Harvest Moon isn't for the impatient gamer, but those who stick with it long enough will discover its rustic charm.

Though The Fist of Mars features a solid story, the strategy elements are too wan to hold interest for too long, and the lack of a multiplayer mode kills its long-term replay value.

If you're a diehard, you'll relish playing through your favorite early battles in the epic story. Sagas is a competent first entry to the action genre, just not exemplary.

There are too many unbalanced issues in the game to make it a worthy handheld gaming experience. Street Supremacy is definitely better than its PlayStation predecessor, but not by that much.

About as much fun as watching your tomatoes grow...If you’ve got an agricultural attitude, patience, and a hankering for steady and safe gameplay, you just might be a Harvest Moonie.

Hard Corps: Uprising is built for a very specific type of gamer. If you fit that description, you won't be disappointed with your purchase. But while many aspects of Uprising are appealing, without endearing characters to root for or an effective save system, it feels more like a missed opportunity than a tribute to the classics.

Pottermaniacs will love exploring even a 2D version of Hogwarts, but be prepared for challenging and sometimes frustrating gameplay.

The result, though a little awkward, is a hybrid with neither the depth of a true RPG nor the frenetic pace and art design of a pure-bred shooter. Both sides of the experience are fun, but less than stellar.

While the controls aren't as counterintuitive as many have claimed them to be, the game has minor draw distance problems when you're Katamari gets too big and there're too many big objects on screen. You'll find that the game doesn't load the smaller items and you're Katamari will pick up objects that aren't even represented onscreen.

Blackwell Deception has some good ideas and it's refreshing for a game to deal with ghosts and psychics in a way that's not entirely shallow. The script is at its best when it's disarmingly sincere, as the attempts at humor are hit and miss. It's just a shame then that the story is as old-hat as Joey's fedora.

While CIMA’s concept is indeed very cool and refreshing, interface issues frequently get in the way. When your group gets large, the point-and-click interface can be confusing, and herding the whole lot requires patience.

It's hard to get excited unless you're on a big nostalgia trip. Yes, it's cool to explore the castle in full 3D at last, but the mechanics within are almost a little too tried and true.

For some inexplicable reason, it’s addictive. These types of games are perfect for portable systems, too…simple and endlessly replayable.

A puzzle game has to be challenging in order for it to be addictive but TiQal gives players too many chances.

Most console wrestling fans are used to more depth and control in their games, and this arcade title only skims the surface.

I liked the deep strategy but I was as frustrated as I was entertained. [Aug 2009, p.83]

It only takes a few minutes of playing Mario & Sonic at the Olympics to understand that this isn't so much a game as it is a marketing tool to promote the upcoming 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Watching these heroes pirouette amidst the violence is surprisingly entertaining, and while Seven Sorrows doesn't deliver fully on the promise and longevity of its progenitor, it does provide a fleeting good time.

The music, sound effects, and voice acting make up for some of the problems, but they ultimately can't overcome Drakengard's problems with graphics and slow controls. [Mar 2004, p.65]

Sadly, the game falters during certain combat segments. While the control mechanics enable locking in on an attacker, at times, there are so many charging that it’s difficult to target a particular one.

Lufia: Curse of the Sinistrals does have a lot of fun elements, but it's also full of aggravations of varying sizes.

Wants to be the PlayStation 2’s "House of the Dead," but it lacks creativity and spooky bite.

Despite the nice presentation, there just isn’t very much to do compared with Nintendo’s genre-defining fighter [Super Smash Bros].

But alas... Trauma was a game I wanted to love, but found more curious than transcendent. Still, any game that requires this much psychological analysis is a welcome departure from the norm.

Raw has all the pomp and circumstance of the WWF without all the good gameplay and fun that drove older WWF titles.

Pick it up if you're buying it for the original experience of PaRappa the Rapper, for the classic gameplay that is still...classic. Think of it as retro--not the next hot thing--and enjoy it as an episode of games gone by.

The rote play mechanics become tiresome after a few campaigns, and despite a limited combo system, you can eliminate most enemies by mashing the same button.

If you haven't picked up Tetris in a while, this isn't the best or the cheapest version available, but if it's really is all you can find, it's impossible not to recommend playing a few matches.