But Van Helsing's missions are all means to an end, which is to rehash the film's plot in a videogame.

It's not as pretty as "Splinter Cell", it's not as engaging as "SOCOM 2", and it features a frustration factor that's almost in the realm of "Ninja Gaiden"—without the rewards.

Enjoying La Pucelle Tactics requires a compulsive temperament and a perverse sense of humor.

Like making love to an armadillo; it may be rough and full of bumps, but underneath it all is one sweet ride.

A great popcorn thrill-ride from start to finish. It may not be the deepest or most thought-provoking thing out there, but there's no question it delivers on its promise of slam-bang action and enough plot to hold it together.

The game has the energy and vibe of a Roger Corman film, and like Corman's movies, Serious Sam: Next Encounter not only feels like it was created in just a few days on a very low budget, but it's also obvious from the puckish spirit of the final product that the people who made the game had one hell of a time doing so.

The combination of brutal, mostly unwinnable combat and the level-scouring required to solve some of the puzzles might be frustrating to some.

Yes, the EyeToy has potential. Groove is an example that the potential has yet to be realized.

Worth playing because its one of only a few videogames on the market that does not lead me from point A to point B and just flat out refuses to do any of the hand-holding that gamers are accustomed to.

My only real complaint about the game is that there aren't any bonuses or historical materials giving props to the original game.

Just about every feature in Fight Night lives up to the hype and feels right, if not outstanding.

Hacking and slashing my way through legions of intelligent monsters was surprisingly enjoyable, as was the addictive challenge to always increase my combo count. Overall, the space opera mixed with kick alien ass produced a fun bout of story-driven hack-n-slash, that gives as good as it gets.

I've never had an interest in MMORPGs until now, and since this game has released, I've got a full-fledged addiction (witnessed by my 14 full days of playtime since the PlayStation 2 launch last month).

The shooting was fun and all, but it would have been much more satisfying had I felt like all of my murdering had been in service of something.

In sharp contrast to many other games' hackneyed, hastily tossed-together multiplayer, Pandora Tomorrow offers one of the most creative and compelling online games ever made.

A mildly diverting shooting gallery, a mediocre FPS, and a slap in the face to those of us who have been waiting for seven years for a decent western-themed shooter.

With flat, repetitive environments and uninspiring combat, Breakdown doesn't have much to recommend it.

Sure, the game has flaws. But they're transcended by its ability to put us in awe of our own lives. We see our daily tedium through fresh eyes, feel it through newly excited thumbs.

Enemies in Return from Darkness are dumb. They're not so bad at visually spotting a character, but when it comes to chasing a spotted ninja down, they suck.

Rather from the bold, unique effort I hoped it would be, it's a weak, contrived bore that never gets off the ground. A four alarm blaze? More like a soggy day-old campfire.

The bland graphics, clunky controls, and atrocious load times (nearing 40 seconds in some instances) are nearly insurmountable shortcomings.

Playing this game was like witnessing the Broadway musical of Metal Gear Solid. Or maybe it's more like the movie adaptation of the book. You don't learn anything particularly new things about the characters or the story.

To recap: imagine playing the most uninspired, atmosphere-free "Resident Evil" clone that could exist... Then instead of using a control pad, you must verbally tell your brain-free character exactly what to do every step of the way. This is what Lifeline is like.

While developer Cavia has done a fine job of aping what makes "Panzer Dragoon" so much fun, the "Dynasty Warriors" elements of the game are sorely lacking.

With a string of never-ending combos rattling off my fingertips intuitively, without thought, I now stand my ground against one and all, confident in my abilities, quite certain of my power. And it's exhilarating, in the face of such overwhelming adversity, to be able to do so.

Heck, if this game had been released in 1996, it would have been a classic. But it was about eight years too late, and ends up only being good enough not to be a complete wash up.

Instead of finding innovative means to explore new narratives, they are content to rely only on its effective control scheme and Jet Li's face to drive the core experience. Everything else falls back on tired videogame conventions and that makes Rise to Honor an acceptable game, but a deeply flawed next generation model.

But there isn't any game that comes closer to giving the feel of soccer and there are few games that come closer to gaming perfection.