Old-school tactical action fans may enjoy the extreme difficulty and high excitement level, although most players won’t be able to get past the technical deficiencies and been-there-done-that gameplay.

Call of Duty 3 could have been more than just another copy of previous installments, but with unnecessary gameplay mechanics, dumb AI, and a terrible control scheme, it brings nothing new in terms of enjoyment.

It’s about on par with all other movie licensed games: relatively short, decent graphics, decent gameplay, and not much value to it.

Overall, Proving Ground is a disappointment.

While NASCAR 08 may be a fine game for the most part, it’s the repetitive workload required to get into the meat of The Chase mode that’ll drive people away quickly, if not the loose steering controls that require adjustment to get a good grip on the in-race gameplay.

To be quite frank, on the DS, Path of the Ninja isn't that great of a game.

Tenkaichi is a genuine attempt at capturing the Dragon Ball essence, but in the end the complex, clunky gameplay and lack of previously offered features prevents the unlocking of any true potential.

Ultimately, between the short campaign and the rather bland combat, Pirates doesn’t do a lot to separate itself from the heap of other action games just like it.

Navigating your vehicles through the city streets feels good, but there is a sense of unbalance in the physics. You can drive at breakneck speeds, but if you hit a car stopped at a red light or a parked car, the feedback is like hitting a brick wall.

Ultimately, between the short campaign and the rather bland combat, Pirates doesn’t do a lot to separate itself from the heap of other action games just like it.

While the game has a lot of solid concepts, a ton of stages, and some pretty good “boss” fights, (if you even want to call them that) the game sadly suffers from a horrible camera and just annoying challenge; and in the end, the experience isn’t memorable by any means.

In a nutshell, Mega Man Star Force is an okay game, but it's just too much like the Battle Network games to really warrant a purchase. The story is all over the place, the graphics and sound look virtually unchanged, and the attempt at making a new battle system just seems a bit lazy.

In a nutshell, Mega Man Star Force is an okay game, but it's just too much like the Battle Network games to really warrant a purchase. The story is all over the place, the graphics and sound look virtually unchanged, and the attempt at making a new battle system just seems a bit lazy.

Though there are a lot of negatives to be said about Super Robot Taisen OG Saga: Endless Frontier, there is a weird hypnotic enjoyment to the battle system that made enduring the overly-complicated, fanservice-filled story a bit easier.

In a nutshell, Mega Man Star Force is an okay game, but it's just too much like the Battle Network games to really warrant a purchase. The story is all over the place, the graphics and sound look virtually unchanged, and the attempt at making a new battle system just seems a bit lazy.

A mediocre free-roaming action game, but it's still slightly better than some of its competitors within the genre.

A boring story, slowdown issues and a difficulty that will leave many players bald after they pull out their hair is enough to describe your time with Golems of Amgarrak. Even at $5, it is way overpriced for the content you receive.

A boring story, slowdown issues and a difficulty that will leave many players bald after they pull out their hair is enough to describe your time with Golems of Amgarrak. Even at $5, it is way overpriced for the content you receive.

A boring story, slowdown issues and a difficulty that will leave many players bald after they pull out their hair is enough to describe your time with Golems of Amgarrak. Even at $5, it is way overpriced for the content you receive.

Unfortunately, if you find repetition to be death knell of your gaming experiences, then steer clear of these streets. True Crime: New York City is a mediocre free-roaming action game.

While NASCAR 08 may be a fine game for the most part, it's the repetitive workload required to get into the meat of The Chase mode that'll drive people away quickly, if not the loose steering controls that require adjustment to get a good grip on the in-race gameplay.

While the game has a lot of solid concepts, a ton of stages, and some pretty good "boss" fights, (if you even want to call them that) the game sadly suffers from a horrible camera and just annoying challenge; and in the end, the experience isn't memorable by any means.

The idea of earning cash ahead of time for your pre-created Fable 2 character is a neat idea, but the structure could have been implemented better.

Ultimately, between the short campaign and the rather bland combat, Pirates doesn’t do a lot to separate itself from the heap of other action games just like it.

For now, if you want great golf gameplay for your Wii, you should already have it for free in the form of Wii Sports.

The end result is a game that will satisfy neither hardcore fighting gamers nor casual players outside the core MK fanbase. This is a fan game to the core, and can only be recommended to the most devout of the MK faithful.

Naruto: Path of the Ninja 2 was a game that set itself up to be an improvement over the last one. While it has improved in every category, the game is still on the boring side, and increasing the play-through time from 8 hours to 10 hours really doesn’t make it that much worthwhile.

It’s a decent enough game that has the ability to keep your interest for a while, but there are enough flaws with it that it isn’t worth a purchase.

The end result is a game that will satisfy neither hardcore fighting gamers nor casual players outside the core MK fanbase. This is a fan game to the core, and can only be recommended to the most devout of the MK faithful.

Steambot Chronicles: Battle Tournament does a nice job of being a fairly entertaining game, though the short experience that capped at 14 hours for us definitely seems to be an issue when you learn that the game will cost you $39.99.

While Smash Court Tennis 3 largely fails on its claim as the most realistic tennis game on the Xbox 360, it’s certainly a serviceable game of tennis. It’s just that with three much better tennis games already out on the Xbox 360 already, there’s no reason to buy this game unless you’ve exhausted all that those games had to offer.

If not for the tragically lackluster presentation, the limited replay incentives, and the fact that it costs more than twenty dollars, it could have been a must-own. It’s an entertaining distraction, but unless you’re a fanatical collector, this one’s strictly a rental.

Right out of the box, My Pet Shop is a kiddy game that only kids will really enjoy.

While Ion Assault’s gameplay is interesting and fairly unique with some depth to how you can approach each level, but it’s the overall lack of modes or features that makes this worth its 800 points price ($10 in US dollars).

Mass Effect: VR Missions would have been a more suitable title for this expansion, and with the repetitive level designs, trial-and-error scenarios and lack of any defining story, you will leave Pinnacle Station with only a new weapon and house to save face from this letdown.

Nightlife looks much the same as before, sounds much the same, and plays much the same. On this front, we’d rather spend a night in with the original than shell out the money for this second expansion.

No exaggeration, a straight-shot playthrough of Journey of Dreams’ story mode yields about three parts fluff to one part legitimate gameplay, which is pitiful by today’s standards.

Microbot's interesting premise, setting, and mechanics are undermined by several issues that cause the game to be more of a tedious chore than an enjoyable experience.

Microbot's interesting premise, setting, and mechanics are undermined by several issues that cause the game to be more of a tedious chore than an enjoyable experience.

Rise & Fall: Civilizations at War is a great experiment but a mediocre game, too broken to be enjoyable for any length of time.

Trapt is a fun diversion with unexplored potential. Unfortunately the poor camera system, lack of variety, clumsy AI, and graphical handicaps keep the game from achieving any type of noteworthy standing.

At only four to five hours, The Force Unleashed II is hardly worth recommending to anyone. Even diehard Star Wars fans will find it hard to spend $60 on a game that is worse than its predecessor in nearly every aspect, including the one that matters the most, the story.

At only four to five hours, The Force Unleashed II is hardly worth recommending to anyone. Even diehard Star Wars fans will find it hard to spend $60 on a game that is worse than its predecessor in nearly every aspect, including the one that matters the most, the story.

In conclusion, Spider-Man: Web of Shadows is a competent addition to the franchise, though it feels like there could have been much more to the game.

But buyers beware, the best way to play this game is through the DS, so while both the DS and Wii versions go for about $39, the DS version is definitely the better buy.

Of the eleven games in this collection, there are only two or three that have aged gracefully. The rest of the games don't quite hold up. What's even more disappointing is the omission of a few of Tecmo's more popular games like "Ninja Gaiden."

So if you have some extra time on your hands, Kane & Lynch is just barely worth a rental. Were it not for its story, we would undoubtedly give it a “Skip It” recommendation. However, it should be able to tide you over for a small while. Don’t expect anything great out of it though.

So if you have some extra time on your hands, Kane & Lynch is just barely worth a rental. Were it not for its story, we would undoubtedly give it a “Skip It” recommendation. However, it should be able to tide you over for a small while. Don’t expect anything great out of it though.

Night Watch has some nice ideas, but it's too simple at its core to remain interesting, and falls into a rut just a few hours after it starts.

In conclusion, Spider-Man: Web of Shadows is a competent addition to the franchise, though it feels like there could have been much more to the game.

So if you have some extra time on your hands, Kane & Lynch is just barely worth a rental. Were it not for its story, we would undoubtedly give it a “Skip It” recommendation. However, it should be able to tide you over for a small while. Don’t expect anything great out of it though.

It doesn't do anything that hasn't been seen dozens of times before and fails to inspire the player to push forward. You can get this kind of stealth action elsewhere, and for a cheaper price.

Alpha Prime is a very average game. It might have nice visuals that make it look comparable to other games of its ilk, but in the end it suffers from being a truly derivative and under-developed game.

In a lot of ways, Payback takes the genre back to basics. It’s just you, a few weapons, and a mission; no squad to command, minimal platforming, and no puzzle-solving.

It's supposed to be a tactical shooter but the inadequate A.I. completely negates the need for tactics. If it weren't for the co-op mode, some excellent graphics and above-average sound, this game would be almost completely forgettable.

It really is baffling that EA kept The Godfather as it is. What with all the repetition involved in finishing the game, you’d have thought someone would have piped in: “Uh, you know, it gets kinda boring repeating the same mechanics over and over”.

If this collection had more games and a much better presentation to go along with it, it would have been much more attractive and easily-recommended.

It does enough justice for the license to appeal to noobs and the elite alike.

Mario Super Sluggers is an ambitious title that had a lot going for it, but unfortunately the developers hardly did anything to improve the mediocre experience its predecessor had on the GameCube.

ProStroke Golf could have a bright future, if they would address the technical issues and bring the presentation up to par. As it stands, the game is worth a shot, but it may not hold your interest for very long.

If this collection had more games and a much better presentation to go along with it, it would have been much more attractive and easily-recommended.

Everybody that wants this to be a Brain Age for the PSP will be ultimately disappointed, but those desperate enough can just take the cheaper route and rent the game.

Either way, at a measly four hours or less, Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law is barely an okay rental.

Either way, at a measly four hours or less, Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law is barely an okay rental.

Quantum of Solace will give you enough of a Bond fix, but you’ll be jonesing for something better.

Quantum of Solace will give you enough of a Bond fix, but you’ll be jonesing for something better.

Yet to those who love roleplaying and fishing equally, River King is a must-have title. To those enlightened souls, I say this: Carpe Diem!

Dirge of Cerberus is an average action game with a bigger budget than it deserved. Maybe this experience will teach them not to milk franchises in ways they don’t belong.

Quantum of Solace will give you enough of a Bond fix, but you’ll be jonesing for something better.

Either way, at a measly four hours or less, Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law is barely an okay rental.

For a remake, this version of Parappa the Rapper feels a little rough around the edges to suggest for a $30 price tag.

It's got some nice touches, but in the end, it's too buggy, too cliched, and too uninteresting to come to the head of its class.

As an obvious rush job, Bloodlines is perhaps the only big PSP game of this year that fails to be at least a good game.

There really isn’t that much that is wrong with Strikers 1945 Plus Portable in any way, but it doesn’t really offer the kind of gameplay that would help it stand out and deserve some attention.

An incredibly lackluster game.

An incredibly lackluster game.

In the year 2007, subscribers shouldn’t have to worry about sever stability and debilitating amounts of lag, nor should they have to suffer through a substandard interface or bargain-bin audio.

It’s not really worth the time or the effort to trudge through.

When it comes down to it, Haze isn't a bad game at all, just a very mediocre game that would have felt more at home a year and a half ago at the PlayStation 3's launch.

The sheer number of things that had to go wrong to keep Clive Barker’s Jericho from being a raging success is almost unbelievable, because when it comes right down to it, this game had the makings of a real hit. The fact that the credits roll at the exact same moment you finally find yourself on the edge of your seat cements the overall feeling of incompleteness the game gives off from the beginning.

The sheer number of things that had to go wrong to keep Clive Barker’s Jericho from being a raging success is almost unbelievable, because when it comes right down to it, this game had the makings of a real hit. The fact that the credits roll at the exact same moment you finally find yourself on the edge of your seat cements the overall feeling of incompleteness the game gives off from the beginning.

It’s worth trying out but it’s hard to recommend it at full price.

The sheer number of things that had to go wrong to keep Clive Barker’s Jericho from being a raging success is almost unbelievable, because when it comes right down to it, this game had the makings of a real hit. The fact that the credits roll at the exact same moment you finally find yourself on the edge of your seat cements the overall feeling of incompleteness the game gives off from the beginning.

A very average game. Sluggish controls and a lackluster presentation really hurt this game. The lack of real mission variety doesn’t help matters either.

A decent racer that doesn’t really do anything different enough to warrant passing on any of the quality racing experiences that the PSP offers.

After playing through just a bit of Turning Point, we were completely disappointed. The old feeling to it completely ruined the original concept.

With so many problems, unbalanced combat, and no multiplayer, it is hard to recommend anyone to buy this game, let alone rent it. Give it a try if you are a fan of the subject matter, if not, there are plenty of better action titles out there for you to enjoy instead.

After playing through just a bit of Turning Point, we were completely disappointed. The old feeling to it completely ruined the original concept.

Only a true fan will find those few wonderful things in this title replete with fallacies and gaming atrocities.

With so many problems, unbalanced combat, and no multiplayer, it is hard to recommend anyone to buy this game, let alone rent it. Give it a try if you are a fan of the subject matter, if not, there are plenty of better action titles out there for you to enjoy instead.

After playing through just a bit of Turning Point, we were completely disappointed. The old feeling to it completely ruined the original concept.

Conflict: Denied Ops could have been a huge step in the right direction for the series. With so many years spent on one series, it’s a shame to see Pivotal Games at a lost of how to enhance the future of the franchise.

Conflict: Denied Ops could have been a huge step in the right direction for the series. With so many years spent on one series, it’s a shame to see Pivotal Games at a lost of how to enhance the future of the franchise.

As far as a choice between the Wii version and the DS version go, the Wii version is superior because of not only its graphics and sound, but because the controls are more intuitive than anybody would think.

As far as a choice between the Wii version and the DS version go, the Wii version is superior because of not only its graphics and sound, but because the controls are more intuitive than anybody would think.

Tokyo Beat Down could have been a cheesy beat-‘em-up that is still enjoyable, but clunky controls and gameplay keep it from reaching its potential.

At a measly 5 hours, Orcs & Elves is a short game that is meant to be beaten through brief sittings on the commute to work, school, or back home. But at its core, this isn't a game that's actually worth anybody's money.

Now, with all that said, this game isn’t awful but, really isn’t worth playing and is extremely hard to recommend since there are much better handheld titles out on store shelves.