Unfortunately the controls take a turn for the worse when an enemy's missile, rocket, or whatever hits you. For some reason, no matter how heavy or light your boat may be, no matter how heavily equipped it may be with weaponry and armor, your boat will unrealistically catapult into the air.

Visually appealing and highly addictive

Great thing number two...is the ability to switch your characters in and out of battle at will. This is a tremendous step forward for the series as it fills in holes that we gamers had to come up with workarounds for previously.

The title feels a bit dated and offers standard RPG fare that’s as basic as it gets.

Kudos to Midway for taking a risk and translating a more mature RPG in such excellent form, and a small, quiet "boo" to Sacnoth for providing great material for translation and little in the way of engaging gameplay.

Kao the Kangaroo is one such Sonic/Mario wannabe that is hampered by poor game mechanics and unoriginality.

So you've got overly emphasized elements, a hit or miss magic creation system, and some pretty addicting session attacks. How does it all play out in actual gameplay? Kind of blasé and very frustrating to tell you the truth.

If you like the old Bomberman series, and especially if you have friends with GBAs for four-player combat, this will provide you with some small screen enjoyment.

Arguably, there are other classics that should have been included, but it's an excellent sampling and a nice blast from the past if you're interested in walking down memory lane.

The title moves along at a swift 60 fps to make for a very fluid travel experience. The frame rate does come at an expense. To put it bluntly, the characters look like well textured Legos. When the character zooms in for in-game cinemas the characters’ true blocky form is revealed.

The difficulty ramps up perfectly, and the game does not rely on a typical lives/continues system.

It’s not an intense game, but the decent 2D gameplay is as solid as ever.

One of the best off-roading simulation games available on the market today.

The amount of detail that has been shoved onto all of the game's character models is fantastic – some of them it would be hard to differentiate from FMV models.

From the moment you turn the game on you’ll be instantly captivated.

If you enjoy The Simpsons and you enjoy driving like a maniac, you'll enjoy this game, for a while. But the gimmick gets way too old way too fast to be satisfying to even the most rabid fans of the show.

A bland, average racing title. A shame, since there definitely was the potential for so much more.

The lack of a battery backup is irritating beyond belief, but not enough to keep me from recommending Rampage Puzzle Attack. The license is not the reason to play this game folks, but the fun gameplay definitely is.

Absolutely nothing we haven’t seen before.

There are buckets full of stages and a two-player mode to boot. If you've never played a Bust-A-Move game, you'll be drawn in by its simplicity yet you'll hang around just to get better at each stage every time you play it.

Small Brawl could function as a gateway for younger kids interested in the series, but are not quite ready to tackle the difficulty of "Twisted Metal: Black."

Not that Azurik is the most painful experience I’ve encountered, but the game offers nothing new to the genre, and seemingly borrowed everything from elsewhere. The pain is there though, believe me.

What an absolute disaster. These games are classics, and the only folks old enough to remember these will be put off by the sub-standard conversion done here. These games deserver better treatment. It could have been so much better.

Like getting an unexpected gift envelope from a good friend. The single-player campaign? It's the receiving of the surprise itself - short but nice. The multiplayer component, however, is like opening up the envelope and finding a certificate for a year's supply of free lap dances at Scores - it absolutely can't be beat.

In terms of sheer pace, NFL 2k2 and Madden are truly apples and oranges when it comes to game speed. I frankly feel that NFL 2k2 plays too fast.

It makes nice use of various special effects and never slows down, but those with epillepsy problems will probably want to stay away. However, if you're familiar with raves, you'll feel right at home.

Control difficulties with multiple opponents may be too much for some to overlook.

Graphically the game looks fantastic. The game is insanely colorful and the sprites are well animated.

A bigger problem on the visual side is the framerate. A lot of the time the game is running at 60 fps. But depending on the level, there can be considerable slowdown...Other than it being short and containing a few minor problems, it's an excellent launch title that is extremely fun to play.

If you have the PS2 version of the game, it may not be money well spent trying to gain some visual improvements at the cost of some game speed and a more convoluted control scheme.

The steering feel[s] somewhat awkward at first as well as stiff. This to me interrupts the smooth control design of the original game and complicates it for no other reason than to be complicated.

It wasn't the visuals that impressed me the most; it was the design of the audio. On paper, the audio might scare someone away as it only has one basic tune through the entire game. Yet that one tune never becomes tiresome.

It is likely that a few months from now, Super Monkey Ball will be one of the few launch titles that you still will be playing, especially if you have friends to play with.

Although Tarzan looks like a free-roaming 3D platformer in pictures, you actually navigate extremely narrow paths. Sometimes only one exact line will allow you to complete the level.

While the characters gained even more charm and personality, the gameplay has suffered.

The game most easily comparable would be "Half-Life," but even that just pales to the overall scope and vision of Halo.

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

They have done an amazing job of re-creating the intense thrill of being out in the ocean in large surf. I know from experience. The very first time I started a session with the game I got butterflies in my stomach.

As bland as they come. The cheesy plot and acting come with gun game territory but the horrendous gameplay doesn’t do much to make this game a keeper.

I've played nearly every version of THPS 2 out there and none can hold a candle to 2x...[but it's] not better than the 3rd game in the series, nor would I suggest picking up this game over that.

A fantastic graphical showcase for the Xbox hardware, but once past that, adult and child gamers alike will have a hard time finding anything to keep their interest in this adventure.

The graphics are the crowning achievement for the game after plays and during replays, but it looks pretty rickety in motion during the actual game play.

Speaking of the A.I., this is where my biggest gripe with the game lies...The control is overall a bit slippery at times, even when using a 4WD car with a high Handling rating. That is a bad combo usually, and drove me crazy on several opportunities.

An upgraded, yet still very lacking, installment in the air combat series that continues to be outclassed by Namco’s efforts.

It is gorgeous, full of different modes to play and things to unlock, and most important of all, fun to play and accessible.

Fits in the normal expectations for a launch title: visually pleasing with repetitive long-term gameplay.

The link feature is great, but the online play is wonderful. It’s a shame there isn’t a server to allow people from all over the world to play against one another.

While Angel Studios does have something to build on here such as the cool Career progression and checkpoint-based races, they need to seriously consider what they are doing with the control and AI.

Fans will have to wait for a sequel to see more freedom and variety in gameplay.

The driving portion is the only real standout part of this game. Agent Under Fire is a title that, for all its good looks, is unbalanced and painfully average.

The Hawk may have competition, but it still flies higher than anyone else.

Ultimately it is the lack of polish found pretty much everywhere in the game that makes it feel like less of a sequel and more like a pricey Star Trek: Armada MOD.

As far as truly providing the sights, sounds and (most importantly) the feel of college basketball, this game just doesn't get it done. Brick!

A great game from a gameplay standpoint but fails pretty badly when it comes to the story. As a result, even though I've given it an A-, it turns out to be one of my biggest disappointments of the year.

A good handheld shooter, but it's also a step back for the Gradius series as a whole. While the graphics are definitely a cut above the SNES Gradius III, the lack of difficulty and a weapon edit mode really knock the replayability down.

Dark Summit won't rock your socks off, but it looks good, plays good and has plenty to keep gamers heading down the slopes again and again.

This kind of ["mad rush"] gameplay isn’t uncommon in most real-time strategy games, but for a game that is so creative in every other aspect it is a real shame to see it suffer in any way from such old issues.

Does what the first one did and ups the ante with more characters and grooves, but doesn’t do too much new from the first.

Syphon Filter 3 is a quality film with B-movie gameplay. The visuals, music, and CG are all top-notch, but the chewy gameplay center gets old after a few bites.

It’s the control that sets Victorious Boxers apart from "Knockout Kings" and "Ready to Rumble" – it’s nearly perfect.

A highly polished and much improved product that gives longtime fans, and especially newcomers, a fantastic diversion to enjoy and become addicted to all over again on a shiny new DVD-Rom disc.

This is a better game than "Wave Race: Blue Storm." It may not have the wave physics that Nintendo's racer has (or many waves at all for that matter), but it runs away with the look of the water, control, and playability.

There’s a dramatic war story and fantastic scenary, and the trademark Ace Combat arcade gameplay is more solid than ever.

Unfortunately despite the novel approach, the execution of this racer fails to create a classic.

The colors are drab, and the textures really are bad enough to make you wonder if you're really looking at Doom on the SNES.

If RPG gaming were a diet, Dragon Warrior 7 would be several truckloads of raw meat. It ain't pretty, but there is a lot of it and it sure does satisfy. It'll also give you a heart attack in large doses.

If you really get into the way the game handles you will find hours and hours worth of stuff to keep occupied thanks to the horde of gameplay modes and challenges to accomplish.

When taken into consideration against Rockstar Games’ other major holiday release, "Grand Theft Auto 3," though, the repetitive nature of Smuggler’s Run 2 almost makes it not worth mentioning.

You can combo off of everything in this game. Seriously I mean everything! Cars, people, sidewalks, buildings, rails, ramps, stop signs... The list goes on and on. The funny thing about all this is Neversoft's Highest Score screen shows a high score of 9.4 million. Yes, my jaw dropped too.

Still a high-quality brawler after all these years. Just don’t expect much that's new.

A high point in the series.

Stands apart as the best soccer game on the PC, and one of the best footy games on any platform, period.

Look up the definition of 'weak-sauce' in Lewinson's Dictionary and you'll find the following: sloppy control, inconsistent player physics, cheating AI, incorrect play mechanics...you can see where this is leading, can't you?

An excellent tennis game, easily the best one out there.

There's no two ways about it folks: NBA 2K2 is the best-playing basketball game on the planet.

Who among you is a fan of the old school games that forced you to learn boss patterns, enemy locations, arbitrary death, to the point of I'm-gonna-throw-this-joystick-out-the-window-and-bean-some-poor-schmuck-out-for-a-Sunday-stroll frustration? Well, here's your game.

More time has been spent on making sure Project Eden included as many smart, engaging puzzles as possible, rather than incorporating half a billion polygons and the latest in vector shading techniques.

Silent Hill 2, ICO, Devil May Cry, and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 are all must have titles in their own right, but with that said, I've had the most pure, unadulterated fun with Grand Theft Auto III than any other title this year.

The graphics will help draw you in, but the tight controls and mission advancement will keep you around.

Incredible amounts of detail and animation fill Devil May Cry, and even some of the simplest effects (such as the humble lens flare) are put to jaw-dropping use. The frame rate is constant and solid 60 fps, with almost non-existent slowdown.

Prehistorik Man is easy to control and is fun to play, which is something games now days have gotten away from.

One of the best NASCAR games I've ever played. With a full 43-car field displayed, the atmosphere of NASCAR racing is front and centre, drawing you in from the get go.

It certainly is not going to revolutionize the way we play platforming games, but it is definitely an enjoyable, great looking title that is worth checking out.

Although Dark Age doesn't innovate much, it's the best and most viable MMORPG out there right now.

While it may not sport the latest in eye candy, the game still delivers in the department that matters most – gameplay.

The varying graphic quality grates somewhat, but it controls well and the game experience is enjoyable. Ultimately, that's what matters and F1 2001 stands out as a great example of what F1 racing can be.

If you want to play an RPG that doesn’t pretend to be a dramatic tale or one that won’t require a lot of your time, Okage is a good choice.

If developers can figure out how to add some RPG elements into lightgun titles, then maybe they could earn an "A"...Overall, TC2 is a great arcade to home conversion, as well an excellent action-packed lightgun game that no one should miss.

It has solid game mechanics, excellent visuals and one of the biggest assortments of freaks for characters ever.

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.

The high watermark for hockey games on next-generation platforms, and has set a standard that will be hard for competing products to match...it's damn close to NHL '94 for addictiveness.

Has a good number of officially licensed drivers, tracks, and tons of customize options. But it also has twitchy steering that might throw players off the track and out of the game.

Any fan of Monster Rancher will be in absolute heaven with this new entry, and its more kid-friendly graphics are sure to attract more of the younger crowed to its decidedly simple, incredibly addictive gameplay.

The graphics are quite incredible and makes great use of lighting, using bright, white-washed colors outdoors and dark, dingy ones inside.

Lack of originality aside, this is still a good and highly playable game.

Truly one of the most beautiful games I have seen this year.

Without a doubt the finest football gaming experience on the DC - and as a football game compares favourably with EA's Madden series. DC owners should run, not walk, to check out NFL 2K2 immediately.

The best Spider-Man game ever created. Never before has a game captured the form of Spidey, the ‘Spidey-ness’, if you will.