Sonic 4: Episode 1 is a short, but well-crafted entry in the series. It's hurt by a lack of innovation and a relatively high price given that it's basically half the length of a regular side-scrolling Sonic, but still carries a pretty hefty $15 price tag. If you're a casual Sonic fan, you're probably better off waiting for it to be discounted at some point on PSN or as an Xbox Deal of the Week, but series die-hards will definitely get $15 out of it between playing through it, then replaying stages for better times and leaderboard scores.

I probably enjoyed Railway Empire more than I should have. I liked laying down tracks and adding switches and figuring out how to move a multitude of trains around without them causing traffic jams and blockages. But the game is a little on the casual side to suit me completely, it only includes early trains in the United States, and it has enough interface and gameplay problems right now that I’m only giving it a minor recommendation. Railway Empire is best suited to people who like trains and simulations, or who played Railroad Tycoon back in the day and have been wishing for it to make a comeback.

The putting mechanics aren't up to par and the game isn't going to blow anyone away in terms of presentation, but if you're a golf fan that would rather swing a club, even a mini one at that, as opposed to pushing a few buttons or moving an analog stick around, you very well might want to consider taking a hack at Real World Golf.

Overall, I found the first episode of Back to the Future: The Game to be fun -- not amazing or anything, but fun.

Battlestations: Pacific does improve on its predecessor in several ways, but overall it just doesn’t do enough to make it a must-buy. The machines control well, but the action is just a bit slow to keep you on the edge of your seat (or couch, or Lazyboy).

A solid, but unmemorable game. The first stood out because it featured a unique premise and sharp humor, this lacks either of those, and ends up feeling like a mere add-on pack to the first instead of its own game.

So if you’re a fan of adventure games and you don’t mind some adult content (including profanity and grisly murders), then the 20th Anniversary Edition is certainly a game you should consider purchasing.

Majin and the Forbidden Kingdom has its fair share of strengths and weakness, but its strong points easily overpower many of its flaws. If you're on the prowl for a budget title that appeals to kids and really anyone else, look no further.

And so my guess is, if you play A Vampyre Story exactly the way the developer intended, and if you don’t encounter any bugs or sloppiness, then you’ll have a lot of fun. But if you keep having problems, and if you keep struggling with puzzles, not because you can’t figure them out, but because the engine isn’t working properly, then each bug / mistake / badly designed puzzle will drain a little bit of fun from the game, until, perhaps, there isn’t any left. It’s just a question of whether you want to take the risk or not.

MLB 2K10 is a good game of baseball. Not a great game, yet, but a good game. I will say that for the first time in recent memory, I get the sense playing this game that it does have the chance to be a great game in the next couple of years.

Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions is definitely a mixed bag. It's not a "bad" game per se despite having some poorly-executed parts to its gameplay, but it's also not as good as the franchise's best gaming entries either.

A mixture of a quality style, fun story, great characterization, and gameplay that's crippled by absolutely baffling design.

But between the overly tight scripting and the split-second timing required to pull it all off, I thought it was a little difficult to play the missions out the way they wanted you to, finding Hitman: Contracts instead played like an average first person shooter with excessive stealth elements.

This is definitely a single player title first, multiplayer title second. Even in the former, it lacks the material to vault it into the stratosphere and turn XIII into a classic. Style and visuals can only do so much for a game.

I am not one to look a gift-horse in the mouth, what is there is fun -- and fun is fun.

The inclusion of nearly perfect emulations of "Mortal Kombat 2" and "3" alone make this collection worth it for any fighting fan.

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."

While Rivals isn’t a perfect racing game, it does manage to fulfill that adrenaline rush that speed junkies crave on a regular basis. With plenty of game modes and tons of upgrades, players will have lots of replayability in their hands.

It’s completely bland and repetitious.

Star Ocean is an enjoyable RPG with engaging battles and an addictive item creation mode. Despite the bland dialogue and vague mission objectives, role-playing fans will love the open worlds and intense combat with their party members.

Visually, Smash Court Tennis Pro Tournament 2 is one of, if not the best-looking tennis game on the PlayStation 2.

Longtime fans will probably enjoy this enough to buy it, but casual fans should probably stick with a rental.

For 360 owners, Case West is worth a couple of playthroughs, but it's just not as fun as the main game. The only real reason it has to exist is to please fans by bringing Frank back, and that by itself isn't enough to justify getting shot for two hours straight.

Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz is one of the most fun Wii titles out there, and makes the best use of the controls.

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

Some may find that it’s too realistic, but I believe that Madden purists won’t be able to get enough of it.

At $60, newcomers might want to wait until a price drop, while series fans can buy this ASAP without worrying about whether or not they’ll get their money’s worth out of it.

Need For Speed Heat is a return to form for the series and the best entry this generation. The racing action is top-shelf and the day to night shift in gameplay focus keeps things fresh.