Spit and polish have taken the series far over the last two decades, but this is the first sign that maybe a more substantial revision is due.

Taking the 2D online brawlers in the marketplace into account, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is easily the friendlier of the bunch in terms of new players jumping in.

RedLynx might just have hit the jackpot with Trials HD as the longest lasting game in the Summer of Arcade lineup, rivaling even 'Splosion Man in terms of length with its level editor.

Once you get the game completely set up and ready to play, you expect something just as fun as Dance Dance Revolution, but no more than 10 minutes in, you realize you have been most definitely let down.

It is a worthwhile adventure for 1,000 Wii Points that shouldn't be missed by anyone who appreciates a finely crafted, beautiful, and challenging game.

As far as beginner games go, this is about as elementary as it can be.

Whether you are a child of the '80s or a Naruto-watching kid of the 2000's, playing Re-Shelled will hold you for a very short span of time, but it is surely better than the recent Gak-faced, Hose-brained attempts at re-igniting the Turtle Power love.

The shooty stuff is okay, the cover is fine, the difficulty is all but nonexistent given your inability to die, but the worst part of all of this, the real slap in the face, is that it costs FIFTY !@#$ING DOLLARS

The shooty stuff is okay, the cover is fine, the difficulty is all but nonexistent given your inability to die, but the worst part of all of this, the real slap in the face, is that it costs FIFTY !@#$ING DOLLARS

So do you prefer probing or zapping? Our outer space friends gladly offer both!

A great way to end the downloadable content run for Fallout 3. If it's indeed the final DLC we're to see for the game, it's surely an out-of-this-world way to close off our explorations of the Capital Wasteland, providing a thoroughly enjoyable ride that is likely to last almost as much as the longest of the packs that's come out so far - Broken Steel.

Just walking around the town is its own reward, with numerous nods to past episodes. On the other hand, like any of the episodic Telltale games, knowledge of the prior titles in the series isn't required to jump into Bogey Man, but seriously recommended!

Bookworm Adventures 2 is PopCap at the top of its (literal) game: Great presentation, quirky humor, loads of play and replay value... and God help us all, it's even educational. Do yourself a favor and play it anyway.

Taking the 2D online brawlers in the marketplace into account, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is easily the friendlier of the bunch in terms of new players jumping in.

The only thing inherently disappointing with this game is that... it's the same thing that's been coming out over the past decade-plus.

Serves as a great start for this five-part series. While it doesn't contain much story-wise, it more than makes up for it by setting up the future episodes, especially considering how this chapter ends.

Wii Sports Resort fits into the rotation of party games, but it has the breezy weakness of being lost in the shuffle.

Don't get me wrong, the game does handle fairly well, and with friends this could be a fun one to share, but single-player is worse than most. Combine a three-player team with the smallest roster KoF has ever had, and you'll have your faves chosen like a routine in no time

Don't get me wrong, the game does handle fairly well, and with friends this could be a fun one to share, but single-player is worse than most. Combine a three-player team with the smallest roster KoF has ever had, and you'll have your faves chosen like a routine in no time.

It's not a whole lot of replay value, but it's something — and for a $10 retro-inspired arcade-style game, that certainly doesn't suck. Or blow.

It's great to see yet another great downloadable game come from Twisted Pixel that not only brings something fresh to the table but does it with style.

The game mechanics, voice acting, and enemy designs are all wonderfully polished. But if people could live on polish alone, there’d be gourmet restaurants serving linoleum and fingernails. A game should first and foremost be enjoyable. G-Force’s downfall is in its repetitive puzzle design, bland visuals, and antiquated 3D technology.

The game mechanics, voice acting, and enemy designs are all wonderfully polished. But if people could live on polish alone, there’d be gourmet restaurants serving linoleum and fingernails. A game should first and foremost be enjoyable. G-Force’s downfall is in its repetitive puzzle design, bland visuals, and antiquated 3D technology.

The game mechanics, voice acting, and enemy designs are all wonderfully polished. But if people could live on polish alone, there’d be gourmet restaurants serving linoleum and fingernails. A game should first and foremost be enjoyable. G-Force’s downfall is in its repetitive puzzle design, bland visuals, and antiquated 3D technology.

The game mechanics, voice acting, and enemy designs are all wonderfully polished. But if people could live on polish alone, there’d be gourmet restaurants serving linoleum and fingernails. A game should first and foremost be enjoyable. G-Force’s downfall is in its repetitive puzzle design, bland visuals, and antiquated 3D technology.

The game mechanics, voice acting, and enemy designs are all wonderfully polished. But if people could live on polish alone, there’d be gourmet restaurants serving linoleum and fingernails.

A weird and unique freak of nature amongst the mundane shooters and RPGs with their played out themes of morality, but it's trying too hard to be clever.

The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition comes highly recommended, whether or not you are a series aficionado like myself, or just a noob pirate.

Madballs in: Baboo Invasion's main problem is that it feels generic, even though the characters are so different than you would expect in a shooter.

Battlefield 1943 is an impressive feat - it's a fun and gorgeous-looking downloadable game. If its rigid online structure can somehow be made more user-friendly in future patches, it'll be even more of a sure-bet that many of us will be playing for a long, long time, especially if this type of co-operative unlocking of features becomes a standard in future content.

Battlefield 1943 is an impressive feat - it's a fun and gorgeous-looking downloadable game. If its rigid online structure can somehow be made more user-friendly in future patches, it'll be even more of a sure-bet that many of us will be playing for a long, long time, especially if this type of co-operative unlocking of features becomes a standard in future content.

Core fits into the series quite well and makes me curious as to what other old arcade game will be tackled in the inevitable third Bit.Trip game.

While the unlocking system is a pain to get used to, the unlocks make it worth suffering through, for the most part. And like the first Worms, Armageddon supports DLC, so there's a good chance extra content will be showing up by the time you are through with everything it has to offer. Worms, assemble!

The cinematic sequences are easily skipped at the press of a button, and what remains is a tremendously engaging Western romp.

The cinematic sequences are easily skipped at the press of a button, and what remains is a tremendously engaging Western romp.

The cinematic sequences are easily skipped at the press of a button, and what remains is a tremendously engaging Western romp.

While BlazBlue is unabashedly brutal online, there’s more than enough offline content to keep beginners busy until they feel skilled enough to brave online play. BlazBlue doesn’t apologize for its complexity, but it does make everyone feel welcome.

While BlazBlue is unabashedly brutal online, there's more than enough offline content to keep beginners busy until they feel skilled enough to brave online play. BlazBlue doesn't apologize for its complexity, but it does make everyone feel welcome.

It's hard not to recommend Garou: Mark of the Wolves to just about anyone with interest in fighting games. It's one of the best and more detailed fighters from the past decade, with deep, tough-to-master characters and an overall balanced fighting system that awards skilled, dedicated players.

While the physics system is itself a marvel of gameplay finesse, Fight Night Round 4 also utilizes consistently awe-inspiring animation and stunning musculature on the boxer models.

Its incredibly accurate physics system doesn’t just set a new bar for boxing games, but for all games across all genres. Newton’s laws of motion haven’t mattered this much in a game since Pong, and bare-chested men haven’t looked this good in a game since Cho Aniki.

Disappointingly, The Conduit offers no incentive to convince current FPS gamers to put down Halo or Call of Duty, and it presents no easy transition into the genre for those who’ve never played an FPS game before.

Without question, Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor is a solid reworking of the themes of the Shin Megami Tensei series on the handheld, yet has a spirit and style of its own.

Pangya: Fantasy Golf is like a sunny, breezy afternoon, a perfect day for golf, just without the applause of a crowd.

A sub-par romp through what we’ve already seen many, many times before.

A sub-par romp through what we’ve already seen many, many times before.

It provides an interesting locale, great story, and some fun new perks and equipment. It's also a bit lengthier than the first few DLCs, with a fairly larger map to explore, rewarding you each time you replay, checking every nook and cranny.

It provides an interesting locale, great story, and some fun new perks and equipment. It's also a bit lengthier than the first few DLCs, with a fairly larger map to explore, rewarding you each time you replay, checking every nook and cranny.

There is simply so much content in Unite, it gets my recommendation sheerly on a bang-for-the-buck basis.

There are some flaws, including the lack of a local co-op mode, however there is just so much that was done right that you can't help but have a blast. It may not be everything you ever wanted out of a Ghostbusters game, but it's as close as you're going to get to perfection at this point.

There are some flaws, including the lack of a local co-op mode, however there is just so much that was done right that you can't help but have a blast. It may not be everything you ever wanted out of a Ghostbusters game, but it's as close as you're going to get to perfection at this point.

There are some flaws, including the lack of a local co-op mode, however there is just so much that was done right that you can't help but have a blast. It may not be everything you ever wanted out of a Ghostbusters game, but it's as close as you're going to get to perfection at this point.

Let's Tap is pretty entertaining. It will go into rotation at get-togethers, just not set to Visualizer. It'll sit, unused on the shelf in the meantime, however, because a little game I like to call Let's Dust is more fun than Let's Tap if one has to play alone.

If you're an adult who loves Legos and lives with his parents, this game is for you. Anyone else over the age of 12 is going to want something with more depth, and besides, making a game childishly easy is not the way to fix broken controls. Any kid can tell you that.

When the camera isn’t doing funky things during melee combat, when you sneak into a base disguised as a soldier, when you’re soaring from building to building for the pure joy of it, or when you’re hitchhiking on a passing helicopter just because you can, Prototype momentarily feels fresh and fun.

If you’re willing to put up with its annoying design issues, drab appearance, and second-hand feel, you might find that, like a shirt with different-lengthed sleeves, Prototype holds up so long as no one looks too closely.

It's just so not remarkable, so bland, so... not interesting... you get what I'm saying. Slow and lame, that's what I'm saying.

There’s no question that Rock Band is better with instruments, but on the handheld, given that the primary comparison is Guitar Hero: On Tour which comes with the multi-colored, pro-arthritis death vice, I’m glad there aren’t any here.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is a safe and sound approach shot from the fairway lie of last year’s golfing venture. Its low risks won’t change your mind about the franchise, and there’s still a level of frustration given that it would only take several minimal tweaks to make the design match the brilliance of its production values.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is a safe and sound approach shot from the fairway lie of last year’s golfing venture. Its low risks won’t change your mind about the franchise, and there’s still a level of frustration given that it would only take several minimal tweaks to make the design match the brilliance of its production values.

One of Wiiware's strongest pick-up-and-play titles, with a lengthy story mode, added game types, and even achievements, this ten-dollar download is hard to beat.

If you have any experience playing video games, you simply don't need Starfy. If you've been playing as long as I have, you'll recognize the cookie-cutter characters, the attempt at a mascot akin to every game of the early '90s, and will blow through it easily enough... if you don't give up from sheer boredom. If you're just starting out though, it definitely has a place... but this is a Nintendo system, so you know there's better.

It fails in the most fundamental aspect: the gameplay. It’s generally dull. Despite a high initial learning curve – usually the sign of a game with depth and complexity – Knights in the Nightmare is shallow and simple.

All in all, this is a very solid entry for the franchise, with enough new features and assets to please loyal fans and with enough improvements to attract initiates.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is an unnecessary game through and through, as it continues a story that was already well-thought out and closed off years ago.

An excellent start to the planned four-part series. It manages to capture everything that makes the Wallace and Gromit animated shorts so endearing, expanding it to the adventure game genre. Seeing it's just a two- to four-hour long slice of a bigger, fully priced pie, we cannot wait to see what craziness is in store for the folks at West Wallaby Street in the future episodes.

But the real reason to buy inFamous is that, regardless of your morality, it's just plain old fun being super-powered Cole in a city full of helpless mortals. And if you're a 360 owner lamenting the PS3 exclusivity, don't worry about it - just go pick up a copy of "Crackdown" instead.

Id love to say this was a GREAT GAME!! but i just cant i like it but after awhile its to repetitive to really appreciate.

There's nothing here that will really pull new players into playing Adventure Island: The Beginning, other than nostalgia for an audience who is familiar with the name.

This is not one of those casual puzzles games that you absently play while you’re yakking on the phone with your friends or otherwise multitasking—this one takes all your attention and all your reflexes for short, intense bursts of time.

As unfriendly as it to beginners and, well, anyone that isn’t used to pressing every button and moving the joystick on the controller in every which way, that’s just perfect for a brand that is “as real as it gets”.

As unfriendly as it is for beginners and, well, anyone that isn’t used to pressing every button and moving the joystick on the controller in every which way, that’s just perfect for a brand that is “as real as it gets”.

It lacks the balance it would take to make it something really great, but what is there is fun, just not as phenomenal as some of Capcom's more recent franchise reboots.

It lacks the balance it would take to make it something really great, but what is there is fun, just not as phenomenal as some of Capcom's more recent franchise reboots.

From the music to the controls and Doc’s worthless advice between rounds, everything in Punch Out!! hearkens back to a time before bump-mapping and load screens, a time when games didn’t have to rely on downloadable content or pre-order bonuses to be great.

And it's nice to see the PS2 getting some good material before it's finished... it's how I'd like to be put down, in the end.

It's a relatively satisfying 3-hour adventure for around 6 dollars (540 MS Points). But if a continuation of the story is the only thing you're looking for, than you're better off waiting for the inevitable Fable 3.

In fact, with the exception of menu interfaces and loading times in towns, this is actually better than the PC version, if just for the fact that it didn’t crash once during my combined 50 hours of playtime.

With the exception of menu interfaces and loading times in towns, this is actually better than the PC version, if just for the fact that it didn’t crash once during my combined 50 hours of playtime.

While not being the first ever re-imagining of Space Invaders, Space Invaders Extreme is certainly the most striking, both visually and mechanically.

Thankfully, the designers didn't mess anything crucial up—it's still a cute, unique, funky, challenging and artistically-brilliant game that doesn't merely ride its precursor's coattails but broadens and deepens the experience, while keeping the all-important beat.

The only “problems” with this game are that it's quite short (it's more like Portal-short in that it doesn't need to be any longer than it is) and that, like every remake and re-imagining, it doesn't bringing anything extraordinarily new to the table.

This variety and sense of not knowing what's next is what keeps Plants vs. Zombies fresh - as fresh as rotting zombies can be - and fun.

It doesn't last long, at about three to four hours, but it concentrates on quality and humor. Just don't dare go on a vacation with these two...

One of the finest examples of downloadable content that other developers should emulate.

One of the finest examples of downloadable content that other developers should emulate.

Yet despite its innovation, the game gets old quickly and simply doesn't have enough depth to warrant much replay, turning the once-proud ape into just another goofy monkey.

If this had been just a couple of hours longer and had the option to kill Gambit, I’d say this was a shoe-in for game of the year.

If this had been just a couple of hours longer and had the option to kill Gambit, I’d say this was a shoe-in for game of the year.

So the story is so-so and the characters are a bit over-the-top, and the levels are a bit dull, and there aren’t really that many “Super” robots, and the ones that are there are a bit less than super, but whatever.

There's no denying Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram has a lot of charm - it's a robot fighting game. While the controls could've been less finicky, there's certainly something special about going against your friends on Xbox Live and just button mashing just for the hell of it.

Cryostasis manages to be more of a psychological trip than most games in the past five years, and it’s fantastic to play through. If you’ve found yourself disappointed with the style of horror games in the past few years, give it a try – you will not be disappointed.

While it does not introduce many new twists to the established formula (the multiplayer modes re-hash the basic core Lode Runner gameplay), the style of play that the series started is still unique and fun, and can surely appeal to the new generation of players.

DW:G2 feels like it was made for fans, but Koei didn’t know which fans to placate: theirs or Gundam fans. It tries to satisfy both but ends up disappointing both.

DW:G2 feels like it was made for fans, but Koei didn’t know which fans to placate: theirs or Gundam fans. It tries to satisfy both but ends up disappointing both.

You're better off putting on a blindfold, walking into a rack of DS titles, and picking the game that your face lands on.

For cheap thrills, ExciteBots gets the job done. The transforming creepy crawly machines are so much fun to watch in action that it seems unfair to judge this game too harshly. Unfortunately, it’s also hard not to feel that with a bit more time and care, the core idea could have been expanded into a brilliant kart-style racer.

Glaring, suspicious omissions and a mostly broken online multiplayer aside, OutRun Online Arcade is a solid conversion of an already fun arcade and Xbox game.