Does a fine job of showing off the system's technical prowess while simultaneously providing more of the same smooth Ridge Racer gameplay that still holds up after all these years.

Some will appreciate the game's differences, while others will find the game's focus on minigames and side quests tedious and slightly out of place.

Works out many of the kinks found in last year's game and gets the series back on track.

Final Fantasy IV, arguably the breakthrough entry in the influential series, is a perfect fit for the Game Boy Advance and is a must-play experience for fans of role-playing games.

Takes the next step by adding such useful features that you'll wonder why they weren't in the original game.

This retail package containing Bethesda's downloadable content updates for its groundbreaking role-playing game gives you more quality questing for Oblivion for a budget price.

The most realistic rally game released for the PlayStation 2 to date, but it offers very little in the way of gameplay options and can occasionally prove frustrating because it makes you overly dependent on the instructions of codriver Nicky Grist.

Star Fox 64 is the kind of game you will spend many sleepless nights with - even after you finish. An instant N64 classic.

A diverse platform game with excellent graphics and sound and an impressive list of bonus features. The game's most defining feature, though, is its sharp degree of difficulty, which may prove frustrating for some younger or less dedicated players.

A well-made action strategy game that offers a whimsical art style, setting it apart from other games that try to take a more serious approach. But don't let the cartoonish looks fool you--even veteran players will get a satisfying and serious challenge from the campaign.

Surprisingly one of the most satisfying role-playing experiences to be found on the PlayStation.

It's an extremely well-made game that offers a lot of fun to the player, but these few factors cause it to score right outside the class of "Super Mario 64" and "Banjo-Kazooie," so it only gets very, very high marks, instead of outrageously high marks.

It's not the prettiest looking game, but College Hoops 2K6 still delivers where it counts, as a deep and accurate simulation of NCAA basketball.

Doesn't include any of the storyline or single-player progression from the original game, but it does include the same terrific gameplay and a few new game modes built for online multiplayer action.

Packs some of the most brutal hand-to-hand combat ever, and there's plenty of story and intrigue to conveniently justify all the gory violence.

Tokobot is a charming and entertaining platformer, and its only major setback is that there isn't more of it to go around.

By scaling back the difficulty a smidge and coloring up the presentation, Mercury Meltdown provides an even better puzzle game experience than its predecessor.

Not only visually resembles Mario Kart, but also sounds and plays just like one of the most memorable racing games of all time.

Boasting better visuals and lots of gameplay, Harmony of Dissonance is not just a fine Castlevania game--it's also one of the better GBA games to come around in a while.

Gamers willing to invest the time required to unravel the title's mysteries will discover one of the PS2's most enjoyable games and one of the most original adventure games to grace a console.

Has consistently ambitious level design throughout, even in the PS2-exclusive maps, and the entire game benefits from it.

Packs in a good number of different playable characters and great-looking graphics into an easy, but fairly lengthy adventure. It all combines to form a great action RPG with strong action and a well-told story.

One of the most successfully unnerving elements is the game's lighting... It was that effect, much more than any fearsome creature, which made me leave a hall light on one night after playing it.

NHL 07's thrilling new skill stick makes up for its bare-bones package.

Focuses on the up-tempo aspects of the sport of basketball as opposed to the half-court set, and the result is plenty of fast breaks, quick passes, and few shot clock violations.

Sure, it isn't the deepest, longest, or most technically proficient game out there, but fans of the comic book are sure to have a blast smashing their way through every destructible obstacle the game throws at them.

Despite its short length and a few other problems, Star Trek Bridge Commander is an innovative, entertaining simulation.

The Xbox version in particular is also plagued by some noticeable technical problems. All in all, NCAA Football 2005 is still a great college football game, but longtime fans will have trouble shaking the feeling that the series isn't quite living up to its awesome potential.

Though very similar to the last two games in the series, the open-ended stealth action gameplay offered by Hitman: Blood Money is still just about as tensely exciting as ever. A few new twists to the formula, an intriguing story, and a memorably diverse, cinematic sequence of missions further make Blood Money worth it.

Virtua Tennis 3 is a great game that holds true to that winning formula. There are some new minigames, and the career mode has been fleshed out, but it's clear that the developers were focused on refining the gameplay rather than reinventing it.

Hotel Dusk weaves an absorbing noir-style mystery with traditional adventure game elements and stylish presentation and does it all with a deft touch.

Though its balance is a little questionable at times, Metal Arms has quietly come onto the scene to offer one of the most visceral and most satisfying shooting experiences in quite a while.

A damn good game, and no "Gran Turismo" can change that.

Even with its shallow storyline and camera issues, Phantasy Star Online simply manages to be a whole lot of fun.

2006 FIFA World Cup does a good job of re-creating the carnival atmosphere that surrounds the competition, and is a significant improvement over its 360 predecessor.

One of Capcom's last great fighting games is now fully intact on the PSP, right down to the last pixel. It even boasts some extras not found in previous versions.

If you have any interest in racing, you'll want to get this game. The online play alone makes the game worth the investment. The upgrades to this year's game aren't dramatic, but the improved online play, challenges, and handful of new tracks make this a worthy upgrade.

The idea that the game of pinball may be used to simulate virtually any other challenging struggle is a good one (since pinball is cool), and Metroid Prime Pinball pulls it off very well--both by being a fun and great-looking pinball experience, and by being a faithful spin-off of one of the best Nintendo games of the past decade.

Stunted graphics aside, NASCAR Thunder 2002 is a Winston Cup fanatic's dream...absolutely the best NASCAR title available for the PS2.

Basically the same as last year's model.

Electronic Arts improves upon the solid foundation they laid with Tiger Woods 06 and builds a great game in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07.

Those looking for a complex and interesting real-time strategy game with fantastic good looks and some historical flavor will find just what they want in Age of Empires III.

An excellent, well-put-together action adventure game that most fans of the genre should be able to enjoy and any Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan will love.

Oddly compelling 3D vampire-hunting that fans of the series should definitely not miss. A well-balanced, challenging gameplay experience that's filled with pretty visuals, awesome (though limited) music, plenty of secrets, and some incredible bosses (just wait until you see Death... whew!).

Regardless of its presentation, The King of Fighters 2000/2001 contains two solid ports of two great 2D fighting games, and the two-disc compilation retails at a very reasonable suggested price of $40.

It focuses on creating a lengthy and engaging campaign that works great as a single-player experience but can also be played cooperatively online. The result is a new SOCOM game that offers great value for returning SEALs and new recruits alike.

Like the original Legends, the sequel features an entertaining and overall lighthearted feel, but this time with slightly more serious overtones.

Places an emphasis on action on the pitch and supplies a few of the gameplay modes that are missing from EA's popular FIFA series.

Features exceptional graphics and great handling.

This is far and away the best Dragon Ball Z game around, and it's a must-have for DBZ fans. However, the action is also so fast-paced and viscerally satisfying that it can genuinely appeal even to those otherwise uninterested in Dragon Ball Z.

As a four-player game, it's definitely one of the wildest fighters to come to the Dreamcast.

GT 2002's only real issue is a relative lack of racetracks, but the game has enough depth to overcome that problem.

The new content and cheaper price make Remix the definitive version of Midnight Club 3, but there's not enough new to draw in those who already took the plunge last year.

One of the best names in flight combat delivers another standout installment in Ace Combat X for the PSP, which features its own story and well-designed gameplay twists.

When it really gets going, it's an exhilarating game of modern combat, albeit one that's also weighed down with some bugs and gameplay issues.

On one hand, sure, it's a derivative real-time strategy game. But on the other hand, it's a tidy little bundle of escapism that's perfect for a generation of gamers raised on Star Wars.

Drill Dozer proves to be a great action game for the Game Boy Advance thanks to some creative, well-designed platforming elements and a number of classic-style boss battles, which keep the game uniformly intense throughout.

Ultimately, Madden NFL 06 is a highly playable game of football, but in comparison with the leaps forward the franchise has made in previous years, 06 feels like a false start.

The best handheld golf game to date. Though it lacks the online play and a few other details found in "Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005," it's actually a better game in some ways, as it takes the sport a little more seriously.

Race Driver 2006, despite its largely recycled career mode, feels like a mostly new game, thanks to the addition of an all-new single-player mode, some new cars and tracks, and simulation racing that still feels tight and authentic on the PSP.

Sure, it isn't the deepest, longest, or most technically proficient game out there, but fans of the comic book are sure to have a blast smashing their way through every destructible obstacle the game throws at them.

The breakneck action of SNK's playfully over-the-top military shooter series makes for a great fit on the PSP, despite some additional load times.

The best part about this sequel is still the RPG-like hero development that so distinguished Warlords Battlecry from other real-time strategy games.

When played as a companion game to the original, City of Villains closes an obvious open loop in NCSoft's MMO world of heroic do-gooders and dastardly deeds, and remains a very fun game in the process.

Though the game uses Epic Games' Unreal engine, which was once lauded for its exceptional visual quality, "Deus Ex" is actually a fairly bland-looking game because of its incessantly dark industrial environments.

As long as you're not expecting any huge additions to the Metal Gear milieu, The Twin Snakes serves as a great revival of a true classic.

A great game with thoroughly enjoyable multiplayer, quality presentation, and some mildly-interesting tilt-control support. It is missing a couple of features that its Xbox 360 counterpart contains, and the frame rate is far less reliable in this version, but the overall intensity and playability of Call of Duty 3 remains intact, despite these few issues.

Just about every aspect of the game's design has undergone some type of change, from the radically improved swing interface and the use of 3D golfer animations instead of digitized motion-capture footage, to a powerful camera option that gives you unlimited access to the gorgeously rendered courses.

UEFA Euro 2004 might have only a fraction of the teams and features found in this year's FIFA offering, but the gameplay and options it offers are actually sufficiently different from those found in FIFA 2004 to make it a worthwhile purchase.

The addition of light role-playing elements to the otherwise standard golf gameplay doesn't always mesh particularly well, but the game is otherwise put together well enough that such minor design peculiarities are easy to overlook.

Packs in a good number of different playable characters and great-looking graphics into an easy, but fairly lengthy adventure. It all combines to form a great action RPG with strong action and a well-told story.

Effectively highlights the power of the handheld with its brilliant, rich visuals and will provide hours of challenging fun, especially for those who haven't played the original games on which it is based.

Just like the first Disgaea, this strategy role-playing game is best suited for fans of other stuff like it, and it's chock-full of depth, lasting value, and surprisingly good humor.

DAoC is still one of the best online role-playing games on the market, and by extension, one of the best such games to date. And Shrouded Isles succeeds at making it even bigger and better.

Despite the relative age of the source material and the number of times Sega has trotted it out already, the gameplay is still zippy and fun, and the whole package generally feels pretty fresh, thanks to some subtle tweaks.

It may not have all the newfangled bells and whistles that you'd want from a sequel, but if you're a fan of the series who absolutely must have new tracks as soon as possible, Dominator should satisfy you nicely.

It's every bit as challenging and entertaining as you could expect.

UEFA Euro 2004 might have only a fraction of the teams and features found in this year's FIFA offering, but the gameplay and options it offers are actually sufficiently different from those found in FIFA 2004 to make it a worthwhile purchase.

If you have the means to play the Xbox or PC version of Pandora Tomorrow instead, then you should. But this is a respectable port overall, and if you consider it only in the context of the PlayStation 2's library, it's still a great game.

The new content and cheaper price make Remix the definitive version of Midnight Club 3, but there's not enough new to draw in those who already took the plunge last year.

If you like to boot up a game for an action-packed twenty minutes at a time, look elsewhere.

THUG2 hangs on to the great gameplay of the previous games, makes a few minor tweaks, and wraps it all up in a new Bam Margera-centric package.

The hit PC real-time strategy series goes turn-based in this well-designed and addictive translation, which packs a surprising amount of historic battles into a small package.

Has a lot of depth that's readily apparent, yet it takes a long time to really see how much is packed into this great expansion to one of last year's most addicting games.

The levels are larger and require more exploration than the typical Sonic game; the abilities of the five separate playable characters actually have an influence over the strategy you'll use to complete an area.

Signature shots, oodles of gameplay modes, feature-rich online play, and great on-court action are just some of the many areas in which NBA 2K7 excels.

The game's strong points--especially its combat--overshadow whatever problems Jedi Outcast may have early on.

A great game in its own right and is wholeheartedly recommendable to anyone who enjoys racing games.

Raven improves upon the great work it did with the X-Men Legends games, creating a lengthy adventure that touches upon nearly every last corner of the Marvel Universe.

Sure, it isn't the deepest, longest, or most technically proficient game out there, but fans of the comic book are sure to have a blast smashing their way through every destructible obstacle the game throws at them.

The game maintains the compulsive drive for authenticity that the Gran Turismo series is known for, but with a much narrower focus. So while it may just be Gran Turismo with motorcycles, it's still a great racing game in its own right.

Everyone who liked the first game is going to love Driver 2- - the new types of missions, cities, and gameplay features, as well as a fantastic, original story, make Driver 2 a winner.

Fans of the series will be able to dive right into the game and won't be disappointed. New players may even be compelled to get "Earth 2150" after their experience with The Moon Project.

It won't take you long to blow through King Kong, but its sometimes thrilling, often tense, and always entertaining adventure is absolutely worth checking out.

It won't take you long to blow through King Kong, but its sometimes thrilling, often tense, and always entertaining adventure is absolutely worth checking out.

A remarkably fresh look at traditional real-time strategy gaming.

Though very similar to the last two games in the series, the open-ended stealth action gameplay offered by Hitman: Blood Money is still just about as tensely exciting as ever. A few new twists to the formula, an intriguing story, and a memorably diverse, cinematic sequence of missions further make Blood Money worth it.

This fast-paced role-playing game is faithful to the movie and is also downright fun.