What could have been a return to form for the series ends up suffering an almost total loss of form. If this game didn't carry the SOCOM name it would be just another functional third-person military shooter that you might recognize when you saw it in the markdown bin after a few months.

Primal Carnage could become a better beast with updates, but at launch it's missing some key elements and polish. Despite those issues, Primal Carnage is still an entertaining experience.

Hey Ice King is a potent distillation of everything that makes the cartoon such an uncommon, endearing powerhouse, and out of all the things I assumed this game would be, that was never, ever one of them.

Instead of simply clicking around a screen and hotkeying special moves like in Dawn of War, it's fun to actually control a Space Marine in a more personal, focused way.

There are some interesting, even good ideas in here. It would probably make a good multiplayer component for a better side-scrolling action game. But I honestly can't see the experience HoD offers remaining engaging for more than a few hours -- even for the most passionate Castlevania devotee.

A high-quality localization and a wealth of content, however, can't make up for a gameplay experience that quickly grows stale.

But especially on the PS3, the menus and various engine bugs really make it tough to justify the initial purchase (with one free month of gameplay), much less the eventual monthly fee.

The core gameplay of sneaking, assessing the situation, downing enemies, disabling cameras, pilfering plans and occasionally snapping necks is great fun. Setting up a string of sticky bombs for a connect-the-dots series of explosions is especially satisfying, but delights like these are weighed down by CounterSpy's random structure and, in particular, its "more more more" approach to difficulty.

It's a fully-featured, sloppy, frequently frustrating attempt to do well by everyone. Everyone would do well to study its anatomy, to learn what happens to a series stuck somewhere between a new life and an old body.

There are parts of me that are objectively bad, yes. But there are also things that are just obtuse or antiquated, and if people can look past that stuff or even embrace it, there's absolute merit to me.

Double Dragon Neon is a fantastic game, one that's carried on a simple premise: it's fun to punch stuff.

If you allow yourself to exist in the moment, Among the Sleep will take you back to a time when a teddy bear was your shield, and you'd think twice about going to sleep without checking under the bed.

The ability to do a celebratory dance (as reflected by the mimicked movements of your Xbox Live Avatar) upon even the most minor successes never, ever stops being entertaining -- if only there were more in Kinect Sports: Season Two to celebrate.

Paradoxically, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified feels immediate and inclusive as a strategy game, relying more closely on your rapid-fire commands than the bursts of your rifle. The odd hybrid is far from being fully evolved, but it's well suited to further study.

If you're in college or live near lots of friends who regularly visit your abode as a group to play games, Slam Bolt Scrappers is perfect for you. Unfortunately, I don't have either of those luxuries. If you're in the same boat, you may want to think twice before laying down your money.

Had the actual gameplay been less clunky, more well balanced, more challenging and less aggressively abusive, Black Knight Sword's sense of style and unique presentation would have been healthy bonuses on top of an already stable foundation. As is stands though, the game's artistic atmosphere and sense of self are all it has going for it, and sadly that's not quite enough.

There are deep, deep pockets of joy embedded in the mantle of Burnout Crash, but for reasons beyond understanding, you're going to have to do your chores before you're allowed to play them.

The camera constantly needs babysitting -- my index finger was a near-permanent fixture on the repositioning trigger--and platforming sections can be a frustrating nightmare; floating, disappearing and jump-boost blocks require the sort of precise controls only games with "Super Mario" in the title can claim.

If you don't skip any cut-scenes and follow the story closely, Yesterday is an experience unlike any of Pendulo's previous titles, and one you'll be unlikely to forget, no matter how hard you try.

As you can see, Remember Me inspires excuses and an attempt to polish up the parts that are capable of shining, even after making a case for mediocrity. The anxiety over homogenous AAA games is only growing, making us latch on to the odd ones that dial down the shooting and make way for smart heroines. If only that alone was enough to deliver excellence, and not just the kind of game that ought to be remembered for trying.

Instead of simply clicking around a screen and hotkeying special moves like in Dawn of War, it's fun to actually control a Space Marine in a more personal, focused way.

Maybe Divekick is the future of fighting games. Maybe the hardcore tournament set really does want a fighter so barebones that it's basically marrow. Everyone else would be better served going elsewhere for their virtual pugilism fix.

Wii Party U isn't terrible, it's just uninspired. If you're looking for something that can be replayed for months and months, like Wii Sports, you won't find it here.

Darkspore doesn't exactly redefine RPGs as we know it, but there's no other action RPG around that allows this much control over the look of your characters. There's a lot of room for improvement, but the living loot system and Hero Editor help Darkspore stand out among other hack-and-slash games.

Ultimately, Explodemon doesn't coalesce into a product that's as refined or as beautiful as the Treasure classics that inspired it. But thought it may be a bit rough around the edges, it's also precisely the kind of game I would've bought used from a Japanese import store -- so, in that sense, it's still something of a gem.

Though it fails to elevate itself into the exalted ranks of the Very Best Mario Games, Yoshi's New Island is by no means a sub-standard experience. It's solid. Reliable. You come in expecting devious platforming levels that will test your gaming mettle, and that's exactly what you get.

It's not tied to a film, but think of this as more of a Bond adventure when he's on vacation; a fun, action-packed ride, but not necessarily cool or clever enough to warrant a cinematic adventure.

It could have been an addictive mission-based multiplayer title perfect for a portable platform, but with its limited content and quickly tiresome combat, Mercenaries 3D is little more than a fully-priced proof of concept.