Certain tracks are a bit redundant with a few too many identical turns and jumps, but for the most part, they're a lot of fun.

For many, Final Fantasy XI will be the Holy Grail of nonlinearity: a wide-open RPG universe with Final Fantasy flair, defined by its players as much as its developers, beloved for all its flaws. Love it or hate it, there’s nothing like it on your PS2.

Excellent car models, lighting, and reflection effects help the smooth visuals create a sense of blazing speed, and the beautifully detailed tracks are punctuated by vicious turns and loops that require you to master braking and powersliding without losing too much velocity.

If you're looking for an iOS game with triple-A production values and you've already played both Infinity Blade and Rage, Death Rally is a good bet.

If you've never played a Disgaea title before, then head out and grab Disgaea 3. For veterans of the series... yeah, it's more of the same, but with this franchise, when has that ever been a bad thing?

The fact that Ubisoft was able to remaster one of the greatest chapters of the Splinter Cell on a portable platform with only minor downgrades is a small miracle. Splinter Cell 3DS is far greater than it has any right to be, given the drastic overhaul made to the control scheme and the newness of portable 3D gaming.

The lack of a single-player campaign aside, the game is strong evidence that independent developers take more risks than the big boys. It's a daredevil act to put out a game in a genre that's long out of fashion and it's even more impressive that Dark Water Studios made the game so well-balanced and fun. It's a steal at $10 and a great throwback to the glory days of flight and fighting.

Once you learn the controls, they respond sharply. The fully user-controlled camera can still leave you in a lurch, but locking onto one target in a group makes the frequent two-or three-enemy smackdowns winnable. [May 2004, p.70]

The gameplay isn't going to challenge hardcore gamers as the enemies simply aren't that tough, but the presentation really shines. [May 2005, p.95]

With all of its ingenuity and charm, this episode is a great first step in Telltale's Pilot Program.

Battles never manage to become tedious, and while I most likely won't be doing a second playthrough, I'm glad I dropped the two dollars on PrincessFury -- the experience was well worth it.

One of the better dance/rhythm games out there, and with so many unlockable goodies, it’ll make Britney fans want to consistently play it, baby, one more time.

Sometimes enemies take time to notice you, but once they do, the A.I. is fairly impressive.

While it isn't perfect, Spirit Tracks does enough things right that you won't regret persevering through the initial sluggishness. Once the game picks up momentum and speed, it packs a locomotive sized punch, one that doesn't reinvent the wheel but still manages to do the storied franchise proud.

Aside from the camera-angle blemish, Sonic 2 for the Gamecube is still loads of fun.

Good, but it never really lives up to its title - a vision that could have benefited from a little more focus... Jack-of-all-trades, master of none. [Jan 2004, p.110]

The real fun for many IC players will be the Army Editor, which lets you play with combinations of animals and create your own creatures.

Despite its impressive depth, this game is no masterpiece... But if you find yourself intrigued by its premise, there’s enough quality adventuring here that it can almost become an obsession.

Granted, the underlying structure of DQ8 is totally derivative and younger gamers may find the pacing too slow, but those with an appreciation of its style will rejoice in what is essentially the culmination of kooky Japanese RPGs.

For less than a dollar, Berzerk Ball is extremely full-featured for a homerun hitter. That said, if you hate extra features and you just want the hitting fun, there's also a free version.

Solid and well-built—it’s just not going to knock your mechanical socks off in the imagination department.

Overall, though, if you’ve already conquered the PS2 version, you can safely skip right past this game.

The most obvious problem is that the system is far too forgiving of dragging a wheel or two off-track. Do that in real life, and you'll easily lose control almost instantly. In Enthusia, you'll barely even feel the car pull in that direction.

Yet as innovative and inviting as the Forgemaster system and customization facets are, Curse is slightly hexed by a repetitive play scheme: enter room, kill enemies, exit room, repeat.

Sooo much to love in terms of graphics, story, and sheer originality, but the endless cycle of insanely difficult die/repeat/whatthehell? gameplay will eventually dominate your experience.

If it's OK for Peggle to borrow heavily from pachinko, Kickin Momma should be able to take some cues from Peggle. In many ways Kickin Momma is the best of the three.

And to have the ability to see all 22 players on the field at one time as well as have the kick meter on the lower screen is more of a novelty than a practicality.

Kirby's latest adventure is an unabashedly adorable and addictive affair, even when suffering from a limited reward system and lacking difficulty.