Splashdown has amazingly distracting watery visuals, great draw-in distances, offers a large challenge for one or two players, and is a joy to control.

Look past the gratuitous, fleshy outer casing and delve deep into the tight stealth/action gameplay provided. Manhunt delivers.

In many ways it is a far superior product compared to last year's hit. But in other ways it also feels like a rushed product.

It has plenty of gameplay, and provides a very intriguing story line. The game redefines the RPG genre and is worthy of anyone's software collection.

Perimeter certainly has its share of problems, from a bizarro-world storyline and ho-hum multiplayer support to lackluster artificial intelligence. But playing the game is just so much fun that it's almost impossible not to recommend.

If you're blessed with a rip-roaring connection, Steel Battalion: Line of Contact is the most engaging experience you can have with Xbox Live.

Whenever you add a new race into an already established game, the question of game balance becomes an important issue. Rise of the Elves does an excellent job in this regard, as the Elf retinue is not overly powerful nor are they fodder for the other four races.

Thanks to revolutionary ten-man motion captures, the look of 2004 will impress you. This is the first hoops game I've played where everyone on the court acts the way they're supposed to.

Overall it shows how a rhythm game should be made: it's weird, witty, and addictive.

The formula that Mr. Vogel and Co. have mastered here is, as before, how to combine fast-paced exploration with smart surprises that keep you guessing. Do yourself a favor and try this game, because as they say in Arkansas, "It's the gameplay, stupid."

While Spider-Man 2 has some issues, nearly everything is outweighed by the fantastic web-slinging and the huge city environment.

The Xbox is blessed with being the most technically advanced version, but the PS2 takes the edge with its online gameplay and visual trickery.

What will dazzle veterans is how complete a package Loaded is.

Thanks to the huge amount of customization options, this game offers much more depth of gameplay than what's found in your average fighting game. If only so much tedium wasn't involved in accessing all of it.

Not just a way to make a quick buck off of diehard Buffy fans, it's a game that is as deep and fun to play as anything else on the system.

By far, this game has one of the simplest, yet all-encompassing interfaces I've seen in awhile.

It might not be the next "Halo," but with scads of unlockable content, a solid multiplayer mode, and a decent single-player storyline, TimeSplitters 2 has enough appeal to be a worthy addition to your Xbox collection.

Offers an extremely solid competitor to "Chessmaster," and the best training of any chess game yet.

Probably the coolest new feature of 2002 FIFA World Cup is the inclusion of juggling. A player who masters juggling can truly be devastating on the field.

Another great feature is the skill chain system -- like in Square's "Chrono Trigger," weapon skills can be combined for extra damage, and then followed up with compatible spells for even more damage.

And the best part of all -- you won't have to go eBaying for a Sinclair ZX Spectrum computer to play it.

The meat of the game is in the career mode, which is incredibly deep, but takes a real time commitment to get the most out of.

Incredibly balanced and well polished. If you have AoK, you must get The Conquerers Expansion.

It is the near-seamless integration of the ESPN look and feel that sets this game apart.

It's not perfect, but it's got enough unique style to create thirst for a follow-up.

If MMORPGing sounds like it might appeal to you, then you'll not be disappointed with Frontiers. It's a solid online RPG experience that works very well.

And its distinctive Japanese flavor, teeming with uniquely fantastical architecture and environments that are rarely rendered Stateside -- complete with ridiculous anime hairdos and not-so-slick voice acting -- Crimson Sea will definitely quench your thirst for action.

The single-player game is beefed up with a tweaked pitching interface and the ability to save games at any time. Its biggest coup over its competition from EA Sports, though, is the ability to play online.