Though the game features several imaginative environments, the same can't be said for its pedestrian, trope-riddled story.

EXA doesn't differentiate itself from the herd; in fact, its blatant lifting of so much from Neo is a definite detriment. Shining Force EXA isn't extraordinary. Quite the opposite: it's extra ordinary.

Expectations. Every game has them coming out of the gate, but remakes and reboots have it even worse. In the case of Painkiller: Hell & Damnation, a reboot of the original Painkiller and its expansion Battle out of Hell, it's less about these small details and more about the substance. Is the action still fast? Are the enemies stupid and plentiful? Are the weapons still ridiculously awesome? Yep, you bet, and... well, mostly.

The most mediocre JRPG you can imagine from Enchanted Arms and no more.

You also don't feel particularly bloodthirsty when you've got this bouncy music playing in the background. The music just isn't that good in general. It's dull and repetitive...Aside from some gripes here and there, FF:VR is a well done adventure game.

There's just not a lot of meat here, and after a single playthrough, you'll probably be ready to move on to the next big adventure.

NBA Live 07's gameplay itself is right up there with its console siblings -- and even better in some respects (one shoot button). I'm still going with the NBA 2K series on consoles, but I think I've found my new favorite portable hoops title.

NBA Live 06 knocks the progress of this series back to the Stone Age. It sacrifices everything (dunk contest, Superstar Freestyle moves, Franchise mode) for next-gen graphics, yet ends up looking worse than "NBA 2K6" -- which kept all of its features in tact.

The game's presentation is easily worth the attention of even the most hardcore comic fans. The graphics are all fairly well defined, though the PS2 version doesn't look quite as sharp as either the Xbox or GameCube versions.

Unless you're predisposed to buying anything that is related to the show, just ogle a few gameplay videos, fancy a screenshot or two, and call it a day without wasting fifty bucks.

If you just want to have a lot of fun batting a ball bearing around fantastic locales, then Flipnic should be 20 bucks well-spent.

The online multiplayer mode is worth playing, and it's a fun game to play when you want to give your thumbs a break from Madden. However, Head Coach should have learned a lot from the two-dimensional predecessors and web-based fantasy football games whose audience it's attempting to appeal to.

There was great potential with Star Trek: Legacy, and the foundation has been laid for a truly stellar game. But the end result feels rushed and that potential still remains untapped.

Despite Uprising's many strengths in unit and map design, imbalanced units and lackluster AI mean it misses the mark.

Control of the camera can be problematic at times, ranging from a minor distraction in some situations to a major problem in others.

On the right track...but in the end just comes up short...Fireblade misses the mark when it comes to graphics with dull textures, dull colors, and dull environments.

A sad mess that not only has virtually nothing to do with the movie or the ride, but is a pretty poor game in its own right.

[It] would make a fine purchase for masochists and parents looking to punish their kids. Other than that, gamers could play "Crazy Taxi," and then watch an episode of the TV show to end up ten times more satisfied than this game will make them.

Although this game is influenced by two outstanding titles, the end result isn't so hot.

The game's particularly ruthless A.I can offset the fun a little. Surviving certain levels is tough enough, but having to do it over and over to complete all the objectives borders on the inhumane.

In some ways, the problem with Unreal II is that it tries to wear too many helmets. It's a sequel to the original title, and has a healthy multiplayer mode intact because of Unreal's highly popular tournament editions. In the end, it does both without excelling at either.

If you're really into the whole brain training thing, Hot Brain is a perfectly serviceable game. Just be aware that you're not getting a lot of bang for your buck. You'll have fun, but once you finish a couple of rounds, you'll start to wish that you could have more.

The simple fighting engine allows for some easy to get into action that will satisfy Naruto fans' desire to see their favorite characters pulling off their signature moves. If you want anything deeper than that, however, you're out of luck.

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.

Within an hour, you've pretty much seen and done all the game has to offer.

It's way too easy to dash off a cliff into an instant death, which seems totally out of place these days.

HH 2003 isn't a particularly awful game, but rather it's a bit dull and unrefined. It should have had a lot more conditioning before being released for the public.

Does offer gameplay that lives up to its name, but should have taken cues from the Wide Open in the title and made the total package just a little bit bigger.

A disappointing package that seems to have received even less development time than most of the PSP launch titles.

Keep in mind that this isn't an everyman's game -- its linear levels, the absence of bundles of loot, and even the quirks of its combat whittle down its potential audience -- but there's a lot to love about how this RPG sings the glories of the underdogs.

The mix of sword combat and platforming is just about right, and though most of the boss battles were simple pattern-based matches, the designs were sometimes cool enough that I was thrown back to the old days of bashing away at hulking robots and monsters.

If you spent weeks building the perfect parks, unlocking new content, and wandering around as a guest [in the original], you'll get a little more mileage out of this expansion, but even then, you might find it a little skimpy.

Though the presentation is worth checking out, the rest of the experience makes it difficult to hang with, considering its laughable AI, dodgy controls and ho-hum storylines.

Some people still enjoy the outdated and arguably unfair rules of Gradius, and if you're one of them, then you'll probably enjoy this package a great deal.

If you've already been spoiled by the likes of GT3, you will ultimately be disappointed with the lack of GTC's car selection and customization.

It's not the most original or innovative of games, but when was the last time you got to face off against Dracula, the Wolfman, and the Frankenstein monster in the same sitting?

A very satisfying single-player FPS, coated with a fat-free topping of space combat. The lack of secrets and multiplayer modes also means an utter lack of replay value, but I felt nothing but satisfaction at the rousing conclusion.

The cars are simplistic, out-detailed even by their real life plastic counterparts. The tracks are colorful and filled with interactive objects, but this won't be mistaken for next-generation gaming.

A gameplay experience more fans will enjoy, but an out of the box experience that might not be challenging enough for hardcore seamheads who spent countless hours mastering how to throw the perfect curve in MLB 2K8. Still, this game is by all means a successful update.

It seems like the beginning of a friendly, helpful community, and the world is so immense and full of life you'll want to see every inch of it.

Straight fights in C&C4 play a lot like a boxing match between two guys with iron jaws and teensy weensy hands. You and your opponent can pound away at each other till you're both spent like an addict's last dollar, but nobody's knocking anybody out.

Undercover may push the nostalgia button for the NFS faithful. But substandard presentation and a host of nagging technical issues cause it to sputter across the line for a distant third-place finish.

A disappointment of near-epic proportions. Sega ripped out the very heart of PSO's legendary addictiveness, replacing it with a repetitive, tedious grind that shows no signs of ending.

Despite some smart moves on the part of the developers (voice talent, good graphics engine, franchise overhaul) none of them really pan out and bring much to the experience, leaving the game to flounder with its new but repetitive focus on combat.

It features some excellent graphics and audio production, as well as some of the best voiceover work to date. However, this can't make up for the frustrating gameplay, which tries to focus on stealth, combat, and platforming, yet doesn't manage to do any of these particularly well.

Unfortunately, Scooby Doo gets so bogged down in unfolding its linear narrative and conveying the differences of its main characters that it never really gets around to being fun.

Doesn't come close to surpassing the bar that Splashdown has set.

The biggest flaws with AvP: Extinction are the lack of a rotating camera, the unit micromanagement required, and the fact that there are only 21 missions in the game with no multiplayer at all... I wasn't disappointed with the game, and I don't think fans of AvP would be either.

It's such a shame that Cold War is subject to crashes and often won't even load; otherwise, it would be worth a much stronger recommendation.

Wisely priced at 20 bucks, and its historical info alone makes it a must for anyone with an interest in video-game lore, but not one of the included games is anything more than a mild curiosity.

Though its simplified setup and reduced options may not please some of the more battle-hardened soldiers of days past, the game's more streamlined approach is an excellent way to bring the Worms experience to a new generation of gamers.

You'll have the most fun playing TNA iMPACT! against friends, since they're most likely to work a match that'll flow creatively while providing a decent challenge. The AI makes a poor tag-team partner, and it's always more fun to pull off a finisher when there are friends around to witness the act.

Where's the battle map editor? Although Wrath Unleashed provides only 21 battle maps (four of which are locked), there are only a handful of three- and four-player battle maps, and they're bound to get stale after a few rounds of play.

The major problem with Shadow of Apokolips is its lackluster level design.

Lots of fun as you're mastering the unique strategies of Star Trek: Tactical Assault, followed by a crushing tedium once you realize that it doesn't really get any better, or even any different.

If it weren't so confusing and repetitive it could have been a sleeper hit. Instead, it's a fossil.

If you've ever wondered what it would be like to drive a balsa wood car full of helium, here's your chance. Slight bumps will send you airborne.

Offers a good variety of race options and an involved career mode, but that flawed mode puts too much focus on money, respect, and schedules, and not enough on actual racing.

The last game was arguably worse, but it got a few things incredibly, addictively right. Suikoden IV gets a few things above average and most things dead-on mediocre.

The artificial intelligence is improved and ball physics are much more realistic than in the first game, but while FIFA Street 2 makes a good first impression, it gets bogged down by unresponsive player controls and repetitive action.

All in all, WPT is not a bad title, but $20 can get you into a couple of real tournaments online. Tournaments where you could actually make money.

You can grab certain small buildings, which is nice, but only the ones that glow red. Why not all of them? That in itself would add considerably to the "hell yeah" factor.

A markedly better game than its predecessors.

Of the three versions, the Xbox Finding Nemo is the one to get … if any are really worth getting. The numerous problems with the core game ensure all but the most hardcore fans are going to pass on this one.

Of the three versions, the GameCube release of X-Men: Next Dimension is the best -- strictly in a relative sense, of course.

A missed opportunity. It's not that it's a terrible game (the graphics are nice, the character designs are sufficiently anime), but after about five hours I realized I'd been bored out of my skull for the last three due to the massive repetition.

Visually, it's probably the nicest-looking of the three NBA games. The created player progression concept works, as does the Games of the Week challenge mode. Where you may be disappointed is in the unresponsiveness of some of the controls and the lack of depth of gameplay modes -- especially the lack of a franchise mode.

A huge step in the right direction in combining the hands-on experience that the system is known for with authentic baseball gameplay. There are still plenty of kinks to work out, and next year there will simply be no excuse for omitting online play or the ability to update rosters because the roster that ships with the game is painfully out of date.

Fans will like this game and dilettantes would do well to stay away, though really there's not enough here for anyone other than the hardest of the hardcore, dying to get their knife-to-the-jugular fix after blowing through Assassin's Creed II.

Considering how nice the game looks, it's a shame that the flighty control spoils it.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with the game in concept, and done properly, it would easily have established it as a classic on par with the film on which it's based. Instead we get brilliant concepts ham-handedly executed.

A markedly better game than its predecessors.

A repetitive game with pretty graphics that fails to inspire much of anything.

The action is solid for the most part and the RPG elements add some depth. It's got its problems, but it's still a world ahead of most games based on a lucrative license.

This is the most unfinished retail game I've ever played.

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.

Wii Music is an odd duck. It is far from a traditional videogame, and more akin to a tech demo or social audio experiment. The fact that it is so very basic means it's completely accessible to anyone, but at the same time there's not much here to interest regular and core gamers.

Its fast-paced style of play makes it easy to pick up and put down on a whim, and its original presentation makes those moments of gameplay surprisingly fun.

Hardcore basketball fans will groan at the old-school gameplay of NBA 07, but it's obvious the game wasn't developed with them in mind. It offers a fun little hoops offering for those who aren't sticklers for detail, and The Life is a nice change of pace for sports games.

This is a good solid game, but nothing truly spectacular. It is a fun shooter, with a twist. That sniper scope adds a new dimension to the shooter genre.

For a game with a cartoonish bent and over-the-top character design, the gameplay seems a bit under-the-top at times.

While not overlong, the loads are meaty, certainly enough to be a distraction; no matter how many pans across the fighting arenas before a brawl the game makes, it still adds up to the same thing: it's time to get a soda or do some multitasking.

The play mechanics are literally all wrong. Depth in character building doesn't matter when you wish your character would just take a wrong turn and fall off a cliff and land on some very sharp rocks.

The intelligent touches and relative difficulty make Rogue Ops generally fun for fans of the genre. The unevenness in the presentation and controls keep it from really setting the genre on fire.

It just lacks the depth, polish, and length of titles like "Prince of Persia" and "Ninja Gaiden." That said -- if you're looking for a quick burst of fun that won't require you to free up hundreds of hours, there are a few famous monsters that need to be offed.

If you've never played an RPG before, then perhaps this'll make for a memorable adventure. It's certainly competent. However, those who are well-versed in the ways of herbs and leather armor would do well to save their money for a more invigorating, less blatantly soporific quest.

The animation is slick, and there are many appreciable smaller touches, but it's also tarnished by repetition and technical issues. If you've never been a fan of the series, this installment certainly won't change your mind. However, if you're a die-hard fan who was disappointed by Spider-Man 3, Web of Shadows should be right up your alley.

Right out of the gate, Spider-Man 3 is going to smack you in the face with some of the worst next-gen graphics you have ever seen.

It's a decent snowboard game in almost every sense... Maybe if EA licensed it, nurtured it, and turned it into a portable version of "SSX" we'd be onto something.

It's a broken, buggy game, and if the statement about learning curves were true, it would still take far too long to gain wings before the average gamer would grow disenfranchised. The game feels completely rushed to retail in time for the launch.

Jericho's gameplay comes off as a decidedly "lather, rinse, repeat" affair where you enter a new area, kill the monsters that spawn and run at you and then move onto the next area and perform the monotonous experience all over again.

The basic design of the game is quite sound and if Piranha Bytes could clean the game up, it might end up becoming a classic. As it stands now, my nightmarish trip through the world of Gothic 3 made me want to send my disc on a one-way trip into an incinerator.

Anyone who loves Pac-Man will be thrilled. Anyone looking for something completely unique and original may be disappointed.

Provides a number of strong enhancements to a game that already offers immeasurably high replay value.

Dumbing a game down for consoles is one thing, but it's another thing entirely to give the player so many advantages that the game is no longer fun.

The physics of whacking your opponents with the bat are also ... well, whacked. More often than not, a smacked enemy flies in front of your kart, slowing you down and putting you at a disadvantage.

While I cannot dismiss its flaws, I can easily ignore it and move on to better examples of this unique form of expression from the early 21st century.

The few good puzzles contained within aren't worth the time and risk that you might not even be able to complete it.