This game defines what Nintendo meant when they first used the word 'new-gen.'

Days of Ruin may be marked as a turning point in the series, and with good reason, as the title could end up being heralded by some players for pushing the series in new directions, or bemoaned by others who enjoyed the plucky war game and its comedic aspects.

Not all of them are hits; however, there are a couple of gems that deserve being rediscovered.

As you can probably tell by now, MX Vs. ATV: Untamed’s appeal lies in its gameplay.

As for the gameplay, it’s a mixed bag, ranging from the hilariously entertaining to the mind-numbingly boring.

Nevertheless, the usually timed Winter Sports: The Ultimate Challenge is an okay rental choice if you’re looking for brief, sporty mini-games based on Olympic events and aren’t keen on Mario & Sonic lighting your torch.

Pain’s slingshot gameplay backfires when you realize that there’s no online multiplayer and that modes like Bowling and Fun with Explosives could’ve been converted into fun single-player challenges, but weren’t.

There are a few shortcomings: although the maps are gorgeous, many of them look and feel a bit too similar. The gameplay can also get repetitive with only two game types.

The diversity allowed by Mass Effect's character creation and leveling system is also a superb addition to the squad-based combat and keeps thing fresh as new character are introduced or removed from your squad.

Rock Band also doesn’t go where Neversoft took Guitar Hero III; namely, it doesn’t have any boss battles with celebrity rockers or frantic weapons-based multiplayer mechanics. Harmonix, however, outperforms its former franchise when it comes to the graphics.

Whether you'll like Ghost Squad or not comes down to how you enjoy light gun games.

The arcade business is on life support along with the light gun shooters that were once a prominent arcade attraction, so you probably have lots of quarters stacked up these days. But, don’t cash them in for Time Crisis 4 at full price.

From its recycled characters at each port to its recycled gameplay every couple of minutes, I’d suggest you read a book about the Civil War rather play this game.

TimeShift is an entertaining shooter with a different take on the tried and true bullet-time mechanic, but feels like there were a lot of golden opportunities lost. Still, you won’t regret your time spent in TimeShift.

You can argue that Link’s Crossbow Training could’ve been fleshed out with additional levels and modes.

The problem with Need For Speed ProStreet is that while it's long-lasting and can be pretty enjoyable despite the AI problems, it's also a bit by-the-numbers at times and no longer really stands out like the NFS games used to.

The Contra series is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and Contra 4 is a gift to the fans. If you're a fan of the series or even if you just like shooters in general, Contra 4 is the game for you.

Super Mario Galaxy is the best game on the Wii, period.

With few hard knocks against it, Forged Alliance is definitely a must buy for SupCom fans, and an enticing budget priced entry game for newcomers.

While Gears of War for the PC is a good game, worth playing if only for the collective experience, it will make you angry more than once during your fight to save the world.

F.E.A.R. Files is a decent package but is clearly geared for fans only. It provides a few short hours of entertainment but even so, it's still just more of the same.

Perseus Mandate is best played by the most hardcore of F.E.A.R. fans.

TimeShift isn't a perfect game, but it certainly offers up some unusual first-person fragfest fun.

TimeShift is an entertaining shooter with a different take on the tried and true bullet-time mechanic, but feels like there were a lot of golden opportunities lost. Still, you won’t regret your time spent in TimeShift.

For those who are tired of the same old-same old when it comes to trivia board games at parties, Buzz! The Mega Quiz makes an interesting change of pace.

Overall, it’s a decent effort but the repetitious gameplay makes it little more than a rental.

The lack of Co-op Quickplay is disappointing and the Guitar Battles are lame, but Neversoft does the Guitar Hero formula proud and I eagerly await to see what they can do with part four.

Guitar Hero III adds interesting elements like online multiplayer, boss battles and battle power, but the real innovation is in the new rock-themed setlist and the way you play it.

These factors, combined with a lack of special features, makes Dementium an undeserving purchase for all but the most die-hard survival horror fans.

It may not be the flight simulator that many people may have been hoping for, but it doesn’t detract from being an enjoyable arcade shooter. Highly recommended.

Although Trials and Tribulations doesn’t present anything new to the series, it helps to close out one of the greatest video game trilogies in recent memory.

Beautiful Katamari is a great game for fans, but not something that will interest those who didn't like the first three.

The title has a lot of potential, with a staff behind it that believe in the game, but currently paying the premium subscription fee would not be recommended.

The Orange Box is the best collection of video games ever to grace a console, and since you bothered to read this review, you know exactly why.

This is by far the best XBLA title yet, and despite the relatively high price tag, it actually offers incredible bang for the buck.

Sega Rally Revo is a throwback game, before the modern day racing games that have to be loaded with stuff to do. That lack of variety does hurt it, but it's covered by the very solid gameplay that is both accessible and challenging, fun and at times, frustrating.

Folklore is one of those games that might seem familiar on the surface, but rest assured there's nothing like it on the PS3. The story might take a while to unfold, but the payoff is there.

Although Nintendo and Paon must be applauded for trying to do something innovative, a racer like this simply does not work with a rhythm based control scheme. Those Wii owners looking for a quality racing title would be better off waiting until next year for Mario Kart Wii.

There's no denying that Enemy Territory: Quake Wars is a twitch shooter. The action is quick and deadly, and when it comes down to a one-on-one shootout, the player with the faster reflexes and better aim has the advantage.

Spider-Man: Friend or Foe is ridiculously easy and can be finished off by a determined family in a few hours.

It may not be worth much more than a rental, but it'll be one of the most satisfying rentals you play in a long time.

As with many Zelda titles, the game isn't to replayable and sadly Phantom Hourglass is a fairly short adventure. That being said, it is a fantastic example of classic 2D Zelda gameplay placed in a 3D world.

With new additions, 38 player online leagues and a realistic experience, basketball on Xbox 360 doesn't get much better than this.

Despite some flaws, Halo 3 is a crowning achievement on Master Chief's enormously popular trilogy.

I just can’t imagine how a youngster without all of my adult patience would feel playing this game thinking it’s the one to get while waiting for a Mario title. Make no mistake: this is not Super Mario Galaxy; it’s more like Wii’s Lair.

World in Conflict's single-player campaign has plenty of polish, but it won't tax most players' tactical abilities or attention spans: its fourteen missions can be completed in well under an hour each.

Although the game suffers from it’s story, unbalanced characters, and an uninspired creature design, the game can still be considered the best JRPG on the 360 thanks in large part to exciting battles and its strong visual appeal.

At $40 for the PSN file, it may be the most expensive downloadable game you buy, but it’s currently the best online multiplayer title to hit PS3.

Blue Dragon is not the definitive RPG experience on the 360, nor even in the past several years as it fails to do anything innovative.

This year's Tiger Woods isn't a drastic change from last year, but yet the return of the 3-click meter changes the game all the same.

Bioshock is one of those rare games that completely sucks you into its world.

Sadly, Brain Age 2 doesn't do much of anything to differentiate itself from its predecessor to reverse this trend.

If it isn’t the ‘true’ definitive RPG of the PS2 generation, it’s certainly one of the top.

To sum things up, Mario Strikers Charged is a fun, yet brutal anti-soccer game for all ages, but unfortunately the graphics leave something to be desired.

While it's not the most perfect version of Bomberman ever (a better variety of maps and a better single-player mode would have went a long way), it's Bomberman on Live and that's pretty exciting (and as fun as ever) in and of itself.

This year's game isn't drastically different from NCAA 07, but NCAA Football 08 is still a lot better than its predecessor. Added depth means you'll play a ton longer, and tightened up gameplay makes for a game that plays much better than before.

The game plays as well as ever, but the limited depth means there's less chances to really enjoy it, unless you don't mind playing single seasons over and over.

The confusion created by the messy HUD and annoying radio chatter, along with the repetitive missions makes this a rather forgettable rental.

There are a lot better stealth games out there so there is no reason to waste your time and money on this mess.

It doesn't quite reach the heights of Chronicles of Riddick, but The Darkness is still one fine first-person shooter/adventure game.

The Bigs is a solid arcade styled game that brings fun and even some depth to a sub-genre that tends to offer minimal options to make it worth its asking price.

While Pokemon fanatics will eat this game up, many other players will grow bored within the first ten minutes.

Combining realistic graphics – on par with MotorStorm, no less – with realistic yet arcadey gameplay, you really can’t go amiss with this awesome release.

Resident Evil 4 is just as entertaining today as it was two years ago. It is one of those truly addicting games that one can play over and over again into the wee hours of the morning. The Wii edition is without a doubt the definitive version of this classic.

Either way, Prince of Persia looks good on the Live Arcade, and it’s certainly a decent value at 800 MS Points.

Tenchu Z is sadly a low point for the series and for stealth games in general. It’s not that it’s a horrible game; it’s just boringly repetitive and not very challenging.

Despite the flaws, Call of Juarez is a decent effort from Techland that is definitely worth a look.

Pac-Man CE is not just one of the great XBLA games, it is one of the great games period.

Forza Motorsport 2 had to do a lot to achieve its predecessor’s own lofty accolades, and this entry certainly has all the right moves to match and – in some respects – surpass what the original Forza did.

At the end of the day, Shadowrun is meant for the dedicated shooter fans on the Xbox 360, and for those people the experience will satisfy.

While Touch the Dead is fun for a short while, it quickly becomes frustrating due to the cumbersome reloading controls and the designer’s cheap attempts to make the game more difficult.

It’s an excellent diversion when you just want to play something simple and fun with your friends for an hour or two.

The PS3 is going through the usual post-launch woes, but if you're a baseball fan, MLB 07 The Show is just the game to get you through the lean months until the usual fall insanity.

Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam is a fun and much-needed break from the stagnant series, but this original concept doesn’t fill the void for more than a couple of days at the most.

If you’re tired of the unrealistic nature inherent in titles such as "Battlefield 2" or the "Call of Duty" series and crave something more authentic, Armed Assault just may be what you’ve been waiting for. Put simply, you just won’t find anything in the simulation realm comparable to this addictive game.

Catan translates surprisingly well to the Live Arcade, and this is mainly because of its smart design choices and addictive multiplayer offerings.

It doesn’t feel quite as polished as Konami’s PS2 Contra titles, but the bosses are large and feature a similar robotic look that many of the Contra bosses are known for.

There’s a lot to do in Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl, which looks as good as a top-down Pokemon game is going to get for some time. It also benefits more than any other sequel in the series from a predecessor due to online capabilities. [JPN Import]

There’s a lot to do in Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl, which looks as good as a top-down Pokemon game is going to get for some time. It also benefits more than any other sequel in the series from a predecessor due to online capabilities. [JPN Import]

Thinking gamers will appreciate the fact that Theatre of War presents them with a series of tactical problems rather than simply a chance to rack up the body counts. And anyone who's been jaded by the ease of other mainstream RTS franchises will enjoy the fact that this is a game that doesn't coddle its players.

If you have played previous Bust-A-Move games, you have pretty much played this one. Majesco must be applauded for attempts at diversify the gameplay with the shooter mode and revised multiplayer. Unfortunately the first is totally uninteresting and the second too hectic to enjoy.

Mortal Kombat II has aged well technologically, and as long as you're getting the game for competitive play, it's a must buy, as the online play will keep fanatics of the game happy for a while, lack of voice chat or not.

With Super Paper Mario, Intelligent Systems has crafted a game that will appeal to fans of both the platforming and RPG genres.

Putting aside the lack of online multiplayer, frustrating DLC structure, and lack of wireless controller, GHII still merits recommendation for most users.

There are lots of save points but they can sometimes blend into the background making them hard to notice. The jumping around can get tedious and I found myself sometimes at a loss as to which parts of the background were interactive and which weren’t.

While the 2400 MS point price is a bit on the high side, the content manages to provide more swashbuckling, looting and questing for those who couldn’t get enough from the retail release.

One of the best racing games the PSP has seen so far.

The things it does well (environment, story, character) definitely outweigh the shortcomings (tough ranged combat, uneven framerates). The multiplayer has the makings of a classic, and GSC is evidently working at improving it, since their first patch was mostly multiplayer fixes.

There’s certainly a lot to like with the online offerings of Virtua Tennis 3, but the core gameplay and single-player experience don’t quite hit the unique balance of arcade action and simulation trappings that was found in the first entry in the series.

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion pulls off a miracle – it's deep enough for the hardcore ES fan, but designed in a way that even the average player can get into it without too much intimidation, though it can be overwhelming at first until the basics are grasped.

The concept is more fascinating than the execution. Maybe I’m too used to killing Metroids, but to me this game was just boring.

Honestly, anyone interested spending over $40 on a game like this would be better off with Super Monkey Ball.

There are some interesting moves and the environment is well done. However, as a TMNT game it’s sorely lacking.

If you were expecting a new Pilotwings for the Wii, you’re just going to have to wait.

Come for the nostalgia, stay for the great online co-op.

With all the attention directed to the next-gen systems, here comes a game that shows that the PS2 is still the baddest boy on the block and probably will be for a good while.

Worms may lack all of the bells and whistles that purists have come to expect, but the core game (especially when played online) still holds up – and that counts for a lot.

At the full asking price, NBA Street Homecourt is a rushed, shark-jumping next-gen cash in from the masters of such practices, EA Sports.