The only major advantage that Rivals holds over the other Xbox hockey titles is XSN support, but even that can’t make up for the lackluster gameplay, absence of depth, and mediocre visuals.

And for a family-friendly diversion that should keep the kiddies busy for quite some time, Feeding Frenzy 2 really nails it.

C’mon folks, it’s DDR. If you’ve got the slightest interest in dancing to the beat on your Xbox 360, this is the way to go.

After the first few missions, you’ll have some strong challenge—and the need to reequip your mech to match the adversaries you’ll face. It just feels shallow, though, like there wasn’t much creativity poured into it.

Deer Hunt has incredibly deep and challenging gameplay that is coupled with fairly decent visuals and top notch Dolby 5.1 audio. Perhaps now I can understand why hunting appeals to so many people around the world; the thrill of the hunt.

With videogame versions, it’s all about the features and spit and polish. Shotest Shogi does some of those things very well, but ultimately new converts will enjoy it more. It’s a great introduction to a classic game of strategy.

What is new is very good, sadly the new material is in fairly short supply in Pac-Man World 3.

Definitely has an intriguing storyline, but the repetitive gameplay and static camera hurts what could have been a much better effort.

The visual style and animations, brilliant level design and well thought out puzzles equate to an overall gem of an Xbox Live Arcade game.

If multiplayer coin-op games that can be played over Xbox Live sounds appealing, then Gauntlet is surely worth the few bucks it costs to download it. I’m warning you know though: Gauntlet isn’t really about skill - it’s more about having enough credits to finish the entire game.

With its new style of match play and chi attacks, Tao Feng offers up the next step in the evolution of console fighters, designed by none other than those who helped create the genre from the beginning.

Crash "N' Burn will frustrate the hell out of you since it demands so much more from its competitors than nearly every other arcade-type extreme racer.

It might be tough to pinpoint one single aspect of the game that shines above the rest, but it's an overall functional package that will help the pain until the big show comes back in town next season.

Somehow the simple mission style, sharp cheddar-y dialog and voice work, upgrade-unlock-chase (that is in every game these days), and straight-forward controls do add up to having some real charm.

A Hero's Tail does a good job at starting to expand Spyro's world in a few new directions with additional playable characters, but it's just a start.

Crystal Quest tries its hardest to bring a slower variation of the style and substance that Geometry Wars so expertly crafted but it falls short of delivering the overall fun factor that other XBLA games have.

It has some really nice features, but for every nice one, there are an equal number of strange design choices or flaws.

A failure to tread any new ground thematically or even current ground mechanically dooms Aliens vs. Predator to a place in the collections of only the most die-hard fans of the universe, who will play through the game once and relegate it to the same shelf of shame occupied by their AVP Requiem DVDs.

It’s not going to rival a Modern Warfare 2 or Assassin’s Creed II with its depth, but for what it does, it’s worth the 800 Microsoft Points (or about $10) that’s the price of admission.

Playing the original ROM of Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe is great, but we were hoping that the Xbox Live Arcade graphically enhanced gameplay would be a bit better.

The overall look of the movie was transferred over well, but the wacky controls and the repetitive gameplay hold this title back.

Very slow moving and occasionally frustrating is the best way to describe the gameplay in Operation Flashpoint. The vehicles feel entirely too clunky and hurt the otherwise functional gameplay.

It’s a lot of the same thing, with a load of space battles awaiting your arrival. It doesn’t take long for you to become frustrated and perhaps even bored by the repetitive action.

Nexuiz meets the bar of quality you'd expect from a console arena shooter, and does very little to rise above it. If that's enough for you, Nexuiz will not disappoint.

With smoother animation transitions, a better framerate, and a tad more pace, NBA Live 06 will look silly-good, as the rendering and motion capture is already there.

The game will definitely have you busting a gut laughing and is even better when shared with friends. The single player mode, graphics, and especially audio are really polished but the game still feels like it could have used a little more "umph".

Other than the split-screen camera, there are no aspects of Alias that haven’t been done before and better. The simple combat system can turn out some pretty cool fights, but there is no flow to the game with the constant interruptions from HQ and the multitude of save points.

Varying levels of seriousness in the users that gather to play 3 on 3 NHL Arcade in ranked or unranked online matches creates a fresh, party-style atmosphere that works within the confines of XBLA.