Maybe SSX Blur sums up the first Wii generation - a small-scale game with some interesting but awkward new control ideas, showing the difficulty for developers and players alike in adjusting to Nintendo’s new wave.

An FPS aimed at the lowest common denominator of players. It’s as though this game was precisely calculated to meet the exact average of gameplay.

Though the gameplay is decent fun and it’s cool seeing visuals from a time after the 1980's in your sweaty palms, World Tour Soccer’s limited offer is akin to a marginally implemented infomercial product - it’s more impressive in someone else’s hands.

The Story mode lacks a story, the only other mode sucks, and without a friend to play against the game is just too repetitive to be worth buying.

It would have worked better had the game allowed you to switch from any of these game styles at will. I think that was the original idea, but sadly it all turns out overly scripted and directed.

As it stands, Back to Bed occupies an odd middle-ground, in that it manages to be both endearingly quirky yet fundamentally dull.

I also have to wonder what part of the world Uncle Sam dug up my own squad mates. They could often be seen running in circles and constantly blocking my line of fire. At least they were resilient; one of the guys was turned into Swiss cheese by an enemy bayonet and shrugged it off like nothing happened. Tough guys…tough guys.

For a portable game, it's a time sink that shouldn't be because there's really nothing to it but the pure grind.

A solid attempt that unfortunately does nothing new or unique and suffers from some strange gameplay quirks.

A few hours in and several crewmates later, I'd heard its handful of songs on repeat and I wanted to throw myself overboard as a result. This is representative of the full Sea of Thieves experience right now, where that initial excitement is eventually replaced with a longing for it to present anything new for the player to enjoy.

Just not very exciting. The combat can't find a comfortable medium between action and strategy.

The world of Minecraft alongside all the fun inside cracks at geekdom is the right fit for Telltale, but so far these first two episodes have failed to craft anything remotely as engaging as The Walking Dead or the excellent Tales From the Borderlands.

Star Trek Conquest punches gatling-phaser holes in purist Trekdom all over the place, but it still works on its own humble, low-budget, strategy board-game level. Space-warts and all.

Although its blend of stealth and action is clever, it's also derivative and boring.

If you've got the right family structure, it would make a decent addition to your Wii collection. Otherwise, you'll need a caring and patient older sibling who is willing to dumb themselves down during gameplay for the greater good. How likely is that?

It’s silly, fast and kind of fun, but it also features murky graphics and very little play value. So if you’re looking for a game that makes you feel like Weird Al in a muscle suit, or just want to see how well the Wii handles first person shooting, give this unintentional comedy a rental.

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

But with winners like "Saint’s Row" out there, The Godfather is one big bully stuck in the past.

Resistance: Burning Skies is an excellent proof of concept. It is the tech demo that shows third-party publishers that first-person shooters can be achieved on the Vita hardware. It is by no means a crowning achievement. Instead, Nihilistic have opened the door for other, more accomplished developers to step through.

The game will appeal to small children, its target audience, and may provide an enjoyable multiplayer experience with parents who want to help their kids achieve the game's goals. However, for a game that had the potential to be a fun racer (consider the flying sections of Sega's karting game, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed), it's bland and feels like it was thrown together to meet the release date.

It may not be the end of an era for Crash, but it is certainly a disappointment. Crash Bandicoot: Mind Over Mutant could have been an entertaining game, but it has been rendered the video game equivalent of a nosebleed.

It offers interesting gameplay mechanics and a ton of modes, but the pieces don't fit together well, making this mascot racer better suited for a weekend drag race than a 500 lap cruise.

Unfortunately, it's getting old and this Xbox version offers little new. It goes for broke, but ends up breaking the formula with some graphical slowdown that seriously detracts from the craziness.

Warmind is a big let-down that threatens to wipe out any sort of enthusiasm for the game that might be left. After all, if this is what you have to look forward to, why keep playing?

The battle system whips along, only to have its toes stomped by the boring crafting system. In the end Blade Dancer: Lineage of Light has a fine sense of rhythm, but two left feet.

If you feel like punching a few random people into buildings, then Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai - Another Road may be worth your time. But if you played the last one, there’s really no reason to consider getting this one. If you’ve played one Dragon Ball, you’ve played them all.

Bottom-line is, if you’ve been playing games for any length of time, you’ve likely played a game in this series (there are roughly 3,000 of them after all... could be fewer), and you know what to expect. What it may lack in honest-to-goodness personality, it almost makes up for in button-mashing fun, and the satisfaction of that little KO number reaching three or four digits.

Unless that person is solidly in the Naruto fandom, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 – Full Burst is not the game for them. For those inside the confines of the fandom, however, they will probably be able to overlook the things the rest of us see as faults and soak up the fanservice Namco BANDAI delivers.

The bad enemy AI, poor enemy variety and extreme linearity makes it hard to want to play any of the levels more than once. In the case of the Banner levels, you won't want to play them at all.

Though the objectives are overly simple and quite repetitive, the game is well programmed with decent graphics and a solid pace, and the cooperative aspect should make for many lively slumber parties. Just don’t expect it to keep the grown-up ogres entertained for long.

If you're willing to overlook the absence of the main characters, have a really open mind about kart games and are under the age of ten, you'll probably enjoy this one.

Even with multiplayer modes that are mostly fun and the constant leaderboard competition to be had with friends and strangers online, Blitz is pretty much the same game you can play for cheap (or free) elsewhere, except with a new coat of paint and a heftier price tag.

Neat gameplay is marred by a tough camera system and the lack of interesting toys is a letdown, but the game is a solid appetizer for another certain espionage game that's on the way.

For all Ninja Gaiden 3 tries to pull sympathy from its players onto its protagonist, it seems to have lost its way. It's an example of a game that is less than the sum of its parts-each on their own are fine, perhaps even good-because the entire thing is just stretched too thin. A two-hour campaign for a fraction of the cost would have, ironically, been much easier to recommend. But with things as they are, Ninja Gaiden 3 will only satisfy people wanting the video game equivalent to the weekend popcorn action flick.

The multitude of enemies, unique implementation of the SPR4 and a few nicely done weather effects make for a solid experience, though this is ultimately undermined by the twitchy control, awful camera and lack of free movement.

Maybe it's because I'm not Japanese or familiar with Japanese culture, but these otome games, I'm sure they have a place in Western society, but I don't quite know where to put them.

Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON'T KNOW! does a great job of managing and working with the story, characters, and feel of the franchise, but unfortunately doesn't have the gameplay to match, especially at a $40 retail price. If you're interested in the narrative and the chance to play as your favorite characters, wait for the price to come down to $15-20, more in keeping with the kind of downloadable title this game feels like.

Despite its flaws, it remains a unique experience and a rare, intimate look into an illness that is often misunderstood by media.

True Swing Golf's attempt to revolutionize video golf swings and misses thanks to its oversimplified control, marginal delivery and uninspired play modes, so we recommend saving your cash for a cleaner, harder course.

On that front, Rory McIlroy PGA Tour likely has a well-formed plan for DLC that includes more courses and perhaps more golfers, but this base game might not be enough to convince fans to pay full price at the start.

While fans of the franchise will get a kick out of re-enacting their personal favorite battles, most folks will probably be wishing that hacking up hobbits was more like blasting Ewoks. And even if you do get a kick out of it, much like dating a crazy hot chick, the enjoyment will be short-lived once you start to look beyond the surface and see the glaring flaws.

Passable and tolerable.

While solid in its presentation and adequate in its basic gameplay, it's little more than another individually-wrapped snack in the great and majestic adventure of human flight.

The Simpsons has everything you need for an excellent free-to-play game, including universal appeal, a wealth of material, and excellent little sound bytes like "D'oh" and Krusty's iconic laugh. It's just a shame that Electronics Arts has to choke the life out of that wonder with their oppressive Origin service.

Myths of the Eastern Realm is so repetitive because it changes almost nothing about the repetitive game it was based upon aside from the setting. This expansion could have been a chance for Ubisoft to address criticisms of that core experience by implementing a more varied toolset, moving away from block pushing, and allowing for more freeform exploration all while taking fulling advantage of Chinese mythology. Instead it makes all the same mistakes, which are more unforgiving this time around. Immortals itself was already awash with unoriginal ideas and Myths of the Eastern Realm is only following that trend, making it a derivative expansion of an already-derivative game.

An average game. It's got a lot of good ideas that we've seen before, but isn't able to pull it all together. Still, it's got a decent story and extras that will continue to challenge after Racing Life is done.

Trace Memory is basically "MYST" for kids, offering a short trip through puzzle-ville with occasional stops at the lame story station.

If you’ve already made up your mind that your futuristic PSP is incomplete without the attendance of old farts like Pac-Man and Dig Dug, this does the trick by providing a smooth, glitch free emulation of the selected games. Just make sure to take off those rosy glasses before you slap any cash on the table.

The flow is maddeningly repetitive. It's also way, way too linear. You cannot fly around and explore at your own free will. Instead, you just land on a big base, kill stuff, shoot ships, then move on to the next level.

While Ghosthunter sets up a freaky scene, it never does much to distinguish itself from your average action game. There are no big scares and only mildly interesting action.

The Battle of Forli shouldn't be considered an expansion pack. because it simply isn't. Its content belonged in the main game in the first place, as it contains a relatively important part of Assassin's Creed 2's story.

The Gamecube version of Prisoner of Azkaban features a few mini-games that can be played as bonus activities as well as the ability to hook up a GBA and take care of a pet owl, which is not very fun. Compared to the PS2's EyeToy games, the extras here are pretty thin.

I enjoy the basic gameplay, and the Saturday-morning cartoon-style visuals and light humor add to the fun. However, the lack of variety and poor design decisions make it seem like I'm the one that's cursed whenever I play.

But if you’re someone who’s been out of school for a while and wants to remember what it’s like to feel the sting and confusion of a mysterious grading system, or if you’re someone who desperately needs a summertime grading fix while school’s out, then by all means, check this out.

Oddly, Need for Speed: Most Wanted 5-1-0 would have been a better game if they had just left the police back at the donut shop. The combination of badly integrated cops, too few cars, and trammeled car physics keep this game off our most wanted list.

Its poor level design makes way for forced difficulty, and aside from its colorful, welcoming art style it is an altogether forgettable experience. Insomniac will no doubt return to the PC in the future, and when they do they’ll hopefully have something more substantial up their sleeves.

Tell Me Why and Dontnod deserve praise for the game’s carefully considered representation of trans protagonist Tyler, but unfortunately, the game struggles on all other fronts. It tries to make you care about its characters by way of explaining everything about them, leading to jarring interactions and tons of useless exposition. While its strong performances and central mystery ensured I still wanted to see how it all played out, I was also left disappointed by its underwhelming conclusion. Ultimately, it’s a small-town mystery that’s best unsolved, and it’s more interesting before all of its loose threads are haphazardly tied together.

Admittedly, it does end up my favorite of the Toy Story games, but that isn't saying much.

Because of the clever story and interesting characters, it's worth struggling to the end through the more tedious puzzles (or cheating with an online walkthrough). But if you were hoping for a more player-friendly adventure, you might want to skip straight to Sam and Max Season 2.

In essence, it’s a boat that looks nice from the outside until you jump inside and notice all the holes actively trying to sink the whole thing.

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

Mafia: Definitive Edition is tedious enough as it is by 2020 standards. Clunky gunplay and lousy vehicle handling make the shootouts as frustrating as the getaway drive. The promising setup can’t avoid getting whacked either as it disappoints through its inability to meaningfully execute on its multiple beats. The talented cast and better realized 1930s world outdo its 2002 counterpart, but the rest of its blunders come together and result in an offer that’s relatively easy to refuse.

There's a good deal on the surface to enjoy... When you get past the surface, the random mash of melee and the forced repetition of the levels chillingly weaken Enclave from the inside out.

It offers interesting gameplay mechanics and a ton of modes, but the pieces don't fit together well, making this mascot racer better suited for a weekend drag race than a 500 lap cruise.

Rather than letting this franchise rest, developers and publishers want to tread on the grave of a game we'd mostly like to rest in peace.

I played on the PS4, which most definitely added to my frustration. The beginning is especially overwhelming as the menu options are so dull and dense. There's just too much text to read on my HDTV. (On a PC, I assume with the screen up close, it's not a big deal.) RTSs are often not suited for consoles, and this is sadly one such example.

Once the gross novelty wears off, you'll discover that there's not a lot of game underneath, and even Hannibal Lecter would get bored after this many victims.

Mirror's Edge is the kind of game that you can see in the curriculum of some design school for its outside-of-the-box approach and polished style. But playing it is a different story. If you do feel the need to punish yourself, spend your money on a dominatrix instead of Mirror’s Edge.

While there are some fun effects and animations with the weaponry (I admit I still laugh every time an anal probe victim runs away from me clutching their rears), the graphics are surprisingly blocky and crude, even for a Wii game.

The idea of an open-ended, multi-squad, strategic, cooperative shooter is incredible, and during those short bursts when Red River comes together-especially when playing with friends-there are few games like it. But there are so many issues, both large and small, that you'll have to overlook a lot of flaws in order to enjoy it.

Instead of giving grinding aficionados the opportunity to progress and level smoothly, difficulty will often ramp up without warning, forcing players to head back to previous floors and walk in circles until they have enough power. When you have to engage in a stale, merely passable battle system over and over again, it grows less and less entertaining quickly.

The idea of an open-ended, multi-squad, strategic, cooperative shooter is incredible, and during those short bursts when Red River comes together-especially when playing with friends-there are few games like it. But there are so many issues, both large and small, that you'll have to overlook a lot of flaws in order to enjoy it.

The inclusion of P4D in the $99 Persona Dancing: Endless Night Collection sweetens the deal somewhat, but it’s still a lot to ask for an unchanged port of P4D and two games that are sparse on substance.

The Simpsons Game may just be the funniest video game ever, but funny is not the same as fun,and it's just not a very good game. I found myself wanting to finish the game just for the humor, even though I was screaming at the TV after falling down the 10,000th pit or when the camera showing me the wall again while i get killed.

In the end, Samurai Warriors 4 Empires is basically the same as Samurai Warriors 4-II, but with a heavy emphasis on pre-combat strategy and no interesting storylines for the characters. Fans of the series will appreciate the variation on gameplay, but there's nothing to draw new players to the franchise.

While Spider-man for the N64 has some of the snazzy spider's super skills down pat, it falls prey to some boring gameplay design.

The idea of an open-ended, multi-squad, strategic, cooperative shooter is incredible, and during those short bursts when Red River comes together-especially when playing with friends-there are few games like it. But there are so many issues, both large and small, that you'll have to overlook a lot of flaws in order to enjoy it.

Elex could well be this generation's cult favorite RPG, much like Two Worlds was mine, and the developer of Gothic and Risen has easily made its most beautiful and interesting setting yet. The world of Magalan is intriguing with its blend of technology and magic, but it's unfortunate that the game tucked inside of it is only fun to play half of the time.

May have a fine pedigree, but it's the runt of the litter. As Bonk once might have shouted, "Game not very good! Get C! Probably. Not Sure!!"

Both Lara and her series are well past their prime, and both try in vain to look half their age. Though she might be worth a few hours of your time, Lara’s best days are far behind her.

Despite the feeling of catharsis I achieve when playing Koi, it still lacks many of the fundamentals that make a video game compelling. Add in the fact that the experience only lasts around two hours, and the result is a game that feels incomplete.

Visually, Bloody Roar Extreme is fine if somewhat boring. It does have a very smooth framerate, but it's readily apparent that these graphics weren't designed with the Xbox originally in mind.

Everything about it makes sense, and it’s a better game at the end of the day due to the added polish. However, it’s not nearly good enough to get recommended with the games it’s now competing with and has lost much of its original appeal along the way.

Ultimately, Splatterhouse is a fun game when taken in tiny chunks.

While solid in its presentation and adequate in its basic gameplay, it’s little more than another individually-wrapped snack in the great and majestic adventure of human flight.

I want to love Endless Space: Disharmony as wildly as I did the original, but in its current state I simply cannot. The performance issues, and borked ship-building alone are reason enough for me to forego this expansion, and the other additions, though inoffensive, don't come near to making me second guess that notion.

I'm indeed a fan of Ridge Racer, which is precisely why I'd like to see it do better than this cookie-cutter offering. It's well past time for Namco to start tinkering under the hood of this old jalopy, especially considering the impressive new engines powering games these days.

“Disjunction” sounds like a made-up word, but it is used to describe something that has a “lack of correspondence or consistency,” according to the dictionary. And that is an apt description of this game that wears this word as its name. It attempts to blend two diametrically opposed gameplay systems — a novel concept — but does so sloppily, resulting in a disjointed, discordant, and disappointing experience that substitutes repetition for depth. Hotline Miami and Metal Gear deserve to be fused together to form some sort of upgraded cyborg, but the two have just been haphazardly fused into a mass of bloody flesh and rusty metal that’s better off left in either a biohazardous waste bag or the scrap heap.

Unfortunately, some good ideas are handled badly and some basic, necessary rules are strangely ignored, leading to a thoroughly sub-par combatant.

Michael Jackson: The Experience 3D is an unfortunate game that punishes the player at the beginning and far too slowly develops into a functional game. I found myself playing the game just to listen to the songs, which speaks to the enduring power of Michael Jackson's pop legacy that I was willing to weather this game in order to listen to the music. Bottom line: Buy some CDs or MP3s instead.

This is a tired, dull platformer that only manages to avoid the pitfalls of purgatory by way of its groovy style and decent character design.

It is redeemed by its attempt at varied and balanced play and the fact that, compared to its siblings, it's shorter than a legless dwarf caterpillar after a confrontation with the business end of a shoe.

It’s sad to think that with all its high-tech fanciness of the new console generation, TMNT can’t even muster up the personality and gameplay of the old arcade games.

The PS2 version is the ugliest, with the Gamecube a close second and the Xbox looking the best, but even the green machine version won't be winning any awards.

Carried over from the last generation, this fighting game just feels old and fights with no heart whatsoever.

Tries to make advances in the import racing game scene with a big city and interesting reward system, but its lack of white-knuckle racing and true customization slows it down. All show and no go makes this a dull ride.

As good funny and entertaining as Whiplash is off the bat, I don’t feel I grew as a result of having played it, and might have even shrunk a little four hours in.

Falls far, far short of its Xbox forbear in one critical area. The praiseworthy online support that helped the Xbox edition over the steep hill of monotony is as absent as a truant with a severe case of senioritis. They didn't even include split-screen.