Sadly, we can't even write this mess off as a movie tie-in rush job. It's just unforgivable. [June 2005, p.78]

Perhaps it's most critical element is deceptive: Samurai Shodown: Sen is so unfamiliar that even the franchise's most dedicated fans won't recognize it. [Jun 2010, p.83]

No quantity of vamires, werewolves, and undead zombies can salvage its dreadfully tedious gameplay. [July 2008, p.70]

Sonic is still the fastest mascot on the block, and his audience desperately wants to root for him. But his latest namesake game is big on rushed disappointment and much too light on fleetfooted pleasure. [Jan. 2007, p.79]

Traditional baseball-sim junkies will recoil at the ease and simplicity, but kids and casual fans might enjoy stepping up to this plate.

You can stay busy in the pretty lengthy career mode, where you're competing in tournaments, unlocking various disciplines, and following a well-meaning but rough storyline. And there's local split-screen and online multiplayer supporting up to four players, but good luck convincing anyone else to join you in this seasonal depression.

Unless you're a Yu-Gi-Oh! master, stay far, far away. [March 2011, p.81]

Lame animation and boring level design. [July 2010, p.81]

A virtual mess of epic proportions. [Dec 2005, p.115]

RPM Tuning isn't even worth a dumb racing joke about flat tires and blown engines. Please, Kemco: Stop. [May 2005, p.86]

As the game reaches its midpoint, repetitive missions and aggravating boss encounters begin to sap the seat-of-your-pants fun.

You’ll certainly enjoy the explosive chaos of these Unreal Tournament–style battles; but with only four game modes and limited match options, even blowing your opponents to smithereens can get boring.

Sixteen-player online matches might offer some relief from the solo tedium…if you can locate someone to play with on Xbox Live. We tried several times with the retail game, to absolutely no avail.

But the only words this adaptation brings to mind are "suck my b*lls." [Dec 2011, p.68]

Enemy A.I. is ludicrously accurate and all-seeing. [Sept 2010, p.85]

Unless ghostbusting is in your very marrow, Sanctum isn't worth the headaches. [June 2011, p.88]

Some games baffle us by merely existing, and yes, Interpol, you are one of those games.

A clunky interface is your gateway to placeholder text, graphical glitches, and other telltale signs of simply not giving a crap.[March 2005, p.84]

We expect a few things from a modern arcade-style brawler: reasonably placed checkpoints, more than one playable character, varied enemies, and multiplayer. Golden Axe: Beast Rider, Sega’s reinvention of the arcade classic, delivers none of them. Perhaps the worst oversight of the bunch is the lack of multiplayer options.

Even if the controls weren't the work of a lunatic, chaining maneuvers is unnecessarily frustrating. Fail to leave a pregnant pause between tricks, and X-Fighters ignores your input altogether.

The separate online co-op stages can be fun--both Maze and Survival help level up your characters--but the strange blandness of the overall proceedings keeps N3 II from appealing to anyone not mesmerized by constant slaughter. [Oct 2010, p.83]

Multiplayer is where the real action is...Here, stripped of its stealthy pretensions, 007 Legends is finally free to focus on the mindless but consistently enjoyable twitch action it does best.

Feels totally manufactured and formulaic. [Sept 2007, p.76]

Even with the Quest Mode’s extra goals, the game felt too simple for its own good. Extra value should’ve come from the online modes, but horrific lag rendered them unplayable, and there’s no offline multiplayer.

Stylish visuals and a skintight catsuit can't save Catwoman from baffling controls (jump is the right shoulder button?), repetitive combat sequences, and predictable AI. [Oct 2004, p.74]

If I were William Ford, I'd be looking for a new ad agency. [Nov. 2006, p.81]

Gun-crazed gamers just looking for another run-and-shoot romp will find the plodding pace and home-spun presentation distasteful, but Darkest of Days offers everyone else enough fresh and rewarding gameplay to offset its worst problems.

With Kinect Sports hosting way better bowling, you should avoid this at all costs. [Feb 2011, p.75]