A game with some promise and some good ideas, but a half-cocked presentation and execution.

This collection of parlor games primarily includes odds-based games like roulette and keno, which aren't all that involving.

Unfortunately, the game suffers from imprecise controls, a lackluster presentation, a few bugs, and other issues that make it difficult to recommend.

Short, unbalanced, and somewhat unattractive.

It should go over well with fans of the genre--it's an altogether solid shooter, if a tad uninspired.

This role-playing fishing game is marred by too-simple gameplay, a budget presentation, and an overall lack of depth.

Minor frustrations and inconsistency compound a game that's not very good in the first place, making it one of the least appealing platformer choices currently on the market.

Though the game draws inspiration from some of the more respected second-string puzzle games out there, Super Bubble Pop offers neither their depth nor their long-term appeal.

The novelty of racing teeny tiny cars is more than a little bit stale, and so is Micro Machines v4.

Spyro's newly expanded roster doesn't manage to save A Hero's Tail from monotony, and even the title's targeted younger demographic will probably soon tire of the game's reliance on boring collectible gathering.

A game with some promise and some good ideas, but a half-cocked presentation and execution.

It certainly doesn't maintain the same level of quality as the main games in the Rayman series, but it can prove to be a decent diversion for a short period of time.

This sci-fi Diablo knockoff mimics the hack-and-slash formula common to all action RPGs, but its budget price and sheer length don't make up for its plodding pace and bland combat.

Spyro's newly expanded roster doesn't manage to save A Hero's Tail from monotony, and even the title's targeted younger demographic will probably soon tire of the game's reliance on boring collectible gathering.

Paradise looks great, but the dull story and uneven challenge make it a completely unenjoyable game.

Incredibly similar to the original -- so much so that even fans of the first game will be let down by the sequel's identical graphics, gameplay, and overall lack of innovation.

Daredevil is an exciting, explosive character, and that energy doesn't manifest itself in this game.

The updated roster, extra tracks, and added thunder card elements are nice endowments, but the overall driving experience is muddled enough to frustrate diehards and casual players alike.

Perhaps the biggest disappointment about Runaway: The Dream of the Turtle, though, is that there is probably a solid adventure buried under all the teen-girl posturing and awful dialogue.

The ability to play the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game against other Yu-Gi-Oh! enthusiasts over the Internet is the only thing that separates this game from the seemingly hundreds of thousands of Yu-Gi-Oh! card-battling games released before. For established Yu-Gi-Oh! fans, whom this game was tailored almost exclusively for, it will be enough.

The newest Agatha Christie adventure game suffers from monotonous tasks and contrived plot twists that drag it down to mediocrity.

While it's a simple game targeted toward a younger audience, the solid gameplay should suffice for the people who are old enough to remember the Duck Dodgers character from the old Merrie Melodies, if only for a weekend rental.

The title may say that this is a new beginning, but Spyro's latest adventure isn't much more than a collection of tired, overused platforming clichés.

Easy to learn and play, and it will entertain you for 10 or 15 minutes at a time.

A decent fit for sprint car enthusiasts, Road to Knoxville is too stripped-down and too single-minded for anyone else.

The title may say that this is a new beginning, but Spyro's latest adventure isn't much more than a collection of tired, overused platforming clichés.

If a good 16-bit shooter is what you're looking for, you could do a lot better elsewhere.

The modes available in IndyCar Series are all pretty shallow, which not only detracts from the overall experience, but also significantly reduces its replay value.

There's nothing else quite like Scarface on the Wii yet, but the gamepad-to-Wii Remote transition has made this lackluster game play even worse.

Ultimately a graphical front end for a clumsy and frustrating spreadsheet.

Regardless of the game's inspiration, Armageddon is a mediocre action game that is carried only by its license.

PG3SE will offer absolutely no surprises to those who have played previous games in the series.

It nails some of the key points of the drift-racing genre, but Tokyo Xtreme Racer DRIFT lacks practically every other component needed to make an exciting racing game.

Gallop Racer 2006 is pretty proficient; it's just not a very inviting experience. Fans who have already acclimated themselves to the generally noninclusive tone of the franchise shouldn't have too much trouble digging through the clumsy interface and often clinical appearance, but it's probably not worth the trouble to anyone else.

The things Tournament of Champions does well aren't quite enough to make it stand out from the many, many other poker games available.

Cultures suffers from a lack of personality because it feels like an amalgam of other games in this genre rather than a distinct design. If you're interested in city-building games, there are far better ones available that are more worthwhile.

Unfortunately, due to some bad controls, oppressively dark levels, and a worthless multiplayer mode, the result is a game that is more frustrating than it is rewarding.

A dangerous mess of a game that can't be recommended to any but the most hard-core game players in its current state. The real concern is that even if the technical issues are resolved, the design issues will remain.

This RTS has great historical flavor and scope, though the documentation and overall playability leave something to be desired.

The game suffers from imprecise controls, a lackluster presentation, a few bugs, and other issues that make it difficult to recommend.

The fundamentals of Wolverine's Revenge are solid, but just about everything seems to fall apart in the execution.

25 to Life is a lifelessly generic shooter that, at times, feels like "Max Payne" without the fun.

As a game, it's nothing special--just a mediocre platformer stuffed with all of the usual platforming elements. In terms of storytelling and presentation, however, Unmasked grabs the imagination and delights the senses easily as much as a feature-length version of the cartoon show would.

Everything in the game feels extremely rushed and underpolished.

Though based on a great series of innovative tactical action/puzzle games, Commandos Strike Force comes off as just another middling World War II shooter, despite some good ideas.

A solid PlayStation 2 cart-racing game. However, its unrealistic artificial intelligence, mismatched music, and lengthy loading times add up to an uninspiring experience that only results in frustration.

A brand-new game that combines simple beat-'em-up gameplay with the kind of run-and-jump action that has been done so often, and oftentimes much better, in numerous other side-scrolling games.

It just isn't that much fun to play, thanks to its control and camera problems, along with its occasional crashes and lack of an autosave feature.

Though based on a great series of innovative tactical action/puzzle games, Commandos Strike Force comes off as just another middling World War II shooter, despite some good ideas.

Black Hawk Down's dated gameplay design and presentation just don't measure up compared to other modern combat shooters. Though the multiplayer can be fun for a while, the weapon balancing is out of whack, and the implementation of vehicles is contrived to the point of absurdity.

As a cheaply priced, multiplayer-focused first-person shooter, Warpath is serviceable, if utterly unremarkable.

As a cheaply priced, multiplayer-focused first-person shooter, Warpath is serviceable, if utterly unremarkable.

With wizards and warriors replacing terrorists and counterterrorists (a la "Counter-Strike"), the game ends up a mediocre muddle rather than the novel game it could have been.

A brief and generic action game that does nothing to distinguish itself from the glut of similar--and cheaper--games on the market.

EA Replay contains a few genuine classics, but most of these 16-bit games haven't aged well, which makes them hard to come back to.

In today's world, it's merely a living fossil, reminding us of what online console gaming once looked like.

You've got to give Nacho Libre some style points for its patently insane cutscenes and use of video clips from the movie. Just don't expect to have any fun actually playing it.

The gameplay still hasn't received the attention it deserves, and, as a result, GameBreaker still fails to get many of the fundamentals right.

People without a passion for shooting fake guns at their television sets probably won't find much to like.

The shopping list of things that don't work right is long and comprehensive.

It's a short-lived, uninspired addition to Icewind Dale that costs nearly as much as the original game did and requires that you have the original installed; yet it offers only a fraction of Icewind Dale's value.

A dungeon hack of the most boring kind. You'll have the most fun farming for items, but that is predicated on an enjoyment of the simplistic, dull combat, the constant repetition of dungeons, and overall tedium.

Rocky isn't a great boxing game, and it doesn't quite deliver the same level of excitement as the films it's based on.

Ultimately an average game at its best and a frustrating and boring one at its worst. It's also exceedingly short.

Total Destruction is a glossy coat of paint on an ancient gameplay formula that simply doesn't hold water in 2006.

A number of problems with the controls, the graphics, and the enemy AI keep it from being anything more than a mediocre game.

Quite an amazing bit of eye candy, but it's a real shame that the game behind the pretty graphics just doesn't hold up.

The presentation is a technical nightmare, the story is poorly told, and the modicum of uniqueness the gameplay has to offer is almost completely murdered by sloppy mechanics and a myriad of bugs.

Full Auto 2 is technically proficient, but almost every aspect of this car combat game's gameplay is messed up in one way or another.

When it comes to graphics and sound, Crush Hour begins to fall apart at the seams.

Traveller's Tales has perverted Sega's previously charming action puzzle series into a clumsy, frustrating action adventure game.

A lifelessly generic shooter that, at times, feels like "Max Payne" without the fun.

The Avatar's DS debut serves up an engaging story and some slick 3D visuals, but it's otherwise just another mediocre brawler.

As a game, it's nothing special--just a mediocre platformer stuffed with all of the usual platforming elements. In terms of storytelling and presentation, however, Unmasked grabs the imagination and delights the senses easily as much as a feature-length version of the cartoon show would.

The action is plagued by loose controls and a bad camera, your scores of brain-dead opponents never put up enough of a fight to make things satisfying, and it's all set in a blandly designed world.

The puzzles can be fun and challenging, but the anemic gameplay and generic presentation will leave you feeling unsatisfied with Frantix.

As video games go, Sheep Raider is neither spectacular, nor challenging, nor interesting.

A stripped-down game with poor graphics, poor sound, and a clunky control scheme.

The storytelling is so incompetent that it eventually becomes sort of charming. However, the same can't be said for the control problems and general lack of technical polish.

The action is plagued by loose controls and a bad camera, your scores of brain-dead opponents never put up enough of a fight to make things satisfying, and it's all set in a blandly designed world.

With its outdated roster, overly complicated wrestling system, sluggish controls, decided lack of different match types, and various visual oddities, WWE Raw unfortunately does little to fill the wrestling void in PC gaming.

Thanks to the inexplicable inclusion of timed exploration tasks in between the racing levels, Carmageddon 3 is exactly one half fun and one half frustration.

Though the game features some competent gameplay mechanics and attractive graphics, the extremely short campaign mimics the film's brief theatrical run a little too well, as it's gone almost before it starts.

"NBA Showtime" fans may enjoy Hoopz, but the game would have benefited from an honest-to-goodness arcade mode and a speed setting, if not faster overall gameplay.

World Driver Championship is an average racing game with exceptional graphics. The game's incredible visuals give you a sense of realism for a little while, but the second your car starts to do an excessive slide around a turn, it kind of falls apart.

As a game, it's nothing special--just a mediocre platformer stuffed with all of the usual platforming elements. In terms of storytelling and presentation, however, Unmasked grabs the imagination and delights the senses easily as much as a feature-length version of the cartoon show would.

Black Hawk Down's dated gameplay design and presentation just don't measure up compared to other modern combat shooters. Though the multiplayer can be fun for a while, the weapon balancing is out of whack, and the implementation of vehicles is contrived to the point of absurdity.

It's not a very deep game; it's kind of ugly, and the voice acting is atrocious. But Heatseeker can be fun in small doses--especially if you don't mind taking down wave after wave of enemies, level after level.

Sadly, the shallow gameplay ensures that the game gets really old, really quick.

That frenetic pace, coupled with copious quantities of carnage, make Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh Trail a simple but exciting game, at least until the sometimes-extreme difficulty wears you down.

If you haven't played the previous games, you won't know or care what's going on in the latest one, but if you have played the previous games, you'll feel like you're paying almost full price to play the same game over again.

For all its problems, the single most grating aspect of Wolverine's Revenge is its sound.

Intense in spots, Fire Warrior carries little of the punch found in the tabletop game due to a positively antediluvian shoot-'em-up design and lots of key hunts.

While there's something to be said for a game that cuts to the chase and focuses merely on your ability to lock onto targets and mash the fire button to blast them in the face, Reckoning has shoddy control and some ugly graphical glitches. Its handful of problems really get in the way and make this PSP game short, uninteresting, and not much fun at all.

Its focus on blowing things up gives it a bit of a distinction, but since there's little context to the game and the levels seem thrown together, you'll probably lose interest quickly.

Anyone looking for an exciting mascot racing game won't find too much to like here once the thrill of four-player multiplayer has worn off.

If you already have the camera, you might as well download TotemBall. But don't expect to get much enjoyment out of it.

Total Destruction is a glossy coat of paint on an ancient gameplay formula that simply doesn't hold water in 2006.