A dull and largely forgettable experience, which, considering the quality of the previous three Digimon World games, really shouldn't be too big of a surprise to anyone.

A dull and largely forgettable experience, which, considering the quality of the previous three Digimon World games, really shouldn't be too big of a surprise to anyone.

It's a fairly simple and repetitive action RPG experience that's rough around the edges, yet it's not without a certain homegrown charm that should appeal to fans of the genre who don't expect too much.

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.

It's likely that only those players who have already acquired a taste for Metal Slug's rich blend of crazy, manic violence and goofy humor will fully appreciate this package.

What is somewhat surprising is that the gameplay is pretty solid for a game aimed squarely at kids, the voice actors do a good job of capturing the inflections of the film's characters, and the game features a nice boon of unlockable content to make up for the short quest.

What is somewhat surprising is that the gameplay is pretty solid for a game aimed squarely at kids, the voice actors do a good job of capturing the inflections of the film's characters, and the game features a nice boon of unlockable content to make up for the short quest.

What is somewhat surprising is that the gameplay is pretty solid for a game aimed squarely at kids, the voice actors do a good job of capturing the inflections of the film's characters, and the game features a nice boon of unlockable content to make up for the short quest.

Offers a lengthy, rewarding, thought-provoking experience that truly makes you feel as though the decisions you make, waging one exciting battle after the next, carry serious consequences.

The spin sensor feels less like a gimmick and more like a tightly integrated feature that makes the entire game feel inventive and unique.

There isn't another baseball game on the system that feels this authentic or puts so many aspects under the player's control.

It's a fully 3D action RPG that's like a combination of Diablo and its sequel, but with better graphics.

In copying the formula of Total War, Pyros Studios, the designers of Imperial Glory, have missed the small nuances and details that made the Total War games, in particular Medieval and Rome, something special.

Finny's tone and relative simplicity make it clear that it was designed for the younger end of the lunchbox spectrum, but vague mission structure and some unusually punishing elements work against the rest of the design.

The most frustrating thing about Outlaw Volleyball Remixed is that, were it not for the stupid posturing and the fact that it's a clunky port of a 2-year-old title, it's not inherently that bad of a game.

Complexity and accessibility are rarely so well-balanced in a strategy game.

Cold Winter isn't the best in its class, but it's definitely worth playing if you're looking for a solid single-player shooter with a decent online component to back it up.

It's just too bad this solid gameplay engine is wrapped in such a shallow, ugly package.

This certainly isn't a bad game of pool, but it lives up to few expectations beyond what its meager price tag would suggest.

The game delivers creepy moments aplenty, and your German Shepherd makes a unique and neat teammate to play with, but some gameplay oddness and dog artificial intelligence quirks mar the adventure.

There's enough variety here to keep you busy; it delivers a strong sense of speed; and the control, while not perfect, is good enough to keep you coming back.

The visual performance is poor, the puzzles are drab, and the story mode is laughably lame.

But even if you're a fan of the original bongo-bangin' rhythm game who's eager for more of the same, it's likely that the game's strained musical selection will put a damper on the experience.

The game's poorly implemented design, clunky interface, Stone Age graphics, and horrible sound effects combine to form a product that is impossible to recommend to anyone.

Throw in a better overall sense of presentation and an insanely deep track editor, and what you've got is a truly great sequel.

A slew of noticeably missing features and other problems may well end up drawing too much of your attention away from the game's good parts.

Star Wars Galaxies, then, is in the best shape of its life right now, thanks in no small part to the recently released Episode III Rage of the Wookiees expansion.

Its slavish dedication to convention will scratch the methodical, cerebral itch all diehard adventure game fans have. As a genre exercise, though, it exerts little energy to draw in new players.

The lightsaber dueling is ultimately too repetitive and easily exploited to be very fun for long, and each of the 16 missions (and subsequent bonus missions) don't take more than 10 to 20 minutes apiece to complete.

The 3D levels and the multiplayer mode that's built around them are more than good enough to justify the 10 extra dollars that the DS game costs.

The game's biggest drawback is that it doesn't take much time to complete--perhaps two hours total for both characters.

The lightsaber dueling is ultimately too repetitive and easily exploited to be very fun for long, and each of the 16 missions (and subsequent bonus missions) don't take more than 10 to 20 minutes apiece to complete.

While the backdrop may still have some life left in it, Pariah's combat, story, and weapons loadout are all positively lifeless, making the game feel like nothing more than an also-ran shooter that barely stands on its own, let alone stands up to the genre's best.

While the game's touchy driving model and overly complex career mode won't appeal to everyone, Enthusia is a worthy game for those looking for something different in the four-wheel genre.

Open Tee isn't really any more or less accessible than Tiger, but the playful visual style will likely appeal more to those with no interest in real-world golf, and established Hot Shots fans will definitely find this to be their preferred game.

If you can tolerate the forcibly cute presentation, you'll find Puyo Pop Fever to be a solid, addictive puzzle game.

If you have the computing speed to run it and the patience to endure its few pitfalls, you likely won't find a better, more believable non-NASCAR racer in today's market.

While the futuristic backdrop may still have some life left in it, Pariah's combat, story, and weapons loadout are all positively lifeless, making the game feel like nothing more than an also-ran shooter that barely stands on its own, let alone stands up to the genre's best.

Forza's main success is in finding a blend between pleasing the notoriously fickle minority that likes its driving games consistently challenging and demandingly detailed, while introducing a set of user-friendly assists that will ensure that even those who are new to the racing genre will enjoy themselves.

Between the broken physics and dark graphics--not to mention the egregious lack of a high-score list--Pac-Man Pinball Advance suffers from a litany of problems.

Despite being made mostly of recycled parts, Emerald proves that the Pokémon formula still works.

Newcomers, on the other hand, will discover a somewhat quirky but enjoyable real-time strategy game that focuses on formations and tactics rather than base-building and tank rushes.

While the game is currently the best choice for hoops fanatics looking for a portable fix, veterans of the console versions may find themselves a little frustrated with controls that aren't quite as responsive as they could have been.

Shoddy controls, buggy gameplay, and some of the worst character design we've seen this year, resulting in a game that can't even justify its $15 price tag.

The tactical battles definitely capture the spirit of X-COM, but the whole package doesn't come together in quite the same way.

It innovatively and successfully combines many of the best, most addictive properties of action RPGs, online RPGs, and competitive multiplayer games in one beautifully produced package, which offers a tremendous lasting value yet none of the monthly fees typically associated with online-only games.

If you can commit a great many hours to familiarizing yourself with all the game's nooks and crannies, expect to be rewarded with an enjoyable addiction that will cost you weeks, if not months, of your life.

The stealth only somewhat works, the combat is mindlessly simple, and the storyline makes Alien vs. Predator look like Dostoyevsky. Now, throw in some fairly ugly graphics, a lot of sloppy platforming, and an onslaught of moronic mission goals, and what you've got is a game you want just about nothing to do with.

Outbreak was an interesting experiment a year ago, but since we've now seen the Resident Evil series finally move on with its incredible fourth installment, dealing with the archaic gameplay conventions of File #2 today feels a little like taking a step backward.

Not so brightly wrapped, but the game brings with it some unique gameplay elements and a great, ethereal visual style.

Rengoku: Tower of Purgatory all but completely botches the execution, delivering an experience that's clumsy, repetitious, and, thankfully, fairly short-lived.

You'll probably dig on the game's unique concept, but when it comes to playing Pac-Pix, that concept gets old real fast.

The stealth only somewhat works, the combat is mindlessly simple, and the storyline makes Alien vs. Predator look like Dostoyevsky. Now, throw in some fairly ugly graphics, a lot of sloppy platforming, and an onslaught of moronic mission goals, and what you've got is a game you want just about nothing to do with.

An average shooter that doesn't offer up more than a handful of satisfying thrills throughout its single-player and multiplayer modes. You'll certainly play worse FPS games in your lifetime, but you'll also certainly play better ones, too.

When all is said and done, then, FIFA Soccer for the PSP is not only a great portable sports game, but a great sports game in its own right.

An average shooter that doesn't offer up more than a handful of satisfying thrills throughout its single-player and multiplayer modes. You'll certainly play worse FPS games in your lifetime, but you'll also certainly play better ones, too.

A platform-style puzzler that's clearly aimed toward a young audience. Older players will laugh (at least, they ought to) at the game's simplistic controls, straightforward puzzles, and rudimentary graphics.

A mediocre platformer, and its racing aspects just make things worse.

An undeveloped plot, derivative gameplay, idiotic enemies, and boring presentation.

So if you're a shooter fan on a budget, Delta Force Xtreme isn't a bad way to go.

An undeveloped plot, derivative gameplay, idiotic enemies, and boring presentation.

An undeveloped plot, derivative gameplay, idiotic enemies, and boring presentation.

It's not about outmatching cunning opponents or solving complex puzzles. It's a game that scratches an itch that is so base and so primal that you can't help but smile as you eviscerate your saccharine enemies only to gorge yourself on their bloody entrails.

It may not look as pretty or offer as much in the way of features, but it holds its own against other racing games available for the GBA.

Psychonauts doesn't reinvent the platformer, but it still delivers an experience that feels wholly original in every aspect of its execution.

Ultimately a shallow, clunky, near-broken mess of a game.

Easy to learn, easy to play, and easy to afford, Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives is a barely tolerable, exceedingly temporary fix for the financially restricted racing beginner.

Psychonauts doesn't reinvent the platformer, but it still delivers an experience that feels wholly original in every aspect of its execution.

If you're in love with the grit and grime of dirt racing, and don't mind a challenge, then Blazin' Trails should be right up your alley.

Easy to learn, easy to play, and easy to afford, Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives is a barely tolerable, exceedingly temporary fix for the financially restricted racing beginner.

The game is a competent squad-based shooter that offers a fun cooperative mode and an artificial intelligence that is at times quite impressive and at other times completely boneheaded.

A poor story, weak artificial intelligence, and plenty of bugs mar what otherwise could have been a simple yet fun castle-building game.

If staring at a brainteaser for lengthy periods of time is your idea of excitement, or if the idea of creating puzzles and sharing them with like-minded friends is intriguing to you, then you'll find enough enjoyable mind-benders to make this worth a purchase.

While the concept of a first-person shooter going behind the back may sound a little strange at first, Unreal Championship 2 pulls it off with ease and, at the same time, provides a fantastic new twist on an old favorite.

Whether or not you enjoy the game's single-player modes, however, will depend on your ability to forgive the design flaws that make it nearly impossible to establish reads and tells against CPU opponents.

So if you like playing video games to release tension, and you don't care about good stories or online multiplayer modes or any of that stuff, definitely rent this one or something.

The PSP game mostly has the same great gameplay, gorgeous graphics, and sublime commentary the PS2 iteration has.

If the setting of Jade Empire appeals to you, along with the promise of a good storyline and some open-ended role playing, then you'll be more than satisfied with BioWare's latest game.

So if you like playing video games to release tension, and you don't care about good stories or online multiplayer modes or any of that stuff, definitely rent this one or something.

The career mode, with its lengthy list of races and deep customization mode, would by itself make the game worthwhile. However, the addition of entertaining online play, arcade races, and a race editor really makes this one of the best street racers currently on the market.

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 career mode, with its lengthy list of races and deep customization mode, would by itself make the game worthwhile. However, the addition of entertaining online play, arcade races, and a race editor really makes this one of the best street racers currently on the market.

Fun and challenging, but the graphics and audio are outdated and the play modes aren't deep enough.

Judging by Obscure, a survival horror throwback best described as "Resident Evil" in a high school, French developer Hydravision is stuck in 1996.

While this textbook copy of the Capcom classic is a competent regurgitation of the genre's clichés, your patience will be tested by déjà vu from the moment that the first monster bursts out of the walls.

For PSP puzzle fans on the hunt for another game to complement their current Lumines addiction, Mercury is a solid choice.

A clunky bargain-bin racer that simply doesn't do enough to keep you engaged, no matter your level of motocross enthusiasm.

Fans of the original Spy vs. Spy games won't find anything worth playing in this Xbox update. But even if you don't know what the series is about, you aren't really missing anything.

Lives up to its name. It's competent enough as far as blatant rip-offs of the great-granddaddy of survival horror go, and the co-op mode certainly adds appeal, but so much has been cobbled together from remnants of other games that Obscure has no distinct identity of its own.

A competent squad-based shooter that offers a fun cooperative mode and an artificial intelligence that is at times quite impressive and at other times completely boneheaded.

A clunky bargain-bin racer that simply doesn't do enough to keep you engaged, no matter your level of motocross enthusiasm.

The newest iteration of the series is the best one yet, offering an intelligent and flexible interface, a varied and highly replayable campaign, as well as multiplayer modes that include cooperative play.

Digital Devil Saga's great demon combat and tenebrous world full of myth and mystery make it worthy of the Shin Megami Tensei name. If you don't mind cliff-hangers and lots of turn-based combat, definitely consider giving this role-playing game a try.

Introduces interesting concepts, but it fails to deliver on them in an engaging way. Add to this a series of irritating bugs and rough edges, and what you end up with is simply a disappointment, all around.

Yet now he wants you to drop $20 on this slightly functional, altogether bad game of poker that features nobody playing online and atrocious computer opponents?

This is probably one of the better kids' games to hit the market in a while, and that it's clever and charming enough to appeal to adults is a testament to that fact.

It adds enough new weapons and enemies to make the expansion feel like a solid companion to the original. If Doom 3 left you wanting more, you'll find what you're looking for in Resurrection of Evil.

Doom 3's old-fashioned gameplay mechanics and level design are very much at odds with its cutting-edge, ultrarealistic looks. Yet the quality of the presentation truly is remarkable--enough so that it overwhelms Doom 3's occasional problems.