We're hoping people do discover what a gem Nail'd is, because with a bustling online community the multiplayer could become addictive despite the game setup issues. Even so, the game is a wonderfully unique racer that really stands out even based solely on its single-player component.

As a game, MLB 2K6 feels more than competent, but it fails to excel. Much like last year’s Cubs, it has its shining moments, but in the end you’re left with the distinct feeling that it could have been so much more.

Despite a decent story, a great combat system, and a large, non-linear world to explore, Lightning Returns' tedious structure makes seeing this journey through to its end a laborious grind.

State of Decay 2 confidently reaches the series’ potential as the ultimate zombie survival sim, even if it hits a few familiar bumps in the road on the way there.

There's still an intrinsic fun to being Spider-Man--but this is too close to what we've played before, only with less going for it than games like Web of Shadows or Ultimate Spider-Man. This does the trick if you’re dying for more action as Peter Parker or desperately need a new Wii U game, but a more fitting title for this would be "The Acceptable Spider-Man."

Detective Pikachu Returns is more adventures with the charming electric mouse from the original, but the straightforward investigation mechanics can be incredibly frustrating in a game that wouldn't look out of place on the Wii U.

A bit of stylus-powered frog-in-a-ball rolling occasionally interrupts the bounding, but even this is clumsily controlled, with mad stroking more likely to erode your DS screen than get the spherical spawn of the devil to respond.

ND Cube repeats some of Mario Party 9's winning formula, but loses focus in trying to incorporate the GamePad and amiibo figures. Ultimately, it's more snake than ladder.

The gameplay is a great mix of genres, and the world is fresh, exciting, and full of intrigue. The problem is execution. Both King Arthur games have shared the same unique concept, but Neocore Games may not have the manpower or the budget to fully extract the potential of both sides of this complex dual-genre game.

Only the hardest of the hardcore need send in their application for this college edition on the PS2; this year, it's next-gen or no need.

Even though the game is a bit rough around the edges, Sword of the New World: Granado Espada oozes with quirky personality that will appeal to fans of Asian-born titles, presenting a visual mash-up of anime and Baroque influences.

Basically the same game as the first Corner Shop, with different shops and minigames.

Although NASCAR 07 remains pretty much the same decent core game as last year's model, this year's model is just a little more fun for newcomers and a little more chaotic for long-time racers.

It's easily the most improved fighter in recent memory, and if you've got some local competition, it's a steal at 30 bucks.

A curious, frightful take on childhood trauma that whips up scares from the most seemingly mundane sources. Among the Sleep is unpolished and scrappy, yet eerily memorable.

If you can make it past the color explosion, and aren't prone to ulcers in high-stress situations, then you'll be coming back for bite-size servings long after you've completed the campaign. If have four friends eager for some trash talk, it's a perfect way to burn through an evening (and inevitably lose some friends).

A lame attempt at beating as much money from the Chicken Little franchise corpse as possible. While elements of the campaign are fun and challenging, they are offset by the monotonous levels and boring hold-the-shoot-button gameplay.

It's not a great fighting game, but its wide array of characters, scenarios, and unlockable junk could be just the thing for less critical fans.

There's no other way to slice it: Disney Universe is for kids. Or perhaps for you and your kids. Much like the brand itself, the gameplay in Disney Universe is timeless, in that it's widely accessible and easy to understand. However, if you're looking for something deeper and more satisfyingly complex, there's not quite enough on the disc to stand on Disney fandom alone.

We're particularly fond of the fantastic art direction. As if the eye candy wasn't enough, Monster Kingdom has a great soundtrack, devised by top-caliber composers.

If you can get past the poor physics – or at least accept them – and you plan to play almost exclusively multiplayer, it’s decent. Otherwise, it’s not really worth your 10 bucks.

It may sound odd, but we'd gladly trade HD's so-so graphics and unruly physics for straight ports of Tony's first two PS1 installments.

As long as you're not expecting thrills or surprises, Onslaught's by-the-numbers bug blasting serves as a fair placeholder until something bigger and better (The Conduit, perhaps?) comes along. That's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but for shooter-starved WiiWare fans in this case, something may be better than nothing.

For fifteen bucks we wanted a lot more game than Madden Arcade delivers. A bland on-field experience coupled with no single-player season/tournament/anything translates into another failed attempt at “extreme” football. Please, just give us our NFL Blitz back!

Hopefully, when the second game in the series hits (Turtles in Time), unlimited continues will be part of the package.

If nothing else, this game proves that light gun games can be done right on the DS.

As long as you’re comfortable with a great degree of difficulty (and a bit of monotony), and provided you’re comfortable with your own mortality, Izuna offers a reasonable distraction.

No real improvements have been made to the game which is a wasted opportunity as the poor camera and basic graphics stand out even more on the PS2 than in the original version.

Even though it borrows heavily from past games, SSZ tries to be more than just a rehashing of an old genre. Its inclusion of a multiple-objective system adds difficulty and depth to its missions, even if they do get repetitive and tiresome at times. Piloting the Strike Suit, however, is the highlight of the game and the reason why you'll want to play it.

Quite a pleasant surprise. It's short, sweet, and compulsively addictive while it lasts. Better still, if you're all about chasing high scores and roundhouse-kicking your friends off the winner's pedestal, you can ring quite a bit of value from this one.

As a dance game, The Black Eyed Peas Experience is a decent title with good choreography and vibrant visuals to back it up. At the end of the day, though, unless you really really like The Black Eyed Peas (and we mean really really like them, as you'll be bombarded with BEP facts between songs) this game will be a rental at best.

Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves is a strange beast. It's too good to be a demo, too short to be a game, too outdated to be a preview and imbued with too much care and character to be passed off as a PS Move advergame. Ultimately, then, it's not a matter of if you should play Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves, but how and when you should do so.

But if you’re not a huge fan of the existing franchise, there’s not much here to make it worth your while.

Gamers with more interest in the spectacle of F1 than actually being good at driving will probably like this very much. And at least the good points bode very well for the next one.

It's a good game with some very solid elements – mostly those seen in past KH titles. But its lackluster storytelling, poorly paced stage progression, jarring gameplay changes, and ever-present, misbehaving camera leave it removed from the greatness we associate with some of the franchise's previous outings.

Another title that's pretty much what we expect from Mana these days - an average game (irrespective of the genre change) that's nothing compared to series' heyday.

When it hits its stride, Shadows of Doubt feels like it might be one of the greatest detective games of the 21st century, but it's hampered by outrageous bugginess and vestigial mechanics. The core is rock solid, but it still feels several major updates away from reaching its final form.

The smooth-playing analog joysticks of the 360 controller lack the snappy response of the original arcade sticks; the result is a mushy feel that will mess with your sense of timing.

It’s just too bad that it looks so darned ugly. The controls are a breath of fresh air, though, so long as you give them a chance (which we have a feeling too many people won’t).

Forge is a fun break from the monotony of the same old competitive multiplayer games, but with only four maps, two game types, and an uninspiring progression system, it currently lacks the depth to be something you can fully sink your teeth into.

Ultimately, this series is going to have to evolve into a more accessible, playable, solo-friendly experience if it ever wants to be known as anything other than a niche curiosity.

Obsess over all the game’s hidden trinkets if you want, but the main course of Shop & Chop is for people that value good cooking. For us folk that cannot cook but appreciate the craft, this is a treat.

Empyreal is a richly detailed, loot-based action RPG with a real 'one more go' quality that focuses on a loop involving selectable level cards. The difficulty can be incredibly punishing and it's rather drab-feeling at times, but there's rewarding depth and challenge if you take the plunge.

LEGO Battles certainly drops the baton on a couple of essential basics, but its light-hearted tone, unit variety, hidden trinkets, and sheer volume of maps keep it a good value for dedicated fans of this angular toy world.

There's just not much to do. The story is dull, the game is short, the voiceovers are horrible and - thanks to the on-rails mechanic - there's nothing to explore. The gameplay is there, but with a total lack of depth, most gamers will get bored in about two hours (if they haven't succumbed to carpal tunnel by then).

There's some life in it, and a few folks might be able to put up with the issues, but for the most part, it's not really worth the time spent clicking random objects on other random objects.

Thanks to easy multiplayer integration, this surprisingly sturdy download is sure to keep you playing long after that.

It's a shame that combat in Children of Mana is so mindless. The ingredients are there to make this a really excellent action RPG.

The action gets fast and frantic, and that's what keeps you interested and engrossed.

In short, it's your prototypical Armored Core experience, which remains as flawed and fascinating a series as you're ever going to find.

If nothing more, this mostly broken game exists purely as a way to cash-in on the latest CG snoozer not starring anthropomorphic animals. At least the packaging has glitter on it. Really, it does.

It’s really too bad that Afro Samurai is bogged down by nagging annoyances, because the core game is actually decent, if not spectacular. If it had a healthy dose of polish it would be a solid rental (but not full-price purchase).

It's disappointing drop in quality for a series that we'd held in high esteem, but 'Catch a Ride' does enough to make sure that the next episode should be considerably more interesting.

It's a stark demonstration of what a lack of confidence in your core vision can do. There is a good shooter in Immortals of Aveum, maybe even a great one, but you'll have to do some digging to find it.

As a pure idea the game is very interesting, but poor execution held this one back.

If you haven’t spoken Similish in a few years, or are head over heels enamored with motion controls, this Sims 2 Pets could be a right neighborly slice of homemade pie. But for anyone else with a Wii and $50 bucks, we suggest you hold out for the upcoming "MySims."

No matter what nominally noticeable technical changes are happening under Madden 24's hood, they don't represent the gargantuan changes needed to bring the NFL series in line with various yearly sports game competition.

Ratatouille’s defied our expectations by dishing out a solid adventure with loads of extras and minigames. If the missions felt a little less repetitive, then we’d really have film-tie in greatness here. Either way, this is one game adaptation that’s easy to swallow.

Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 is still very much a Dynasty Warriors game, warts and all. Yet the light tweaks and enhancements – plus giant robots and an attractive new cel-shaded look – really make the repetition a lot more enjoyable than expected. Gundam 3 still stumbles in bafflingly silly ways, but for the first time in a while, the thrill of singlehandedly charging into battle against hundreds of enemies has a flickering spark again.

The gameplay is nothing outstanding, but it's fun enough while it lasts, and overall it looks pretty slick.

Not only is the overall presentation forgettable, it's relentlessly so.

Dynasty Warriors 8 isn't a bad game--it just feels like a ridiculously deep well of merely average content.

A slightly slow, single-player only arcade shooter. It has ten levels (plus ten bonus missions), above average graphics for a DS game, and a decent auto-aim that can't quite compensate for the fact that you can't strafe, and thus spend a lot of time running directly into enemy fire.

It may not blow your mind, but you'll be too busy blasting everything that moves to care.

But with its clumsy combat, dim AI and generic plot, HoAE fails to add anything new to the already crowded fantasy based RTS genre.

The gameplay is nothing outstanding, but it's fun enough while it lasts, and overall it looks pretty slick.

If you don’t have either DBZ PSP game, buy this. If you have the first one already, you may want to rent this, plow through the story mode, and give it back.

The story is entertaining enough, but gameplay's as linear as a ruler, and random exploration is basically out of the question.

Rango isn't a revolutionary action-platform release, but it is a legitimately well-made title built in the mold of the some of the genre's best, and it genuinely engaged us throughout much of the adventure. Sadly, it doesn't last for long.

Need for Speed takes driving into a gorgeous world with a modern edge, but its pesky attitude and strict online-only requirement make you yearn for the good old days.

Give credit to Opoona for trying to wedge a lot of new ideas into its paper thin premise, but the half baked 'lifestyle' elements can't hide the fact that it's a very simplistic and ultimately uninteresting RPG.

Though the path to boot-stomping nirvana is fraught with flaws, Divekick succeeds at simplifying high-level concepts into a bite-sized experience that only gets better with time.

We'd rather have, you know, access to a full emulator, but puzzle geeks can't deny the quality or value of Capcom Puzzle World. More classic coin-op compilations like this one, please.

Wii Party U’s lackluster presentation and occasionally boring game modes are but hiccups in an otherwise decent party booster. Its impressive GamePad minigames are sure to keep your guests entertained, and will extend the life of the game even after all your friends have gone home.

The story is absolutely forgettable and the level design is boring, but the gameplay is competent and the bedazzling genetic monstrosities along with the copious amounts of loot you've collected are fun. If you're an action-RPG fan who simply cannot wait for Diablo III, give Darkspore a shot.

An enjoyable side-scrolling adventure that's elevated by its stylistic visuals and unsettling atmosphere. Fans of classic platformers like Castlevania or Ghosts n' Goblins will definitely enjoy the old-school gameplay, while everyone else will revel in the papercraft setting and dark humor that frames it.

Despite its oddball shortcomings, Risen 3 is a solid open-world RPG packed with entertaining characters and challenging combat scenarios.

Generally a polished and highly playable rhythm title that delivers in spades when it comes to play modes and options. We just can't help but feel like that titular revolutionary spark has faded in recent iterations.

Ultimately, this series is going to have to evolve into a more accessible, playable, solo-friendly experience if it ever wants to be known as anything other than a niche curiosity.

The gameplay is still fun if you’re willing to suffer through painful hand cramping from playing guitar and bass, severely wounded vocal registry, and a general lack of precision provided by the Drum Grip. Oh wait, that doesn’t sound so fun. The peripherals do more to kill the experience than enhance it, which totally defeats the purpose of this pricey package.

Don't force us to play the minigames to expand the already-uninspiring campaign. It's sloppy game design, and it drags Bee Movie Game even further into the mud.

It’s really too bad that Afro Samurai is bogged down by nagging annoyances, because the core game is actually decent, if not spectacular. If it had a healthy dose of polish it would be a solid rental (but not full-price purchase).

It lacks the emotional and technical "oomph" of its big-screen relatives, highlighted by the notoriously futzy control scheme that'll have you pulling out your hair. With that said, it's still one of the best shooters on the PSP, packing a serious challenge in an impressively sized campaign (not to mention some ad-hoc multiplayer) that'll keep you busy for awhile.

Powerstar Golf blends time-tested mechanics with a unique style, rewarding your hard work with a pleasant sense of accomplishment. As long as you don't let the microtransactions ruin it for you, you're all but guaranteed to have a good time.

It fixes lots of the little problems that plagued the first game, and it's just involving enough for a long flight or repeated visits to the DMV.

Control without the superpowers was always going to be a tough sell. Sadly, FBC: Firebreak makes a pretty appalling case. Moments of supernatural whimsy are few and far between, bogged down by repetitive objectives centering around shooting some pretty mediocre feeling guns.

Unfortunately, there's just not enough here to keep you coming back. Once you've finished the campaign once, you can play through online modes or take a shot at an even more difficult campaign, but more than likely you'll follow the Bond-film route and call it quits.

Its well-crafted point-and-click adventure format is a perfect fit for Wii, and shows that casual games can be respectable too. The presentation is lovely too.

As we weaved through wave after wave of enemies, downing them wholesale, we couldn't help but wish there had been a replay feature included with the game. Still, for the raw, explosive fury of aerial battle, you can accept no substitute for Blazing Angels.

Something surprisingly fresh, fun, and satisfying for only $10.

The nicest thing you can say about its difficulty is that Izuna 2 isn’t as diabolical as its compatriots, but its admirable art and writing could draw in new players.

We really wish you could battle using multiple dinos at once, but in the end, the combination of paleontology and Pokemon won us over.

And when a game’s biggest problem is that it left us wanting more, we’d say that’s a good problem to have.

Ultimately, Barnyard is an easy, mildly entertaining grab bag of minigames and missions. Kids will undoubtedly enjoy the game and their parents will find themselves sucked into numerous minigames as well.

Super Motherload's premise of digging for richs on a lonely planet sounds about as boring as actually digging for richs on a lonely planet. But stick with it long enough, and you'll find an eerily soothing adventure with addictive strategy elements that make for a wholly enjoyable next-gen gaming experience.

The underlying mechanics are a lot of fun and the new characters, maps and Skill system make it a more robust offering than anything that's been on a console. But even these additions don't justify the hefty pricetag, and with no online leaderboards to spur further playing, we suspect most will move on not long after the five-hour game is complete.

It's not like M.A.C.H. is going to set the world on fire. We're not saying that. But for a game that's pretty much gonna fly right into bargain bins due to zip awareness, it's a shockingly tight package.

Right from the start you're surrounded by creatures that suck away your life. The only way to get ahead is to learn a novel's worth of tricks and memorize the mazy layouts - something only the old-schoolers may have the patience for.