The sheer lack of variety, despite two stages never being the same ever thanks to the brilliantly designed, random level-generating engine that Pwnee Studios has designed, leaves Cloudberry Kingdom feeling thin on content.

Assassin's Creed fans will still enjoy the portable gameplay. Even Vita owners looking to justify the handheld through pure technical power can find a lot to love in Liberation. It's just not the experience you might expect from the franchise.

I don’t regret contributing to this journey in the least, and frankly, I feel like the first half of Broken Age is very much worth experiencing. And that’s how I’ll rate it—as an excellent first half with a middling second half.

Series newbies lacking preconceived expectations will probably have the most fun with Revolution, but it’s hard to imagine fans being thrilled with the game’s at-times confused direction even if they do fully understand its proclaimed spinoff nature.

Untainted by the realization that you've done this all before, Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 will be a good buy. Beyond that, Bandai Namco has essentially hit the rewind button.

If you are a MechWarrior fanatic, MechWarrior 5 will probably give you hours of enjoyment. If not, I’d wait until some of the problems above are addressed before making a purchase.

Despite its flaws, there is some merit to Tech Support: Error Unknown. It does capture the feeling of working in a fast paced support environment. You get a sense of sympathy towards the worker’s plight just by going through the motions. However, it doesn’t do a great job of integrating anything else into the equation due to its unwillingness to open up.

The lack of content and limited attempts at personality hinder those moments, but at the end of the day Cel Damage HD is a solid update of a mostly forgotten 13-year-old game.

I love the creativity and the attempt to create something unique, but there are more than a few flaws that get in the way. The fun comes from the communication elements, and for that alone, Cookie and Cream is a worthwhile rental for couples.

Despite its flaws, Innocent Life is an interesting and fun take on a familiar game. With a few tweaks to the pacing and goal structure, ArtePiazza could have made a strong entry into this strange farming sim.

You can have a good time with Trackmania DS, but just don't be looking for anything close to the Gran Turismo experience.

Nintendogs captures the essence of puppydom in its adorable stars and genuine charm, but focuses so much on being a cutie that it forgets to be a game. DS owners thirsting for companionship will certainly find some here, although it’s really just a virtual pet without enough interesting gameplay enhancements.

All in all, this game has many glaring flaws, but it does a great job at when comes to the main task of "maim and destroy".

Another major annoyance is the save system. You can only save at designated statues, and there are only two or three per level.

Despite its flaws, it certainly puts up a good fight...though I'm sure you'll find it to be just another mission among the many you've completed before.

I spend so much time criticizing this game only because the core mechanics are so good.

There are much better shooters on the market. It's time to hang up the cummerbund and bow tie and enjoy your martini with another game.

A lot of learning material.

Though Earthworm Jim HD has wonderful graphics and is fairly inexpensive, it suffers from a lot of control problems that will make you want it to borrow back into the ground it came from.

I said it last year, "Every console launch will have a Tony Hawk game," and while Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam isn’t the biggest or best, it’s still a decent ride.

Its track list is slightly shorter, its difficulty is slightly easier, and its unlockable goodies are slightly less thrilling, but if you loved everything about Guitar Hero III despite its flaws, then there’s little reason not to grab this one as well. Just don’t expect your finger train to be rolling over the guitar as all-night-long as it did before.

Feel free to take Lara out for the weekend, but don’t go looking for a long-term relationship.

Despite its addictive quality and nice replay value, this warrior’s creative shortcomings, excessive button-mashing and total lack of A.I. keep it from truly ruling the battlefield.

Scurge doesn’t stand out, but it’s comfortable if you need a bite-sized action game to pass the time.

MX vs. ATV: Reflex would benefit greatly from a diet of raw motocross action. Without the added weight of the Rider Reflex controls, the other vehicles, or its half-baked race types, this could be one lean, dirt-shredding machine. As it is, it’s a misshapen lump of flabby features and excess ideas.

As much as I pick on Crash, I was secretly hoping that Crash of the Titans would put him back in the spotlight. It had an excitingly original concept but failed to take full advantage of its possibilities.

It’s a shame that with such outstanding production values and such a beautifully realized story and world, Dreamfall doesn’t do more as a video game. It adheres quite strictly to its adventure roots but fails to provide a satisfying challenge.

Though a graphical marvel, Black is too brief, too straight and too lacking to be considered much more than a cool tech-demo, and the absence of multiplayer hurts it immeasurably.

There's nothing really functionally wrong with the game (besides the crack-induced plot), but it simply isn't nearly as addictive or fun as other puzzle games.

The painting is cool and the characters are likeable, but this is more about your own imagination than your own fun.

If you can overlook the fact that the developers don't love Godzilla as much as you do, then you can easily spend several enjoyable hours with Godzilla:DAMM.

Unfortunately, this new DF cuisine turns out a flavor that is bland and ubiquitous to a fault. I guess someone forgot to throw in the spice.

However, as with the single-player game, there’s little personal investment in the persistent world.

And despite its groovy style, XIII isn’t much more than a run-of-the-mill game. Its presentation is definitely worthy of a look (particularly if you own an Xbox) but its gameplay is about as straightforward - and in some cases boring - as it gets for an FPS.

It's a great racing game and fits in well with the Gran Turismo family in terms of audio-video presentation. But the lack of an actual career mode and the broken storefront only act as a counter-weight to how much you'll actually want to play, other than building up a car nut's dream collection like a Pokémon master does his own. It won't hold your attention for long, though, if you are after an increasingly challenging game to slowly plow through, and that's its biggest flaw.

If the the old school Puzzle Quest is mega-addicting black tar heroin, then the new one is some brown weed that barely gets you high and leaves you with little more than a headache and a bad taste in your mouth.

The game looks hot and puts out, so if you just want a fling, it’s not a bad choice. But for a long term relationship, I need much more depth. She ain’t getting a ring, that’s for sure.

If you loved Front Mission in the past, or are just a big fan of the tactical RPG genre, or can’t get enough of stomping badguys with your giant titanium feet, then this is the right game for you. Otherwise, you might want to give this one a pass, and leave your Wanzer alone.

I just about guarantee you’ve not experienced a game like this before, and while it stumbles in its gameplay, it soars in its style and whimsy.

You have to credit Evil Dead: Regeneration for almost living up to its name by breathing some new life back into an abysmal video-game franchise. Still, this regeneration is a far-cry from a revolution and must be content with being familiar, satisfying, and diminutive.

There was the original Pitfall, and now there is the unoriginal Pitfall: The Lost Expedition.

Devil May Cry 4 is riddled with too many flaws to really enjoy completely. It’s disheartening – there’s a kernel of a good game beneath all the terrible writing and poor design decisions.

But frankly, this type of fun we've all seen for the PSX twice already, and there's not really enough here to warrant dropping the dough and adding it to the collection - so rent before you buy.

Other than some small graphical tweaks, this is an unchanged port that costs a whopping 30 bucks more than the other versions. It's not a bad game by any means, but nor is it a new one.

Flock! is an interesting, inventive, and mostly enjoyable puzzler, with its own style and challenge.

While the strategy series is a study in gameplay refinement, Renegade is a somewhat typical FPS and sacrifices the needs of the solo gamer for the benefit of the clan.

Aside from the obvious novelty of the whole redneck theme, Offroad RR is just an average racer with good sound and decent graphics. Too bad there are issues with the higher resolutions, but that's more of an annoyance than a huge problem.

A decent game and offers a few neat tweaks to its classic formula, but in general does very little to break the mold of its predecessors.

While there’s some good stuff here, its sense of humor and playful vision doesn’t extend to its repetitive gameplay.

However, this content pack falls prey to the same problem as the Battle of Forli does - its content belonged in the original game in the first place.

This Xbox version tries hard, but technical issues make this only the second-best Revelation available.

Nostalgia suffers from being stunted and stuck in the past, but then I suppose that's where the title comes in. But it's more a placebo for the genre than anything productive.

Overall, Nier has its ups and downs. There are brief moments where you can see the influence from more brilliant games, such as Zelda and Bayonetta, shining through, but the overall experience is lukewarm at its best moments.

Lets fans romp through a digital version of the film and offers some decent gameplay along the way, but it doesn’t do much else. Provided that’s all you expect from a licensed game, you won’t be entirely disappointed.

However, this content pack falls prey to the same problem as the Battle of Forli does - its content belonged in the original game in the first place.

Small tweaks like the Floor General and Freestyle Air make it a smoother all-around product than March Madness 2004, but the margin is so slight that owners of last year’s game shouldn’t feel compelled to buy this one, too. The bubble is starting to break.

Excellent physics and suspension, aggressive opponents and humongous and well-planned environments give a bit of shine to a game that is otherwise strictly last generation.

But the bulk of the game takes itself far too seriously, so we are forced to admit that it falls short of other serious shooters.

If you want to see video clips, go watch the actual movie - It will look better anyway. If you want a groundbreaking three-dimensional platformer, you're still looking in the wrong place, bub. Little kids might be willing to look past the unoriginality and outdated gameplay... maybe they would even have some fun. But most kids, including those who are just kids at heart, would be smart enough to play elsewhere.

It might do a great job at raising the hair on the back of our necks, but it doesn't do much to raise the gameplay bar. Who knew mediocrity could be so scary?

Simply aimed too high, and fell short. The basics of the game, like control and fun should have been figured out before anyone tried to make it into a movie.

It serves up some decent arcade fun, but we've already been here before in the other Slugfest games, and the notable AI and control issues still need to be addressed.

Amped 3 provides all kinds of groovy style and content but wraps it in somewhat bland gameplay. Hopefully the next edition will try and hit the slopes a little harder, maybe even with friends.

The gameplay becomes repetitive quickly and the campaign is over without much fuss. In the end, this fast-paced game falls victim to its own velocity.

There are scattered elements throughout the game that come across as shockingly unfinished, or at least dismayingly unpolished.

No part of its design is disastrous, just unfocused. I can still appreciate what it tries to do, even while I complain about how it’s executed. If you’re someone who pines for originality and risk-taking, then Folklore is a tale worth flipping through.

For the things that Conan gets right - big breasted naked lasses, blood and guts - it gets two things wrong - the use of magic, the god-awful voice acting. Otherwise, this is just another entry in the burgeoning God of War genre, neither offering anything in the way of innovation nor testing the limits of next-gen graphics.

An average game built on a lot of great, borrowed ideas. The playability is good and there are plenty of tricks to be tried, but folks with more active imaginations and sensitive fingers might want to stay away from this C-class jump-fest.

The presentation is the game's highlight while the gameplay, unfortunately, doesn't meet that same degree.

Completionists and series fans might dig nailing every single quest in a town and uncovering all the most powerful Artes, but the average gamer will find Radiant Mythology a pretty typical anime cliché.

It's as if the balanced half-action, half-RPG formula of the Network Series was just tossed into the classic Mega Man action mold, creating an unbalanced partial-RPG with a merely satisfactory mix of action.

Just like they did with "Def Jam: Fight for NY," EA Big ignored NFL Street’s fundamental issues and instead added more flash and one or two new moves. While undeniably fun, EA Big has no right to call NFL Street 2 a sequel.

As a rental for a night with friends, Fuzion Frenzy rocks.

A fresh look, but this prizefighting animal is still a few hairballs away from becoming a champion.

Despite its interesting strategy mechanic, The Outfit winds up feeling pretty typical. Its lacking single-player campaign is saved in part by its genuinely frantic, yet derivative multiplayer.

Underneath the bubbly aesthetics of frolicking animals, pan flute music, and dolphin-mask souvenirs lies an intricate strategy game of careful planning and decisive action.

If the graphics are merely mediocre, the sound pretty much stinks. All your hear during play are announcements over the stadium PA, skating noises and some occasional organ music. Yup - no commentary at all.

As much as we love those menus, though, it bothers us that Madden 06 for the PSP, I mean Xbox 360, is missing so much content.

Don't let the staggeringly dull, generic name fool you: C-12 has mood, challenge and even something of a personality, but with the dated gameplay and visuals, it just takes some time to see it...perhaps longer than many gamers will be willing to wait.

I spend so much time criticizing this game only because the core mechanics are so good.

In the end, this race is barely a race at all. The 360 is the winner by a mile, and for the price of those wheels, no doubt it should be. The Xbox comes in a distant second with fewer cars and none of the cool online modes. And trailing way behind that is the PS2, a run-down jalopy that probably shouldn't even be on the road.

It's a shame that some poor game design choices mar an otherwise pretty game, one with potential and one that they clearly spent a lot of time on.

This game's single-player campaign is a decent diversion and serves up a relatively well-produced version of the PC series. Unfortunately, what it lacks in replay value and online play leads to a solider a bit too thin for his britches. Will this war never end?

Mysterious Dungeon is the anti-Zelda doppleganger, cute and unthreatening in its top-down stylings, but as potentially punishing and old-school as lurking demons come. Once again, the question is begged: Do you feel lucky?

Nintendogs captures the essence of puppydom in its adorable stars and genuine charm, but focuses so much on being a cutie that it forgets to be a game. DS owners thirsting for companionship will certainly find some here, although it’s really just a virtual pet without enough interesting gameplay enhancements.

The DS version is a fun game, but it doesn’t improve on the original enough to break it out of the museum and into your collection.

Spectrobes: Origins is fun if it's your first foray into the collect-a-thon genre, but otherwise, it's a pixelated case of follow the leader.

Everything you've seen before.

Although there's no small amount of ambition on display, It's readily apparent that limited production values and adherence to tried-and-true methods cause Order of War to fall short of its target.

And despite its groovy style, XIII isn’t much more than a run-of-the-mill game. Its presentation is definitely worthy of a look (particularly if you own an Xbox) but its gameplay is about as straightforward - and in some cases boring - as it gets for an FPS.

The game’s sound is as mediocre as its gameplay. Wacky, overdone effects, plenty of cheap voice-acting, some themes that sound like cheap imitations of Indiana Jones tracks, and then the occasional latin-sounding pipes for a touch of authenticity comprise the bulk of the audio.

The monotonous gameplay, unrealistic economy and slow leveling keep it from ultimately adding much to this ever-crowding genre.

Look, if you’re the type that needs to download every song for Guitar Hero, nab a godly Top 1000 slot on yet another Guitar Hero leaderboard, or fawn over the Aerosmith poster double-sided-taped onto your wall, then you’re probably not going to listen to what anyone says about picking up a copy.

Its story concept and great visuals give it a nice boost, but its lack of options and frustrating AI add some unnecessary weight.

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.

Great looking zombie-splattering will have the girls and other casual observers fighting for control of your lightgun, but real gamers will chew quickly through this light zombie snack.

Vanguard: Saga of Heroes might be a far better game in a few months time, but coming from the company that questionably destroyed one of its most popular MMOs ("Star Wars Galaxies"), nothing is guaranteed.

Brings a fresh look to the party game scene with its unique brand of strategy and absence of plumbers, but it doesn’t have much of a life span. At $20, though, the frog, pig, chickens and things are better than you think.