Faces of War wins on several fronts with its attractive destructible environments and solid multiplayer options; unfortunately, it falls short of total victory with frustrating AI and extensive micro-management duties, especially in single-player.

Driver '76's brand of road rage does get more right than it does wrong, and though it might not offer the best combat action or racing excitement, it still deserves a look for its competent mix of the two.

Stacked could benefit from more polish and deeper player customization (no, we don't want to look fat and balding, even if we are), but its actual gameplay is solid, and the creepy I'm-watching-you-so-I-can-destroy-you vibe can only help your real-world strategy.

Between the NFL Network announcer that has the same canned sound bite for common transactions and the lousy framerate of the in-game action, there’s a decidedly second-class-citizen feel from the get-go.

A positive example to other developers, that better things are possible if you merely put in the effort.

The story mode is ridiculously slow-paced, and involves going to the mall, shopping, changing clothes, getting haircuts… yeah. There are non-music minigames thrown in, but they’re half-assed and the music minigames, which are semi-Guitar Hero-style, are fun, but there’s no way to access them outside the story.

A multiplayer co-op option would have been perfect for Avatar, but is sadly missing. Where the action becomes repetitive and tiresome, playing with friends would have at least added some opportunity to develop different strategies for larger melees and boss battles.

It's a surprisingly entertaining, well-designed game that stays interesting from start to finish, and if nothing else it'll give you a whole new perspective on those rat bastards who keep tagging your house.

While we're pleasantly surprised with Flushed Away, that doesn't mean it ignores all of the typical problems for licensed games made on the quick. The camera is pretty crazy at times (especially when you're attempting to control it, oddly enough), and the controls are awkward.

A gorgeous and charming game that unfortunately doesn't improve on enough of the original gameplay aspects to keep fans engrossed.

With more menus than a Parisian dining district, Aedis Eclipse: Generation of Chaos gets bogged down by its own ambition. And the game’s relative ease only makes its strategic density seem all the more unnecessary.

But as long as you're cool with the low-frills nature of the experience, the action in Real Heroes: Firefighter is unlike anything else on the Wii - which alone may be worth it for some.

It's perfect for play in airport terminals and doctor's waiting rooms, but it's hardly of the addictive, "Puzzle Quest" and "Lumines" "I'll sleep when I'm dead!" variety.

Provides a decent distraction for a few hours, but the $10 (800 MS points) price tag is a bit steep for a fairly simple puzzler. Aside from Master Shots mode, some neat physics, and the fact that you're playing with goo, the rest of the game gets dragged down by the lack of variety and overly straightforward gameplay.

If you're looking for groundbreaking gameplay and a thrilling story - or even differences between the Xbox and PS2 versions, other than HD support for Xbox - you'll be disappointed. Justice League Heroes is a pretty standard action RPG that's neither offensive nor alluring.

A good time when taken in small doses. The multiplayer mode is where the action really shines, so here’s hoping the community builds a bit more.

A fun - if entirely too short - music game with loads of personality and great tunes. It's just overpriced.

Hardcore puzzle fans will be disappointed with Trioncube's lack of depth. But if all you're looking for is a quick, pick-up-and-play puzzle experience here and there, it's still worth the budget price.

It's hard to forget that even after the numerous PC updates, you're playing a nearly seven year-old game, and after a few hours, it feels that way. If you are looking to take a trip back to the glory days of Quake mods, Nexuiz is what you are looking for. Just don't expect to stay for long.

It’s all good, but it’s still a simple premise that wears out sooner rather than later for most folks – a free game that lasts this long is great, but when we’re shelling out actual money, we have higher expectations.

The biggest problems with Vanguard lies in its graphics and overall length. It takes only six to eight hours to complete the game on normal, and graphically the game looks like it’s seen some serious battle.

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.

A darkly humorous action RPG with entertainingly fast-paced combat, Drakengard 3 is a unique experience marred by long load times, minor technical issues, and lackluster world design.

Rise of the Argonauts has a nice story and something to offer, but shortcomings like this chip away at the fun and ultimately keep the game from matching its legendary sources of inspiration.

Promise Mascot Agency's oddball, sometimes grotesque characters are actually incredibly charming, and the town of Kaso-machi is great to explore. These yakuza-managed living mascots can be messy mechanically thanks to poor balancing, but I'm won over by its truly immaculate and bizarre vibes. It's hard not to love the result, even if it could be a lot tighter.

Lords of Shadow 2 is a sequel that simply tries to do too much. It fills out its lengthy running time not with deeper explorations of the surgically precise combat, platforming, and cohesive world-building of its predecessor, but with multiple misguided, jarring new elements that all-too often fail to satisfy in their own right. Worse, they make for a diluted, deeply disjointed overall game experience.

Crackdown 3 is bonkers chaotic fun but also a case of wasted potential. The series deserved an iterative revival but instead, we have the tried-and-tested Crackdown backbone with remastered visuals and a touch more chaos, sadly squandering the promise of its few interesting additions in the process.

The sporadic and rote boss battles don't ooze as much personality - sitting back and shooting rocks at eyes on stalks as they open isn't exactly epic - and none of the grunt henchman, from reptiles to rhinoceros beetles, provide any combat challenge against Scrat's surprisingly powerful kicks and frantic tail-smacks.