonored had. Deathloop just feels too limited by comparison, though, and too repetitive by half besides. I know a lot of people who really like it, but it fell pretty flat for me.

You might get three days of amusement out of it instead of only two. Wouldn’t that be something? Not too shabby for game built around a prop from a twenty five year old movie that nobody’s ever heard of. Not bad at all.

Lacking. It lacks original gameplay. It lacks excitement. It lacks anything that might set it apart from any number of entirely uninspiring RTS games that have come out in the last 2 years. And most of all, it lacks the level of interest required to have me write another word about it.

Style and visuals can only do so much for a game. In our post dot-com world, image is not everything, substance does count for something.

It could use a few quality-of-life bonuses that Until Dawn also needed, like being able to skip cutscenes if you’ve seen them already and an actual run button, but it’s a fun mystery wrapped around a solid horror B-movie. One of the cool things about a game as a narrative, as opposed to anything else, is that it’s got a lot of room to cram extra stuff in there, and Little Hope takes full advantage to really pack itself fat with lore.cSeriously, I’d pay for DLC that changed the ending. I’m on that team. I’d probably still recommend Little Hope to horror and adventure-game fans, particularly since it only costs $30, but the last five minutes tips over the entire apple cart.

MAG is not particularly user-friendly. I am told that below its exterior, if you find a good clan and have a good headset, it is a deep, fluid military shooter with hundreds of hours of gameplay lurking within it.

Need for Speed: ProStreet is a good game-to get that out of the way. However, the decision to move away from what has made the series so great and toward the simulation style is a questionable one. Fans of the series will be upset with the omission of the cop chases, illegal racing, and overall shady mood.

It never hits its stride, never find that sweet spot that makes for that great edge-of-your-seat survival horror experience.

With Blood Bath and Beyond, Vicious Cycle Software has struck a balance between humor and gameplay that was sorely lacking from Hazard’s previous outing. Sure, the game can be quite frustrating at times (then again, Contra was too) and the co-op support is limited to local play, but if you’re looking for a 2D side-scroller with a sense of humor, look no further than Blood Bath and Beyond on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network.

As it stands now, it’s really a game for the most serious driving enthusiast.

So ultimately I think I was happier with the idea of what the designers of Dead Money were trying to accomplish than what they actually created. They put a far above average plot and built a framework of gameplay that somehow managed to break away from the Fallout formula. In the end, however, it's just too much. Too much sneaking around, too many traps, too many reloads. And there are seven more of these things yet to come? God help us all.

So ultimately I think I was happier with the idea of what the designers of Dead Money were trying to accomplish than what they actually created. They put a far above average plot and built a framework of gameplay that somehow managed to break away from the Fallout formula. In the end, however, it's just too much. Too much sneaking around, too many traps, too many reloads. And there are seven more of these things yet to come? God help us all.

Resident Evil has become an entity bigger than any C-Virus creature. It is undeniable that the quality of its past titles has lead to countless sequels, side stories, films (both theatrical and animated) and a general expansion of the lore far beyond the "B-Grade Horror Film" roots of the original title. Gamers are willing to forgive a single misstep, but if Capcom wants the series to continue to be the success it has been for the last fifteen years, Resident Evil 7 should focus on a single artistic vision… perhaps even going back to the "root of all evil."

For fans of the series or for fans of fantasy/adventure games in general, I can recommend this game. If that’s not your cup of tea, however, this is not the game to draw you in, because of the number of issues.

Legion’s biggest problem is that it’s boring: its central mechanic is effectively meaningless, which just leaves you piloting a generic character through yet another Ubisoft-styled open-world. Legion will likely find some fans, but as seems to be the curse of the Watch Dogs series, it’s watered itself down so much in an attempt to appeal to as broad an audience as possible that it’s lost all its texture. If a bad open-world game is an oversalted omelet, Watch Dogs: Legion is plain oatmeal.

At points where the car’s unusable, The Following is just more Dying Light, which is still a fun but flawed experience, and those are also the points where the expansion is at its best.

Aven Colony isn’t a bad game. It was just sort of meh for me. Luckily, the developer is staying involved with the game. They’ve already released multiple patches even though the game has only been out for a week, and they’ve promised to add new content eventually — and for free — so maybe things will get better over time. But for now, Aven Colony isn’t really a game I’d recommend. It’s only for you if you really like city-builders and you’re not too choosy, or if you haven’t played many city-builders before.

Despite the unabashed creep-out factor, there is an interesting story to be found. It's a fairy tale as scene through a looking glass mirror. My biggest gripe is that it just isn't very fun to play.

Unfortunately its also plagued by some rather serious design flaws that could've been solved if Capcom had taken a look at what the competition was doing. If you can look past that than you'll enjoy this game, but you might have to deal with some frustration along the way.

This title would have been better if the design was more polished and the controls were more sophisticated.

If you can’t get past the flaws Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Plus is rife with, you may find your ninja combat needs satisfied by another title with similar gameplay and a more polished and thought out presentation. That title is Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. Yes, that title, at times, is more Ninja Gaiden than this one or even the putrid offering that was Ninja Gaiden 3.

MLB 2K8 is one of those games that hurts to play because you just know it could have been so much better.

Overall, Perils of Man is a budget adventure that sort of looks and plays like a budget adventure.

I liked the concept of the game, and it was sort of fun to play a lawyer for a while, but the pacing and interface really got on my nerves.

The villains weren’t that intriguing in New Dawn, the heightened focus on resource gathering and crafting led to some grinding stretches of gameplay, and I’m not quite sure how to feel about bullet sponge and floating damage appearing in a Far Cry game. Luckily, combat is just as chaotic and explosive as ever, especially with a co-op buddy, and I would still recommend the game to Far Cry fans.

Samurai Western could've been one of the great beat-'em-ups, if it had a little more variety to its gameplay. Special stages, like a train chase or a level spent on horseback, would've been great; so would the ability to pick up new weapons, "Onimusha"-style.

Visually, this is a massive disappointment given what the Xbox One is capable of.

If what you're after is an action-packed, no-brain shooter than Bang! Gunship Elite's gorgeous, high-speed, intense battles will surely do the trick.

With extremely linear gameplay, a relatively flawed fear mechanic and basic combat system, Batman really isn't breaking a sweat in this title.

X-Men: The Official Game isn't a terrible game, but it's not any good, either. It managed to dip down below mediocre and into the realm of "Why bother?" It's short, uninteresting, and probably won't keep your attention based solely on the fighting, either. It's an odd mishmash that just doesn't work out the way it was supposed to.

A lack of checkpoints, imperfect weapon design and control along with a lack of a story that players will care for makes this the low point for the impressive franchise.

The degradation of graphics and gameplay diminishes how great this game truly is.

If you don’t have PS+, then definitely wait for it to hit $20 or so since this is going to be a love it or hate it kind of experience.

Shadow the Hedgehog has a couple good ideas that are ruined by sorry gameplay. What happened?

With Blood Bath and Beyond, Vicious Cycle Software has struck a balance between humor and gameplay that was sorely lacking from Hazard’s previous outing. Sure, the game can be quite frustrating at times (then again, Contra was too) and the co-op support is limited to local play, but if you’re looking for a 2D side-scroller with a sense of humor, look no further than Blood Bath and Beyond on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network.

Epic Mickey 2 leaves me feeling conflicted because it remedies the original's control issues to some degree and does something new with co-op that alternates between being very helpful and annoying, depending on how the AI is when playing solo and is hurt by distracting viewpoints when using it with another person. As a result, Epic Mickey 2 feels like only a partial step forward instead of the huge one it could have been if everything worked perfectly. It's still worth playing if you liked the first, but not something I'd recommend as a full-price buy.

In the end, Brink is another of those games that we see every so often; the games that have incredible potential and truly unique ideas but fail in their implementation. This could have been a great game, it could've been a hit and it could've given shooter fans a reason to return to a genre that has lost much of its originality over the last handful of years. Unfortunately for us and for its developer, the keyword here is "could've", because there's little here that makes Brink the genre redefining game some of us hoped it would be.

Even by Bethesda standards, Dawnguard is just riddled with bugs, many of them game-breaking. I came across audio issues, missing textures, missing NPCs, broken dungeons, and much more. This is a fun expansion, even if its content is a little disappointing, but I highly suggest waiting for a patch (or three) before you jump in.

In the end, Brink is another of those games that we see every so often; the games that have incredible potential and truly unique ideas but fail in their implementation. This could have been a great game, it could've been a hit and it could've given shooter fans a reason to return to a genre that has lost much of its originality over the last handful of years. Unfortunately for us and for its developer, the keyword here is "could've", because there's little here that makes Brink the genre redefining game some of us hoped it would be.

It is also diminished by the inability to keep the results you've tallied during a mission; namely the veteran status of your officers and soldiers.

In the end, Brink is another of those games that we see every so often; the games that have incredible potential and truly unique ideas but fail in their implementation. This could have been a great game, it could've been a hit and it could've given shooter fans a reason to return to a genre that has lost much of its originality over the last handful of years. Unfortunately for us and for its developer, the keyword here is "could've", because there's little here that makes Brink the genre redefining game some of us hoped it would be.

Right now, there’s way too little here to recommend a full-price purchase to anyone. Die-hards should only buy it when it hits the $20-30 range, and everyone else will likely be satiated by a rental. What’s here is done quite well, but there just isn’t enough of it.

With extremely linear gameplay, a relatively flawed fear mechanic and basic combat system, Batman really isn’t breaking a sweat in this title.

That isn’t to say this is a bad game. Even a bad Gears game is a good game; it’s just unfortunate that this series has to end – on this console generation anyway – not with a bang, but with a whimper.

If you played American Conquest then you've already (essentially) played Fight Back, and if you haven’t played American Conquest yet, I’d recommend you play that game instead.

My overall impression of this game is that’s it’s not a bad game, and I have every belief that the developers will stick with it and work to make it better, but it resides in a very crowded field of very similar games, most of which seem to be just a little bit better in some way. I remember that the interface of Pillars of Eternity seemed just a little bit easier to use. The artwork in Torment: Tides of Numenera was just a little bit snazzier. The plot of Baldur’s Gate just a little bit more engrossing. The characters in Neverwinter just a little more interesting. And none of those games suffered from the kind of the difficulty spikes this one does.

But even if the spell creation had been perfect and as pretty as much of the graphics are, the adventure is just too scripted and too predictably paced, and the combat is too backpeddally to recommend highly.

Still, Violett is only priced at $10, and it’s probably the type of game that’s going to go on sale a lot, so if you’re looking for something different then it’s not the worst thing in the world to purchase and try out.

Not a great expansion pack – it’s puny, has a thin, meaningless plot, and generally feels like it was thrown together in a great rush.

One of those titles that fans of D&D might wish was a bit deeper and a lot longer. As an action title, it's decently presented, albeit repetitive, and has a creative control scheme, although not fully implemented.

Due to the size of the screen, the already slim margin for error is made even slimmer, and the lack of aura bombs means you’ll have to fight through even the stickiest of situations.

The graphic design seems a bit smoother than you might remember it from back in the day, no doubt due to whatever tweaks Konami has done to it for the Xbox 360.

Bound in Blood certainly isn’t without its flaws, but for fans of the genre I definitely suggest picking it up and giving it a try.

That said, I think Hasbro needs to be very cautious about returning to this well too often (Hello, Tomb Raider). While I liked this one, I don't think I'd receive RCT XP3 as kindly.

cCuld’ve been a solid basketball experience, were the controls tighter. The Career mode is a very creative addition to the sports genre, and a welcome one at that.

Medium is definitely the most ambitious project of Bloober Team, albeit it cannot completely avoid the moniker of an “AA” production. The visuals of both the real and metaphysical worlds are of high quality, the story keeps the interest high and the music is the glue that holds firmly together the whole experience. If only it tried to offer more depth in its overly simplistic environmental puzzles and gameplay in general.

A standard kart racer with a bunch of well-done, but hollow mini-games tacked on that gets old quickly in single player, but has its life extended with multi-player, where the added competition adds a great deal of fun to the proceedings.

You'll never get to the point where you'll be able to unleash unfettered urban chaos. Combined with a steep learning curve and a quirky interface, the combination alone will drive many away, but Republic has some good fundamentals and an intriguing concept. Definitely a diamond in the rough.

There's nothing really bad about it, but nothing really exemplary, either.

There's nothing really bad about it, but nothing really exemplary, either.

Wolfenstein is a mediocre title from a franchise known to be innovative and exceptional in their offerings.

The audio effects are disappointing but everything else is up to par. Unfortunately, it fails to become really meaningful and memorable, thus making it a good space action title but not one that will be talked about years later.

While the original plot and movie footage are an interesting look into the backstory between The Animatrix, Reloaded and the original film, the lackluster action, replayability and glitches severely hamper this title from truly being great.

As I walk away from my review and Zeno Clash I’m left with the feeling that as an arcade game (albeit one with vastly superior graphics), something that you would chuck a few quarters at and play for a couple of hours and then not play again for several months, it would have been OK.

Contains many of the trappings found in bad science-fiction media -- poor dialogue, poorer voice acting, cool-looking firearms, and a story that seems cobbled together simply for an excuse to blow things up and spill some blood.

The main thing going against this title is that it lacks any kind of satisfying conclusion to all of its mayhem, and isn’t close to being fleshed out enough for most players to care.

The interface isn’t very friendly. That’s something people can work around, but the problem here is that the puzzles are complicated enough on their own.

An engaging wargame that has an interface amenable to the masses. The camera may not be smooth and there may be some quirks but this title enables casual gamers to become armchair generals.

There are some great elements and firefight sequences in Conflict: Vietnam but you just don’t see them enough. And when you do, it’s sometimes offset by other factors that ultimately mire Conflict: Vietnam’s better traits into gameplay quagmire. Instead of an exciting battle, you find yourself slogging through the game.

Most of its challenge comes from scenarios that don't require you to have mastered its individual rules and quirks, but which exploit large and obvious holes in the controls.

I'm aware I've probably come across as being overly negative in this review, but I think it's just because I'm such a huge football nut. It's not that FIFA Street is a bad game per say, but I don't think it works nearly as well as it should. The fact is that FIFA Street was designed specifically for a small percentage of gamers; namely those with the same fanaticism I have. I don't see this appealing to anyone who isn't a diehard footy fan, but then I can't see anyone who isn't a diehard footy fan buying this in the first place. So consider this a warning to temper your expectations football fanatics: FIFA Street is worth playing if you can get past a slew of minor annoyances and some sore thumbs.

But right now the Guitar Hero franchise is doing real damage to the genre by diluting the quality of its games in the attempt to cash in quickly on a formula that sells. It’s sad, and moreover it’s incredibly shortsighted.

While the game lacks visual flair and can become a little repetitive in the later stages, fans of the show, particularly younger gamers, are sure to enjoy the familiar theme, characters and wackiness.

Ultimately, the scenarios are going to be a little too short to keep anyone interested for as long a time as "Rollercoaster Tycoon" or "The Sims" has been on the charts.

Targeted at the younger audience, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is a decent game overall, but it doesn’t live up to the potential and grandeur of the Harry Potter legacy.

Definitely improved over the launch title, with a number of smoother animations, two new mini-games and simpler gameplay mechanics. However, the sometimes idiotic AI on your team and nonsensical limitations on jukes or cleanly driving to the lane without picking up the ball will make any basketball fan call for a technical foul on this title.

It does not revolutionize any concepts in the genre but it manages to get the basics down right to make an enjoyable urban planning experience.

Considering people were claiming Halo 3 wasn’t stretching the limits of graphical prowess on the Xbox 360 in the recent beta test, it’s doubtful that a barely upgraded Halo 2 is going to wow anyone.

I will say that it is worth playing through once, if only to see the movies, and the multiplayer adds some more mileage to it. But as an entry into the C&C universe, it demonstrates a series well past its peak.

The target audience Konami will undoubtedly wow will be the 'art house', foreign film loving type who mope around at Cannes. That's the type of gamer, especially those enamored with overseas story-based RPGs, who will be able to appreciate this.

Some games grow on you the more you play them, as you get used to the little idiosyncrasies and learn to appreciate the finer points. Far Cry 2 is at the opposite end of the spectrum, a game that makes it harder and harder for you to like it by placing more and more junk between you and its best features.

Blackguards 2 is in many ways a game that compares more closely to XCOM than other RPGs.

It might not reinvigorate the tired zombie arcade game formula, or push any boundaries, but it knows what it is. Think of it as Dead Island's simplified arcade cousin, but with a very different look to it. If that sounds like your thing, All Zombies Must Die! isn't likely to disappoint.

MoO scratched a very specific itch for me that no other 4X game has. This iteration of MoO:CtS doesn’t do it for me. I get that a lot of people are looking for a more involved, more detailed 4X experience, and my problem is not that I’m overwhelmed by all the activity in MoO. It’s just that if I’m looking for this kind of thing I have the excellent Civ V to turn to. It’s not that it’s bad, but except for a narrow slice of nostalgia, I don’t see what the new MoO:CtS brings to the table that the plentitude of other 4X games don’t.

Ultimately, I left Starfighter SE with mixed feelings like one of the characters at the end of the game. He has done his share of the fighting and would simply want to walk off the stage.

When you cut right down to it, Secret of Mana has one serious issue: it isn’t fun (or as fun as one may remember). Whatever seemed like so much fun back in 1993 now seems like a chore in this version, and Square Enix wasn’t really of a mind to make it any better or, at the very least, prevent it from crashing before release (let’s hope this is patched quickly). What is likely going to happen with this release is that it is going to cause a lot of controversy amongst the fanbase, and the internet flame wars will rage on and on as to whether Square Enix really fouled up this remake or if the original was not as good as we remember it. Whatever camp you find yourself in, you probably already know if this title is worth $30 of your hard earned money, or if you will be perfectly fine leaving this game back in the SNES days where your younger self loved it so much.

With its Orwellian environment and story Republique succeeds in putting the player into the position of a person who needs to escape from a dark destiny. On the other hand this edition is plagued by some technical issues that sometimes keep you from enjoying what the game has to offer.

What is completely unforgivable are the sound bytes from Dante, or should I say lack thereof.

Only buy it if this sort of game overly appeals to you, or if you’re a guy and naked computer women turn you on.

Sort of a snoozer. I had trouble playing it for more than an hour without it causing me to nod off, and while I found the ending to be intriguing, it wasn't enough to make up for the basic puzzles and the basic dialogue, and the lack of interaction between the lead characters (surprisingly, they're almost never on screen at the same time).

The inclusion of half-hearted simulation elements and toned down arcade gameplay result in Blitz Pro turning into a watered down shadow of its former self. Hopefully next year’s version will restore some glory to this now tarnished franchise.

The graphics have been prettied up, but the rest of the game has been completely moronized and user-friendlized to foot the bill of I-don't-know-who.

Why are the loading times so excruciatingly long?