I can really only think of one down side to Serious Sam -- it costs $40. This is a game that provides hours of good, stupid fun, sure, but that just seems a bit steep for a game that's neither particularly novel nor very long from start to finish.

A "Dynasty Warriors" clone. It's also the best one I've played in years -- and I've played them all. If you have any type of interest in these kinds of titles, and consider imitation the highest form of flattery, check out Capcom's take on the genre.

If you're looking for a quick action fix, and don't mind a shallow story or weak multiplayer, there's several hours of outstanding entertainment here.

Multiplayer has its attributes, but stumbles hard when it comes to framerate and resembles a Monet painting at some points. Overall, I'd recommend it for single-player, but for Wi-Fi, well, I've offered my caveat emptors.

Get a friend with a PSP to pick the game up as well and you'll see why "Super Puzzle Fighter II" destroyed lives when it released originally.

It may not be revolutionary or technically stunning, but it is a lot of fun; and that's what games are all about.

We couldn't in good faith recommend this game for children or those with a predilection for mindless mini-games, but Sim gamers will probably enjoy what it has to offer.

In many ways, it's a by-the-numbers RTS, but a solid one, with a few imaginative mechanics built into it.

You're not really getting anything new, but you are getting a solid action game using a tried-and-true formula that's really difficult not to like.

Crash might be getting on in years for a videogame mascot, and his latest outing falls well short of classic status, but a few disarming new tricks prove he's not over the hill just yet.

The Xbox's advantage is, of course, graphics. Here the character models don't look as flat and the textures feature slightly more intricate detail. The world is still pretty blocky, but with a decent framerate and solid effects, we can accept that.

What it lacks in options and complexity, it makes up for with good old-fashioned mass destruction action. It's simple enough for anyone to pick up and get into, but it still manages to offer a lot to hardened genre fanatics.

Sonic Rivals 2 is a faithful return to Sonic's roots. Aside from a couple of speed bumps, this is one title that should be welcome in any fan's collection.

Midway's got your party covered. The included games are dying to be played in pairs or groups. In fact, many of them -- "Xenophobe" and "Timber," among others -- probably shouldn't be played solo.

The game is fairly repetitive, not bothering to bring puzzles or anything non-combat into play at all, but this is the nature of the genre, really.

For a lot of players, the excellent graphics and high levels of violence and sex appeal will be more than enough to keep Bloodrayne 2 spinning. It's really a shame that the A.I. is so daft, and even with all the acrobatics, the very linear levels don't truly captivate.

Its combination of tricks and pseudo-strategy is a bit underwhelming.

While the game should have included at least a little bit of museum-quality extras, at $20 it's still a hard deal to pass up.

Mario & Sonic is by no means a bad compilation of sports-oriented mini-games; it's occasionally flawed but ultimately fun.

It's not perfect, but if you've already got an EyeToy, there's no reason not to add Play2 to your collection.

In some ways, Guitar Hero: On Tour feels more like an experiment than a full-fledged game, as if Activision just wanted to see if it could be pulled off. Whether or not it succeeded is open to debate, as there are a number of issues that hurt the game.

We wish the astonishing re-imagining of the Soviet-Afghanistan war that the comic began with was better represented, but the gameplay is more than capable of carrying this one. The art team did a bang-up job as well, and The Red Star even supports progressive scan.

rFactor2's innovative physics and ambitious new weather and track dynamics may keep serious sim racers like myself logging seat time, but that goodwill will dissipate quickly if some of these more glaring deficiencies aren't dealt with quickly. ISI's track record at this kind of stuff is solid, though, so I'm hopeful we'll see a good sim develop into a great one over the next year or two.

Combines everything you've ever wanted when it comes to moto-sports in one package...but there are a few things that end up costing this game overall.

Despite my gripes, there's enough good stuff in here to justify the purchase. Think of "Pit Fighter," "Spy Hunter II," and the like as elaborate mini-games that you can try once and then ignore forever.

It's certainly not as good as the early X games, but it's a giant leap in the right direction.

A markedly better game than its predecessors.

If you're partial to some good shooter action, then check out P.N.03 -- it's not the longest game ever made, but it's stylish and challenging nonetheless.