But don't take our word for it, because Prince won Best Action-Adventure Game at this year's E3 expo. So it's got that going for it…which is nice.

Impresses with smooth, realistic game play and rib-cage-crushing intensity.

And with the engaging story, plus the graphic-novel presentation (boxes of action and text are constantly popping up on-screen), this truth is worth uncovering.

But don't take our word for it, because Prince won Best Action-Adventure Game at this year's E3 expo. So it's got that going for it…which is nice.

And once you learn to handle swapping positions at the tap of a button, you'll realize that beneath the cuddly, kiddie veneer lurks a fiercely competitive game that's all about spanking the baby powder off your opponents.

But don’t take our word for it, because Prince won Best Action-Adventure Game at this year’s E3 expo. So it’s got that going for it…which is nice.

The game takes hits for its often crappy camera angles. Still, it’ll satisfy your raging blood lust.

After a thorough training mode on the finer points on scrums, tries, and lineouts, one (or two players cooperatively) can take the controls and realistically injure opponents on soggy, mud-rutted pitches. Think "Madden NFL Football" minus the pads, steroids, and senile announcer, mate.

The game takes hits for its often crappy camera angles. Still, it'll satisfy your raging blood lust.

The shooting control takes some getting used to, but stick with it and you’ll advance through a solid plot laced with a meaty hip-hop soundtrack, celebrity voices, and...drumroll...a playable Snoop Dogg! You’ll never need MapQuest in L.A. again.

The shooting control takes some getting used to, but stick with it and you’ll advance through a solid plot laced with a meaty hip-hop soundtrack, celebrity voices, and…drumroll…a playable Snoop Dogg! You’ll never need MapQuest in L.A. again.

The shooting control takes some getting used to, but stick with it and you’ll advance through a solid plot laced with a meaty hip-hop soundtrack, celebrity voices, and…drumroll…a playable Snoop Dogg! You’ll never need MapQuest in L.A. again.

Take one part "Grand Theft Auto" and one part car combat game "Twisted Metal Black." Mix, ingest, and vomit. Stare wistfully into bowl. What could have been a great game—car carnage with heavy artillery against gangs in cities devastated by a mysterious plague—is only mediocre.

For immersing entertainment, this game is totally up our halfpipe.

For immersing entertainment, this game is totally up our halfpipe.

For immersing entertainment, this game is totally up our halfpipe.

The drab pacing isn’t helped by clunky controls and muddy graphics.

Executing gravity-defying jumps and mean combos in the well-rendered environments is a piece of cake, though a longer game would have iced it for us.

Take one part "Grand Theft Auto" and one part car combat game "Twisted Metal Black." Mix, ingest, and vomit. Stare wistfully into bowl. What could have been a great game—car carnage with heavy artillery against gangs in cities devastated by a mysterious plague—is only mediocre.

Take one part "Grand Theft Auto" and one part car combat game "Twisted Metal Black." Mix, ingest, and vomit. Stare wistfully into bowl. What could have been a great game—car carnage with heavy artillery against gangs in cities devastated by a mysterious plague—is only mediocre.

Like the movie, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is quite an ambitious undertaking. Unlike the movie, it doesn’t consistently deliver the goods.

Sadly, the sloppy controls and graphics make the game about as fun as a blow to the brainpan with a spiked bat.

Sadly, the sloppy controls and graphics make the game about as fun as a blow to the brainpan with a spiked bat.

It’s all so much like the Xbox version, in fact, that you might wonder why the hell you spent money on it a second time.

With Heroes, D&D has severed its dorky roots in favor of fast-paced, arcade-style hackin' 'n' slashin'.

Fanatics will tweak tire pressure, suspension, and build dynasties, alliances, and sponsorships; rookies can learn the nuances of drafting, passing, and holding position on dozens of real-world tracks.

After a thorough training mode on the finer points on scrums, tries, and lineouts, one (or two players cooperatively) can take the controls and realistically injure opponents on soggy, mud-rutted pitches. Think "Madden NFL Football" minus the pads, steroids, and senile announcer, mate.

Fanatics will tweak tire pressure, suspension, and build dynasties, alliances, and sponsorships; rookies can learn the nuances of drafting, passing, and holding position on dozens of real-world tracks.