Though still providing some fun, fast-paced fighting action, Supersonic Warriors 2 lacks some of the care of its predecessor and feels like a somewhat slapdash GBA-to-DS conversion.

There's a good game in Quake 4, but it's buried under several layers of highly disappointing graphical performance issues.

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.

The implementation isn't quite seamless, and it can be frustrating at times, but the touch screen features do give you a few more ways to interact with enemies and environments. As a result, Double Trouble takes a much more puzzle-focused approach to the standard side-scrolling beat-'em-up formula.

This third-person action game might sound like a great idea if you're a fan of 50, Yayo, Buck, and Banks, but with its poor gameplay and worse attention to the G-Unit license, Bulletproof disappoints on all fronts.

The drift-crazy driving action is intact, as fast as ever, and comes along with a robust online ranking and racing system that breathes new life into the long-running franchise.

This awesome, high-tech first-person shooter champions the Xbox 360 with its excellent assortment of single- and multiplayer game types, as well as its incredible good looks and dynamic, intense action.

Almost everything that makes the PC version one of the year's best shooters remains intact on the Xbox 360 version of the game, which looks just as good and actually runs smoother than all but the most beastly of gaming PCs.

If you don't notice or mind a light smattering of propaganda, you'll find that Rise of a Soldier is more than a competent shooter, offering a unique feel and spin on first-person shooters.

A platformer, characterized most notably by its fusion of classic Pac-Man moments and generic platforming gameplay.

Heavy on style and light on coherency, but there's enough enjoyable action to keep things from flying apart at the seams.

This third-person action game might sound like a great idea if you're a fan of 50, Yayo, Buck, and Banks, but with its poor gameplay and worse attention to the G-Unit license, Bulletproof disappoints on all fronts.

A platformer, characterized most notably by its fusion of classic Pac-Man moments and generic platforming gameplay.

Earth 2160 features interesting gameplay and beautiful graphics, but it's dragged down by its badly paced and terribly told campaign.

A much stronger license than it is a game, as it's plagued by overly expansive environments and poorly realized combat sequences.

This first-person action game hits you like a sledgehammer with its astounding, stunningly creepy presentation, but it sacrifices opportunities for more shocks and surprises by settling for repetition.

American Wasteland on the 360 runs in a high-enough resolution to show off every single ugly little flaw that isn't as apparent in other versions of this otherwise-decent skateboarding game.

Its novel look, its online play, solid gameplay, and its revamped goals make this a great one for the Nintendo DS.

For pure style, speed, and immersion, grabbing a seat in any of PGR 3's intricately modeled high-speed rigs and tearing through the streets is what the next generation of gaming is all about.

It's got new goalie controls and marginally improved graphics, but taken as a whole, NHL 2K6 just isn't as appealing on the 360 as it was on other platforms.

Xtreme Legends is the archetypal Dynasty Warriors expansion pack, adding more ways to experience the same tired gameplay.

On the Xbox 360, this short Old West action adventure feels old all right. And its fairly fun shooting action is dragged down by a slapdash presentation.

Flaws like poorly blended animations, an erratic frame rate, a horribly flawed free-throw-shooting mechanic, and the lack of a franchise mode combine to keep NBA Live 06 from being the great basketball game it could have been.

While Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 for Xbox 360 is missing many of the features that round out the game on current-gen platforms and the PC, what remains is a challenging, enjoyable game of golf that, in some ways, exceeds the more fleshed-out versions.

Inferior to its Xbox counterpart in just about every way imaginable, and is undoubtedly one of the most disappointing games available for Microsoft's new console at launch.

NBA 2K6 looks fantastic if you have an HDTV, but the gameplay will seem familiar to you if you've played one of the other versions of the game already.

A generally unremarkable game that manages to pull itself together thanks to its story and interesting characters.

The wholly original cut-and-paste visual style of Amped 3--combined with the manic, increasingly crazy energy of the story mode--make it easier to forgive the oft-repetitive and occasionally plain gameplay.

Its high-speed races and police chases make for an extremely exciting game, which is further enhanced by the game's terrific graphics. This is one of those games that makes the previous generation of hardware look older than it actually is.

Pretty graphics are great to have and all, but everything else about Madden on the 360 feels like a step backward--and one that makes its higher price tag very difficult to justify.

The clunky interface, leaden pacing, mostly ugly visuals, and host of irritating and detrimental bugs pretty much squash whatever potential this game might have had, and set the Law & Order game franchise back about three years.

The classic gameplay remains largely the same, and although certain elements haven't weathered the years all that well, fans of the series and dedicated RPG junkies will get good mileage out of this one.

Starship Troopers has little dedication to faithfully re-creating the things that made the film unique, and it's a pretty lousy and technically deficient shooter to boot.

There's a real raw, visceral satisfaction to Infected, which is undermined by a short, single-minded story mode and an ambitious but inherently flawed multiplayer game.

There are plenty of good reasons for RPG fans to pay attention, too, because Dragon Quest VIII is a beautiful, lighthearted adventure that pairs satisfying, classic-style gameplay with a whole lot of charm.

A platformer, characterized most notably by its fusion of classic Pac-Man moments and generic platforming gameplay.

Shadow the Hedgehog fails to live up to its pedigree due to terrible controls, an uncooperative camera, and an overall lack of effort.

Heavy on style and light on coherency, but there's enough enjoyable action to keep things from flying apart at the seams.

The actual racing hasn't changed too much, but the ever-present police make this game a whole lot more interesting.

Great fun, from its hysterical cutscenes to its extremely tense police chases.

There are problems with the game's controls, physics, and artificial intelligence, which often make the process of playing the game more frustrating than fun.

Most Wanted 5-1-0 has most of what's needed to make a good PSP racing game, but it lacks the biggest one of all: excitement.

Like the console versions, Goblet of Fire on the PSP is a worthwhile platforming experience for Potter fans--but the newly included minigames don't add much value.

Even if you forgive the flimsy story, cliché characters, and derivative gameplay, it's impossible to look past the myriad game-stopping bugs, frustrating glitches, and glaring technical problems that plague this game.

This lengthy Japanese role-playing game doesn't break the mold in any way, but it packs in some good-looking anime artwork and tons of characters and story in a portable package.

Kingdom of Paradise has somewhat of a steep learning curve and its flashy combat system has a few problems, but the quality of the game's presentation and the generally entertaining battles almost completely overshadow these setbacks.

EyeToy: Operation Spy has got some really cool features, but not enough of them to form a truly substantial game.

Sonic Rush moves Sonic's 2D adventures over to the DS, and that positive trend continues with a platformer that focuses on raw speed while still managing to do interesting new things, particularly when it comes to the handheld's dual-screen format.

It's a competent racing game compared to everything else on the GBA, but this pocket-sized iteration of EA's marquee title is missing much of what made the console versions interesting.

A bit underwhelming. Yes, it's a fairly solid translation of one of the better first-person shooters of recent years, but it also lacks the extensive multiplayer and mod-making features of its PC cousin.

Even if you forgive the flimsy story, cliché characters, and derivative gameplay, it's impossible to look past the myriad game-stopping bugs, frustrating glitches, and glaring technical problems that plague this game.

Shadow the Hedgehog fails to live up to its pedigree due to terrible controls, an uncooperative camera, and an overall lack of effort.

The actual racing hasn't changed too much, but the ever-present police make this game a whole lot more interesting.

Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 3 incorporates a bunch of new modes and switches up the songlist, but for many less-than-expert players will seem a little too similar to previous games.

Even if you forgive the flimsy story, cliché characters, and derivative gameplay, it's impossible to look past the myriad game-stopping bugs, frustrating glitches, and glaring technical problems that plague this game.

Shadow the Hedgehog fails to live up to its pedigree due to terrible controls, an uncooperative camera, and an overall lack of effort.

A game of enjoyable moments that are, unfortunately, far too easy to breeze through.

The actual racing hasn't changed too much, but the ever-present police make this game a whole lot more interesting.

This console and PC trip through the Wardrobe is a mostly run-of-the-mill action adventure that might hold some measure of appeal to fans of the film, but not so much anyone else.

This console and PC trip through the Wardrobe is a mostly run-of-the-mill action adventure that might hold some measure of appeal to fans of the film, but not so much anyone else.

The storybook charm of Narnia quickly fades away, leaving a fairly average game that doesn't do much to complement the movie.

Mario Kart DS represents a significant step forward for Nintendo's much-loved racing series, and not only because it's the first to feature online play.

Without a doubt, this is the deepest that a SmackDown! game has ever been, and while not every single thing that this game tries works completely, the sheer breadth of content makes it an easy choice for any wrestling enthusiast, and quite possibly the best wrestling game available for the system.

ATV Quad Fury's lackluster tempo and ugly user interface makes it one to avoid on the Nintendo DS.

With so many better action adventure games available on the Game Boy Advance, this short, simplistic game is especially difficult to recommend, even for fans of the movie.

This console and PC trip through the Wardrobe is a mostly run-of-the-mill action adventure that might hold some measure of appeal to fans of the film, but not so much anyone else.

This console and PC trip through the Wardrobe is a mostly run-of-the-mill action adventure that might hold some measure of appeal to fans of the film, but not so much anyone else.

X3 features more of the open-ended space exploration and trading of the earlier games, and it has a gorgeous graphics engine; just don't expect a riveting story.

The racing isn't the star of the show, and the load times are painful, but Crash Tag Team Racing's supplemental elements pull the whole thing together into a mostly enjoyable experience.

The lack of light-gun support drags down Operation Wolf, but with games like Elevator Action and Bubble Bobble on board, Taito Legends offers good classic arcade action at a budget price.

Even if you're the type of person who finds a picture of Calvin urinating on a Ford or Chevy logo utterly hysterical, you're likely to tire of Ford vs. Chevy's tedious racing mechanics rather quickly.

Even if you're the type of person who finds a picture of Calvin urinating on a Ford or Chevy logo utterly hysterical, you're likely to tire of Ford vs. Chevy's tedious racing mechanics rather quickly.

The Movies proves to be an accessible and good-spirited tycoon game, and its moviemaking tools offer a surprisingly deep amount of control. But the disconnection between these elements is noticeable.

It's a worthwhile platforming experience for hardcore Potter fans, but some may be put off by all the collection quests and backtracking.

It's a worthwhile platforming experience for hardcore Potter fans, but some may be put off by all the collection quests and backtracking.

Goblet of Fire is a decent game, but exploring the large levels becomes repetitive after a while, and it also fails to effectively leverage the strengths of the DS.

World Championship Poker 2's offline play is the best you'll find amid this year's competition, and the online play is still pretty engaging.

The game offers hard-hitting offline and online gameplay, impressive map sizes, and a pleasantly intuitive shooter interface, all while maintaining the feel and intensity of combat that is so familiar to fans of SOCOM.

The experience just doesn't last long enough to be savored. Gun's main story missions are exciting, but the main plot is over so quickly that the whole thing just ends up feeling rushed, and the various side missions aren't compelling enough to hold your interest after the end credits roll.

The experience just doesn't last long enough to be savored. Gun's main story missions are exciting, but the main plot is over so quickly that the whole thing just ends up feeling rushed, and the various side missions aren't compelling enough to hold your interest after the end credits roll.

It doesn't really matter if you've played other games like it before, because Suikoden Tactics is easy to get into and challenging enough to be enjoyable to veterans and newcomers alike.

Karaoke Revolution Party makes a good party game, especially if you've got all the necessary peripherals, but it's no greater than the song list, which is too diverse for its own good.

Enjoyment of the game's dark subject matter is diluted slightly by some awkward controls and strange pacing, but there are still plenty of good chills to be had.

While the memorable battle sequences from the movie trilogy would lend themselves perfectly to a strategy game, this one just isn't put together well enough to do full justice to the source material.

World Championship Poker 2's offline play is the best you'll find amid this year's competition, and the online play is still pretty engaging.

Goblet of Fire is a decent game, but exploring the large levels becomes repetitive after a while.

Almost a straight port of the original 2001 PC game, complete with a now-ugly graphics engine and sound effects that are completely primitive by today's standards. The game simply hasn't held up over time.

It's a worthwhile platforming experience for hardcore Potter fans, but some may be put off by all the collection quests and backtracking.

Certainly devotees to karaoke will enjoy the changes that Revolution Party has to offer. But if you're anything less than diehard, you'll probably feel like this game, for all its options, is still too much of the same.

The experience just doesn't last long enough to be savored. Gun's main story missions are exciting, but the main plot is over so quickly that the whole thing just ends up feeling rushed, and the various side missions aren't compelling enough to hold your interest after the end credits roll.

The style and attitude are available in spades, but unfortunately the battles just feel sloppy and unsatisfying. There are some great singular mechanics in play here, but they're all just tossed together in a mess of flashy effects and shallow gameplay.

It's a worthwhile platforming experience for hardcore Potter fans, but some may be put off by all the collection quests and backtracking.

Karaoke Revolution Party makes a good party game, especially if you've got all the necessary peripherals, but it's no greater than the song list, which is too diverse for its own good.

The experience just doesn't last long enough to be savored. Gun's main story missions are exciting, but the main plot is over so quickly that the whole thing just ends up feeling rushed, and the various side missions aren't compelling enough to hold your interest after the end credits roll.

Path of Neo is a chaotic but pretty good brawler worth the time for those who still think fondly of the Matrix series.

A good brawler at its core, but the PC version is seriously lacking in comparison to its console counterparts.

It's packed with clever and entertaining action, not to mention some of the most highly impressive, razor-sharp graphics you've ever seen, along with terrific music and sound. Kameo feels rather disjointed at first, and it's not a particularly long game, but it ultimately provides a rousing, memorable journey.

With its extremely smart approach to difficulty, its great guitar controller, and its killer song selection, Guitar Hero might just be the best rhythm game ever made.