Even without the online element, Street v3 is still excellence personified.

A solid game, but largely derivative. Pick it up if you haven't played the first.

Originality is what Full Metal Alchemist and the Broken Angel, in the end, is lacking. The transmutation is mildly creative, but it's not going to sustain a been-there-done-that story or utterly mindless, thoughtless brawling.

There's only two puzzlers on DS to date, and Zoo Keeper trumps "Mr. Driller" with the inclusion of single-cart multiplayer. Worth a pickup, if puzzlers are your thing.

The most depressing thing about Black Monday is that parts of inspiration or beauty occasionally shine in the abyss of missed potential. This game is alright, but aspires—rightfully so—for much more, and misses the mark.

Resident Evil 4 is heartstopping moment after heartstopping moment, paced nearly perfectly and executed flawlessly. 2005 has its game of the year, and that game is Resident Evil 4.

I loved NFL Street 2, but in the end it refused to grab my attention as sharply as the original, perhaps because the key single player modes are inherently similar between the two games.

When you're trying to sell a game to a non-hardcore crowd, don't make it frustratingly hard for no reason.

I've seldom had this much anticipation for a sequel, and even more seldom had my high expectations met.

The presentation is completely misguided, and the combat is largely unrewarding. Under all this, the platforming is as creative and addictive as it was in Sands of Time, but the polish and sense of wonder are sorely missed.

It's a tactical, team-based online shooter that isn't very tactical, is only technically team-based, and has broken netcode. What do you think?

Taken as just another game, rather than as a part of the larger Bond iconography, it's really a fairly enjoyable time. Rogue Agent doesn't go on the "best ever" list the way "Everything or Nothing" did, but there are worse ways to pass a Saturday afternoon.

Alien Hominid is a shiny, bloody cartoon you can play by a team of guys who wanted to make a shiny, bloody cartoon you can play. It works.

Definitely worth a look for fans of the series and newcomers alike, but there are better choices out there.

One of the best games ever made. Not getting this game should be a crime.

The wasted potential here is like a swift kick to the face. Still, it's worth a play if you live by the gospel of QCF + P.

Just as the SNES is frequently called the "RPGers' console," games like Ghost Recon 2 are giving Xbox an enduring reputation as the "shooters console."

This is proof not only that the first game's greatness wasn't an anomaly, but also that true effort in game design can overcome even the greatest possibilities for a letdown. Samus is back, people; get ready to ride, for the most anticipated GameCube game of 2004 is here, and it rocks the house.

Just because there's everything but the kitchen sink doesn't mean it's a good game. Luckily, Jak 3 is a good game.

Halo 2 met my own lofty expectations in virtually every way possible, minus two small exceptions: first, I would love to have been able to play two-player co-op on Xbox Live; it's unfortunate that this didn't happen. Secondly, while I found the story much more engaging this time around, I also found the ending a little bit jarring.

Throw in a GBA-Gamecube linkup that allows you to load your portable Urbz into the bigger version, and you have a game large enough to keep your interest so long as you're willing. But once the gameplay starts to feel repetitive-and after a few hours, cracks in the façade will begin to show-then you're in trouble.

An enjoyable experience worthy of the Ratchet name...even if we're hoping the next iteration of the series pushes the envelope instead of merely experimenting.

Above average- it's just far from amazing.

Plenty of variety and a wild sense of speed combined with tight control equals fun for the whole family.

Guilty Gear Isuka does a lot of new things. They just aren't fun things.

San Andreas is a true epic, but no game should be this frustrating.

Though the game may have its frustrating moments, the amount of assistance the computer gives the player is ridiculous. For example, one "ghost shot" is allowed per hole. What this does is show you exactly how far and where the ball would land (and subsequently bounce) if you got a perfect shot. This is a HUGE help (and very cheap) help with chipping.

It's got all the bad hair and pretty boys, but none of the fighting soul.

The difficulty and audio make the price of entry a bit high, but the story and scale are worth it if you're looking for something a bit different.

These treasures are glass jewels in tin settings.

This game is smooth and polished enough to feel like it has years of work behind it. Design issues aside, Tin Soldiers: Alexander the Great is staying on this psuedo-grognard's hard drive for a while to come.

If Gamenikki scored games with singers instead of numbers, Get On Da Mic would be Milli Vanilli.

One of the strongest titles to be released in 2004. The gripping story, maddening puzzles, and style of the game remains a stark contrast to the Half-Life's and Doom's typically residing on store shelfs.

Where the series goes from here (Please, a cross over with the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" series?), it will have a mighty legacy to live up to.

The environments are expansive and varied, and you can interact (read: destroy) virtually anything you come across. The cel-shading effect is put to good use here.

The simplicity and fairly low challenge bely shockingly addictive gameplay. While big-name, big-budget sequels may dominate this year's holiday season, Katamari Damacy is a quiet, almost invisible candidate for Game of the Year. This is not a game to be missed, especially since it's only $20.

There are better shooters around, but if you’ve long hankered for vehicular Star Wars mayhem, Battlefront was made for you.

Occasional jankiness is made up for by a ridiculously low price and copious shooter goodness.

A game sequel done right, with only the blatant and unabashed commercialism working against it...or for it, depending on how you look at the game.

With lackluster sound, generic, objective-based (and painfully straightforward) gameplay, and graphics being the only saving grace (and only half the time at that), it’s difficult to recommend Shellshock as anything more than a rental for fans of the genre.

Takes a winning formula and makes it better. Gamers looking for a good multiplayer title, or who just don't cant stand another round of "Doom3" should be sure to look up United Offensive.

The sense of freedom ultimately serves to highlight the inevitable limitations.

To put it simply, it's nearly impossible to enjoy Bad Boys: Miami Takedown without being completely naive. The presentation, game play, and voice acting are all about 10 years behind, it's a sad state of affairs.

Innovates itself into a corner. Tactical RPG fans are going to dig on the creative character development but they'll be the only ones interested in putting up with the awkward controls and even more awkward gridless combat.

The Guy Game doesn't shoot high with its premise: a trivia game as a vehicle for softcore porn. Little things sour this deal, like the fixed order of questions, the annoying announcer, the moron asking the women the questions, and the lack of anything interesting to unlock, but these are nothing compared to the core problems: the softcore porn is exceedingly difficult to unlock and the trivia game is godawful.

They don't make action games any tighter than this one; Viewtiful Joe on the PS2 is like a ray of light peering through a dark cloud of cookie-cutter titles.

Treasure will make you believe that robots are your friends.

Worth a play if you didn’t snag the last one. Otherwise, how valuable is online play to you?

If you're a hardcore puzzle fan that lives life at Level 9/High 5, or have a buddy to tangle with, Puyo Pop Fever is a worthy purchase.

GameCube fans can finally put their 20-sided die away, as Tales of Symphonia is exactly what they needed. It's an ace on any system.

For a one man project, Starshatter is a graphical tour-de-force. Infinitely customizable. Once the problem areas are tweaked, Starshatter will shine.

The funny thing about that is that there are probably enough sub-par things in this game to come down on it a little harder than I did, but the game is one of those deals where the complete work is greater than the sum of its parts.

What Spiderman 2 boils down to is a lot of "Hell yeah!" excellence with just a little "Aw, damnit" thrown in for good measure. It's still an excellent game, and it's a superb example of how a movie license should be treated, but in the end, it probably won't crack any top 5 lists.

Like a breath of fresh air in the GCN's action lineup. Sure, the fighting can be a little mash-happy at times, and the textures can be a little blurry, and the variety of random tasks can be repetitive...but the first time you leap off the top of the Empire State Building, pull off some aerial tricks while plummeting 90 stories down at high speed, sling yourself via webline around some lampposts, and hurtle into the back of an enemy to begin a merciless web-juggle combo, you'll experience a rush unlike most anything you've felt while playing on the six-sided system.

A scintillating package of retro Capcom goodness; there’s something for everyone to love here, and the low price makes it a killer buy.

Golf vets may be bored, but everyone else will have a ball.

Showdown isn't a terrible wrestling game, but it isn't a very good one, either. It's an improvement, though, so if using the stars of your youth is a draw, this one is worth a rental.

The learning curve is practically a cliff, but enthusiasts will have plenty to get out of this one.

A multiplayer classic, for those with the hardware. A fairly decent game for everyone else.

Unfortunately, while brevity is the soul of wit, even at $29.99, it's hard to recommend a purchase of a game that can be beaten in a rental, and offers nothing beyond that in the way of replay value.

Holds up well, even after all these years. Plus, it's a hell of a lot cheaper to buy for Xbox than for Neo*Geo.

Cooperative multiplayer and the basic gunplay thrills don't quite make up for bad control and ugly graphics.

While pure sim heads may be put off, Rallisport 2 will have plenty for veteran racing fans, as well as beginners. Without being overly complicated in the garage or on the track, Digital Eclipse has served up a pure racing experience.

It's a love letter to Western fans that also happens to be exceedingly entertaining for the everyman gamer.

The game tries very hard, above all else, to leave players with a lasting grin on their face. To this end, it succeeds. There are plenty of flaws, but the 'cool factor' is through the roof.

In the end, Shrek 2 is going to appeal to a pretty limited market. Older gamers aren’t going to want to bother with it much, but young children who idolize their movie heroes (and why do you think "Finding Nemo" sold so well?) will probably eat it up despite its mediocrity.

The variety of innovating aspects are balanced by multiple flaws, making this one strictly for the horror-obsessed.

It just doesn't have heart.

Fans of the Hitman franchise will have a distinct feeling of déja vu. Newcomers should have a good time, though.

Solid, but not spectacular. Even so, I'm tempted to give WTS 2005 brownie points simply because I can play as West Brom without them being in the Premiership. Boing boing!

Ballers is, sadly, less than the sum of its parts.

Capcom may be good at 2D fighters, but when going to 3D, controls matter all the more.

It's not the Xbox version or even "SOCOM: Navy Seals," but this version of Rainbow Six 3 is decent, on its own merits.

The accompanying hard drive is a neat toy, and there's no denying that FFXI is addictive. $12.95/month after the first one, though? That's a fair bit o' jack.

Perhaps the most interesting feature is that intelligent creatures will not forget Mr. Carver. They may give up on finding Mr. Carver, but they never forget the presence. It's almost like Metal Gear: Twin Snakes on alert mode, except when alerted the guards never do quite get up.

UbiSoft has really knocked one out of the park with this release-I can't wait for the third installment.

All told, ASB 05 hasn't really taken any major steps towards self-improvement, opting instead for a status quo offering.

The total package isn't as technically impressive as "MVP," but the lack of major flaws makes it a more enjoyable experience.

If you have a PS2, get that version. If you've got a PSX, and you absolutely must have baseball, rest assured that you can buy (or at least rent) this and have a reasonably good time.

Breakdown was meant for a rental from start to finish, assuming you have a strong stomach to handle the first-person camera. Stick with the game and it can offer plenty of satisfying fun to accompany the initial frustration.

Although the game features some rough patches from a 3D engine that isn’t entirely seamless, Worms 3D has all the loveable qualities necessary to be worth a purchase.

It's not so much a major 3D advancement or a 3D reinvention of the series as it is a nice 3D sequel, with some little technical qualms that may occasionally prove to be frustrating.

If you can get past the atrocious camera and shut out the screeching voice acting, there's a pretty neat game waiting for you. Just don't trade in "Ninja Gaiden" to get it, eh?

Call it the sophomore jinx. A great rookie season had us anticipating more, but MVP needs more work before it can really be considered the Most Valuable Player.

Has everything a good game needs, but the non-interactive scenes overshadow the interactive.

Despite the small cracks in just about every gameplay function of the game, Gangland still manages to be addictive fun.

It would have been nice if more than 16 tracks had been included, but the Dirt Wurx track editor makes up for that somewhat.

Right now it’s average in quality, and what should be amusing feels like a chore. It’s hard to make dragons unexciting, but somehow Drakengard manages to do it.

In a sea of mediocre and washed out titles, Tecmo has delivered a stellar title for the Xbox that does not rely on the Live package, or massive bouncing breasts...Stylistic, challenging, and entertaining, Ninja Gaiden delivers on the promises that games like "Devil May Cry" made.

One of the better platformers available on the PS2, certainly more so than games like Vexx and Sphinx. It’s not quite on the level of the Ratchet & Clank or Jak & Daxter series, but then, so few games are.

Perhaps best of all, however, is the way each level has multiple paths and solutions, not only during the 3PS (3rd-Person Shooter) elements, but also during the fantastic driving levels – which utilize the Need for Speed engine – where you’ll often have an option between Bond’s various automobiles (yes, including the Aston Martin), or the Q-Bike, and even, on occasion, a helicopter.

Worst game ever? No, not really. That was an exaggeration fed largely by the flames of my initial frustration. But it’s not really a very good game, either; probably slightly below average, in the scheme of things.

Perhaps best of all, however, is the way each level has multiple paths and solutions, not only during the 3PS (3rd-Person Shooter) elements, but also during the fantastic driving levels – which utilize the Need for Speed engine – where you’ll often have an option between Bond’s various automobiles.

Some very interesting ideas are buried under a tide of sloppy coding and bad game design.

A fantastic sophomore effort from Snowblind Studios, and is easily the best of the games spawned by the Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance engine Snowblind originally created.

I still believe that there'll be a faction of pansy gamers, weaned on infinite continues, save points and GameSharks, that bitch and moan about how hard the game is and fail to appreciate it as a result. That's lame, really, because even if Nightshade doesn't do enough to fix everything that was wrong with Shinobi, it's still easily one of the top action titles on PS2.

Really tends to disappoint when it comes to replay value. I expect strategy games to at least last 20 hours or so, but the multiple campaigns, single player maps and multiplayer gameplay will have a tough time reaching that magic number.

Both the graphics and the gameplay are incredibly slick, but everything is awfully short and easy.