PES may not be evolving at the same rate as its competition, but that makes it comfortable and familiar. [Holiday 2009, p.84]

Ultimately, if you find yourself firing up the previous Battlefront for online skirmishes, Elite Squadron should satiate your need for something slightly new. [Holiday 2009, p.82]

The thinking-man's RPG is remarkable for many reasons, but its overbearing scale and variety are the parts that stand out from the get-go. [Jan 2010, p.76]

We could debate endlessly whether there was any need for Activision to come up with the Band Hero moniker, but the end result is another solid Guitar Hero game. [Jan 2010, p.80]

On PSP, it's a half-baked port of the already stripped-down PS2 version. [Jan 2010, p.86]

In spite of these concerns, we don't want to come off as overly harsh: Tekken 6 is still a solid fighter and an improvement on its predecessor. [Holiday 2009, p.76]

If you can swing the $120 for the whole package, go for it--it may not be exactly like real DJing, but if you're into the scene, it's a helluva good time. [Holiday 2009, p.78]

The game's charming story and characters are accompanied by fun, compelling gameplay mechanics in both time-tested and totally new styles. [Holiday 2009, p.64]

The solid-but-typical action is grid-based, turn-taking RPG strategy, both customizable and redundant. [Jan 2010, p.87]

Fairytale Fights defeats itself with tons of little niggling issues. [Holiday 2009, p.81]

For mech-loving masochists only. [Jan 2010, p.86]

Borderlands may be a little rough around the edges, and the story is less than engaging, but the overall experience is satisfying and compelling. [Holiday 2009, p.66]

There are better games out there, even for the youngest sprogs. [Jan 2010, p.87]

It's clear that the user-creation tools, mixed with the improved base game, will make this the SVR that lasts you into next year. [Dec 2009, p.70]

Overall, SVR on PSP remains a fun time, and it's unfair to expect a handheld offering to measure up to its console counterpart. So, in the context of a portable game, it's a good ol' slobber-knocker. [Holiday 2009, p.72]

Fundamentally, soccer fans can rejoice, but more impressively, even casual sports fans will appreciate a perfectly conceived, wonderfully executed sports sim. [Dec 2009, p.79]

Questionable controls aside, Chinatown Wars is a beautiful blend of the modern 3D games with the pick-up-and-play appeal of the '90s original. [Holiday 2009, p.70]

It's fine for munchkins, but if you look older than Astro, this probably isn't going to satisfy you. [Holiday 2009, p.79]

You don't have to be a Metalhead to love Brutal Legend, but if you are, you'll love it even more. [Holiday 2009, p.68]

A veritable master class of all-round game development. From a sensational single-player experience that never takes any short-cuts and maintains its story's mythological credibility right to the end to the co-operative online play to the robust, balanced, and just plain fun multiplayer modes, this is a package of content that more than earns its $60 price tag... [It's] this season's biggest PS3 victory. [Nov 2009, p.42]

Where the Wild Things Are is basically Prince of Persia in footie pajamas. [Jan 2010, p.85]

Though many of Half-Minute Hero's whopping 120-plus quests fly by in the blink of an eye, you'll get a ton of mileage and many hours of enjoyment out of this gem. [Dec 2009, p.84]

The graphics, exploration, and swordfights all feel dated, but those with patience and a love of story will find this immensely rewarding. [Jan 2010, p.85]

It's beautiful and soothing. [Nov 2009, p.76]

Republic Heroes has none of the fun or maturity of its source, the cartoon Star Wars: The Clone Wars. [Holiday 2009, p.75]

The PSP version of this third-person actioner, in which you play as lightsaber-wielding Jedi and blaster-packing clone troopers, is worse than the already broken next-gen title. [Holiday 2009, p.83]

A game best left to the most masochistic, hardcore game. [Dec 2009, p.80]

Based upon the gory horror movie franchise, SAW is a remarkable good puzzle game with a license that it actually doesn't need. [Holiday 2009, p.74]

Live 10 has taken a few solid steps forward, and is certainly a pick-up-and-play option for NBA fans. [Dec 2009, p.75]

Creating new players with your buddies and forming online crews to play five-on-five matches against other crews is cool. [Dec 2009, p.74]

It's not crammed with features, but playing through a franchise--with drills and practice--will keep hoop fans entertained and occupied on the road. [Holiday 2009, p.83]

Apart from the tunes, Pop Hits manages to one-up SingStar with a sing-along mechanic that's visually easier to follow and acoustically more accurate - aiding on-the-fly vocal adjustments. [Dec 2009, p.82]

Operation Flashpoint isn't as instantly gratifying as Call of Duty or Battlefield: Bad Company, but give it time and you'll appreciate its unique flavor of war. [Holiday 2009, p.74]

The driving sim of choice for the true racing aficionado on the go. [Dec 2009, p.72]

The Aftermath is good, stupid fun to pick up and play, but it might rot your brain in the process. [Dec 2009, p.82]

We found ourselves fighting Beaterator's interface more than we'd have liked, but hey, at least we were able to make some decent-sounding tunes to play on our PSPs and iPods. [Holiday 2009, p.79]

Arguably the purest, most hardcore hack-and-slash fighting game on PS3. [Nov 2009, p.68]

It's mindless fun, but fun nonetheless. [Holiday 2009, p.83]

Even the repetitive pacing and level structure can be forgiven, because it's simply fun to annihilate stuff. [Holiday 2009, p.85]

Somehow it's just as captivating today as it ever has been. [Dec 2009, p.76]

While it shows its age at times, Persona more than deserves the respectable treatment it's finally been given. [Nov 2009, p.74]

If you play the silver ball, you don't just want this game, you need it. [Holiday 2009, p.81]

It doesn't always work. [Dec 2009, p.77]

The most substantial upgrade the NFS series has ever received, along with some of the best visuals in the genre's field. [Nov 2009, p.83]

The PSP effort really could've used a little more of the full-sized version's actual evolution. [Dec 2009, p.81]

The "Be a Pro" career mode is incredibly enticing. [Nov 2009, p.80]

It's just not satisfying enough to be worthy of a combat commendation for serious flight combat fans. [Nov 2009, p.74]

2K's NHL game is still maturing - it needs another year of fine-tuning to release its full flavor - but still, you won't be disappointed if you partake of it now. [Nov 2009, p.81]

It just lacks a certain freshness. [Dec 2009, p.78]

More than anything, the PSP version of IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey is a surprise. [Holiday 2009, p.85]

So the game may not be perfect but the Beatles' music pretty much is. [Nov 2009, p.72]

It's clear that Mini Ninjas is meant for a younger audience, one most likely to adore what it has to offer. [Nov 2009, p.84]

Straightforward, aerial combat. [Holiday 2009, p.85]

Thankfully, other than shortening events into quicker bursts, the only negative effects of Westernization are purely cosmetic...dude. [Nov 2009, p.82]

How the hell is this considered good enough on a system that just got Gran Turismo? [Dec 2009, p.81]

Even longtime fans will enjoy a second romp through this simple, yet slick, PSP re-release. [Dec 2009, p.84]

There's enough here to keep fighting fans happy. [Nov 2009, p.78]

Die-hard fans hoping for something new will inevitably be disappointed, but even they can't fail to be impressed at just how complete and convincing a handheld title this is. [Nov 2009, p.78]

Guitar Hero 5 still emphasizes challenge over fun, but if that's the beat you march to, this may well be your new favorite game. [Nov 2009, p.73]

Yes, this is the Batman you've been waiting for...It's a wonderful experience, beginning to end, never taking the easy or familiar route, and infusing each shift of the story with original ideas that cut no corners. [Oct 2009, p.70]

A bit too complex to please conventional fighting fans, but the game more than pays off for anyone who enjoys character progression - including anyone who's obsessed with "Final Fantasy." [Oct 2009, p.76]

Its biggest downfall is its complete ordinariness. [Nov 2009, p.76]

It's no Call of Duty, true, but then CoD doesn't let you tear apart giant monsters with machine gun turrets or battle Nazis in a zeppelin, does it? [Nov 2009, p.66]

The potential is staggering in a variety of ways. [Nov 2009, p.70]

The addition of trophies is welcome. [Aug 2009, p.73]

Maybe hardcore fans will appreciate the subtle mechanics at work in KOF XII, but as fighting game fans who aren't devoted enough to count frames of animation and the like, we can't help but feel indifferent. [Aug 2009, p.78]

The nice surprise is that it's entertaining and polished enough that you're not gonna need to swill that rat poison you were initially planning on feeding to the guinea pigs. [Sept 2009, p.80]

Badman's core mechanic is frustrating in that you can't directly control your troops, so it feels like luck plays as much a role as skill. [Nov 2009, p.84]

Boss fights are mundane affairs with no special mechanics, only larger health pools. [Oct 2009, p.82]

Despite the new animations, new moves, and features, this year's model plays a lot like last year's game, with very subtle, often ineffective changes. [Sept 2009, p.79]

Answers many of last year's criticisms with a well-rounded experience packed with the depth hardcore gamers demand and the accessibility newcomers will enjoy. [Aug 2009, p.77]

A fun, wildly varied romp through the Wild West. [Oct 2009, p.76]

It's too easy to beat enemies, even in the tournament, by simply running forward and punching repeatedly. [Oct 2009, p.82]

BlazBlue has the moves and goods to back it up. [Aug 2009, p.71]

Like many games earning classic status, FNR4 generates repeated standout, jaw-dropping moments, and none of them are pre-scripted. [Aug 2009, p.64]

Pangya should provide golf fans (and RPG fans mildly interested in golf) dozens of hours of entertainment with its several modes, gentle learning curve, and unlockable content. [Aug 2009, p.73]

If you don't know your Grey Elves from your High Elves though, its many flaws probably outweigh its heavily referential charm. [Sept 2009, p.78]

If romancing the three kingdoms is your thing, you're going to go bananas for this already-established RTS twist on the DW franchise. Otherwise, it's totally niche, so approach with caution. [July 2009, p.81]

It's the best Monster Hunter game yet. [Sept 2009, p.81]

The game, despite being a solid effort, ultimately falls shy of total satisfaction due to the brevity of the play experience (you'll complete it under 10 hours and earn earn just a few videos and a lot of concept art for your troubles). [Aug 2009, p.68]

Even without perfect controls or jaw-dropping visuals, it offers a terrifically evil time for action game fans. [Sept 2009, p.74]

Niche-dwelling masochists will thrive on mastering the murky depths of Heroes, but everyone else should throw a smoke bomb and run away. [July 2009, p.83]

If you're a seasoned pro of the Virtua Tennis series, the latest tweaks don't necessarily add enough layers to warrant an upgrade. [Sept 2009, p.79]

Vague disappointments aside, Rock Band Unplugged offers a clever portable twist on the music game formula that is mostly engrossing and fun...even if it can be damned frustrating. [July 2009, p.84]

Sadly this year, it's hard to find a compelling reason to upgrade if you played 09. [Aug 2009, p.76]

A decent game, but it feels like the developers invested too heavily in the physic-based destruction and neglected to create a well-rounded experience that could contend with the likes of its own "Saints Row." [Aug 2009, p.70]

A top-notch addition to the genre. [Aug 2009, p.67]

The whole game screams "last-gen." [Aug 2009, p.72]

An entertaining, colorful, occasionally terrific romp that provides a solid basis for what we hope is an ongoing, evolving franchise.[July 2009, p.66]

The combat, however, does add a hint of freshness. [Aug 2009, p.79]

From dialogue that loads one line at a time to the lack of PS3-level graphics (high-res static art aside), everything seems like a remnant from the early 2000s. [July 2009, p.77]

It's best attribute is its price - half that of the PSP game. [Sept 2009, p.81]

Even though the learning curve is steeper than your typical wrestling or boxing game thanks to the dizzying depth in its controls, UFC 2009 Undisputed delivers the most functional and entertaining MMA gameplay to come along in years. [July 2009, p.80]

At game's end, all I was left with was a gnawing feeling of dissatisfaction in my gut, instead of a grin on my face. [Aug 2009, p.74]

Despite BC's visible level of technical acumen, questionable design decisions combined with an outrageous game ending have produced one of the most frustrating and disappointing games in recent memory. [July 2009, p.74]

It's hard not to be taken in by the eerie lullaby of this world's secrets. [July 2009, p.82]

If you carry dice in your back pocket, Sacred 2 is worth a shot. [Aug 2009, p.79]

Besides the indecipherable Evolution Map, Patapon 2 is well made, with plenty of reasons to replay levels: to bask in the music, to unlock more secrets. to farm for more resources, for example. [June 2009, p.80]