While Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood feels a bit too much like its predecessor in many ways, that's like saying "The Godather 2" was a bit too similar to "The Godfather."

It's beautiful, it's well-designed, and I can't wait to spend more time in it.

While T2E is essentially more of the same, and doesn't quite have the same "wow" factor of the original, the improved engine and netcode make it a much more solid game.

Hot Date breathes new life into a game that hasn't even come close to dying.

Visually and conceptually, Alice is unparalleled among this year's games, and succeeds in eclipsing its own weaknesses with intoxicating style. A defiantly original example of game-development as a fine art.

A fantastic racer for those that want tons of cool customizations and huge single-player challenges, but gamers looking for a more traditional arcade racer might need to approach NFSU with the following in mind -- it's tons of fun, it looks amazing, and it's best on PS2, but be prepared to witness a perceptive lack of variety, and one huge-ass single-player challenge.

These "Metroidvania" games may be a bit formulaic, but there's no denying that they're still great fun. Order of Ecclesia is a bit of an improvement over Portrait of Ruin, and it's right up there with the excellent Symphony of the Night and Dawn of Sorrow. This will be one of the best DS titles released this holiday season -- don't miss it.

The new title combines strong platforming fundamentals, Assassin's Creed's open-world structure, and some of Okami's wonderful aesthetic flourishes. What it introduces to action games is something truly wonderful. Since the Prince can't die, the pace and rhythm of gameplay is never lost, yet it still offers a challenge even for hardcore gamers.

While EA's series definitely has its strong points, ESPN NBA 2K5 has better graphics, AI, and that highly addictive 24-7 mode.

The new race and the gameplay changes have evened out the playfield for a while, offering a chance for new players to get into the game if they missed it the first time around.

Don't expect to find radical gameplay changes or innovative open-ended mechanics here. Instead, come armed with a belly full of courage and a clean change of underwear, because I can't even remember when a video game has shoved this much grotesque evil down my throat in one serving.

The resulting package is so good that not even the nightmarish presence of Bam Margera and his merry band of sociopathic masochists can bring it down.

The pop- and dance-oriented tunes and beats are pretty darn fine throughout, and the explosions you create are portrayed audibly not as concussive booms but as instrumental blasts that sync with the background music. Just one more reason the game is well worth investigation.

It succeeds as both an MMORPG and a Star Wars game -- and if you're feeling burned by the past 12 years' worth of Lucas' meddling, I leave you with a final bit of reassurance: In all of my travels, I've never once come across a mention of a midichlorian or a Gungan. That's gotta be worth something, right?

With its organic controls, beautiful visuals and amazing presentation, it quickly becomes an addicting experience that's tough to stop playing, even during some of the most frustrating parts of the game.

If you can bear some of the repetition in between missions, the missions themselves are a blast. The environment is among the most compelling ever put on a screen this year. And multiplayer is strong. Far Cry 2 may not live up to its full potential, but there's a lot here to enjoy regardless.

The updates to the user interface make controlling characters even easier, and the overall improvements in design make it a wonderful addition for all players in the Dark Age of Camelot universe.

Shadowlands is like a love letter from Funcom to its fans. It is an example of how an MMO can grow and change, becoming richer without alienating new players or neglecting the hardcore fans who've stayed with it all along.

Its incredibly diverse control system is implemented into a truly enjoyable game that has enough simulation elements to please boxing fans and strong gameplay that can be appreciated by a diverse crowd.

One excellent thing about the single-player campaign is that there is no penalty for death. You just get set back at the nearest checkpoint.

A bold and reasonably successful attempt to capture the total NASCAR experience.

One could easily say that Bad Company expands the genre itself with its combination of great story, destructible environment and surprisingly deep single-mode multiplayer.

It's so good and so easily accessible that it has replaced my beloved "Final Fantasy Tactics Advance" cartridge as my travel game of choice. And really, that says more than any score could.

Although the campaign storyline isn't nearly as engaging as the one seen in "CoD4," there should be enough memorable set pieces and intense sequences to keep you riveted throughout. The addition of a co-op mode brings a great deal of replay value to the proceedings, especially once you start throwing the death cards into the mix. Ultimately, it's the multiplayer and co-op action that will keep us coming back for more.

Even with the lack of balance between staying pure and choosing the filthy coward's route of Corruption, Chaos Rising is another great addition to Relic's library of RTS games.

Luckily, action sequences have been tightened up considerably from the first episode, with interactive points actually on the object in question and not somewhere nearby. And there are just enough quick-time events to keep you on your toes, though they are less frequent than before. The focus is on the slow burn of a terrible, desperate situation; the realization that no matter how many obvious monsters you've sheltered yourself from, a worse one might be standing right next to you.

Saints Row: The Third is junk food; it's camp; it's a girl you wouldn't want your friends to catch you with. It's also fun, crude without being stupid, fast-paced without feeling empty, and solidly made (aside from the aforementioned bugs).

I thought I had totally burnt myself out, playing for over four hours a day for over a week. I wondered if it was possible to ruin a game by playing it too much. But 60 hours in, I still want more.