The story is just supposed to string together the action sequences, which is where the strength of the game is supposed to shine. Unfortunately for NeverDead, it seems to have forgotten that essential element.

Of the game’s 100 levels, the majority are either totally uninspired or ridiculously difficult.

You’ll need the patience of Buddist monk to progress through the archaic Quest mode without consistently resorting to a cheap “Ring Out.”

Steel Horizon is its own poorly constructed ship, and unless you’re the captain - which you’re not - then abandon ship. Or, better yet, don’t even get on.

It's Dragon's Lair disguised as a brawler. There are a few extraneous bits like endurance arenas (beat them all to unlock the final boss!) and ship-based multiplayer combat (also not terribly well thought-out) but they can't distract from the fact that the core brawling gameplay is an absolute mess.

Nostalgic music and consistent art direction can't save a game from crippled controls, a mulish camera, and painfully tiresome reptition. Dawn of Mana is ultimately remarkable only for being such a bitter disappointment.

An unpolished mess with few redeeming qualities other than a nifty premise.

Avoid this one like the glowing radioactive ooze that it is.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 is the definition of a crying shame. Clumsy writing and flat, repetitive world design expose a handful of good ideas that never take root, while its poor technical quality and unstable performance will render it unplayable for some. The result is a half-baked, blunt-toothed action-mystery hybrid that disappoints at almost every turn, struggling to leave even the ghost of a good impression.

Plays more like a kind of arcade light-gun shooter with legs, and feels like it needed a better script and about six more months of development time.

One more thing: the swearing. Normally we don't mind, but the script for Streetwise sounds like it was written by a grade-schooler who'd just discovered cursing. Obscene language is overused to the point where the effect isn't gritty at all. In fact, it's just laughable.

A lackluster and fragmented game that never really comes together in any meaningful way. In almost every sense that matters, from story to combat, horror, and atmosphere, Alone in the Dark leaves much to be desired.

It's a complete misfire, and no amount of goofy skins or nifty track editors can make up for the seriously busted fundamentals.

It doesn't help that the gameplay and story are unattractive twins, the runoff and trash of better RPGs.

That feeling of cheap, lazy design resonates throughout Dragonball: Evolution, a game that ultimately seems more concerned with how often it displays the faces of the film's cast rather than creating legitimate use for them.

Ghostbusters: SOS will break you down, challenging your patience and your goodwill toward the franchise. Even if you're a diehard Ghostbusters fan, don't let yourself be duped: this game is a waste of your $10.

Online minigames and a decent selection of cars don’t save Pocket Racers from being one of the worst rubber-burners on Sony’s portable system.

There's no good reason to have this game in your home.

Even at $19.99 there is not a single redeeming quality worth justifying the expense. It’s time to just keep on truckin'.

We really wanted Bad Day L.A. to live up to its potential, which makes its suckitude feel even more than just bad; it's like a betrayal.

A textbook example of how to screw up a sure thing, the Nintendo DS version of LEGO Star Wars II is easily the 'must avoid' release of the year. Other systems get a stylistically pure and super fun title. Meanwhile, the DS is saddled with a buggy, incomplete letdown that wastes your money and good will, deeply tarnishing LucasArts' reputation.

And with only average graphics and no multiplayer modes to look forward to, the action quickly grows as old and moldy as the skeletons you're bashing through.

A poorly executed Bomberman clone that is technically broken in almost every respect, Basement Crawl is shambling husk of an online multiplayer game. Avoid as if your life depended on it.

Between the cut down roster of famous faces from the movie's cast, frustrating control mechanics and noticeable lack of polish, the movie tie-in gives few reasons to invest your time and money in a download.

Garbage.

Our disgust was solidified near the end of the six-hour campaign, as the PS2 version's final boss fight is astonishingly cut short to insert an hour-plus of new fetch quests. We understand padding the game a bit, but lazily dumping these bland challenges within seconds of what should have been the conclusion shows a total disregard for the players who slogged through hours of sloppy programming to get to that point. And if the developer doesn't care, neither should we.

As a final insult, some players are experiencing game-killing programming bugs that lock doors or remove crystals, making it literally impossible to complete the game. That is inexcusable.

The main offender here is easily the gameplay, which alternates between frustrating and boring. The controls are clumsy and unresponsive, which in a different setting wouldn't be as aggravating, but when paired with lethal foes and unforgiving environmental "puzzles" leads to constant misery.