While it definitely has a certain sense of style to it, the game itself misses its mark, and the total package isn't one that will hold the interest of most first-person shooter players.

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.

Nothing here works as a replacement for the original material, but this is still a delightful experience whether you remember blowing the dust out of 8-bit cartridges or not.

Political junkies and board-game fans should love The Political Machine 2008, even if it is a bit too close for comfort to its predecessor.

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.

The game's twisted sense of humor and tendency toward overindulgence make it that much more enjoyable. If you're looking for a fun, pick-up-and-play shooter, and don't mind a lot of senseless brutality, Urban Chaos is the game for you.

Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 suffers from attempting to cover far too much ground for the core mechanics to handle.

It's disappointing that there isn't more to dig into when it comes down to Kunai's set dressing, especially when it's paired with such a striking visual style and engrossing combat. Kunai's level design pushes you to keep adapting while affording you the space to finish off a group of enemies with a series of pinpoint grappling hook swings, precise double jumps, and intelligently integrated swings of your sword. Kunai loses some of its momentum far too frequently, but when it hits a balance between its engrossing combat and satisfying platforming, it's difficult to put down.

Though it still exhibits many of the camera and control issues that vexed Sonic's previous forays into 3D, it's truer to its 2D roots than any other 3D Sonic game before it.

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.

Ultimate MK is a sharp fighting game that's still a lot of fun, but only against live opponents.

There's plenty to do, and controlling the enemy is a neat twist, but the adventure is over too soon.

This isn't the brightest puzzle game you'll ever play, but it's a quality distraction in short bursts.

A tiring game. It's taxing without being rewarding, like doing a mile on a stationary bike and discovering that you only burned away calories from one bite of your lunch burrito. The game gets frustrating quickly due to repetitive obstacles and there's not much incentive to dig into a game that won't give you that agency.

The Sims 2 loses something in translation from PC to consoles. Namely, its addictive, entertaining gameplay.

Dancing In Moonlight is particularly special because of the strong remixes and remasters of familiar songs, recreations of places we've been, and reimagination of characters we've long known. You may find the overall premise a little strange, but if you let loose--just as the SEES crew has done--you'll find a brilliant rhythm game weaved into an amazing, evocative soundtrack.

Space Run shines from the depths of space, from the challenging gameplay to the deep strategy mechanics. I looked forward to every cutscene with glee, whether it featured Buck Mann talking terms with an employer, or had me trading fightin' words with pirates.

ProStreet is a solid racing game, but it's missing most of what made the previous games in the series interesting.

Wake's journey gets less creepy and more shooty in the fun but flawed American Nightmare.

No one said being the hero was going to be easy. Overlooking its problems and getting past that learning curve certainly won't be, but if you manage to, you'll find that Dead to Rights is an intense and challenging game.

New gameplay mechanics and multiplayer support are welcome additions to the series, but they come at the cost of accessibility.

The writing, the story, the characters, and the ways in which your actions have an effect on the world are all enthralling. I wanted answers to the mysteries presented, since the heroes and villains of these tales are captivating, and the payoffs, by and large, are worthwhile. There are a lot of excellent old-school isometric adventure games in Weird West's DNA, but not enough new-school polish for it to be something great.

It’s a watered-down stepping stone, intended to introduce players to Puzzle & Dragons with a familiar face and none of those intimidating in-app purchases. It’s clear, however, that P&D’s design was built on a free-to-play base, and taking those elements out actually makes the game feel less substantial as a result.

Since there's no skirmish option available for playing the core strategic game against the computer, the game's appeal is a lot more limited than it might have been.

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

Has absolutely no significance for anyone but hard-core Bust-A-Move completists.

While Smash Court isn't quite as polished or deep as "Virtua Tennis," there's still plenty of fun to be had with this game.

The default difficulty of has been greatly toned down [from the Xbox version], making Dead to Rights a whole lot more accessible and slightly less nerve-wracking, though no less action-packed.