Conceptually, The Con seems like a strong game that would’ve been a unique twist on the fighting genre. Unfortunately, slow controls, even slower load times and somewhat ineffective features make it a game that just doesn’t work for most gamers.

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.

It’s a little boring and it’s a little easy and it’s a little basic, but if you’ve never tried the city-building genre before, then you might find it to be of some value. However, if you’re familiar with the genre at all, then you might as well skip Imperium Romanum, because you’ve already played better versions of it.

A good game with some lofty goals. For sheer amount of content it gets gold stars, and ideas like the Digi Grenade, which explodes into a brilliant array of blinding pixels, are admirable ones. Unfortunately, the game also likes to reward shady practices like spawn camping, and the health bar is pretty much useless.

If you’re looking to recapture the fun you had with the previous generation’s titles (which were FAR better), then please keep waiting.

Scrap Metal isn’t a bad game, it’s just a mixed bag representation of a few different genres.

If you’re an Empire Earth addict, The Art of Conquest might be useful just for spicing up multiplayer games.

The other problem with the puzzles is that they’re a little bit dry and distant. I liken Aura to working on a crossword puzzle book. Sure, I enjoy solving a crossword puzzle from time to time, but I don’t find them enthralling or anything, and I wouldn’t spend a day on them. The same is true for Aura.

Although Blazin’ Trails does manage to present an engaging amount of gameplay thanks to the large number of game options, diversionary mini-games and impressive online features, it’s also significantly hampered by a kludgy control system, unforgiving trick system and psychotic AI.

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.

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.

The game looks nice, the story is easy to follow, and most of the puzzles are easy to solve. But for me, the interface sinks whatever potential the game has, and I’d have to think that it would infuriate anyone playing an adventure game for the first time.

Lost World looks incredible, sounds great, and is a must-have for anyone seeking a completely new Sonic experience in 3D with some 2D sprinkled in for good measure.

The game is not without faults – it’s very linear, leans a little too much on quick-time events, and gameplay is merely average – but the experience is elevated by excellent storytelling, compelling characters, stunning graphics and art design, and sublime sound design.

It wasn’t a lot of fun to play, and it didn’t run very well on my computer. All it did was remind me how much fun Stronghold was, and that I should go back and play it sometime.

In the year that it was away, NBA 06 included a new story mode that’s rather engaging, but hampered by the mini-game presentation that advances the plot of the game.

Nothing more than your run-of-the-mill platformer. Though the level design and beautiful visuals are something to admire, the audio, plot and general lack of originality leaves something to be desired.

If you're willing to learn its patterns and work to counteract them, it offers a challenge that's quite unlike any other game on the market these days. It's occasionally frustrating, yes, but it is, at least, frustrating in a new way.

A fairly bland platform game that is interspersed with mini-games that manage to turn out even blander.

Overall, Puzzle Agent 2 is something of a mixed bag. If you're a hardcore puzzle solver who misses the complexity of games like The 7th Guest and The 11th Hour, then Puzzle Agent 2 might not provide you with anything to get excited about. But if you're a casual gamer looking for something more charming than challenging, then Puzzle Agent 2 might be right up your ally, and well worth its $10 price tag.

Rearmed 2 seemed like a dream game in theory because of how well-crafted Rearmed was, but it doesn't live up to that in execution.

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days is an interesting beast because it really shouldn't exist. Outside of a unique art style it brings nothing new to the genre and does little to improve over the original game, which I might add, was far from a good game.

An almost success that lacks staying power, worth checking out if you’re big into Koei’s other franchises or at the very least not put off by a lot of repetition.

Gets a greedy thumbs down.

There are better games in both the RPG and RTS genres.

So while I had some fun here and there, and while I can see some potential if I squint just right, Empire of Sin is a tough game to recommend. You’re much better off waiting for some patches and DLCs, and certainly for a price drop, before investing any of your time or money in it.

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.

If you liked the movie, you'll probably like the game, as it's a near-perfect blend of classic gameplay with the production values and design of the film.