Despite its solid delivery and the admittedly groovy prospect of controlling Sauron and Saruman in Moria, the notable gameplay and pacing problems bring the whole adventure down in a hail of arrows.

Operation Flashpoint: Elite is simply an old, crippled vet that should have been left to its episodes of Judge Judy and servings of lime Jell-O in the gaming retirement home.

A solid game that, on all platforms, performs admirably, draws you into the story, takes itself (and you) seriously, and does the genre proud. It's too thin around the waist to really tangle with the big boys.

If you really have to get down with some four-player bashing on the Gamecube, grab a used copy of "Super Smash." (Or go new; Nintendo could use the cash.) Even diehard Viewtiful Joe fans should think twice before spending the money on this madness.

Frankly, the Gamecube version of Gun holds up just fine, although it's arguably the most strained in terms of control scheme.

Kameo isn’t the deepest or most challenging game in the Xbox 360 launch window, but it looks awesome and offers solid, if fleeting, fun.

I've already spent more time with Guitar Hero than just about anything this season, and it's as entertaining as it was the first day. Harmonix has created a game that’s addictive, tougher than John Wayne's sinew and, to be frank, simply rocks.

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

Armed with a healthy Internet connection, this game will hold at bay the forces of boredom for months. Switch off that connection, though, and witness the biggest turn to the lame side since the new Star Wars movies.

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?

Don't be lured in with its evil promises - the shallow gameplay and rough delivery will make everyone who plays it a victim.

Armed with a healthy Internet connection, this game will hold at bay the forces of boredom for months. Switch off that connection, though, and witness the biggest turn to the lame side since the new Star Wars movies.

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?

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?

Armed with a healthy Internet connection, this game will hold at bay the forces of boredom for months. Switch off that connection, though, and witness the biggest turn to the lame side since the new Star Wars movies.

The combat gameplay is unrivaled, especially during some of the very creative boss battles. It's also the longest Resident Evil game yet, with 25 - 30 hours of gameplay on two discs along with a ton of unlockables that will make you want to do it all over again.

It's odd new modes and lackluster character creator leave something to be desired and the game still isn’t playable online. Hopefully the next blade will be a bit sharper.

It delivers unbelievable graphics and more cathartic chaos than you can shoot a luger at, but has something of a dumb head on its shoulders, an overly simple control scheme and busies itself providing greater densities of the same old content without doing anything new.

While the game doesn't bring a lot of new to the table, it certainly removes some wind resistance and delivers another admirable volley of cartoonish violence. Plenty of solid action and good humor make up for its lack of adventure.

From start to finish this is a terrific, addictive, deep, rewarding turn-based affair. Its new engine and revamped multiplayer breathe new life into an old standby, leading to another winner for Sid.

It suffers from several obvious shortcomings, but accomplishes what only a week ago seemed impossible by providing console gamers with the full Battlefield experience.

Rockstar deserves props for miraculously cramming this much candy into such a small pouch without ripping a hole in the bottom, and while it doesn’t favorably compare to its older kin, it far outshines other attempts at shrinking GTA.

But the underlying gameplay and A.I. that made the PC version such a cohesive package is lost on this new generation of sexless sims, who care only for new rugs, expensive coffee tables, and balanced meals. They’re perfect yuppies, and perfectly boring.

Next time, hopefully Fuse will go easier on the mini-games. We'd rather have a character-based game that's great at pinball rather than a fence-riding jack of all trades that is master of none.

Call of Cthulhu shows that the first-person perspective doesn't always have to pack an uzi, and can even be the perfect view for players interested in a more cerebral challenge. Its dated look and absurd difficulty will probably consign it to mere cult status, but perhaps that's really where a game based on Lovecraft belongs.

It suffers from several obvious shortcomings, but accomplishes what only a week ago seemed impossible by providing console gamers with the full Battlefield experience.

But the underlying gameplay and A.I. that made the PC version such a cohesive package is lost on this new generation of sexless sims, who care only for new rugs, expensive coffee tables, and balanced meals. They're perfect yuppies, and perfectly boring.

But the underlying gameplay and A.I. that made the PC version such a cohesive package is lost on this new generation of sexless sims, who care only for new rugs, expensive coffee tables, and balanced meals. They're perfect yuppies, and perfectly boring.