Brooktown has obvious charm and we do hope for a sequel, but it's going to need to hit the books hard before we'll give it a passing grade.

There's arguably some creativity in the souls-as-power-ups bit, but having to switch into spirit mode, grab the proper color orb (assuming the tapping works; it's erratic), and sling it at DJ's feet in order to heal is a cumbersome chore.

We absolutely found ourselves drawn to Marvel Trading Card. It's just that the intense complexity and cramped screen real-estate kept it from being the accessible, instantly lovable smash-bang, super hero-em-up that the comics themselves are.

It’s a slick little pick-up-and-play experience, though sadly, it is a short one. The varied Wi-Fi Party mode almost would've made up for NC3's brevity... if it only allowed game sharing.

Most levels in Diner Dash: Sizzle and Serve last five minutes tops, which makes it a flexible on-the-go offering. We’re increasingly annoyed by publishers’ tendencies to toss a casual PC game onto portable consoles for a notably higher price than its PC version.

Beyond its quality, its unexpectedness is what makes Odin Sphere doubly special. It came from absolutely nowhere and reminds us that people are still struggling to make the games of their dreams.

Overall the game is not great, but better than your average movie-tie-in, and if you like sword fighting or pirates in general, it could be worth your time.

It’s not that Art of Fighting Anthology is packed with sub-par games; it’s just that it isn’t “packed” with anything. If this were combined with the publisher's upcoming 4-game Fatal Fury collection into one big compilation, the resulting package could be a must-by. But that's not the case, so it isn't.

There's no denying that, well, this is Solitaire. And while there are a lot of different variations on offer here, you need to really love these types of family games to get your money's worth out of Soltrio.

Though "2K7" keeps the casual fans happy with eye-popping visuals, The Show keeps the die-hards in their seats with just the opposite.

Players who have grown up with the likes of "Final Fantasy," however, will be unimpressed with Etrian Odyssey.

Yes, Innocent Life succeeds in going in a new direction for the Harvest Moon series, but isn’t as compelling nor entertaining as the best games of the franchise. It’s also not a recommended introduction for folks who haven’t played one before.

It’s possible a six-year-old could be amused by it, but at E10+, they shouldn’t' be playing it. And anyhow, there are plenty of other kid-friendly games that will challenge their brains and inspire their imaginations. And make them actually laugh.

The game will keep you charmed for awhile, and fans of the movie could appreciate the atmosphere enough to make the game worth picking up.

The combat is challenging - you'll need to upgrade each fighter, purchase combos and experiment on enemies to find what moves they're weak against. The special powers, on the other hand, are kind of a bore with onscreen icons showing where they can be used to achieve obvious results.

The online four-player is badass, with support for USB headsets and a split-screen option to enable two players to go online using the same PS3. But Calling All Cars! really shines as a party game, and if you can get four friends in the same room all screaming and cursing each other out, then that's worth the price of the download right there.

A little bit of quality assurance time would have gone a long way in improving Double Dragon, but ultimately, this brawler just isn’t main-event material anymore.

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.

Once you get into the rhythm of the game, though, you remember why this series is so popular. It's not the mythology or the unit design or the videos as much as it is the kill-or-be-killed simplicity of it all.

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.

The predictable and disappointing list of "seconds" in volume two muddies Reminisce’s otherwise unique presentation.

If you’re a wannabe pilot who doesn’t mind navigating through a storm of mediocrity, you could do a lot worse. But you could also do a lot better. That, friends, is blandness in a nutshell.

Whether you consider motion-sensor controls a revolution or simply a novelty, their absence makes for a much more shallow experience. As a whole, the game feels more akin to an overblown supplemental mode that should've been included with "Project 8," rather than a stand-alone edition to the Tony Hawk saga.

For the patient, the willing, and the people who know exactly what "Flashpoint" and its fans are capable of: go buy ArmA. View it as an investment for the future, because by the time PCs and Bohemia manage to catch up with the game engine it’ll be just as important as Flashpoint’s.

Spider-Man 3 is so by the numbers, so average that we just can't muster much enthusiasm. Comic fans'll hate the inconsistent power levels while hardcore gamers will balk at how unfinished it feels.

It's so dumbed down that it might actually be more appropriate for children if it weren't for the T rating on the package. Just play the 360 version. Actually, scratch that, just go play Spider-Man 2 instead. It's worlds better than this.

Spider-Man 3 is so by the numbers, so average that we just can't muster much enthusiasm. Comic fans'll hate the inconsistent power levels while hardcore gamers will balk at how routine it feels.

It's so dumbed down that it might actually be more appropriate for children if it weren't for the T rating on the package. Just play the 360 version. Actually, scratch that, just go play Spider-Man 2 instead. It's worlds better than this. There are actually parts of this that look like they're right out of the original PlayStation game from 2000.