This game is just tedious and boring. I think it's all caused by the simplicity.

For those who have played the original PC version, I'm sorry to say that the console version just doesn't meet up to it in the end.

If you have fond memories of the Dreamcast game, then rest assured you'll be getting the same quality out of this port.

It’s a solid spy adventure that deserves to be rediscovered, and it’s a reminder that even the seventh generation’s second- or third-tier games were still pretty exceptional.

There are lots of clichés and stereotypes and the scrip makes fun of each one in turn, making for a light, fast story. But even with it's self-deprecating humor and over-the-top boss characters, the story takes a distant back seat to the action.

Nippon Ichi really delivers again with old school graphics combined with 3D effects, and a great storyline with some great adult jokes. If you are a fan of tactical games and RPGs definitely pick this one up.

Yooka-Laylee is a great experience, and well worth playing if you are a long-time fan of the work that Rare did. This is a game for veterans and newcomers alike though, and there is plenty here to hook a new player or new generation. A lot of the mechanics are a throwback to how things were before, and I don’t necessarily mind that. Some people however may find it slow and tedious at times. All in all I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Yooka-Laylee and would recommend you give it a try if you are even the least bit curious about it.

Fist Puncher is really a standout example of how to do retro right, and is something that certainly deserves more attention.

I really enjoyed inFamous First Light on a number of levels, and if I had to compare it to The Last of Us’ Left Behind expansion, I would give the edge to First Light just for its additional challenges and replayability.

There are plenty of objectives to complete and items to unlock, but ultimately the action can get a little repetitive and stale.

A blast, especially with the right crowd.

Earth 2160 is a fun RTS entry for the PC library, albeit an unnecessarily long and poorly constructed campaign mode.

They may have copied the Nintendo behemoth in lots of ways, and the game may provide an interesting glimpse into how Pokémon might look with a more populated world, but anyone hoping this would displace (or even come close to) the venerable series will find themselves sorely disappointed.

All in all, it was a fun trip though hell, even with one circle being lackluster and the game feeling rather short, I still have no issues or moral objections to recommending Dante's Inferno for fans of this genre.

Mario Strikers: Battle League thankfully leans closer to original Strikers than Charged. While the changes to the gameplay does not necessarily shut out casual players, there’s some meat for those who want to take a more tactical approach. The game leans towards extensive online play, leaving more isolationist players a steeper hill to climb to unlock all the game has to offer. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to some drills so these online skirmishes won’t result in too lopsided defeats.

If there were more combat, the inconsistencies in the environment wouldn't be so glaring, or at least they'd be more forgivable because you'd be busy with other things.

Star Wars Racer Revenge took an excellent control scheme and a promising career mode and sucked all the life out of it.

If it wasn't for the control issues, NASCAR 2001 would've have been a nice purchase for any racing fan, but with things the way they are, Nascar fans only please.

One of the most fantastic things about the multiplayer mode is the complete absence of any slowdown, even when things are getting insanely wild with all four players and the military mixing it up on the screen.

Those people who missed out on it first time around, however, are in for a treat — a bloody, murderous, thoroughly enjoyable treat.

Overall, I’m pretty impressed with how well Creed: Rise to Glory works on PSVR, and I’d imagine the other VR platforms are executed just as well. The only thing that feels a little iffy at launch is the online versus mode, which led to a couple of laggy matches against real-world opponents, enough so that I never finished a match. For me, the online versus isn’t a huge draw, but you might want to give the game a patch or two before picking it up if that’s a deal breaker for you. Outside of that, I think Creed does a great job of simulating the boxing experience with an arcade-style approach, and is certainly worth checking out if you’re looking for a fun, boxing VR workout at home.

No matter what good things it has to say or how nice it usually looks, it never does so well enough that you can overlook how obviously it borrows from other sources. It’ll be fine if you’ve never played any of those influences before, but otherwise, you’ll just be thinking of games like Limbo, Braid, and Contrast.

It's a routine that does need a bit of innovation. Just don't stray too far away from the formula or you may find your fanbase decrease like the stars in the sky after a day with the King.

Is Star Wars Battlefront the first-person shooter that’ll carry me into the early parts of 2016? Probably not. But I’m definitely enjoying the time I’ve spent with it so far, and I’ll be curious to see what the inevitable DLC brings outside of the upcoming Battle for Jakku map.

Enjoyment of the X Collection will hinge on whether you enjoyed these games in the first place, because there isn't much content to be found aside from art galleries. But fans of the series and those who like the sort of action Mega Man provides will be very happy.

For the casual gamer, you may want to steer clear of this as the learning curve is nearly as frustrating as golfing in real life.

Overall, WARP is a definite must play, as the game plays great, has some mind twisting challenges and puzzles, and provides enough replay value thanks to challenges and leaderboards. The only real question is whether or not it is for you, and to that, all I can say is play the demo, and if you dig that…the rest of the game is gravy.

Amusement Park is a great addition to the game, it's priced fairly, and fans will no doubt get a kick out of the new and chaotic environment

While it may not be for everyone with its physics & craft management, its style sometimes manages to save face for the overall product.

As it stands, you really only need to play each character once to check out their special moves, say “cool”, and move on. Great license, great production values, and a mediocre fighter, that pretty much sums it up.

Overall Anarchy Reigns is definitely worth a look. There's a substantial amount of content present for the asking price, and the overall feel of the game is pretty polished. The combat aspect that drives the single and online play feels really solid, with easy to pick up and understand movesets for characters that don't feel like cookie cutter copy and paste jobs, featuring strong art direction and a fantastic soundtrack to wrap it all up.

There's no multiplayer or co-op, and little to see outside of the main story mode, but it's something people of any age could pick up and enjoy.

So if you’re looking for a tense, difficult, team focused first person shooter this holiday season, I’d urge you to check out Rainbow Six Siege. While it lacks a suitable campaign, it more than makes up for it with its exciting versus and coop modes.

A must buy for fans of the "Fast and The Furious" movie.

If you only own a PS2, Max Payne 2 is a worthy pickup, but those of you with a decent PC should buy that version instead. Trust me - it's easier on the eyes and the hands.

You will not find much of a challenge, or even a particularly long adventure as far as RPGs are concerned. What you will find is a game that will make you lose track of time, as you will be too engulfed in the experience.

Extra Twisted Edition is basically a super enhanced, director's cut-style PSP to PS2 port with loads of extras and a cheaper than cheap price of $19.99. For anyone who has ever enjoyed blowing up things in previous TM installments (including the PSP version of which the game is based on) Extra Twisted Edition is really hard to pass up.

All of which is to say: I'm not sure whether I can totally recommend Dustforce. On the one hand, it's so wonderful to look at that it seems like it'd be a crime to not suggest you buy it. On the other, if it's not a broken game, at the very least it's one with issues that absolutely need to be fixed before it can truly be called playable.

It's not perfect, but if you absolutely must have Kratos on your Vita with some trophies, the God of War Collection will more than suffice.

Nihilumbra is proof positive that a game can be short and still be indispensable, and if you like platformers, you owe it to yourself to check it out.

There are pieces of a great game in Ghostrunner, and again, I’m sure it’s a fantastic experience elsewhere, but on the Switch, it’s more an exercise in frustration than anything else.

Xuan Yuan Sword 7 is a dull, uninspired action RPG that never rises above mediocrity, and unless you really want to waste 20+ hours on something that’s totally generic, I don’t see why you’d want to bother.

While you can’t always judge a game by its screenshots, in this case you can: Panic Porcupine absolutely could’ve been released on the Genesis, and no one would’ve batted an eye.

At first I wasn’t enjoying it too much due to the very sensitive controls, but give it a half an hour and I think most gamers will acclimate to the remote very easily.

HAWX was definitely a fun shooter, and while it's not something that I would see appealing to every FPS/third-person shooter fan out there, it's certainly worth checking out.

That's why it's a little disappointing to feel like one is part of a market analysis experiment. The trial is free, but at every moment it's clear you need to buy one of the characters ($10) or all three ($15) to finish the game.

If you already own "SOCOM 3," and you’re really only playing it for the multiplayer stuff, then you can avoid this one and save yourself a few bucks.

It does a great job of mixing humor, art, and gameplay into an experience that rarely falls flat.

It also receives high marks for the sheer amount of games made available--20 in all--at a suggested MSRP of $30 makes this game worthy of attention to the casual PSP gamer, and a must-have for any classic/retro gamer looking for a game that will get a lot of playtime on their PSP.

It is worth your time and money, as it offers gamers an experience never played before, even with the subtle similarities to "GTA". In the end, this is no "GTA," good or bad, this is Scrapland and in a league all by itself.

I was very impressed with Mundaun from the beginning, and despite that impression faltering a bit while I got my bearings and came to grips with some of the wonky controls and design choices, it ultimately delivered an experience that was beyond what I could have hoped for. I was drawn to this game from the first announcement, mostly because of the unique art-style and intriguing story, and it really managed to deliver above and beyond the initial promise. Stick with Mundaun past the growing pains, and I think you will really enjoy it too.

The Bogey Man is another great entry into the series, and if you've stuck with the series so far, you'll enjoy this one as well. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, and there's nothing in the way of new mechanics introduced for this entry, but then again it's not necessary to throw something new at the player every time, as long as the script and dialogue manage to deliver as well as they do these series of adventures.

Maybe I'd be a bit more forgiving of this game if it also managed to maintain the original's $20 price point, but I can't see any reason to pay full price for this poorly rehashed shooter.

Urban Chaos brings together some solid gameplay that integrates the gimmick as well as can be done. Over that lies a layer of old school sensibilities and a feeling that'll have you jamming to Team America's infamous "America, **** Yeah." Put all of that together, and you've got a killer game.

Outside of that, this is another solid episode in the series, and I’m as interested in what comes next as I’ve ever been.

But really, part of what makes No More Heroes so enjoyable is the nearly nonsensical story, which is still intact here. Lots of 4th wall breaking going on by all parties, and a whole lot pokes are made at popular culture and various geek loves, like Star Wars, Transformers, and others.

For this entry into the series, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate is a fun ride and will take you some time to accomplish. It also looks good, especially for being on a handheld, and will provide you with more of the Belmont history than you could find on Ancestry.com, just don’t expect your brain to think the words Castlevania while you play it.

It’s a different take on Dead Rising than most would expect, but works better than you would think. It may get stale after a while, with only four cases to choose from. At the same time, Dead Rising was always a single player experience and DR4 successfully takes a little from each game in the series, and does its best to give something for everyone. Is it what the hardcore fans want? Not all of them. Games change with time, for better or worse, and right now is Dead Rising’s time to shine.

Beyond: Two Souls is a great interactive action-adventure game that I really should have played sooner. It does feel like you do a bit less actually playing than Quantic Dream’s other title, Heavy Rain (which I am a huge fan of), but I never got to a point that it annoyed me.

Unfortunately, as I said up top, Mushroom Wars 2’s big drawback is that it also doesn’t skimp on content. That may sound like a bizarre thing to complain about, but there’s really not a lot of variety from level to level. On top of that, this game demands that players be patient, since you have to spend a lot of time waiting for those toadstools to generate enough mushroom army men for you to launch assaults on the opposing — which means that you also spend a lot of time looking at those maps that, again, don’t look all that different from each other.

Thanks to an insane number of hours spent playing previous NHL games over the last several months, I do know what a good hockey game looks like, and NHL 21 definitely fits the bill. The on-ice product is as fast-paced and free-flowing as the real thing, and there are enough options here to keep you occupied for months on end — which, given the circumstances, is exactly what you may need right now.

A far better game pound for pound that any other Civilization game made. But for a gaming paradigm that has been around for almost ten years, there's no reason for the genre to still be stumbling over the same problems over and over, and that's exactly what's happening here.

I like Siren’s creepy presentation and honorable attempts at innovation, but the gameplay just isn’t up to par. Things are far too frustrating, slow, and boring to make you even want to finish.

One of the best PSone games to hit the shelves in a while, and if it wasn’t for the virtually unclimable spike in the difficulty curve halfway through it would easily rank as among the best PSone games ever made.

I don’t think they're ready to make a playoffs run… this year.

The Surge’s biggest weakness comes from some pacing problems and a weak late game story. The beginning of The Surge is interesting and grabs your attention, but as you get closer to the end, those hooks start to lose their hold. It begins to feel convoluted just for the sake of being convoluted and feels like they lost direction a bit by the end, but it is never bad. The Surge feels like a learning experience and one that I hope Deck13 takes to heart and expands on with whatever their next title ends up being. I have enjoyed my time with this game and can honestly say that I am looking forward to whatever they release next.

The investment necessary to figure the game out and enjoy the rich rewards of hunting is huge.

Overall, Zombie Army 4: Dead War is a worthy game that stands above a semi-oversaturated genre with stellar co-op, fun, and goofy arcade elements, and so many throwbacks to 80’s zombie horror George Romero himself would have loved it. The somewhat cliche campaign and lack of solo care might put some off, but if you have friends to play with, and want one of the best zombie-slaying experiences in recent years, Zombie Army 4: Dead War is the place to be.

It won't necessarily appeal to everyone, but if you're the target audience, rest assured EDF 2 on the Vita will hit all the right buttons.

It’s an interesting departure in both tone and gameplay from other FF titles, and certainly worth playing. But I really wish Square Enix had banked a bit less on the packed in Final Fantasy XV demo to sell copies, and more on applying some additional technical prowess to the final package.

Fun graphics and a good soundtrack can help make a good game even better. As When Vikings Attack demonstrates, however, no amount of either can cover up a massive lack of content.

CastleStorm Definitive Edition is a fun game, but playing it in VR is something I cannot recommend. If you already have the original release, then you are gaining nothing with the VR version. This feels more like it could have been added to the original release as DLC rather than being it's own download. If you are really hurting for more VR games in your life, this might fill some kind of void, but there are much better offerings than this.

The atmosphere that this game creates with its dialog, character interactions, and its intriguing story set in the real life city of London is completely amazing.

While Omega Five runs at a more deliberate or slower pace than some frantic shooters, that doesn’t mean for a second this game won’t kick your ass in short order.

Yes, it looks pretty nice at points, and yes, its (shamelessly borrowed) combat is executed very well. But the end result is that you're left wanting to consume the media it recalls, rather than feeling compelled to keep playing your way through the game.

The only thing that really puts a damper on the game is that for an RPG, it isn’t very long.

If you can get a handle on the control of your minions, and pick up on the strategy needed to defeat some of the later bosses, you should have quite a bit of fun with this quirky fantasy title.

You get a season's worth of fun for less than the price of a real bobblehead!

Narnia makes for a decent adventure title on both systems, but it fails to do anything new or astounding. The game is also on the short and easy side, even with some of the unlockable extras.

Wonder Boy Anniversary Collection is a far better release that the original Collection. The amount of games and extra editions help to make this the definitive Wonder Boy Collection. The minor control issues and changes are a bit disappointing, but a few patches could be applied to fix these. It does retain the original collections very bland presentation and menu system, so it tends to feel more like a DLC add-on than a whole new collection. However it’s a vast improvement over the previous one. If you own the original release, you owe it to yourself to delete that one and pick this one up. If you skipped the first one, then this is the one that you need to get. This is one of the most complete collections of a single game series I have seen, and even with it’s minor flaws, I can highly recommend this for your library.

There are definitely some hurdles you'll have to get over to enjoy this game, but there is certainly fun to be had. For me it was the strategic, puzzle-like single player mode, but for others it may be the ability to alter decks and play against online opponents.

I'd absolutely suggest Gripshift to you 360 owners out there, based purely on the strength of the challenge mode gameplay. I still find myself going back to it time and again for random maps, and if you're a fan of achievements it'll take you quite a bit of time to actually "complete".

If you want a traditional, linear experience with clear goals and objectives, Atomfall probably isn’t what you’re after. It’s very much a player-directed experience – for better and for worse, depending on your perspective. However, if you’re the type who wants a game to give you the freedom to play however you want, then you owe it to yourself to check out Atomfall.

All in all, I think Tales of Zestiria is a bit of an uneven experience when compared to the rest of the series, but I certainly found myself more engaged here than I ever was in Xillia and Xillia 2.

RoboCop: Rogue City managed to be one giant leap in the right direction for a property that could never find a proper footing in the video game space. It worked extremely well as a bridge to the 2nd and 3rd films and managed to provide an action packed romp for someone who is looking for your usual power fantasy experience. I hope Tayon gets a second crack at the guy and really lets loose without the confines of the two films holding them back. That and maybe put less cutscenes of Robo watching a car drive off…it happens more than you think. Otherwise if you’re a fan of RoboCop or are Robo-curious, you owe it to yourself to check out Rogue City…and yes spend more than a dollar when acquiring it (This was the best I could do in cramming that line in, anyways go pick up this game…I need to figure out how to do well in the shooting range).

As it stands, you really only need to play each character once to check out their special moves, say “cool”, and move on. Great license, great production values, and a mediocre fighter, that pretty much sums it up.

While certainly not a successor to the main Tomb Raider series, I think both fans of action and platforming puzzlers will get some enjoyment out of this one.

However fun Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee HD may be to play — and again, it is quite good on that front — it's a lot less enjoyable to look at.

This was one of the most enjoyable games when it first came out during the PS360 generation, and Red Faction Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered is proof that this is still the case for this generation.

The Invincible stands out as the best space exploration game of 2023, and yes, I understand the statement that I am making there. It is not a dig against any other games that may have come out this year and also focused on space exploration, but rather a celebration of what the team at Starward Industries has managed to accomplish with The Invincible. 2023 has been a juggernaut of a year as far as incredible game releases go, (while also being an awful year for the people making games, with over 6,000 layoffs in the industry and counting) and it would be easy for The Invincible to get lost in the shuffle. I am here to beg, to implore you, to INSIST that you take the time to check out The Invincible if it looks like something you would even be remotely interested in. I have not stopped thinking about this game since finishing it, and I think it deserves a place at the top of any “End of the Year” list for best games.

All in all, I really enjoyed Assassin’s Creed Rogue, and think it’s well-worth checking out despite being the old-hardware release for the series this year. It’s a far better experience than Unity overall, provided you enjoyed Black Flag like I did.

Tales of Legendia is a pretty disappointing addition to a series of RPG’s that has managed to grow stale in the past few years.

Mercenaries 2, much like their in-game avatars, succeeds by getting the job done with no frills and nothing more. To many gamers that just may be enough.

Namco Museum is a worthwhile release and the inclusion of Splatterhouse was a win-win for me. For $30 I think it’s worth the price to revisit some of Namco’s classic games and have the option to play them anywhere.

While it sure isn't a AAA game, it's hard to fault Dark Sector for anything past the seriously broken melee attack.

So I'd suggest checking this out primarily if you skipped over Dead Rising 2.

One of the best frame rates for a game of its type on the PlayStation.

NFL Blitz 20-03 is a near carbon copy of 20-02, no two ways about it. If you like Blitz gameplay, you'll find it here...but the lack of innovation is startling.