Overall I found Close Combat: Normandy Invasion a breath of fresh air in a genre where emphasis is often placed on the "amass and swarm" strategies, or resource attrition.

A fun and open-ended tactical shooter marred by pathing issues.

Gothic II's biggest problem: it's simply slow going.

A good game buried under a lousy interface and a steep learning curve.

Despite those minor problems, the "pick up and play" for a short while nature of this kind of gaming makes it all but perfect for portable pocket gaming system like the GBA.

Offers more of the same fun and addictive gameplay as its predecessor, but no major innovations.

Some homogenous gameplay and the occasional graphic lapse aside, Armed & Dangerous scores with humor and weapon innovation.

The best kind of sequel, one that pushes the series forward while retaining everything that made it great in the first place. It's a shame that some people won't dig its goofy style, because OutRun2 is a superb arcade driving game and the best sequel Sega's done in years.

The game's RPG trappings are just the sugarcoating for an incredibly deep and enjoyable strategic experience.

Even the hidden cards, which seemed like a lame gimmick at first ended up being a, well, pretty cool gimmick. If you're a fan of Contra and its ilk, you should give this one a try.

Even if you know nothing about Buffy, the TV series, know this about Buffy, the Xbox video game: it's unquestionably the best beat'em-up for the system.

Battle of the Nations is a phenomenal way to stoke the nationalistic fire of the competition in gamers around the world, but it's shutting down the day after the tournament.

There's a lot to like about Rage, but for every good thing it does there's something equally annoying or dated, leading to a very uneven experience. Adroit fans of the first person shooter will still enjoy themselves, especially after the first couple of yawn-inducing hours pass and things really start hotting up, but it's not quite the masterpiece we know id were once capable of.

Our initial criticisms on the sameness of combat that led to an overall feeling of tediousness have not been completely eradicated, however, as there is still very little variation in the enemies you face, but the improvements to the framerate certainly make the combos and counters a lot easier to perform.

My biggest critique comes in the form of companion customization; you can't upgrade armor for your party members.

Vesperia may not deliver a totally fresh plot, but well-written character dialogue and a great combat system go a long way towards mitigating the cliches. A superior blend of style and production values, Tales of Vesperia is the best JRPG on the 360 thus far.

Just like in real life, Tiger continues to impress.

Barring the terrible control scheme, the single-player version of URU: Ages Beyond Myst is a solid adventure title. Beautiful graphics and sound, fun puzzles, and lots to read and learn about the D'ni makes for an atmospheric game. But the lack of the advertised multiplayer component is a real disappointment.

Many of the elements that would be considered shortcomings in another games' PvE content are exactly what Guild Wars's veteran player base enjoys. In this sense, Eye of the North is a success.

The game has what it takes to satiate the average RPG fan with an engaging (if not by the numbers) story, fast-paced battles, and entertaining gameplay devices that provide enough to appeal to a broad audience. If nothing else, it's like a vanilla shake: nothing new, but still satisfying.

A rare breed of FPS these days, as it's both high in quality and uniqueness. The mechanics of "Deus Ex" work tremendously well in a high-intensity atmosphere.

A solid game that improves only marginally -- if at all -- over last year's game.

Adds a great deal to play with, despite occasional frustrations.

It's fun, challenging, and it left this jaded reviewer as giddy as a schoolgirl -- in this case, a schoolgirl that happens to control a 120-foot tall robot.

The so-called "secret weapons" aren't worth the price of admission alone, and the maps aren't as good as those from The Road to Rome, but the combination of the two makes Secret Weapons an expansion any Battlefield fan should give serious consideration to.

A schizophrenic but enjoyable combination of gameplay styles, and it's worth slogging through the solid Sphinx segments to savor the Mummy magic.

Like the other games in their series, Hitz is easy to pick up, fun to play, and not at all representative of the sport that it's based on.

Arctic Edge is a good portable racer, but I didn't find the tracks varied enough to keep my attention for more than a few minutes at a time. But hey, with an arcade-style racer like this, that's pretty much all you need -- and at least it's not costing you quarters each time.

This game definitely is ambitious. Unfortunately, I would've traded things like the track creator and rider customization for tighter gameplay. Mototrax gets an A for effort, but about a B- in execution.

Prototype's combat and world traversal alone can provide more than a few hours of entertainment, I just can't get over how cheap a lot of the game feels. Whether it's the dated looks, its frustratingly difficult latter portion, or its awkward storytelling, Prototype often feels like a budget title that unfortunately doesn't have a budget price.

I was expecting a boring and slow-paced fighting title like "Tekken Tag Tournament," but what I found was one of the best fighting games of 2001.

A schizophrenic but enjoyable combination of gameplay styles, and it's worth slogging through the solid Sphinx segments to savor the Mummy magic.

While the gameplay will mostly appeal to the hardcore fans of the hobby, almost anyone will get a smile as they watch the cars roll by.

The best game for any system based on an arguably cruel schoolyard game.

There are absolutely no differences between this, the GameCube, and the PlayStation 2 versions, aside from some miniscule tidying of the jagged polygons from the PS2 original.

If you can say that you're looking forward to having ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a week than this is a great title for you. If, somehow, you're totally out of great DS and Gameboy games to play on the go, Galaxies makes for a passable time killer on the road.

The core mechanics and level designs are all excellent enough that the extra characters won't detract from the game should you decide to ignore them. In the end, this is the best and most realized of the Sonic Advance games.

Diehards will love the reduced emphasis on checking, while more casual fans should enjoy the new skill stick moves and the ability to place your shot wherever you please. Best of all, every rule change has made it into the game.

For shooter fans, the combat is still outstanding, and you'll get a great eight hours or so by the time you reach your final encounter with Alma, although fans of the first game may feel like they've done this before. In many ways, F.E.A.R. 2 feels like the middle chapter in a trilogy, and there's certainly enough momentum here for at least one more run.

It's definitely not a serious look in to the franchise, but this game has been marinating in fun for months, and the goodness has soaked all the way in.

The best reason to pick up this game isn't in the extra content that it delivers over 2K6, which was itself a feature-rich game, but instead in that your money will be well spent on what is a much better looking and playing version of baseball than what was presented last year.

Mildly enjoyable, but I found it hardly engaging.

If it weren't for its middling trick system, Downhill Domination would be among the finest action-sports games on the market.

About my only complaint is that it's over too soon -- just an hour, without mistakes...It's unmisssable for anyone who wants to take a space-age vacation from the typical.

A solidly entertaining and charmingly classic role-playing game sure to delight anyone looking for hours of adventure.

A game best enjoyed by those who've never come to it before.

A top-notch effort from start to finish.

A very well-thought out game that deftly avoids practically every pitfall and delivers a flat-out awesome gaming experience.

It may not be an easy game, but N+ is certainly addictive, and its design makes it a fantastic portable game.

The studio behind Shattered Memories obviously has a better understanding than most developers about what does and doesn't work on the Wii, and, with the increased emphasis on psychology, I can't wait to see their future work within the nightmare world of Silent Hill.

One of the nicer new features are challenges, mini-goals within an existing scenario that you can choose to do if you'd like.

A bold experiment for DICE. It's a dramatic departure from the "Battlefield" games, and provides a refreshing experience to those willing to invest the time in its strict control mechanics. The combat's unfortunately its Achilles' heel, since it lacks the spontaneity of the free-running and in many instances brings the action to a crashing halt.

Without question, it's one of the longest games available on the 360, clocking in at roughly 60 hours depending on how quickly you blaze through it. For huge anime/JRPG geeks like us, Blue Dragon is a fantastic game as long as you can make it through the first few plodding hours and don't mind the hyper-cute character design.

It feels like a game that was rushed out the door, failing to offer all the core features an online game should have.

It is a wargaming grognard's dream, but may put off anyone else. That would be a shame, because underneath this detailed spreadsheet-type interface is an intriguing strategy game.

All the features put together make a fun addition to SimCity, but only because the expansion packs in so many different additions to the game.

Gone are cumbersome mechanics like hiding bodies and sheathing swords to run faster; back are gruesome one-hit kills, fun grappling hooks and those lovely poisoned rice balls.

It's got the racing dynamic of EA's "Need for Speed" and Acclaim's "Test Drive" series, but the speed and abandon of "Crazy Taxi" and "Driver."

Unarguably, however, the most significant change has been the increase in the level cap. Players who were once sitting comfortably at 50 (the old level cap) are now looking forward to a lengthy, laborious grind.

It's easily one of the best games available for the PSP, and it might even earn the Blue Bomber a few more fans.

If you're a Tony Hawk fan and you can't get enough of the series, Tony Hawk's Proving Ground for DS is indisputably the best of the bunch this year. It feels like the classic Hawk titles of five years ago, yet it manages to adapt some of the good elements from updated games to make a fulfilling experience.

Not only does it adapt the gameplay mechanics of a GameCube title to the remote and Nunchuk, but it makes them pretty easy and accessible to use.

All in all, combat is very easy to learn, but difficult to master -- and yet very satisfying.

With fast, violent, and even subtle sporting action all wrapped up in a gorgeous audiovisual package, Deathrow is a real winner of a game.

Very fun and very funny; it deftly satirizes Grand Theft Auto while being almost as entertaining, and it even improves on several aspects of GTA's gameplay (instant mission restarts, a superior guidance system, and an easily accessible collection of vehicles).

This may seem like a given, but the best way to sum up Storm Legion is that it's an expansion for players who love Rift and want more of it. Where most expansions attempt to transform and refine gameplay, this one seeks only to enlarge it. Its sole (and worthy) contribution to MMO innovation lies in its spectacular player housing, and that doesn't change what Rift is at its core. I doubt it'll be enough to win back people who've left out of disillusionment with one feature or another, but for those who're still here it's a keeper.

Far better than it should be, partly for its spirited use of the license, partly for its variety, and partly for the simple fact that it's a rarity to have a game like this with serviceable bots.

I had a blast playing Need For Speed: Most Wanted, and I expect to keep that feeling alive through many more single and multiplayer dustups.

It may not be especially revolutionary, but Elite Force II is an often entertaining and consistently solid shooter that no Star Trek fan should be without.

This is an entertaining shooter with many good points, but nothing's particularly outstanding or original here. Members of the Old West FPS posse should snap it up faster than Doc Holliday could clear leather, but city-slicker varmints oughta just wait till it hits the bargain bin at the local general store.

But for $40, you're getting much, much more than your money's worth. Any PSP gamer with even a passing interest in music creation should absolutely take Traxxpad for a spin.

If they want to ensure that they'll stay on top for good, they'll need to fix the analog swing system and work hard on cutting down on the frequent load times.

Though Disgaea 3 comes with a steep learning curve, there's so much depth to the game, both apparent and hidden, that you could literally spend thousands of hours with it. It's a niche experience, but one that's exactly what its target audience is looking for.

A love-it-AND-hate-it title. The presentation and story aren't quite as elaborate as "DOOM 3," and things bog down a little in the second half, but the new weapons and gadgets provide a nice boost to the core gameplay.

Even if you make only one trip through LEGO Indiana Jones, it'll be a great ride.

A wonderful title (with the kind of cerebral gameplay that seems to have taken a back seat to mindless shooters in recent years), which will keep you glued to your console for as long as it takes you to finish it.

It may not unseat "NASCAR Racing 2003 Season" as this year's premier PC NASCAR sim, but the NASCAR Thunder series is now right on the leader's tail.

While some of the areas are bigger than the ones found in the original, almost all of them are less interesting. The game's dungeons and outdoor areas are, for the most part, boring.

In my case, the funnin' exceeded the bummin', but not as much as I wanted. This just isn't the game that'll bring 2D gameplay back into vogue.

You won't find an online WW2 sim that even comes close to what Warbirds III offers.

The game sports large creative levels, a unique trick upgrading system, and a killer sound, but whatever innovations the game makes are easily overshadowed by the frustrating controls and the return of the timed run.

The kind of game that truly rewards skillful play, and like "SSX" before it, is a true joy to play once you've attained full mastery of the intricate controls.

A schizophrenic but enjoyable combination of gameplay styles, and it's worth slogging through the solid Sphinx segments to savor the Mummy magic.

We have immense respect for what Lost Odyssey tries to do: be a back-to-basics JRPG with modern technological trimmings on the 360. Unfortunately, it's less a celebration of what made older RPGs great and more a crude relic of their past.

A little more actual gameplay would have driven the score up, but the unique combination of music and visuals make it a must play for those who seek something different.

The excellent control and stage design mixed with the clever puzzles make this one of the better (and certainly one of the most thought provoking) platformers available on GBA.

Suffice it to say that I was completely captivated by this game from start to finish. Of course, it helps that I'm a fan of the JRPG genre.

The thing that really annoys me about this port is the controls. It's absolutely ridiculous that we can't customize the keys at all beyond cycling through the preset options and inverting the mouse. Other than that, Activision has done a respectable, though not exceptional job here.

You're getting just about what you'd expect from this purchase: a fun, generally working version of Madden for your handheld, impressive graphics and some nifty bonus features to boot.

It's got some wonky controls that make fairly routine gameplay tasks unnecessarily laborious, especially the annoying checkpoint system and map checking that removes you from the terror quite often.

Though it is slow and subtle, it works out in the end, providing a great story that holds its own against the vast majority of current games. Now all you have to do is manage to find a copy.

I just can't get over how cheap a lot of the game feels. Whether it's the dated looks, its frustratingly difficult latter portion, or its awkward storytelling, Prototype often feels like a budget title that unfortunately doesn't have a budget price.

A rare breed of FPS these days, as it's both high in quality and uniqueness. The mechanics of "Deus Ex" work tremendously well in a high-intensity atmosphere.

Rife with thrills and chills, The Thing delivers on all levels. Leave the light on for this one.

There's infinite replay value with Live & Reloaded's online game, but the none-friendly newbie aspect is sure to frustrate and annoy some gamers.

A great single-player adventure that also offers new tools for mod makers. Gamers that prefer non-melee classes better be up for a challenge though.

A staple of Duke 3D was the game's humor, and it often made references to other games or movies. Manhattan Project does well continuing this tradition.

It's still not quite on the same level as the highly polished "MVP Baseball" from EA Sports, but it's nowhere near the cellar dweller it was last season.