What it does deliver is a clearer, darker look at Wolf’s depressingly downbeat landscape, complete with trolls shooting smack and corrupt, greedy bureaucrats. It’s as mesmerizing as it is glum, using the series’ stark, black-and-neon backdrops as visual clues to Fabletown’s — and Bigby’s — split nature.

It's jolly good British fun, but more spontaneity would've made it blood brilliant. [Dec 2009, p.75]

We wish the developers had included some offline bots instead, though, or allowed players access to so much as the main menu when the servers are down, as they were on launch day. Thankfully, Hybrid's combat is so pleasantly addictive, it's tough to hold a grudge.

A lost gem. [Aug 2010, p.78]

Combining the cutesiness of a Pixar flick with the depth of a theme-park tycoon game, LucasArts' Thrillville series smoothly transitions onto the Xbox 360 with Off the Rails, a souped-up and entertaining follow-up to last year's Xbox release. [Dec 2007, p.76]

None of these issues ruin the tried-and-true fun of four-way deathmatch, but after so many years, we expected more refinement.

It's hard as hell, partially because it's meant to be, partially because the complex, non-adjustable control scheme is completely non-intuitive, and partially because the camera is simply too twitchy...[yet] we love the strangely gorgeous Gunvalkrie. [Apr 2002, p.72]

It's worth putting up with the game's frustrating failures for the chance to defeat 100 Agent Smiths. [Jan 2006, p.68]

The new Killer Instinct succeeds at stoking nostalgic fires while updating the action. However, a piecemeal season-based approach means that the initial incarnation is extremely light on content, revealing a fighter that’s as packed with vibrant combos as it is unfulfilled promise.

All told, Small Arms is straight-up, button-whacking action. [Jan. 2007, p.77]

With its non-branching storyline and no multiplayer, Force Unleashed is certainly less ambitious than the classic "Jedi Knight" games - and ultimately, its design makes it feel more videogame-y and less of an all-engrossing Star Wars experience than Xbox entries like "Jedi Knight II" or "Jedi Academy." But when the game is on, it's on. [Oct 2008, p.70]

A decent experience, but not one you're likely to spend much time with. [Jan 2005, p.72]

100% exact port of a stellar series. [Aug 2009, p.74]

That nostalgia isn't worth 15 bucks. [July 2009, p.84]

Whether you're seeking a simple, entertaining, and supremely effective method of getting in shape (no dumbbells or reps required), or just an extremely satisfactory substitute for your local Zumba class (even if you choose to play alone to avoid accidentally beating up your multiplayer buddy), you'll definitely want to pick up this game.

We're glad to fire up our 360s for some Left 4 Dead 2, and the addition of four of the first game's campaigns (with the sequel's items, special infected, and new scavenge maps) is a nice touch. But we would have enjoyed our dip into Cold Stream more had Valve freshened the water a bit.

The controls are almost always downright woeful - mostly being either way too sensitive or barely responsive at all.

After just four or five enormously fun games of Scene It?, we’d racked up 27 Achievements worth over 600 points — great! We just can’t comprehend why there’s no online film festival.

Packs each and every turn with extreme imagery and wickedly macabre imagination. [Apr 2010, p.82]

Winning Eleven may still be a more joyful celebration of the sport, but FIFA 07's beauty and fluidity mark it as the early champ of the next generation. [Holiday 2006, p.74]

The world won't be able to resist comparing Kinect Sports to Nintendo's Wii Sports gold standard, and the newcomer doesn't disappoint. Bowling and boxing are the two overlapping sports, and in the Kinect edition they're just as responsive and immediately accessible as you'd expect after four years of playing the Wii-mote version.

Repetitive, sure, but when the combat is in big 'n' bold mode, it's fun and unique enough that you don't really care that you've just killed "guy with shield" # 4728. 'Tis an epic ode to chaos and confusion. [Dec 2005, p.102]

It clearly aims to include everyone and exclude no one, and that's just plain refreshing amid a holiday season stuffed full of deadly serious, high-learning-curve me-toos. [Nov 2007, p.96]

But at $20 for what is basically last year's quality game on original Xbox or $60 for the irresistible package on the 360 title offers, there's a lot to love on either platform. [Jan. 2007, p.76]

Warp's upgrade system isn't explained or implemented well: you're never reminded to use your currency at the innocuous upgrade stations, and we still don't know how we earn skill points. Plus, physics become a greater enemy than the puzzles in the final stage, resulting in a lot of frustration near the end.

When $30 nets you this much online-multiplayer insanity, it's easy to forgive many of Anarchy Reigns' missteps. Heck, at that price, you can ignore the grueling solo campaign entirely and the game's still a decent value.

Gangstas is a grand time reminiscent of the main game. It's not a must-play, but it is a good way to keep the Saints Row fun going.

Though Crimson Alliance lacks Torchlight's endless character development and the infinite replayability of its bottomless dungeon, it delivers something that addictive gem didn't: co-op play.