It's rather like cotton candy - fun if insubstantial, without any redeeming nutritional value. But there are times when cotton candy hits the spot just fine. [Jan 2005, p.102]

You've seen all of this stuff in at least a dozen other games, but the whole package is well put together and surprisingly enjoyable.

It's just plain wacky. [Oct 2002, p.146]

No matter how much you might be enjoying yourself, you realize that Worms 3D lacks the polish it needs to truly evolve the series. For one thing, the camera just plain sucks. [Apr 2004, p.102]

Offers a deeper, more mature experience than the previous titles. [July 2004, p.94]

Suffers a bit in comparison to other recent releases in the genre, but is redeemed to a large extent by its excellent control and playability. [Oct 1998]

WTS has its shortcomings, but in the long run it ends up trumping its big PS2 brother. [June 2005, p.98]

A nice simulation of horse racing and alll the decisions and action associated with it. [Oct 2004, p.108]

One of the least user-friendly gaming experiences I've had in a long time.

There just isn't enough here to hold your attention. [Aug 2005, p.83]

When it comes to baserunning, controlling one runner works fine; any more it's a mess. [May 2006, p.82]

Steel-eyed competence, but not a whole lot of flash. [Nov 2005, p.110]

EA Sports has been gradually enhancing the presentation of F1 over the past few years, and this time, it's stunning. [Aug 2003, p.97]

In terms of addictive qualities, it's certainly no "Lumines." But it is a surprisingly solid game. [Oct 2005, p.108]

Despite .hack's inarguable flaws (it's repetitive, kinda ugly, and...er, <I>really</I> repetitive), the game remains one of the freshest concepts of this console generation. [Jan 2004, p.132]

While Killzone delivers on visuals, it mishandles movement. This is a game that looks better in screenshots than it does in motion; simply put, the PS2 can't handle what Killzone is throwing at it. [Dec 2004, p.110]

Aside from a few minor changes--some added minigames, an excised level--this is the same game as its PS2 counterpart. [mar 2006, p.97]

Beautiful and challenging. [Feb 2002, p.106]

The jumping puzzles combined with the overt racism combined with the semiwonky controls combined wtih the unctuousness of the protagonist add up to a game that is decidedly unfun. [May 2004, p.101]

Though flawed, Rainbow Six 3 is simply the finest simulation of Close-Quarters-Battle (CQB) on PS2. [May 2004, p.94]

Even if you're a "Cars" nut, there's very little to get excited about on the PSP besides teh movie clips included in this game. [Aug 2006, p.82]

Ultimately, it's the style and absurdity that make Killer7 bearable. You're almost willing to deal with terrible loading times, poor puzzles, and weak shooting mechanics just to see what kind of madness will happen next. [Aug 2005, p.88]

There's one big problem. There's no game here. [Dec 2001, p.170]

Full unadulterated boredom. [Oct 2002, p.147]

An above average PS One title. [Oct 2002 p.151]

Graphically, Shin Budokai is bright, colorful, and smooth in its cel-shaded wrappings. Fans will find the 18 characters and varied environments every bit DBZ-authentic. [Jun 2006, p.102]

There's not a hint of originality here. [Nov 2002, p.192]

Having long since outlived its usefulness, the Wild Arms series has gone, with this entry, from merely banal to actively irritating. With such a wealth of RPGs getting translated nowadays and more companies than ever eager to get into the act, it's about time this appendix was removed.

The key to a game like this is to make combat feel really good, which is something Shining Force Neo does a lot better than those middling Champions of Norrath games. When you swing your sword, it feels like it has impact, even if you're only hitting a barrel.

If only the tricks were fun to perform. [Jan 2002, p.130]

This game comes so close to reaching great new heights. Too bad it falls so flat due to a swarm of technical woes and design flaws. [May 2002, p.101]

This once-great series goes back to its roots in fine and tan style. [May 2006, p.89]

The tension isn't there when it comes to working on race tactics. [Aug 2003, p.99]

The surprising thing is that while it may sound like a bad afternoon in school, the game is actually astonishingly addictive. [Mar 2006, p.96]

The few new modes exclusive to the PSP can't offset the lack of unlockable content when compared to the console. [Aug 2006, p.83]

Save your money for a PS2 and a copy of Thunder for that system. It's worth it. [Jan 2002, p.146]

The combat is still simplistic, but choices like team-based super attacks, plenty of cool skills, and your Chosen One special powers mix it up. [Dec. 2006, p.119]

Terrible framerate during multiplayer. [Jan 2006, p.104]

The traditional core mechanics and all-out wackiness should propel it near the top of the heap. It's a very solid effort, particularly when compared to most anime fighters. [Nov 2005, p.96]

If you enjoy puzzle solving and are looking for a way to kill an afternoon, there are worse ways you could spend your time. [Feb 2004, p.102]

You'll be surprised how the 2D backgrounds still hold up despite being 10 years old. [Nov 2001, p.166]

All the time that could've gone into presentation and perfect control instead went to giving gamers an immense ammount of baseball. [Jully 2006, p.84]l

Your average uninspired kids game. [Jan 2005, p.106]

Phenom plays like a refined version of its predecessor, but this time there's a far cooler, more engrossing story line to follow. [May 2006, p.82]

A great choice for hardcore types who found the recent slate of platformers too easy - this is one of the toughest titles in its genre. [Jan 2003, p.124]

While much more user-friendly than previous iterations, RPG Maker 3 is still a hell of a lot of work. [Nov 2005, p.101]

Ultimately, Getting Up's most serious problem is that it's so damn serious. There's none of the anarchic joy found in "Jet Set Radio." [Apr 2006, p.83]

A competent shooter for gamers not quite ready for "Rainbow Six" - despite the questionable feature of essentially letting you command your team to do everything required, which almost means you're having the A.I. finish the game for you. [Nov 2003, p.142]

Overall, the mechanics are OK, though the camera is kind of unwieldy. But very frankly, that probably won't matter all that much to the target audience.

The game is smart to tease fans its way with its great price($19.99, which is $10 cheaper than last year), but it features very little in the way of updates. [Jan. 2007, p.78]

Throw in lukewarm A.I. and some clipping problems, and you've got a scary, pretty game that's just not a whole lot of fun to play. [Sept 2004, p.96]

GR06 may be tough, but its thoroughness should be appreciated. [July 2006, p.78]

Night does such a fine job of capturing the essence of Scooby that any die-hard fan would do well to check it out. [July 2002, p.101]

They're all solid and they're all fun, with just the perfect difficulty curve for the younger set, while featuring enough challenge and mass destruction to keep parents interests. [Jan. 2007, p.89]

As with any game that crams a ton of different types of games, the selection is pretty uneven--the racing games, for example, well and truly suck--but there are enough standouts to keep you coming back to the minigames once you've beaten the main game. [Jan. 2007, p.78]

It never seems to target the right enemy, and it often takes too long to circle around and get an enemy in your sights before you're able to use the lock-on.

It has a bunch of new mech parts and a few new knickknakcs, but this is essentially "Armored Core 3" with different levels. [July 2003, p.95]

Though Clock Tower 3 includes a little more action than the previous games, and remains a decent core adventure game as other horror titles, it fails where it really counts: the scare factor. [May 2003, p.90]

It seems Vicarious Visions did all it could to emulate the Naughty Dog classic ["CTR"] and just added a PS2 coat of paint. [Jan 2004, p.114]

Sure, the production values are a bit better in FRWL (I particularly like shooting grenades off of the enemies' belts) and there are some decent gameplay tweaks (such as the "Bond focus" aiming for precise shots and the lack of stupid stealth levels), but the overall game is just plain easier and more sedentary feeling when compared to the previous game.

Its boring tracks make you feel more like you're racing around a generic airport terminal with fancy backdrops than actually IN the exotic locales. [June 2002, p.97]

The only thing eJay has on its competitors is the Scratch mode, a fairly solid (and, as far as I can tell, reasonably realistic) dual-turntable simulator. [Oct 2003, p.116]

It's great if your singing takes place mostly with a group of friends, but game-players and karaoke diehards are better off with KRAI. [Jan. 2007, p.83]

Should prove surprisingly playable for fans of the show... Unfortunately, InuYasha's actual fighting engine is rather mediocre, not to mention unbalanced, so hardcore fighting buffs will probably want to steer clear. [May 2003, p.97]

The action might draw fighting-game fans, but Dynasty Warriors has no real back-and-forth. [May 2005, p.89]

Anyone looking for a sweeping epic with interesting characters or unique gameplay mechanics will be sorely disappointed by what it has to offer. [Nov 2004, p.120]

Despite some gorgeous visuals and intriguing gameplay elements, Kya simply isn't any fun. And just like the wind, that really blows. [Jan 2004, p.123]

We're still waiting for the definitive poker game, but World Poker Tour is certainly moving in the right direction. [July 2006, p.84]

Makes an obvious effort to up the realism a bit - and the results, while not disastrous, are certainly underwhelming. [Nov 2002, p.190]

Despite the decent controls, you still end up seeing the same four-hit combos repeatedly, and when digital Jet holds a stick or a bat in his hand, it becomes mysteriously harder to hit people with it. [Mar 2004, p.101]

As for the rest of the game, the structure is still the same as before, but for Sims fans, the pet aspect will add plenty of new entertainment to make this worth picking up. [Nov. 2006, p.114]

A perfectly average survival-horror action game crafted by the genre's originators. [May 2005, p.94]

To put it succinctly, World Tour Soccer 2005 doesn't match the quality of a certain other soccer game named "Winning Eleven." Yet on its own, it's actually a solid game with no serious problems - but it's also nothing spectacular. [May 2004, p.102]

The melee combat is competent, but when many enemies are onscreen, things turn into a bit of a button-mashing clusterf***.

Cripplingly bad load times and no infrastructure play. [May 2006, p.96]

Rise of the Kasai proves that a game can still be compelling without being impossible to play. The real fun is in seeing the story unfold—and once in a while, that's OK.

After a few hours, the boredom sets in, and the number of reasons you have for wanting to beat the damn thing is less than one. It's just not fun enough. [Dec 2003, p.178]

Gameplay works when it's not broken, but awful story scenes and graphics make for boring stretches. [Dec 2005, p.118]

The lack of a quick-continue option is annoying, as is the aiming system, which uses a confusing combination of the R1 trigger and the right analog stick. [Nov 2005, p.108]

Surprisingly good. [March 2005, p.100]

There's enough here for die-hard UFC fans to sink their teeth into, and it's worth their time to check it out. Everyone else, though, should stay away. [July 2002, p.102]

It's fun for a few hours or as a nice diversion for two-player matches. Hardcore Harry fans will want it for their collections; the rest of us will marvel at the fact that it really is just like the books...and then go play something else.

The sequel rocks. Hard. In fact, I can't think of a more stupendous leap in quality between a game and its sequel. [Mar 2003, p.103]

An all-right RTS, but why settle for it when you can get a much better one on a PC? [Jan 2004, p.120]

Really rolls back the clock, but it also makes an excellent time waster, and its up-to-date visuals help take the edge off. A solid adventure. [Jan 2006, p.105]

NASCAR 07 is a good last hurrah on the PS2. [Oct. 2006, p.87]

At last 3DO has delivered a game that really capitalizes on the Army Men idea, the childhood dream of commanding living regiments of those little, green, plastic, violent buggers. [May 2002, p.100]

The fools who don't live and die for horse racing (we'll call them funambulists) will find this game generally confusing, and will probably never figure out the diluted betting system. [June 2003, p.105]

You can see the potential here the instant you set foot in town, but the real fun is found only online. The rest of the elements are merely so-so. [Nov 2004, p.134]

A decent way for kids to kill some time, though be warned that they may be asking you for help. [Jan 2006, p.101]

It's mediocre. And since the more recent RPG choices on the Playstation 2 include quality stuff like "Dragon Quest VIII", "Shadow Hearts", and"Grandia III", it's tough to justify spending any time with a mediocre game when you could be playing something great. [Jun 2006, p.94]

A cut above its peers. [Jan 2006, p.100]

If you liked "Shinobi" but hated the controller-throwing difficulty of it, then you'll flip over Sega's latest ninja adventure. [Apr 2004, p.100]

Getting 29 games for $20 shouldn't be a terrible deal, but aside from two or three gems, the selection totally blows - especially when compared to the Japanese releases. [Jan 2006, p.91]

And while the whole trial-and-error mechanic is enough to make you throw your controller down and never return, there's a rewarding feeling when you do finally win.

Its presentation and story make it respectable, nonetheless. [Dec 2001, p.162]

Besides the rosters, this is the exact same game as last year. [July 2003, p.97]

My suggestion: Get the most from this game by playing with your own superfriends. [Dec. 2006, p.123]