Finding an opponent online is easy, although newbies will find little mercy and even less help. Otherwise, this Kollection is an appealing, if never mind-blowing, package.

Strike Force is an unusual departure for the series--one that will undoubtedly disappoint fans who loved directing their tiny heroes around lushly detailed isometric maps. [May 2006, p.83]

For a first-time effort, NASCAR 2011 has lots to like. But it needs some serious behind-the-wall garage time to get its setup right. [June 2011, p.79]

SNK superfans will covet its three-on-three smackfests, but unless Neowave completes your KOF collection, save your $20. [Jun 2006, p.85]

Diluted by hours of confusing side quests and repetitive battles, these original moments don't shine as brightly as they should. [Mar 2010, p.78]

Crisp visuals, smooth control, and hours of gameplay. [Jan 2003, p.76]

A pleasant, solidly entertaining, and kid-friendly option. [Dec 2009, p.77]

The one aspect of BlackSite that stands out from the crowd is its not-so-subtle political commentary — for example, every mission is titled with a Bush-ism, like “Stay the Course,” “Mission Accomplished,” and “Regime Change,” and the game leaves nothing to the imagination regarding its designers’ political viewpoints. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is up to you, but we just wish they’d woven it in a little better — no one likes being preached at when they’re trying to kill alien scum.

Shallow and dull, but it's also inoffensive and marginally enjoyable. [Oct 2009, p.73]

Though the game mostly works as advertised, occasional missed moves and finicky menus disappoint. So do the bare-bones campaign and limited array of fighting venues. But with bonus challenge stages, split-screen and online multiplayer, and local co-op beatdowns, this lively Kinect romp packs unexpected (but appreciated) staying power.

As any gamer will tell you, it's not necessarily about the innovative pathways a title forges, but in how it handles - and Tork handles the curves smoothly. [March 2005, p.79]

The game is hamstrung by long, dull stretches. [Aug 2010, p.79]

Older kids will undoubtedly roll their eyes at this harmless sequel, but its simple platforming hub and dozens of unpredictable mini-game spokes cater nicely to youngsters with short attention spans. [Jan 2009, p.75]

Somewhat unresponsive, sluggish controls. [Nov 2009, p.78]

Only PC-less coaster fanatics should even think about purchasing. This is still fun, but anti-enhanced. [July 2003, p.84]

From its unspectacular graphics to its utterly predictable, objective-based spin on Horde mode’s wave-based skirmishes, Fuse never fully comes together.

Multiplayer is a blast, even if it's a hassle to re-invite everybody after each game. For 800 Microsoft Points, the goofy racing variety of Mad Tracks gives you excellent milage. [June 2007, p.72]

Jimmy's Vendetta packs plenty of content--six-plus hours, easily--but you'll feel like you're getting your $10 worth for only the first hours or so. [Nov 2010, p.81]

I'm sure the folks behind this game would've been both pleased and amused to get a "6.9" score in this review. Sadly, this flaccid lump of code is barely worth a third of that. [Dec 2004, p.78]

It's not perfect, but it hits most of its well-intentioned targets. [Feb 2011, p.74]

This casual block-dropper has a satisfying complex exterior and enough well-paced rewards that it kept us coming back to stack. [Holiday 2009, p.76]

The goofy ending shenanigans are worth the trouble, of course, but it’s always a shame to see a runner stumble just before the finish line. Luckily, the rest of Deadpool is so light on its feet and so steadfastly amusing that you’re bound to remember all of the pleasure and none of the pain.

Light, fluffy popcorn fare, with just a dab of buttery thrills.

Creaky and sometimes clever - yes. Fantastic - not so much. [Sept 2005, p.86]

Despite a few neat ideas, it's as though Blacklight doesn't want to be played. After a couple of hours, you'll be happy to oblige. [Oct 2010, p.85]

With four distinctive maps and a fun new mode, Naval Strike is a stellar pick-up for Battlefield 4 fans. [July 2014, p.77]

Obviously, Up wasn't meant for adults, but the kid in all of us can find something to enjoy in it. [Aug 2009, p.74]

War in the North is hardly the most memorable adventure through Middle-earth, but you won't regret any of the time you spend fighting across its grim battlegrounds.

Aside from the odd cut-scene, the game basically has no story, and the four campaigns essentially differ only in their starting-territory distributions. [May 2006, p.84]

But for those of us who love a bit of fruity melodrama to go with our genocidal tendencies, N3's simple, responsive controls--along with the singular, satisfying thrill of netting 2,000 kills in one stage--is exhilarating. [Oct. 2006, p.80]

Like the motion picture, this is no "LOTR." But if you're in the mood for some mindless medieval hacking and slashing (or just the chance to fill the shoes of the gorgeous Keira Knightley), give this game a shot. [Dec 2004, p.82]

Blood Bowl's disjointed real-time mode is hard to control and keep track of, making it a complete waste of time. [Apr 2010, p.81]

While it doesn't have the style of "Halo" or the myriad of gameplay choices like "Splinter Cell," Shadow Ops is a decent throwback to simpler shooter times when running and gunning was all that is to be expected. [Aug 2004, p.77]

For a mere five bucks, you'd be a fool not to download one of the greatest arcade games of all time. [Oct. 2006, p.72]

Zippy flight shooter. [Dec 2001]

Minor graphical upgrades, a new hidden character, and new ending sequences. Nothing spectacular, but it adds up to make this the best version currently available. [July 2003, p.81]

The game's biggest addition - including Tails as an aid in single-player mode - gives the perfect level of balance to correct mistakes made at mach speed.

Hardcore completists may appreciate squeezing the last bits out of Empire Bay, but all others should let this aggravating add-on sleep with the fishies. [Feb 2011, p.76]

Despite having tons of unlockable content, the game will hold little thrills for annyone above age 12, and even kids will finish the thing before the weekend is up. [Aug 2006, p.78]

The biggest bummer for retro enthusiasts is this package's complete lack of special features.

Retribution's grim, obscenity-packed narrative fails to hit any high notes. [July 2010, p.83]

Fails to inspire but quasi-amuses. [Jan 2002]

A case of Jekyll and Hyde. Single player isn't bad, but the multiplayer is head and shoulders cooler than than the PC version, thanks largely to the clever use of the Xbox Communicator. [June 2003, p.76]

The second major problem is that the game is unbalanced. [Jan 2004, p.63]

Two-player action(over Live, even)is a nice modern addition, but odds are, you'll feel tapped out after just a few minutes. [Mar 2007, p.81]

Aqua's combat and controls are quite good, and yet it feels a bit sleepy, even if the campaign does grow more interesting as you progress. [Aug 2010, p.81]

A seriously clunky interface, on-demand advice from Negreanu that alternates between canny and staggeringly bad, and unimpressive graphics provide no saving graces. [Aug 2006, p.77]

It's a wise parent that rents, as those tiny gamers will make short work of this fun but brief experience. [Aug 2007, p.81]

But unless you're an absolute aficionado of international soccer, you'll be lost. [Holiday 2009, p.85]

Multiplayer offers little besides in-person crowing or comfort, and the difficulty ratings for songs are somewhat uneven, but for $10 plus roughly another $20 for a dance mat from eBay, Dance! does a cheap, solid job of training you to hop between four arrows effectively. [Nov 2010, p.67]

Technically proficient with an interesting gameplay system, but with no polish or soul to back it up. [Mar 2002, p.76]

It's a damn good hack'-n'-slash game based on and sharing a name with the game that spawned the genre. Elf may be about to die, but let's hope this series doesn't. [Feb 2006, p.78]

The problem here is that little about Lotus Challenge really stands out. [May 2003, p.79]

Some of the bigger bosses are fun to take down, and the grim backgrounds are often quite pretty, but robotically pounding or charging the X button for hours on end will wear down the will-power of even the most stalwart gamers. [May 2011, p.71]

"Quotation Forthcoming"

Entertaining, but hardly groundbreaking. [Holiday 2004, p.64]

Six original Transformers episodes and other unlockables are a sweet treat; if only the rest of the game felt like such treasure. [Oct 2009, p.75]

It's a fun, exciting template; hopefully it'll return in a bigger, smoother sequel. [Feb 2012, p.747]

Maddening difficulty spikes. [Nov 2009, p.84]

Granted, the controls are easier to manage than those in this game's Wii counterpart, but the playbook is as thick as they come. [Holiday 2009, p.85]

As much as Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends looks the p;art--with 50-plus vehicles sporting fantastic detail inside and out--its humdrum and overly difficult career disappoints, while spotty handling and physics keep this simulation strictly for diehards. [Aug 2012, p.80]

It's a competent, interesting game that will usually entertain but never thrill. [Oct 2005, p.100]

It might not hold your attention for too long, but it's not meant to.

Nitpicks are plenty, but so are the surprisingly fun aspects — whichever side of planetary strip-mining you fall on.

It's intense, destructive fun while it lasts, especially with two players. [Aug 2010, p.79]

It takes a minute or so to get used to controlling your hovering, weapon-packed F1 Speedster, but once you do, it's a snap and the entertainment kicks in. [Nov 2007, p.97]

Despite quirky animations and some long-drawn-out relationship-building, I found myself quite enthralled with the magazine-publishing gameplay. [March 2005, p.82]

So-so gameplay can be confusing. [Sept 2010, p.81]

It looks like Capcom basically cut and pasted the sprites from the five earlier games, so there's no visual consistency between the characters. [July 2005, p.88]

If you want an action-packed ride that finally allows you to cut loose as Darth Vader, then you've come to the right galaxy. [July 2005, p.84]

When it works, Fable: The Journey is one of the best Kinect games to date. But far too often, it doesn't work correctly. We recommend moving your couch aside so you can play sitting in a high-back chair, but that's hardly an ideal solution. As fun as it is at times, The Journey feels like a trip that's gone on too long, eventually growing irritating and annoying.

Old-time arcaders will dig the ramped-up challenge: Super's tough even with a partner, and we had to lower the difficulty and hoard the spread gun - our sidearm soulmate - to beat all five levels solo. [Sept 2007, p.76]

If you can handle the delivery, though, you're rewarded with some of the best flight mechanics on the 360 - especially if you take the time to master the Simulation controls. While completely unrealistic, the combat is fluid, fast, and fun.

Though Mars: War Logs marks an achievement for its ambition, rough patches in presentation and gameplay make it a tough recommendation to anyone not willing to weather them. [Nov 2013, p.73]

A few invisible walls and a bad camera make the platforming even less fun, but shooting fireballs, ice pikes, greenish goo, and lightning one after another does plenty to break up the monotony. [Holiday 2009, p.82]

Omega has little narrative impact on the main game. Omega has snatches of rich backstory, but it's a limited, pricey thrill aimed only at the series' most devoted fans.

While Kinect Sports Rivals amuses and impresses in spots, the overall package fails to show significant improvement in the realm of motion gaming, making for an ultimately discouraging early showcase for Kinect 2.0.

But mostly you'll just grind through wave after mildly entertaining wave, and wonder why hardly anyone drops any desirable equipment. [Sept 2011, p.85]

The cars don't handle realistically, the audio and visuals are weak, and races all feel same-ish, regardless of the track. [Jan 2003, p.74]

Enough neat touches that speak to diehard Euro-RPG fans. [Apr 2010, p.84]

Instead, the game is a simple shooter with a small variety of extinct species--raptors, pterodactyls that animate like paper kites, and boring T-Rex bosses. [Jan 2010, p.75]

"Quotation Forthcoming"

If only the price of unlocking new skills - a minimum stat combined with a hefty fee - wasn't unreasonably steep.

Track-building may be entertaining, but overall, JAM's an iffy proposition made worse by its agonizing Arcade mode.

But ultimately, there's very little about Mind Over Mutant that makes it worth your $50 or the four hours it takes to complete. [Holiday 2008, p.67]

A lot of us are baffled that snowboarding has been so deathly quiet on 360, and if you’re dying for the next SSX or Amped, Shaun White Snowboarding won’t be the game you’re hoping for. If you’re a serious boarding fan, the mini- MMO multiplayer is totally worth a look, but otherwise, you have better games to play.

Is New York really this drab and uninteresting of a place? [Jan 2006, p.82]

Super Soldier never hits with as much force as Arkham Asylum, but for superhero fans, it's a worthy adventure.

We see Defiance’s potential in the little interactions and grand moments alike, and while our first impression has been rougher than hoped, we’ll be back in six months or a year to see how the concept has been expanded and refined. It’s just unlikely that we’ll spend much of the meantime watching Defiance struggle through its growing pains.

There’s more to Ryse than its glossy exterior suggests, and Marius’ tightly told tale makes for an entertaining journey filled with its share of surprisingly considered carnage, but as the credits rolled, we dreamed about what a sequel might be like. Take it off its rails, inject more variety and depth in its systems…now that’s a game we absolutely want to play.

Fighting tanks, getting ambushed, and creeping through jungles provide enough variety to keep armchair generals satisfied. [Nov 2004, p.85]

It shines as a fun but pricey distraction. [May 2008, p.76]

But Create is clearly aimed at a younger audience, so it may be right up the alley of anyone with equal parts patience and creativity. [Jan 2011, p.73]

Once non-fans master the rules of laying down the cards and rolling the Bakugan. they'll be dismayed to learn that the actual gameplay boils down to repetitive mini-games and a shallow marble-steering gimmick. [Holiday 2009, p.79]

Without the nine keypad buttons, many of these games become unplayable. [Mar 2004, p.81]

Sonic Unleashed is a game that feels schizophrenic in its execution. Unfortunately, you deal with the fun, easy-going personality for less than half the time.

The engaging story kept us interested through the end, but, as in the park itself, there are technical difficulties.

Much like Keanu's performance in the film, it just goes through the motions. [May 2005, p.82]