As cool as the sword fights and boss battles may be, Bujingai may frustrate you for hours at a time with poorly designed levels that depend too much on jumping puzzles. [July 2004, p.88]

If Crimson Tears did a better job of eliminating or even just disguising its leveling grind, it could have started a BrawlPG trend. For now, it's merely good but repetitive - it could have leveled up more before its release. [Aug 2004, p.98]

It's as if someone took the "Prince of Persia" formula, added a dash of digital Halle Berry, and then gave this recipe to an imbecile for actual execution. Everything that "Prince" did oh so right has been oh so bungled here. [Sept 2004, p.89]

It's worth pointing out that most of these new options simply add a layer of polish to preexisting aspects of the game. [Sept 2004, p.93]

Once again, it's easily the greatest college football game ever made. Once again, it's my new favorite videogame of all time. But despite some really cool additions, NOT once again do I feel entirely wowed by it. Mostly wowed, yes...but not entirely, as I always have been in the past. [Aug 2004, p.88]

When I was a kid, I used to play my sister in "Summer Games" on our Apple IIe. In Athens 2004, I discovered that Olympics-type gameplay hasn't evolved one iota in the past 20 years. [Aug 2004, p.93]

The additions of a medley mode - two to five song clips in quick succession - and a one-song quick-play option are solid improvements as well....It's another must have for singers. [Aug 2004, p.99]

If you liked the first Way of the Samurai, then this provides more of the same type of play. But don't expect anything new or exciting. [July 2004, p.88]

After [a dozen or so matches], Galactic Wrestling's lack of depth creeps in, followed by boredom. [July 2004, p.96]

One of the largest kid games to hit the market - in essence, it's an E-rated "GTA." [Jan 2005, p.107]

Even though the battles may occur in the same settings as the ones in the movie, they lack not only the coolness, but also the soul. [Sept 2004, p.86]

It still has all of the stuff that makes it a nice diversion from the typical baseball title. But that stuff hasn't changed enough to warrant a purchase.

Showdown is just as bad as its two predecessors in almost every way. [Aug 2004, p.93]

Veterans will have to take a little time to adjust, while newcomers will be able to jump right in without even noticing such problems.

Remixing is fine for what it's worth, and you can get pretty intricate with the tools provided for you, but if you try to create your own compositions from scratch, you'll bump up against a pretty low ceiling. [July 2004, p.99]

The 20 percent that takes place on foot takes four times longer than it should because of countless design flaws. In brief: The driving parts are awesome, the running around sucks.

The absolute best possible Pandora experience is when four people who know each other hook up and take turns playing as spies and mercs. It is a spectacularly rewarding experience and unnervingly addictive. [July 2004, p.84]

Outside of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" series, nothing surpasses the complexity of FM4. [July 2004, p.92]

A perfectly fun, surreal distraction - but only when playing with live frolfers. If you go at it alone, even the Frolf Referee's entertaining mannerisms won't make up for the frustration caused by the cheating A.I. [July 2004, p.96]

Worthless combos, horrible-looking characters, poor level design, inexcusably low production value (no speech...at all), and absolutely pathetic special attacks that take five seconds to complete. [Sept 2004, p.97]

Pros: Solid physics for the central game, lots and lots of bonus content, dirt cheap. [Aug 2004, p.93]

It doesn't offer anything new to the genre, it's not cheap enough to be considered a bargain-basement alternative to anything, and it has about as much personality as cabbage. [Sept 2004, p.92]

No superhero game I've ever played made me feel more like, well, a superhero. [July 2004, p.89]

Over time, you become so familiar with your player's animation that good swings become second nature, and Smash 2's greatness becomes apparent. [July 2004, p.97]

A mediocre game, not a bad one. However, when you consider how far short it fell of its original promise, it comes across as less than average. [Sept 2004, p.97]

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

While encounters with the underling Decepticlones are somewhat dull, Decepticon boss fights are actually quite intense and difficult - at least until a weakness is revealed. [June 2004, p.92]

The real downfall, though, is the waiting. During the enemy turn, you're forced to wait through the individual moves of every single unit. [June 2004, p.84]