It's hard not to appreciate the artistry behind The Rub Rabbits, but it's quite easy to write off its boring, repetitive gameplay.

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.

Vanishing Point suffers from fatal conceptual flaws. Complete reliance on unlockable features, limited choices of starting vehicles and tracks, and staggered opponent start times have taken what could have been a good game and ruined it.

Its style and abundance of butt-kicking goodness provide enough fun for the whole ninja clan, though it's a little light on depth for the more hardcore fighters.

Like attendants at a holy temple, developers like this keep the torches lit for any wandering players looking for a gateway into a bygone era. And those willing to track down this temple will likely feel right at home.

It’s not to say that Port Royale 4 is a bad game. It’s just unambitious. It fails to distinguish itself in any way. It’s a good distraction for a few hours, but not a title many will find themselves returning to in the long run.

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.

Though it isn’t the freshest rhythm game in the world, Beatmania hits the stage rocking thanks to a pretty large list of tunes, a groovy controller and tons of modes and options.

From a value perspective, you're dealing with a feature-film's worth of content for fifty bucks. Independently wealthy, rabid fanboys might want to check it out, otherwise we'd leave this fox to the dogs.

A heaping bowl of mediocrity that quickly turns soggy in drenched pints of blood.

It's just not hard enough. I beat the Grand Prix mode in about an hour and a half on my first try. I completed Champion's Revolution in the same time without losing one fight. I beat 21 straight opponents in my first shot at the Ironman endurance mode.

The decidedly fragile environments and variety of units give players a sense of having something to fight for in both campaign and multiplayer beyond the unchanging battlefields of the typical turn-based strategy game. More depth and better delivery would have made this war far more civil.

Instead of the in-your-face outright scare without substance, Maiden of Black Water goes for a sense of dread paired with an insatiable curiosity to know what happened next. It's a welcome re-introduction to the franchise in the West, a hit for the Wii U, which is still trying to prove it can appeal to "Mature" gamers.

Even though it isn't a long game, Fancy Pants Adventures oozes with charm.

There’s so much about it to like—the wonderful visuals, easy-to-understand battle system, sensible leveling system and just enough personality to make a call to arms charming. If it didn’t make me also consider punching either myself or my system, this could be one of my favorite games.

I really wanted to like Forced Showdown. Maybe there’s something about it that just didn’t *click* with me. Too many half-baked ideas does not a casserole make, my mother always said. If they had taken the time to expand on what makes each of the genres compelling, this could have been a whole different review. Instead, it’s a hot mess on your keyboard.

A fun but ultimately forgettable RTS. It’s a guided, open-topped bus tour of Middle Earth where you only stop at a the tourist places, buy a snow globe with a miniature Lothlorien inside, eat some Frodo-Fries, and never get to see any of the real place.

I can't shake the feeling that Star Wars: Bounty Hunter started off as a grand and ambitious project that got pushed out into space before it was ready.

As it stands, though, Teenage Zombies is a mediocre game at best, offering less and less incentive and getting increasingly repetitive the more you play.

From the half-hearted RPG elements that either needed to be expanded upon or removed to the frustrating story layout, there are too many issues that get in the way of enjoying creating a bristling magical city.

Sniper Elite V2 certainly includes much more sniping techniques than your normal action shooter, which makes it different and fun to play, but it needs more of a storyline and varied missions to emphasize those features. Despite its sub-par and repetitive gameplay, there is still much to do after the SP campaign is completed, making this game worthy enough to at least try it out and see if you have steady aim.

The troublesome touch controls result in a lesser experience, but at its core Broken Sword 5 is still a solid adventure game.

Taken as a whole, there's a lot of content in SOCOM 4.

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.

Surely, if it weren't for the awful, unnecessarily nihilistic item management, I could easily recommend The UnderGarden to just about anyone.

The moment-to-moment activity of open-world Spider-Man is finally clean, smooth, and fun.

In the end, Wreckateer has all the hassle of the Kinect, all the smoke-up-your-ass style of Peggle, all the gameplay of Angry Birds, and a little Shrek-style humor for good measure.

The solid firefights make for fun action sequences and the laugh-out-loud NPC dialogue really helps the progression of an otherwise uninspired storyline.