While the stylized cut scenes do a decent job of re-imagining the original comic artwork, the in-game graphics are blocky. Worse yet, they’re simply generic, evoking none of the turbo-charged, blood-soaked style of either the comic or the movie.

Multiplayer mode is a welcome addition, and despite how unfriendly the PSP can be sometimes, it’s a great quickie on a bus ride. Hot Pixel is not something you’ll play forever and ever, but it’s a nifty fad.

It’s difficult to fault a game for dreaming big as it still enjoyable to hunt for secrets under Stonehenge. However, that might be because these types of forward-thinking gameplay ideas are almost always alluring. We need to see games with a sense of humanity in its characters and games that can teach the socially awkward in the same way that action games teach reflexes. Perhaps that’s too much to put on a small scale first-person experience. And perhaps it is not, but given how The Bradwell Conspiracy executed its ideas, it might actually be too much to ask for in this case.

Amidst all the other plateaued features the game has to offer, it’s not enough to maintain sufficient buzz or convince jaded gamers not to wait for a seasonal sale.

But in the end, Acclaim has exceeded my expectations. Given, those expectations were very, very low to begin with.

Tecmo Koei sometimes doesn't realize when it stumbles upon good ideas, and Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage 2 abandons several gameplay elements of the original title that it didn't need to. The sequel will still satisfy fans that don't mind the Dynasty Warriors design while nostalgically revisiting the animation, but the game's vital points could have been much stronger.

The refinement of the animations, the character models, and accurately capturing the simulation (that sports titles do best) is missing.

And Alicia is hot, though not sexy as one might expect. Whoever they hired to do her voice work sounds hot, in that she sounds stupid. All of her lines are read woodenly, like a teenager reading aloud in class.

A derivative mess of weak AI, mediocre graphics and a silly plot. While not inedible, this game is only suitable for the starving.

An average rehash of everything that has been done (and at this point, possibly everything that ever will be done) in the series.

Blair Witch 3 makes no effort at an atmosphere of foreboding and danger. Instead, they made it dark. But the dark isn't scary if you know there isn't something in it to be afraid of.

It’s not really “bad” or anything; it’s just too niche for its own good. I found some enjoyment in it, but after a few times playing through the story, it felt more tedious than anything. There’s not enough here to make me want to strive for greatness. Maybe if the devs had strived for it first, I would’ve stayed glued to my controller a bit longer.

It's a shame too, because with four-player local and network options, it could have been a blast if the core elements had been strong. But every system in Fable: Heroes is dreadfully executed. There isn't a single element within it that elicits a smile, which is ironic because of how hard it tries to get you to.

This version isn't quite as intriguing as the conflict on the Xbox thanks to the shoddier look and only two-player multiplayer.

On a whole. Alien Spidy is a platformer whose fun gameplay is slightly overshadowed by its overly stringent level progression mechanic and iffy controls.

I could go on for much longer, pointing out the weightless feel of your player, the cheap and featureless last-gen graphics, the repetitive and unimaginative play-by-play banter, the purposeless customization options or the usually desolate and ultimately just as crappy online multiplayer. But that would be treating the game as if it had tried, when it’s apparent that this baller was looking to ball the pooch all along.

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

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.

An unforgiving game that demands precision and perfection from its racers. The pure joy of racing has been lost in the equation. The racetracks provide nothing that hasn't been seen before, the graphics and music are a step backwards, and like I said, I just didn't have fun.

A surprisingly decent driving game. It has modes for every mood and no glaring flaws, although its short length and numerous frustrating bits will surely turn people away. But the game is also very demanding.

A movie rip-off perpetrated by greedy execs who are certain that the people who enjoyed the movie will be intrigued enough to shell out for this stinker. No doubt the true Imhotep is presently trying to kick a hole in his sarcophagus lid to get at the Konami programmers who have blasphemed his name by attaching it to this abomination.

McQueen truly is “The Cooler King” in more ways than one, which only makes his half-assed showing in this half-assed game a full-fledged bummer. Skip this disaster and rent "The Towering Inferno" instead.

Defenders of Time proved to be surprisingly deep, and it would have captured my attention for a lengthier period of time if it would have proved to be more popular, thus allowing me to experience its multiplayer component far more than I did.

Like so many Hollywood Summer blockbusters: It starts with a cool idea (Hulk destroying stuff) but, from there, grinds to a halt in terms of delivering on its promise. I won't say it's a bad game, because you can get a couple hours of fun out of it running around smashing stuff, but none of it stands out as being exceptional, or even well-done.

Saint Seiya: Brave Warriors is fun enough for the occasional match, but there wasn't anything that held my attention for too long.

Although the game sadly doesn’t use mechanics to tell its story, it represents both the good and bad extremes of what only gaming can do: imbue an emotional tale through interactivity and be technically busted. While Anamorphine’s story is still worth seeing through, it’s a shame that its shoddy optimization tries to actively thwart its touching message at every turn.

Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom follows a straight-forward formula, but somehow, it can’t even get that right. Most of the time, it just makes the gameplay too easy, too basic, or too difficult by design.

Worrisome backers can rest easy with this investment. The intriguing and bromantic tale manages to bring introduce some fresh concepts in the well-established point-and-click genre.

I vote that we petition Krome Studios to either make a new character, or do the world a favor and pick up a franchise that deserves to die.

It’s a simple but elegant little package, just low-key and clever enough for regular gamers, with puzzle challenges that aren’t out of the ‘bot-claw grasp of younger fans of the movie.

Knack may be built on the blocks of charm and difficulty, but by the fourth level, those blocks topple over into a pile of excess tedium.

Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition can be tolerable on the right system. Both PS5 and Xbox Series X offer users the best chance of brute-forcing past the performance barriers but, even then, occasional bugs and glitches can occur. Fun can be had on those current-gen systems, especially by those with some sentimental attachment to the original trilogy, but there’s still likely to be moments of frustration.

But among the worst of it all is the lack of presentation. Nearly every football player looks the same. Their uniforms look like they're made from plastic. Referees have been transformed into Jumbotron cut-scenes. There are no coaches or players on the sidelines. And the crowds are comprised of the same four people copied a million times over.

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 like the concept of River King, the endearing characters, and even the tranquility of the landscapes, but the focus is way off-target.

The wet slapping sound of a fist traveling across a face is a sound I’ll always hold dear, and Sudden Impact sure does deliver in that department.

If it's a classic you're looking for, I don't know if this will completely fit the bill, but the feel is definitely there. If Dream Trigger didn't feel so awkward to play (and painful on the hands after a short while), it would have been graded higher. But as it stands, it's a nice, little distraction, and marks one of the first times that 3D on the system that doesn't feel tacked on.

The loot isn't game-changing, the plot is bare-bones, and the story-building basically nonexistent. Unless you absolutely need to possess Cailan's sweet golden shoulderpads, stop your plans to Return to Ostagar and turn straight back.

The relatively decent graphics, fine character animation and easy gameplay make Sarge's Heroes 2 a surprisingly playable Army Men game, but that isn't saying much.

There are so many rules, combos, mini-games and quests that it's easy to get more than a little confused. But the essence of the game is fun, and all of the variation leaves tons of room for competition.

Dated in almost every way.

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.

Simply a sub-par first-person shooter.

may not be the World's Worst Game, but it's still a waste of time on Thursday night. Man, why couldn't they have made "When Animals Attack" instead?

The controls here are totally unsatisfying. Tack on narrow-minded gameplay and dim graphics and you've got a game that dies quite easily, actually.

This is one gigantic miss and perhaps one of the worst games of the year.

Inarguably, it's a sucky game. Once you've taken Marvel Nemesis through its paces, you'll pierce its glinty armor with your newfound eye beams of license abuse and try to toss it into the local penitentiary for the rest of its unnatural born life.

The amount of backtracking required in Sonic Unleashed is absolutely inexcusable, and this mandatory medal hunting is the nail in the coffin.

989 should just stop with these crummy sports games already. They can't currently compete with the folks at Visual Concepts and EA Sports. If this is next-gen basketball, then I'll stick with the good old days.

Even with its shortcomings, Battle for Naboo is pretty fun.

Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel is an underwhelming third-person shooter that is a clearly a half-hearted cash-grab by Electronic Arts. If you're looking for a game in this genre, I suggest you turn to Gears of War or any number other titles of this ilk. Seriously, this game isn't worth your time. It isn't broken, it just isn't good either.

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.

It's a fun game for short bursts, but there's nothing here that will make anyone long to play it, or even think of it for that matter, when they're not home. Hopefully, the developers will add more content to increase the variety and keep it interesting.

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.

It manages to stumble all over itself from the second you turn it on and never manages to recover. Simple control functions are handled clumsily, changing weapons is a chore and someone actually thought the dumb melee-exclusive levels would be a good idea. Like the rest of this stinker, it is not.

Warfighter isn't a total failure, but it's certainly not up to the standards of the international Tier 1 Operators it clings to.

It is sluggish and boring, unoriginal and tedious. It makes me ill. Don't buy this game.

I can sense the heart in the project, but heart alone doesn’t make a great game unfortunately.

A surprisingly decent driving game. It has modes for every mood and no glaring flaws, although its short length and numerous frustrating bits will surely turn people away. But the game is also very demanding.

I can't help but think that these games would make more sense and perhaps be more enjoyable if Chunsoft didn't use the Pokémon brand to make them. Of course, that would likely cut profits in half, and if I could make a lot more money while putting in a lot less effort, I'd probably do it too.

While the whole experience is a bit heavy on the “throw more fighters into the pit," the overall game isn’t too bad.

There really isn't much here beyond a half-decent fighting engine and the entertaining rag-doll physics.

Except for a few clever puzzles, a strong story, and a handful of pretty pictures, this licensed mess is mostly a failure.

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.

Tough aiming, repetitive gameplay and totally uninspired story elements send the game into a downward spiral, one that ends with a very short single-player mode and few extras. This cop should be kicked off the force.

Scene It? can only be entertaining - not to mention, fair - if everyone playing not only has comparable movie knowledge but also comparable gaming experience, which is completely ludicrous for a casual party game. And the thing that's so infuriating about it all is that these problems could have been fixed with almost zero effort.

But most mystifying of all is the absence of any kind of multiplayer. There’s no Xbox live support and no two-player mode. Believe it or not, the only way to play with someone else is to have two consoles, two copies of the game, two TV’s and the Xbox link cable.

The game is still fluid enough to keep my attention and the NISA writing charm hasn’t yet worn off. It’s not as solid as their tactical stuff, but for a discounted price it’s worth a look. Helping this bitchy witch get some unjustified payback is still a great way to let off some steam.

Although it seemed like there was some promise here, all the Food Network branding in the world can't hide the fact that Food Network: Cook or be Cooked just isn't worth your money.

Legends isn't so much bad as brutally derivative. Fans of Counter-Strike will certainly find some fun within these castle walls, but ultimately will likely opt for a more legendary adventure.

It has an awesome score, a decent story and is one sexy beast. Unfortunately for us, Factor 5 seems to have fallen into the old trap of making outward appearances so appealing, they forgot to make a solid game on the inside.

I already suffered through the X-Men game this summer, so I figured Family Guy comedy would give the formula a much-needed lift. Clearly I've been betrayed, suckered into the same damn thing, and now I'm just frustrated. Family Guy has come very far in reproducing the TV experience, but doesn't get the same ratings.

Unlike Nintendogs, Little Friends isn’t a meditative game in which you joyfully play with and e-cuddle a bunch of adorbs animals. Instead, it’s a laborious slog in which strengthening your bond with your virtual pets takes too long, and the end results aren’t worth the time invested.

Mayhem isn't a guilty pleasure. It's just painful to look at, painful to play.

Windforge has set sail without an adequate pilot, but I’m sad to say that this promising game has crashed and burned.

In the end Doctor Lautrec is really enjoyable when you play it and boring when you're sitting through long cutscenes and dialog exchanges between its bland cast of chracters. It's just too bad the gameplay is spread too far and too thin

While playing offense is very easy, playing defense will have you mashing your cleats into the turf out of frustration.

Playing Sydney 2000 is going through rote finger tapping or timing exercises that will quickly get boring.

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.

This game looks like the result of an evening filled with Spicy Hot Cheetos and warm Pabst Blue Ribbon. Not pretty.

But with an average length (6-8 hours) single-player campaign, and no real reason to replay ir, Inversion holds on to be only a few notches better than passable.

If you really want to play Chaos Theory, go find a used copy of the superior original at a fraction of the price.

The loot-based hack-'n'-slasher does enough right to see it through to the end and beyond, with King's Road difficulty which will test your evasion and force you to join other players despite the camera issues. If Nexon brings some free content into the fold and a few patches, it could be among the best downloadable titles in the marketplace today.

As a mid-range title it would have been fine with the amount of content, but released at near full retail, it's bitten off more than it can chew; something that tastes especially poor when the meal hasn't been fully cooked.

For the die-hard Pokemon player, this game is a must have: the thrill of seeing your team of Pokemon on the big screen duking it out against your buddies will outweigh any flaws, fumbles or complete lack of content the game might have. For the rest of us, however, we may as well sit down and wait for the dawn of the era after this one.

It's still one of my favorite games this year, but the flaws keep me from recommending it to everyone; this is a game for those who love the genre, and want an old-school tactical RPG challenge.

A big disappointment, a shoddy port that suffers due to both the limitations of its new platform and its technical pitfalls.

It's ugly; it's slippery; all of the enemies blend together because they're all the frickin' same... it's awe-inspiringly bad, really. Not since Superman 64 have I played something this stomach-wrenching, and at least in the end that was funny-horrible. This one skips by funny-horrible and goes right back to bad.

It has no pop, nothing that stands out. Every character, except Sierra, speaks the same way and more often than not comes across as completely clueless, even when talking about something they claim to know about.

The cut-scenes, however, deserve special mention. They are performed not with CGI movies or even with the in-game engine, but with absurdly primitive flash movies that use cardboard cut-outs of the characters.

The level design and flow of the game grows tiring quickly. Perhaps if Minority Report the game had better matched the movie, the final product would be more fun and interesting.

A fun and promising new direction for the series, enough to make me anticipate a more polished, more multiplayer-friendly follow-up.

It's got some nice CGI and a few neat lighting effects here and there, but with control issues, lame multiplayer and boring level design it's pretty obvious that the curse has struck again.

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

Inarguably, it’s a sucky game. Once you’ve taken Marvel Nemesis through its paces, you’ll pierce its glinty armor with your newfound eye beams of license abuse and try to toss it into the local penitentiary for the rest of its unnatural born life.

Do not play Warriors Orochi. You'll be in desperate need of high-caliber pain-killers to stomach all that cheese.

If the tablet came with Pictionary instead of just the bland drawing and coloring book software, I could totally see the appeal. But with the game retailing at a full forty dollars and the uDraw a very full eighty bucks, I just can't really recommend it.

I applaud the fact that Over 9000 Zombies! was created by one person, because I'm sure it took a hell of a lot of work. Building barricades and turrets adds a welcome bit of variety, but it doesn't make gameplay deep enough to keep me interested for very long. Gamers who like to dominate leaderboards will appreciate the single-player mode, and I imagine that the side-by-side multiplayer mode will be a hit at parties.