If you’re a fan of The Sims on the PC or on the console, you must buy Bustin’ Out. Consider the game to be the last ‘must buy’ Sims title before the upcoming sequel, since the experience differs so much from the usual Sims gameplay.

Easily the best title in the series and it’s most likely the result of having to cram content in to the final episode.

I cannot say enough about this game. It is hands down the best basketball game I've ever played on any system.

12 hours ain't bad for a single-player campaign, but I hope that's not going to become the standard for solo action on 360, especially wth that 20% markup in game prices for third-party titles.

This is the last title that can come out using the old engine before significant reworking is needed, but Jedi Academy still places a performance that deserves a purpose.

A borderline purchase, mainly pushed over the edge because it's quite fun and inventive.

It fits the party game build perfectly, but unlike "NFL Blitz," has the brains and the depth to stick around. The addictive NFL Challenge Mode alone has kept me busy for almost a month.

The game is a solid career sim.

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."

If the fatigue bug had been fixed the way EA promised it would be, and the game had the same options that other versions had, I’d give the game the same score I gave last year's version: a 7. As it stands, with the lack of features, the lack of innovation with the game play and the higher price tag; I don’t feel comfortable giving this game anything higher than a 5.

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

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.

The audio, on the other hand, is nearly an unmitigated disaster.

A wealth of multiplayer gameplay, but only after spending yourself poor on hardware.

By tying the graphics in so closely with the gameplay, King Kong actually makes strong visuals an integral part of the cinematic experience, and naturally the Xbox 360 port gets the edge over the other platforms.

It's over too soon, but that speaks more to Clyde's addictiveness than to the brevity of the game.

The true value of Battlefield 2 is in how nicely it panders to a crowd that may never have cared for the military shooter genre before.

Not as deep, feature-wise, as "Tiger Woods," but more realistic, and with a community aspect that Tiger's Xbox version can't match.

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.

It just doesn't have heart.

An excellent baseball experience, and it's a full $10 less than "MVP Baseball" from EA Sports. Hard to go wrong here.

FOF2004 still has room to grow as a series, but even with it's flaws, it is the best Football SIM available today.

Perhaps worth a rental to R-Type junkies and those who love a solid 2D shooter, but nothing is really new here... and maybe that's the point.

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.

Amazing graphics present the isometric 3D view better than any GBA game I've previously seen. Wondrous.

If you can look past these flaws, you'll discover what I would call one of the best PlayStation 2 games so far this year. As an impressive technical demo it rivals even the next-gen stuff we're seeing on the market now, and the gameplay fills a gap in the genre that has long been craved. If you enjoy FPS games, then I can easily recommend Black for rent or purchase, and anxiously await a potential next-gen sequel.

Even if Prey’s story didn’t leave me breathless from the masterful blend of sight and sound, I at least remained damned entertained. Sometimes that’s all you can really ask for.

Rent this and "Champions of Norrath," since they compete against each other, or just buy both if you're rich. Both are fine games with something great to offer.

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

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

Prepare to waste your month(s) away, or just rent this beast and enjoy the unintentionally hilarious plot and general presentation.

There are certainly the trappings of an epic fantasy game here, but lack of attention to latecomers to the series and horrid pacing and voice acting drag this game down to something that's fun to play if you can get the story out of the way and can get a solid grasp on the control scheme.

The one weak spot in this otherwise bulletproof masterpiece of a game is the replay value. I got so into the action I was in and out in right around four hours.

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

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.

Sometimes the graphics were actually surprisingly good, such as the detail on the planes as I gunned them down, or the rust on the vehicles. But other times, like when all the glass windows burst the same, or every office in the game has the same desk, chair and bookshelf, Call of Duty 2 begins to show its age.

But if you have played it, or if you still own it, then there’s no gripping reason to reinvest the time—and most importantly, the money—into the Xbox 360 edition.

It's undeniably better than "Fallout," which is basically just wearing the BG:DA skin, but it's clearly inferior to Snowblind's latest project, "Champions of Norrath."

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

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.

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

I can't help wishing that Totally Games and LucasArts had gone in for a penny, in for a pound, and made the whole thing Live-compatible. If we're not going to get "Battlefield 1942" from EA, this could have been the next best thing.

When I finished playing Resurrection of Evil, the one question I had was why a bunch of stupid demons are able to consistently own humans on Mars when they are outwitted by a sidestep.

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.

"Disgaea" is still the game for which I would re-purchase my PlayStation 2 all over again, but if I get to have two games, Makai Kingdom isn’t bad company.

There are a lot of good things in this game and I wouldn't be surprised or disappointed to see Neversoft revisit this franchise again, hopefully polishing the rough edges.

"Best DS Game" seems a little weak, given the competition, so let me just say this: This much fun (plus multiplayer!) for $29.99 seems like highway robbery perpetrated against Atlus.

While some of the missions are almost tooth-gratingly hard, the consistency and balance throughout makes these missions seem like a decent challenge rather than something that'll make you want to eat your controller.

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.

The fighter missions get repetitive; everything else is too varied for its own good.

Ultimate Spider-Man is best enjoyed when viewed as a separate path for the franchise, one whose bright graphics and teenybopper storyline add a refreshing parallel to the realist movie versions.

Translation problems occur in the flight from PC to Xbox, and the smooth style that made Jedi Academy irresistible fun on the PC is now clumsy and awkward.

Another fantastic script with more one liners and jokes than should be allowed.

This game is simply too polished, unique and good to fit the industry mold of a typical 'first time outing'.

Even with some warts, Black & White 2 is still pretty good. Heck, no god is perfect, right?

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

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

Just a poor shadow of what Myst really is, so most users would be better off skipping it and grabbing the PC/Mac version.

Rent or buy, Double Dragon Advance brings a great update but is still too short. You decide.

On its own merits, it is hard to justify paying $60 to buy Gun. It is a solid game, but when you can have essentially the same experience on Xbox for less money, I do not see the point in buying it for the Xbox 360.

Gameplay mechanics are in place and polished to a smooth experience, and the game belongs in some handheld art museum. Simply gorgeous.

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.

A game caught between markets. Gamers who want a pure FPS shooter have much better options to look into. Gamers who want tactical, squad based shooters will consider this a watered down, arcade version of the genre.

With a convoluted, twisting conspiracy-driven story, flashy graphics and exciting gameplay, XIII demands your money.

These treasures are glass jewels in tin settings.

What so frustrates me about Genji: Dawn of the Samurai is how the game seems to desire this average result from the onset; there is nothing in the game that looks remotely ambitious.

Enjoy swinging around New York to your heart’s content, but stick to a rental for this title.

This is an enjoyable game of football that’s great to watch and play. On the other hand the countless omissions EA left out of this game are maddening.

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.

It’s definitely rough around the edges, but such things are forgivable when the core is exciting and challenging.

Hardly the social phenomenon on Xbox that it was on PC, but not a bad way to waste a few lazy hours on a Saturday, either.

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.

David Duchovny has an exceedingly flat voice. At no point does he ever really sound excited. Even when he should be excited, he really doesn't sound it. There's just a sense of resignation always seeping through.

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

Snowboarding simply does not get any better than this.

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.

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

If you've played the PC version and are looking for something new, you are likely to be disappointed as some of the newer and richer features have been stripped away to fit it onto the console.

Raises the bar from what to expect from Media Vision, and leaves a lot for Wild Arms: the 4th Detonator to live up to.

A fun, challenging puzzle game with some great ideas and additions.

An interesting study of a series in transition, but ultimately not a compelling purchase. KoF 2002 is a failed attempt to recall "KoF '98 Dream Match," and 2003 is, while more accessible to new fans, lacks the eye-candy if not necessarily the depth of newer games like "Guilty Gear X2."

Please do not buy this or even rent it. To do so would make you think less of Remedy and Max Payne 2, an absolutely terrific game on other consoles. Try another version instead.

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

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.

The first game in almost a decade that feels like a return to the series' roots in any fashion.

Lockdown has a steep learning curve and an unfair difficulty level for all players not intimately familiar with the Rainbow Six setup.

The online experience as a whole needs some serious work. I’m not sure if it’s lag-related, or simply poor coding, but it’s not unusual to see cars sort of “stutter” their way ahead of or behind you in turns. Collision detection is also fairly shoddy online.

Graphically, both King of Fighters 2000 and 2001 are nearly pixel-perfect ports. Unfortunately, this is as much a liability as anything. The character sprites are low-resolution, as befits three-year-old Neo-Geo games, and the backgrounds are muddy and annoyingly aliased.

Sort of an allegorical comparison to "Inside Drive" itself. It wants to be one of the big boys, and it certainly has the potential to get there, but if you’ll pardon the pun, they both need to spend another year at the college level before they make the jump.

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

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.

There aren't enough courses - six feels more like an appetizer than a gourmet feast - and no obvious expectation of future additions via Xbox Live.

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.

Horror buffs will want to check it out now, but FPS fans won’t find much joy in the game’s generic and unappetizing engine.

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.

Comparable to the PS2 version, except with much longer loading times.

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?

While some players may be disgruntled by the lack of action and lack of length, fans of the point and click adventure genre will be thrilled with this artistically-inclined entry from Nintendo.