For all it's technical wizardry, a game is only as good as its gameplay, and that portion of Jak 3 just doesn't measure up.

The lasting appeal unfortunately is only as long as the game is sadly, which isn't long at all.

A quality and well-designed puzzler that should keep fans of the genre entertained, though not hopelessly consumed.

There's nothing so terrible about it that you'll regret ever having picked it up — there are no Jesus Bynum moments, in other words — but it's doubtful you'll have much fun playing it either.

The concept itself sounds intriguing, but the overall game feels somewhat monotonous.

It plays well, is not overly difficult for younger gamers, and looks and sounds nice enough. Its real drawback is it ends up being pretty standard platforming fare with not much in the way of unique or different features.

It's a shame the length, boring presentation, and sub par visuals won't convince anyone but the hardcore audience to even give this sword a swipe.

My only hesitation is that you can get better for the same price, which makes anything a tough sell.

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.

Fatum Betula is a strange game geared towards a very specific niche. I can’t say I’m in that niche, but if you are, it’s probably going to be right up your alley.

The technology is behind the curve, the control is too sensitive and cumbersome, but the variation in gameplay saves the title from the ever-increasing abyss of forgetful games based on movies.

A game made for fans of the Duel Masters TV show and customizable card game. That's not a bad thing, as it definitely appeals to both demographics, but not much beyond that.

We are left with a mediocre title that only keeps shooter fans mildly entertained till we can get our hands on "Gradius III" for the PS2.

One more game in an ever-growing collection that makes good on an extremely old formula. It's not too hard or too easy. For kids, it seems just right.

All together, I can't really suggest picking up the newest Crash title, unless the idea of backtracking really doesn't bother you in the slightest. There's a decent game here, but it's far too annoying to play thru and see everything it has to offer.

You'll see a lot of poor passes (regardless of your quarterback choice), poor tackling (even for a computer-controlled player), hot and cold A.I. and many, many wide open receivers dropping balls. This is probably the most frustrating aspect of NCAA 2k3.

If you're desperate for some next generation eye candy and can put up with the mediocre game engine, then by all means snag this game.

And while I'm all for developers expanding their colour palettes a little, on the whole I'd much prefer it if the devoted their energies to making innovative gameplay. Otherwise…well, otherwise you just end up making Ragnarok Odyssey.

If you're into the storytelling style – which you'll get a taste of in the first few minutes – you'll probably enjoy it. There's just nothing exceptional about any particular element of the game.

The WWE Universe stuff is pretty cool, but outside of that, this really feels like a title that's gone back to the well one too many times at this point.

Younger gamers and Digimon fans looking for a simple RPG to help pass some time, should give Digimon World 2 a try.

As I said before, we’re talking about a KEMCO game, so you more or less getting exactly what you’d expect when it comes to Asdivine Dios. There are far worse JRPGs out there, but there are also far better ones, and this one comes in right where you’d expect, in the exact midpoint between those two extremes.

Everything is next to impossible in Skakebird. It’s the sort of game that you’ll want to love — right up until the moment you play it, at which point you’ll just be left saying, “But it looks so cute!” Ignore the cuteness, focus on the gameplay, and skip this one altogether.

I’m fully aware that my perception of Energy Cycle Edge is skewed by the fact I’m terrible at it. But at the same time, because it’s so lacking in variety and so intimidating right off the back, I suspect my experience with the game might be the most common one. If you’re really into puzzles that push your brain, then by all means check this out, but otherwise, you’ll probably want to avoid Energy Cycle Edge.

In the end, if Scarygirl retailed for less or spent a little more time in the oven getting the elements a bit more tweaked, then I'd say the game would be worth the money. As is, you may want to trial this bad boy (or girl) to see if this adventure is worth putting up the 15 bucks. Otherwise, unless you are a big fan of the content, it's decent enough to hold off until it is on sale or something in the future.

Most players will feel disappointed by Sonic Shuffle, especially if they expect a game of the same quality as other Sonic ones. Overall, Sonic Shuffle isn't awful, but the Dreamcast's library offers plenty of better choices.

I'll never totally understand why people want to play platformers wherein constant death is, well, a constant. But I can state unequivocally that if that's what you're after, Mutant Mudds: Super Challenge delivers it in spades.

Unless you're just dying to play something other than "SOCOM II" online with your PS2 you won't be missing much if you pass up Fire Warrior, even if you're a Warhammer diehard.

The broader issue, though, is one of time: time you spend waiting for pretty much everything to happen. Or, to be even more specific, time you spend waiting for crops to grow so you can harvest them, since that's more or less the entire focus of Farming Simulator 16.

The gameplay is dead on and its 2D-ish gameplay is reminiscent of old 16-bit titles. Just don't expect to see any innovation here.

While the options are bigger this year, I thought last year’s game felt more complete in overall game play.

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One may try to dress itself as something more or different, but when you get right down to it, not much has changed.

I was personally disappointed that I didn't have much freedom to create a Marvel comic, like the software intends, but I can't deny that it fills other niches quite well.

The controls are challenging when using the motion set up, and while the analog control is better, it's still not on par with a standard game pad set-up.

There’s a weight of history behind Saints Row, and no matter whether you’re comparing it to the more serious early games or the sillier later ones, it’s pretty clear that the Saints Row reboot doesn’t live up to any of them.

Shank 2 isn't worth its weight as a full sequel. It should have been DLC, since that's what it is. Without building in any way on the original, even, do we receive a game which merits itself as a full-fledged sequel, and lasts no longer than a few hours. There's even an omission of a secondary co-op campaign as the first had. Even with different modes of play to extend its life, badges to earn for unlockable characters, and the thought that it's possible to be the best at any level on the global leaderboards, there's nothing inspiring me to ever go back to Shank 2 past its campaign.

The game gets the C rating due to its overwhelming childish style, yet the game is more enjoyable than you would think.

The novelty of kicking your friends from their bike in the heat of a race won't last forever, so once that aspect of the fun wears off so does any urge to hunker down to a night of ATV Quad Power Racing 2.

Bedlam has a unique concept with pretty good nostalgia and a decent story. It’s a shame to see it fall victim to consistent game crashes, framerate drops and other game breaking bugs.

I'm all for a good redo, remix, or reimagining, but only once. BCRA2 feels in the end much like straight to video sequel rental of a kick ass movie.

I'm all for a good redo, remix, or reimagining, but only once. BCRA2 feels in the end much like straight to video sequel rental of a kick ass movie.

Most likely a title only true fans of the Olympic games will appreciate since the actual act of playing the game requires some dedication as well as some tough thumbs.

Do I believe eight year girls would like this game? Yes I do, until they get bored of doing the same thing one hundred and fifty six times.

So let's be real: if you want a bowling game, Crazy Strike Bowling EX is one. If you've been desperate for an excuse to bust out those Move controllers, Crazy Strike Bowling EX gives you that. If you don't fit into either of those two categories, there's literally no reason whatsoever why you should be interested in this game.

Fans of the series will no doubt enjoy the added bit of mythology that fills in some of the gaps between Episodes III and IV, and even general action fans should get a bit of enjoyment out of Lethal Alliance.

It's the bugs, the lousy camera, the lack of online leagues for Xbox and absolute necessity to adjust all of the gameplay sliders to find that decent game that shoots the overall score way down.

The Mega Man titles for both the NES and the Game Boy have already been featured on the Nintendo eShop, so if you already own any of those I can’t recommend the Legacy Collection. If you don’t own any of the Mega Man titles on your 3DS and really want to take down some robot masters (I’m coming for you Dust Man) on the go, then the Legacy collection is a good buy.

But, hey, maybe you like being frustrated. If you do, then The Sun and Moon certainly has something for you, since it won't do much other than frustrate you. If you just want to experience something good, though, ditch the game and go for the soundtrack. You'll be glad you did.

A game that initially turned me off completely, but somehow managed to keep me playing 'til the end.

I'll put it right out there. You'd have to be a huge fan of SNK and Capcom fighting games, or completely new to the genre to be interested in this latest entry.

Phineas and Ferb: Day of Doofenshmirtz is obviously not designed to be some money-grabbing cash-in (if it is, Disney picked the wrong platform for its exclusivity) but you still have to wonder why on Earth it exists. It's just kind of there, and it should be abundantly clear to anyone playing it that that's not nearly enough.

Needless to say, nothing in Sephonie clicked with me. It doesn’t matter if a game brings a whole bunch of ideas to the table if it’s not able to pull any of them off, and judging by the evidence on offer here, that’s definitely the case for Sephonie.

With the increase in quality seen from the first game to the second, I had very high hopes for Darksiders III, unfortunately it just was not able to really reach the potential it was set up for.

It has a couple interesting things going for it, like the unique camera style and look, but the actual gameplay is pretty bland an uninspired.

It’s certainly light on content, light on songs, and rarely feels great to play from a video game standpoint. Yes, you can get a little workout in, but it would be nice if the Switch would accurately track movement more consistently. I think Fitness Boxing has the opposite intended effect after you whiff 3 or 4 hooks or uppercuts due to poor motion sensitivity, which in turn leads to some dejected, frustrating moments. As it stands, I wouldn’t recommend Fitness Boxing to Switch owners, at least not without some deep discounts involved.

It has a couple interesting things going for it, like the unique camera style and look, but the actual gameplay is pretty bland an uninspired.

To be honest, if you were not sold in the first few words, classic beat’em up, then there is nothing here that will appeal to you as a gamer.

It’s certainly not an awful experience, but it feels very mindless and prolonged, not offering up enough depth to keep you engaged, which makes the experience suffer considering each battle can take upwards of 30 minutes to complete. It’s better consumed in smaller chunks, and I’d definitely suggest trying before you buy, whether you’re a big fan of the three publishers or not.

Really, Daydream: Forgotten Sorrow’s lack of originality is just a minor complaint compared to the fact that it doesn’t achieve what it sets out to do from a gameplay perspective. You can’t be a worthwhile puzzle-platformer when the platforming sections feature controls and physics and a field of depth that are this finicky.

So unless you’re an absolute, die-hard, must own every Ace Combat release ever type of fan, then I’d highly suggest skipping this cash grab.

The audio on the PS3 version lags behind the video, making songs very hard to play on higher difficulties. You're either forced to block out the music and sight read the notes or manually change the lag to account for the audio making it more difficult to sight read the notes.

The game doesn’t even come close to the better adventure games on PC, but it is still an enjoyable title to play through if you’ve exhausted all your other DS games.

I'd say that if you really love the game, and aren't too particular about the framerate, then this is worth picking up. And for those of you new to the game, or series even, looking for something new to play on the Vita, you could definitely do worse.

Battleship was one of my favorite games growing up and one I have many fond memories of, but this game doesn’t quite hit the nail on the head.

But it's also rather short, and with only the license setting it apart from every other generic platformer on the market, there's no reason to buy when a simple rental will suffice.

On the positive side, I did like the idea of a two-ball multiball prelude to open the table up with, where you help Iron Man construct the Ultron A.I. It’s also somewhat neat to see it built as an optional thing, even though I’m not sure I fully understand why you would want to skip it. Also, if you manage to get the four-ball multiball for the final event, it’s so chaotic that you can’t help but smile at the mess, even if getting to this point is more frustrating and boring than it’s worth.

Between odd design choices, forced motion control and a number of questionable mini-games, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz doesn't exactly live up to the series' standards. However, some of the mini-games are pretty cool, if a bit shallow.

It’s just that Hamsterdam feels like a bunch of empty calories. There’s nothing in the way of depth, and you notice that a lot more when you’re paying $10 than you do when you’re only paying a buck or two. I could see this game being worth it on mobile, but on the Switch, you’re probably better off looking elsewhere.

The weird thing is, I can see why some people might enjoy this game. It’s strange and it’s random, which might be exactly what certain gamers are after. Personally, though, I just found Freak Crossing to be a vaguely unsettling waste of time – which may be its point, but that doesn’t mean I want to play it.

Even if you’re not a fan of how Wordle suddenly has a lot more of those words post-NYT move, they at least keep things interesting. Without them – and without anything else to push you – it’s really makes it difficult to stay interested in the game. There are ways to play around with the Wordle formula to make the gameplay fresh and new (see Octordle for an extreme example), but there’s none of that to be found in Wordbreaker.

The gameplay is solid, but there is very little supporting it, and oh so very much holding it at bay.

Fire Warrior also breaks the cardinal rule of licensed games: There's hardly any feel for Warhammer. The personality of the universe doesn’t make its way into the game very often.

It looks good and the fights are simple while offering just enough strategy to keep from becoming too boring. It's too bad the same can't be said for the story mode, and an even bigger shame the best part of the game, a customizable character, can't be achieved without suffering through the single player experience.

I’d say that the lack of a quest list might just be Time on Frog Island’s biggest issue. After all, we’re talking about a game that’s basically nothing but fetch quests, so for the game to not include a way of keeping track of your one task seems like a major oversight. Then again, maybe the makers of Time on Frog Island just figured they could get by on a cute premise and general aesthetic. To be sure, in some cases that may be enough, but in this case, it just means you have a game that has the right tone but none of the right content.

But it's also rather short, and with only the license setting it apart from every other generic platformer on the market, there's no reason to buy when a simple rental will suffice.

Midway unfortunately neglected to realize what made Hydro such a great game to begin with; Great course designs and enjoyable gameplay.

You'll see a lot of poor passes (regardless of your quarterback choice), poor tackling (even for a computer-controlled player), hot and cold A.I. and many, many wide open receivers dropping balls. This is probably the most frustrating aspect of NCAA 2k3.

The huge amount of speech for all the characters is a really cool addition to the game, but it can’t save it from a somewhat dull battle system and its other problems.

It isn't the prettiest thing out there, and there are a few rough edges here and there when it comes to bombing and the like, but otherwise, it's a decent simulation that'll have you cheering as you attack Japanese and German bases.

Basically, if you want to play a game of online domino's, just like what you'd be able to play at home, then Domino Master delivers. However, it'd be nice if there was something about the game to really made it stand out, some type of new mode or something introduced strictly for the video game version, to keep it from feeling like a simple board game cash in.

I can’t in good faith recommend KINGDOM HEARTS -HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX- for a full price purchase given how they perform, even if you’re a fan. I played the Kingdom Hearts franchise on PS4, so I was ecstatic to be able to play them on my preferred platform, but other than the third entry and Fragmentary Passage, it just doesn’t seem to be easily done. I’d highly recommend a sale and having some patience if you want to dive into them, because they’re not for the faint of heart. It’s a damn shame, but I guess not every port’s gonna be a good one.

There are a butt load of better racers on the PlayStation 2 that are worth your time and money.

There's no doubt that plenty of fun is to be had; it's simply that much of it is hindered by poor design choices.

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.

I’m not going to say that Shadows 2 is terrible or anything, because it’s not: if you want a few jump scares, it’ll do the trick. If you want more, though — like, say, an interesting story, or creepy visuals, or anything that makes a horror game worth remembering — look elsewhere, because you won’t find it here. Mind you, even if it were here, you wouldn’t be able to see it.

It's not much to get excited over, and that may be for the best. At least this way, you know pretty much what to expect.

It doesn’t take very long to go through the 10 wells offered, and while some of the optional objects are worth unlocking, they don’t add enough to the core game to make it worth coming back for more without that added incentive of competing against others.

Given the art design alone, The Pitt is an interesting addition to the Fallout 3 universe. Outside of that, it's half-baked and feels more like a leaked alpha than an actual retail game. Hopefully the third DLC, Broken Steel, is delivered with a little more care.

While the budget price makes UFC: Sudden Impact easier to afford, in the end, it’s still a bitter pill to swallow.

Luxor is a decent puzzle-action game who's only real crime is being dull after about an hour.

those looking for the next "Ghost Recon," "Battlefield 1942," or "Half Life" "killer" will be in for a mighty letdown.

There is magic here, but after hitting the ceiling so often I can't recommend this game to many people without a list of caveats to warn them first. It's gorgeous, and a time sink, but the more you come to understand it, the less you wish you knew.

Blue Dragon Plus isn't a great title for the DS, but it's certainly passable. For players that enjoyed Final Fantasy XII Revenant Wings, I imagine you'll end up enjoying Blue Dragon Plus since they feel really similar, but for those of you that are coming over from Blue Dragon on 360, keep in mind that this is a completely different experience.

In fact, there's only one reason for Saturday Morning RPG to be worth your while: you really, really miss the '80s.

The ghost gameplay is fine up until the wild camera and sometimes desolate gameplay pop up.

Super Hydorah isn’t really for me, since dying over and over again has never been my cup of tea. But it is for some people. So if you’re one of those people, and you’re into shmups, good news: here’s your new favourite game.

The best part about "Devil May Cry" was the combat. The worst part about Devil May Cry 2 is the combat... The team didn’t think past the cool factor on this one.

As the headline suggests, only pick this up if you are a hardcore fan and know what you are getting with Soldier’s Soul.