There might not be any innovation here, but there's still some fun to be had. Just don't expect much more than what you're used to getting.

MAG, much like actual war, is often an ugly, confusing mess that tosses a group of people into extraordinary situations where they can overcome through teamwork or die as frustrated individuals. If you're looking for just another game to see your name on top of a leaderboard then keep on walking.

The real issue with Nervous Brickdown is that it finds itself bound to the Breakout formula. There are some very cool, very well-suited to the DS mini-games here, but you're always fundamentally bouncing a ball and trying to make sure it doesn't slip past you.

Addictive fun in solo mode and true social comedy with a few people in the room. Spend the forty bones and enjoy.

While Time Crisis 4 has its fair share of graphical, gameplay and control faults, its fast, fun on-rails shooter action will appeal to anyone looking for a break from controller-based shooters. Just don't expect anything spectacular.

While certainly not the last Star Wars game we'll ever see on the Nintendo DS, you couldn't ask for the actual film license to go out on a better note.

If you were hoping for the Wii version of Samba to replace your old Dreamcast game, it won't. The controls are just too imprecise for it to be the definitive version.

GameSpy, however, is a website that gives away the answer to the riddle of whether The Cave is worth playing: yes. It doesn't hit the ability-powered platforming highs of Trine or the old-school adventure challenge of Maniac Mansion, and it appears the devs struggled to focus and define this ambiguous hybrid.

Blazing Angels wasn't a smash success on any of the platforms it was released on in 2006, but its release on the PS3 is undoubtedly the best version of the bunch.

Reality 2.0 marks a dramatic improvement in the pure "gameplay" portion of the game, and the storyline is certainly funny enough, but we'd love to see future episodes of the series have this level of interactivity with the kinds of incredible scripts we know that Telltale Games team is capable of producing.

As a classics collection (a Namco Museum, if you will), it fails pretty hard. It's lacking some much-needed games, and its meager selection of seven classic titles pales to the 21 in the PSP Museum. Pac-Man Vs., however, is excellent.

Freespace 2 this is not, but even with its frustrations, Strike Suit Zero is an anime inspired shooter with its balls against at least two walls. It's dumb, possibly dumber than it intends, but it's also the kind of action you're not going to feel bad for enjoying.

Instead of a true stealth engine, you have awkward "hide spots" to accommodate the free roaming. Combat is either too easy or too hard, lacking the brilliance of a dedicated action title. And the free-roaming, bound as it is to mission objectives that would be fine in a more linear game, is just unsatisfying. Each element of the game is individually interesting, but as a whole the package feels incomplete and patchwork more than innovative.

Wild ARMs XF is an interesting strategy game, one that will entertain you with its charming storyline, an adorable puppy unit, and plenty of customization options. On the other hand, the attractive video sequences you may remember from the RPGs were replaced by rather uninteresting town conversations.

For most of the game I felt like I was too powerful and things never really felt challenging. Again, I'm thinking that this is partly by design since the game has a mainstream license and will attract many casual gamers. (Damn casuals always ruin everything.)

No other game to date comes this close to replicating what it would be like to explore a truly seamless universe.

By the end of my roughly eight-hour, straight-forward Space Marine adventure, I couldn't help but feel Relic Games missed out on a golden opportunity to take what is a good game – and a strong debut for the Space Marine franchise – and elevate it to great.

If you can put up with some repetition and the simplicity of the management system, you'll enjoy yourself. Most of the mini-games are quite a bit of fun, too, and they make for some good multiplayer sessions.

There are some great AC/DC tracks here which would make a fantastic addition to any Rock Band collection, but you'll have to pay a premium to get them, including a lot of songs you're probably not interested in. Unless you're an absolute AC/DC fanatic, you're probably better served waiting to pick this up on sale sometime down the road.

Despite its technical issues Freestyle Street Basketball is a charming, fun street-style basketball MMO with a great value proposition. With its five-minute play time and free low-level game, it can be enjoyed by those looking for a quick game on an afternoon lunch break.

The game's lower level of difficulty and varied gameplay styles make it easy for just about anyone to get into the game and enjoy the experience.

For all it does with innovations in HUD, career mode, and vehicle unlocking, multiplayer is a bit underwhelming.

It seems a shame that Volume Two ends before it really begins. The potential for a fantastically unnerving gaming experience is cut way too short.

Takes a questionable franchise and turns it into something somewhat entertaining. Although it might not be as much fun as watching Gene Simmons and his famous tongue parade wildly around the stage.

There's lots of tension, and brief bursts of action, but completing a mission is not so much dependent on tactics as it is on your teammates having much faster, more "aware", and more accurate aiming AI than the enemy. Thankfully, they do.

What's crucial to fans, though, is that many of the issues that have plagued the previous Ultramix releases have been completely ironed out this time around.

With multiple squadrons to command individually or all at once, a thorough system for upgrading skills and equipment, and personality at every turn, Kingdom Under Fire strikes a great balance between mindless action and careful strategizing.

Brain Age is a remarkably accessible game that just about anyone can pick up and get something out of.

A good title, but also frustrating because of its PS2-quality graphics.

I think the biggest "revelation" to come out of this most recent Assassin's Creed title is that the series has reached a burnout state. I hope the team takes a break and gets back to the drawing board to analyze how the series itself can move forward, and to be innovative again, rather than being hard pressed to meet a release date.

It definitely is the best console gun game I've played, which stands for something. It brings the genre closer to where it should be: in line with the potential of technology.

If all the different Puzzle Quest releases were playing a certain reality show, the Wii version would be the first to get voted off the island. The Xbox Live version and even the PSP version with its annoying bugs are better-looking versions of the same game.

The online performance still has a lot of kinks, often making it tough to join games. It can be difficult to experience the game properly as a functional squad. Still, Chromehounds is a game that has a lot of potential.

You couldn't ask for a more unapologetically insane FPS. Turn off your brain, turn on auto-fire, and get serious.

It might be only knee deep compared to its brethren, but Arena Wars is a rare example of genre-mixing that works: it's an RTS with an FPS soul.

Despite some minor technical and presentation flaws, an advanced AI and deep focus on one style of poker should not only keep fans interested, but actually help them to improve their real-life poker experience.

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.

While fairly on the generic side, Resurrection does manage to offer a decent platforming experience for gamers searching for something new.

Few games in recent years have been laugh-out-loud funny, but The Movies generates so much random silliness that - even when things are going wrong - you can still have a good time.

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.

Fans will eat this game up, obviously, and everyone else will find it to be enjoyable if not terribly involving.

A good game, but nothing more. It's a shame because it had the potential to be great.

During its best moments, it's certainly one of the most exciting and engrossing games I've played in a long time. It's just unfortunate that the apparent cut corners take the wind out of its sails sometimes.

More than a gimmick but less than a broad, full-featured experience, Pursuit Force might not be deep or addicting enough to become an actual pursuit, but the satisfying arcade-style gameplay and high marks across the board for audiovisuals make it a great distraction or diversion.

There's still something addictive about this game once you get past the initially slow start. There are dozens and dozens of things to unlock, and charting your progress through the title really sucks you in.

Both the weak storyline and repetitive dungeons become tedium personified before you know it.

Unfortunately, in the process of fixing the game, they ended up stripping much of what made the first game so endearing by allowing the numbers to take precedence over the personality. What Black & White 2 gained in competence; it seems to have lost in soul.

While the singleplayer campaign doesn't give gamers many reasons to stay engaged, we can envision a large online community racing, tricking and wagering while snowballs fly through the air. Because really, isn't that what snowboarding is all about?

MySims is probably more of a game to be enjoyed alone: it doesn't offer a great depth, but its cheerful spirit and light-hearted action are well worth checking out.

Silent Hill: Homecoming is a very strange game, as its dual nature and oddly unsatisfying gameplay could likely turn both fans and newcomers away.

Improved graphics, a deeper dynasty mode, and an All-Star weekend simulator that's genuinely fun to play.

In fact, one of the worst things you can say about an expansion pack is true of Escalation: it feels optional.

I like the RPG elements and the ways Koei gets the most out of an interesting-but-modest engine.

If you can put up with some repetition and the simplicity of the management system, you'll enjoy yourself. Most of the mini-games are quite a bit of fun, too, and they make for some good multiplayer sessions.

If you're into The Movies for the strategy sim, there's nothing noteworthy added in Stunts & Effects. But if you enjoyed building your own films, the freecam and the improved prop placement options alone are worth the price, while the props, sets, costumes, and effects merely add to the moviemaking experience.

There are some great AC/DC tracks here which would make a fantastic addition to any Rock Band collection, but you'll have to pay a premium to get them, including a lot of songs you're probably not interested in. Unless you're an absolute AC/DC fanatic, you're probably better served waiting to pick this up on sale sometime down the road.

Clusterball is fun in spurts, but the control and the physics keep it from being as addictive as it potentially could be.

Fast-paced action and a great presentation are hampered only by the steep learning curve for what should be a simple point-and-shoot experience.

Trite as it is and pointless as Obsidian's slavish adherence to some of the old standby systems (like loot and leveling) seems, I genuinely hope it gets another crack at Dungeon Siege. The series has never been particularly memorable, but at least under Obsidian's guidance, it's mostly fun.

A game in waiting. It's certainly playable right now and has some fun despite its issues. Still, you can see how this could end up one of the best baseball game ever made... if it ever gets finished.

NBA Live 08 isn't a whole lot different from last year's offering, but the subtle changes that were implemented -- the addition of Hot Spots and the bouncing of Freestyle Superstar and X-Factor -- make things on the court a lot more fun.

There's still something addictive about this game once you get past the initially slow start. There are dozens and dozens of things to unlock, and charting your progress through the title really sucks you in.

Unfortunately, unless you're extremely into music making, your fun will run out before too long. The inability to save anything really hurts as well.

The best thing that can be said about Cars is that it lays down solid racing gameplay without feeling generic.

Scores with a handful of options and hardcore appeal, but needs more punch.

The designers did attempt to break up the simplistic game play a bit by forcing Sonic and Blaze to stop and fight a handful of mechanical terrors every once in a while, but it doesn't really add much to the overall game.

Extra goodies aside, Flash Focus doesn't fall far from the Brain Age tree, so anyone who gets a kick out of using their DS to put their bodies and minds to the test will enjoy this.

You'll easily clear all four cases in a weekend play session, but the suspend-anywhere save system allows you to easily play it in bits and pieces during commutes, on lunch breaks or while waiting for the previews to finish at your local theater.

While the script is the best so far of any of the episodes, Episode 3's abbreviated length makes it less of a bargain than the earlier installments. That being said, the entire Sam & Max experiment is shaping up quite well.

An admirable port -- a perfect example of how to properly transfer a game to Sony's handheld. With a few control tweaks to take advantage of the hardware, the sport will really shine.

While it features an innovative, easy-to-use melee combat system and some interesting campaigns, it's ultimately hurt by boringly repetitive side missions and some underwhelming environments.

It's probably the best concoction of edutainment that you'll find this year, if you're playing it alone. However, given the sense of community that we've found goes hand in hand with the Wii's marketing, we're just as disappointed in the multiplayer options as we are happy with the single player.

There's no mode, though, where adding human players makes the arcade action more compelling. Whether playing humans or CPU, Infected feels pretty much the same.

The bad multiplayer choices compromise a game that's otherwise very enjoyable: Dinner with Friends is fresh and well-made, with responsive controls and lots to do, but when it comes to sharing it with friends it lacks even the basics of fun. The best thing is to play it alone, trying to unlock all the available items.

The game's lower level of difficulty and varied gameplay styles make it easy for just about anyone to get into the game and enjoy the experience.

The 3D graphics may be blocky, but the clean design ensures that you'll always know what's going on. There are also plenty of bonuses to unlock ranging from concept art to character models to cheats.

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.

Viking: Battle for Asgard is beautiful as far as offering a hurricane of blood and gore can be beautiful, but it's easy to get bogged down in the repetitive combat.

Less than half as long as the original, making it something of a disappointing RPG snack for fans hoping to sink their teeth into a hearty meal -- something one would obviously expect after the seemingly endless twists and turns of the original.

If you can put up with some repetition and the simplicity of the management system, you'll enjoy yourself. Most of the mini-games are quite a bit of fun, too, and they make for some good multiplayer sessions.

Sure, Digimon World DS isn't the most original game out there, but it's still a pretty fun title.

The game remains faithful to the source material and blends two distinct gameplay styles into an entertaining hybrid. Fans of the series should find this a great addition to their Shaman King collection.

The minute-to-minute gameplay is tried and true, and when you factor in the long-tailed character progression, well, let's just say it's a wrap. Puzzle Quest's designers are certainly onto something here.

You'll likely have fun with Justice League Heroes if you enjoy the classic dungeon crawl games that Snowblind has previously developed, and even moreso if you're a fan of comic books and the Justice League of America in particular.

If you've played any of the previous Tenkaichi titles, you know exactly what to expect here -- a relatively shallow button-masher that does a darn fine job of letting you relive the Dragon Ball experience. Those looking for anything else will be disappointed, but if you just want another excuse to beat up Frieza, this game will suit you perfectly.

As it is now, MxO isn't too different from other MMORPGs, and in fact, it's much less immediately exciting and accessible than many of the more recent ones.

There isn't one big problem that keeps this game from becoming truly exceptional; instead, it's a collection of small issues that will likely cause a few moments of frustration and anger.

There are some problems with the driving controls and the genetics-based leveling-up system, but the online game is strong. All told, not a bad game to get behind the wheel of.

If you like things in quick spurts and dig the idea of a zillion mini-games, grab Sony's game, but if you want a bit more realism and the ability to log some serious time in a multi-season career mode, head EA's way. You really can't lose either way.

The game is quite fun, but it is an awful lot like the original, and it lacks the novelty factor that Feel the Magic benefited from. Despite the familiar territory, though, I never found myself bored with the game.

If you're willing to put a lot of time and effort into learning the various intricacies of the game's multiple controls, you're likely to get more than a little enjoyment out of the title. For the standard gamer though, the game's steep learning curve and hit or miss multiplayer experience may deep six most of the fun.

So, while Chinatown Wars is a solid, entertaining title for the PSP, it simply lacks the oomph and "oh wow!" factor that it had on DS.

The learning curve is steep, but those who enjoy a challenge might just end up embracing the greater level of realistic gameplay that only Top Spin 3 can offer.

At best, Acid is a really fun time for a very small percentage of gamers. At worst, it's a good game that a lot of people will find boring.

Visually, however, it stumbles terribly, as it's not a particularly good-looking game, although its framerate could be a lot worse.

Despite the lack of variety, I found the game to be very addicting, and since most of the puzzles can be finished rather quickly, I found myself falling into the "one more puzzle" trap a lot.

The aliens are as challenging as anything the game has to offer, and the rewards have kept the game fresh for many. It goes without saying, though, that if you're a solo gamer who prefers to hunt alone, there isn't much here to make the investment worthwhile.

What the game lacks in shock value, it more than makes up for in sheer psychological terror.