What we’re left with is a good stab at innovation marred by hopelessly dated level design and short (you can beat it in 10 hours), repetitive gameplay. You get the feeling that Alter Echo could have been much more.

A decent rental that just might give your 7 year old sibling something to do for a few hours.

With both this expansion and its predecessor, Heroes IV expansions only give you more of the same... and charge you $30 for the pleasure. Does that make this a bad game? No, it doesn't, but it is a bad expansion.

For the determined vampire hunter, Castlevania: Curse of Darkness can be engaging, but only in the manner of any item-heavy level grind.

Though Magnetica is a decent little puzzler, it’s also available all over the Internet in a million different versions, almost all of which are cheaper than this full $34.99 price tag. You're intelligent enough of a consumer to know that makes this a hard sell, and in this case, knowing is half the puzzle.

The solid story, decent backgrounds and cool gadgets just aren't enough to offset the lame animation, awful control and bland action.

For a while, it is rather enjoyable to cruise by and experience the closest thing you’ll ever have to being anything like Hef, but you'll quickly long for deeper gameplay or a more real sense of progression. Use that $50 on 3 years’ worth of Playboy subscriptions instead.

Gives World War II games a bad name by skimping on the essentials - story, A.I. and multiplayer - to focus on floating icons and the art of hiding behind crates. Instead, just hide your wallet.

If I were giving a grade on presentation, the marks would be higher. But since I actually have to play through the games, I have to take a not-so-pleasant trip down memory lane. Oh look, some game didn't pick up after themselves, and I've stepped in it.

The game's biggest flaw is its story, which is ironic due to the fact that the Lord of the Rings trilogy is all about its story.

Though the gameplay, levels and story are exactly the same across all three platforms, the PS2 version is the worst of the lot due to the choppy graphics and limited multiplayer.

It overwhelmingly asks the question: “Why fight?” It can’t be for the rewards, which are boring. It can’t be for the story, which is non-existent. And it really can’t be for pride, since without any online multiplayer, you are confined to fighting only people who probably have never played before and who might not enjoy coming over to your apartment solely to get their ass kicked.

At best, I would say this is a game that you can thoroughly ... tolerate.

Its sardonic take on typical conventions is thwarted by its own weak design, and its tongue-in-cheek humor fails more often than it succeeds. Laughter might well be the best medicine, but a bad joke is the worst ailment.

If you’re hardcore into flight sim games, you might find some satisfaction from the better parts of this highway to the danger zone, but if you’re looking for the next Crimson Skies, keep looking.

Despite its innovation, charm and style, the glaring functionality omissions render it impotent. You turn it on, draw out some cool sounds for a couple minutes, and then shut it off wondering why you can't save anything.

Ultimately a bland, thankless and unconvincing entry in the annals of WWII games.

So there you have it: 2K9 comes off as a misguided effort to streamline the experience and create gameplay where realism comes before responsiveness.

I get the feeling that development on Star Wars: The Clone Wars may have been rushed to coincide with the release of the second season of the show, which is kind of a shame because there is a lot potential in the concepts behind it.

While Tecmo Bowl Throwback definitely scratches your nostalgia itch (if you have one), it's just plain and not very fun in the long run in this day and age.

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

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.

I would love to drive an indestructible car that could never, ever flip in my ordinary, everyday life, but when we play games, we like to break things. After playing some Asphalt Urban GT, you’ll just want to break your Nintendo DS.

MLB Power Pros 2008 sits and stares you down from the television like a catcher who gives his pitcher bad signals.

Order of the Pheonix is all about homework and chores, and feels harder to take in than a whole book - those are poor marks for a video game.

Some gamers can look past gritty textures and stickmen for the decent gameplay and variety, but the poor control that plagues 007 Racing is hard to resolve.

It's a whole lot of “blah” in a tiny piece of plastic.

The King, it hurts me to say, has been de-throned.