But if you want to play with your children, and they have a few friends whose parents were willing to buy them some additional figurines, then you might be able to get some decent fun out of it. For everyone else, though, Skylanders is a pass.

As it stands, Spider-Man: Edge of Time feels like a quick cash-in on Shattered Dimensions, and not a fully developed game in its own right. This is not the best Spider-Man has to offer.

After a quick learning curve, one can experience the true satisfaction of a well-placed shot, and once in tune, FIFA '12 offers plenty of gameplay options to enjoy, including the now built-in Ultimate Team mode. Though it won't change any soccer-haters' minds as to the quality of the game, it will make the faithful very happy and offers a fun experience to the casual crowd.

As it stands, the game is a rental at best, and even then only one to bother with if there's literally nothing else for you to play.

Fans of the NHL series are unlikely to skip an entry, for any number of reasons, including the roster and uniform updates, the online play or the simple lack of competition, and there's no reason to start now, as this version's tweaks offer a genuine improvement over last year's well-regarded title, once you adjust to the more realistic controls (either through practice or tuner adjustments.)

ITSP is undoubtedly a work of art, even if you only based that evaluation on its unique and beautiful visuals. But the rest of the package more than carries its own weight, especially the design and variation amongst the bad guys and some of the level design.

That being said, Deux Ex: Human Revolution is an enjoyable experience that in this case may work better as art than it does as a game. And I'll always find room in my heart for a game that strives for more, even if its reach ultimately exceeds its grasp.

Call of Juarez: The Cartel makes a lot of mistakes. Changing the setting from the wild west to the modern day was the first sign of trouble, but it was by no means the last. The game is, to put it simply, broken. I could only recommend this tedious and tiresome gaming experience to people I hate. For everyone else, give Call of Juarez: The Cartel a wide berth.

Overall, Catherine is a strange beauty of a game that deserves to be given a spin in your console.

It's not pefect, but Outland offers a very satisfying gaming experience for those who are willing to stick with it.

Fans of Splosion Man should purchase without hesitation, while newcomers owe it to themselves to jump, or splode, on in.

Poor graphics, poor sound, and half-hearted game design makes this a tragic clunker. Skip It.

If you're one of last year's players who has come this far and what you've read hasn't swayed you, stick with last year's edition. It's not obsolete; the decks are different enough that you'll still have fun playing them. If you are intrigued, I say drop the $10 and get going.

It's very easy to admire Child of Eden. The artistry of its sound and visuals, the simplicity of the gameplay, and the Kinect integration all combine to make a game that should be experienced by anyone who spent their hard earned cash on the device. However, its short length and various control snafus make it difficult for me to recommend it as a purchase. In truth, this feels like a very sharp, very polished Xbox Live Arcade game.

Akimi Village is a very basic game that will only appeal to a certain type of gamer. One who is willing to invest a decent amount of time into restoring the vitality of a world, through repetitive actions. Due to this and its aforementioned issues, it's hard to recommend to anyone other than the hardcore life simulator fans.

Though it includes some interesting ideas, Cubic Ninja is a puzzle game that really fails to set itself apart from the pack.

In the end, it's hard for me to recommend Infamous 2. If you played the first one, you'll want to play this in order to get the conclusion to the story. However, the lack of real innovation may be a turn off, and makes the second go through a real chore. For those reasons, I'd recommend that players rent this one.

There's just not enough variation to keep interest in this game over 36 stages, despite a really great core concept, solid controls, a story you might actually want to follow and impressive voice acting.

This is a sub-par budget title that's pretending to be an AAA game. Shame on Gearbox for wanting their name on this stinking pile of crap! If you do enjoy playing terrible games, please rent instead of purchasing as the publisher doesn't deserve a reward for this.

Though Red Faction: Armageddon isn't the most creative game on the market, it's one of the most entertaining action games to hit the market in a while. Fans of previous virtual mining expeditions (scratch that; uprisings) on the red planet will feel at home with the game's easy to grasp control scheme and incredibly exciting mechanics.

Even though this DLC pack as slightly shorter than Dead Money, it definitely felt more satisfying to complete. It also feels more polished than Dead Money and I definitely ran into less bugs during gameplay.

For less than a buck, you are getting 60 puzzles to solve as well as a clever presentation to go along with it. The only major drawback to The Heist is there are few, if any, original gameplay concepts introduced.

The bottom line is that like the world of "L.A. Noire" itself, the game is neither black nor white; it has its grey areas and it's up to the gamer him or herself to determine how those grey areas affect their playing experience.

For all that's good about this game, the way the content is locked down and cut down (from the previous version) hurts the end product, and the unique pricing structure makes it all too easy to be cynical about it all. That said, if you want to enjoy good motocross racing (and especially if you're a fan of the sport) this is probably your best bet. At the least, it's a relatively cheap option.

Portal 2 is everything a good sequel should be. It continues the story without repeating it, and adds new modes and features without mucking up what worked about the first game. And, most importantly, it still feels fresh.

To conclude, Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars is a huge diversion from the norm, but it's also quite a good game. In fact, it's one of the best launch titles for the Nintendo 3DS.

Give it a shot if you're looking for something fun that can be played in short bursts, though don't expect a masterpiece. For its price, there quite a bit of content. Though a rental period could also suffice.

Section 8: Prejudice is a must-own XBLA title.

As a first try out of the gate for Eutechnyx, NASCAR 2011: The Game holds up moderately well. That being said, they will need to work on building a more in-depth career mode and a much smoother multiplayer experience if they really want the franchise to take off next year.

Don't hesitate to download The World of Goo for the iPhone if you love puzzlers or simply well-polished games.

Control issues plague Resident Evil Mercenaries Vs. and drag this Capcom title down into the murky depths of app store purgatory. The clunky, slowing moving characters that don't understand how to move and shoot at the same time are next to worthless, even with the slight tweaks I made.

One Single Life is a head scratcher for sure. On one hand, the quality of the presentation and the general flow / control of the game is top notch. On the other hand, it's a useless app once you die a single time.

A stronger and more impressive outing overall, is marred with the same issues that plagued previous titles, including repetitive gameplay that never really evolves.

It's a very good soccer game, but it could have been a great one with just a little more work on Konami's part.

Ultimately, The Sims is a game you can lose yourself in, as you get caught up in the antics of the little digital people you've created. You share their hopes, their fears, their ups and downs. Or, at least, you can do that on the PC. On the 3DS, you mainly have to mop up a lot of messes, half of which are created by your Sim wetting themselves. It's about as fun as it sounds.

The game is fun, it looks great, and given the relatively sparse offerings for 3DS launch titles, this one is easy to recommend.

Red Factions: Battlegrounds is a waste of 800 Marketplace points and will disappoint every Red Faction fan right out of the gate.

Warriors: Legends of Troy is a pretty impressive project from Tecmo-Koei Canada. It features an interesting storyline that provides a great backdrop for a video game, as well as some well-done cutscenes and audio. However, its repetitive gameplay is something that will turn a lot of people off, even if it is more polished than it's ever been.

Give the trial a go and if you can burn through it a few times without getting bored, then maybe plunk down your money, otherwise, delete it and seek out greener pastures.

Slice HD is a devilishly sadistic combination of Operation and Twister that likes to mess with your brain. That being said, it's a brilliant use of the iPad screen, just not the greatest game on the app store.

More variety in the gameplay and more clarity in how the game actually works would have been much appreciated.

It definitely feel overpriced compared to the experience in Lair of the Shadow Broker and can easily be skipped without missing out on events that lead up to ME3. However if you are a Mass Effect 2 junkie, you might find a sliver of entertainment value in Arrival, assuming you love fighting solo and don't give a hoot about the story arc.

It's really a shame that Super Monkey Ball 3D is so disappointing, because it does have a lot of charm.

In short, Steel Diver is an extremely underwhelming launch game. The eight missions can be knocked out in about 2 to 3 hours and the two player Steel Commander mode is buggy in addition to boring when playing against the AI. It doesn't make any sense to me why Nintendo would sell this at a $39.99 MSRP.

Overall, Nintendogs + Cats offers nothing substantially new for those familiar with the previous titles. It's a shame, because this series could really shine on the 3DS, if Nintendo were willing to put in the effort.

While the actual workouts offered are pretty intense and could certainly help you stay or get healthy, there's little reason to use this on a Wii, as there's no tracking via a Wii-mote or accessory.

I wouldn't hesitate to give this game the highest rating possible, if it weren't for this terrible marketing strategy, because that aside, it's a fantastic game and one of the best sports titles I've played. Don't hesitate to pick it up if you love golf, just understand the few drawbacks.

EA's biggest problem with Madden NFL Football is that it insults fans of the series by only offering a shell of the NFL game they love, but while charging them the price of a full featured release. Truthfully, this game is worth about 50% to 75% less than what EA is currently charging. Just look at Madden 11 for the iPhone, a version with a similar feature set, plus multiplayer, priced at $7.99.

This pick-up-and-play title offers up more than enough challenge to keep you busy but enough charm and enjoyment to keep trying when hitting a brick wall. Though there's a high level of frustration in places, as levels take on the ridiculous difficulty of bullethell shmups, with practice and patience, you can master the swarm and have fun doing it.

For anyone that's played the previous LEGO Star Wars titles or for those that love the animated television series on the Cartoon Network, Lego Star Wars III: The Clone Wars is a fantastic purchase that can be enjoyed by fans of all ages.

Okamiden never feels like a giant leap forward, but it was never intended as such. Instead, it shows that the world of Okami is ripe for further adventures, and that they can appear in new and exciting forms.

Even more mind-boggling, why would Atari release this pile of drivel when they had such a good thing going with Ghostbusters: The Video Game? It's a crass, extremely rude money grab that's designed to suck $10 out your pocket while simultaneously giving the middle finger to our aging Ghostbusters. I cannot recommend Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime to anyone, even the most dedicated fan.

Easily one of the best looking games on the Xbox 360, Crysis 2 falls a bit short on the 8 to 10 hour single player campaign, but flourishes in offering up very addictive multiplayer.

The presentation is highly polished and little touches like the inclusion of the Rio characters as playable birds or the extra information included in the menus really help advance the core concept of Angry Birds.

I would recommend renting Major League Baseball 2K11 if you have an Xbox 360 to get a feel for the game and see how much you are willing to put up with. If you have a PS3, you obviously need to buy MLB 11: The Show instead of this game.

Though it's quite unique and does a good job of mixing different genres together into one game, Slam Bolt Scrappers is a ho-hum experience.

The length of the game is completely dependent on your difficulty. If you play on Easy, you can breeze through the entire campaign in 30 to 45 minutes. If you crank it up a bit, you are likely looking at a couple hours of playtime. Unfortunately, the lack of multiplayer extremely hamstrings the replay value.

Clearly, the game is designed for younger players in mind (although that seems somewhat at odds with the older crowds that Rango is attracting in the theaters). The game is just a scant five hours long and the lack of extra gameplay modes drags the game's replay value down considerably.

The learning curve on the controls is steep and is going to turn away anyone that dislikes virtual controls right form the start.

It's easily one of the more polished poker games that I've played on any platform, but there's plenty of free poker games on the PC that can offer the same thrill.

For a team based shooter, I'd say it's on par with the entertainment value of the early Battlefield games like 1942. In the end, you have to weigh how much value the multiplayer is going to be for you. If you love alternate reality shooters, I would say try renting the title before looking for a cheap used copy (assuming you love the team based multiplayer).

If you were in love with Dragon Age Origins, I'd strongly recommend testing the demo before purchasing Dragon Age II. You should be able to get a good idea of how well you can handle 25 to 30 hours of that combat system. For those that hated the methodical battles of DA: Origins, you will probably love the fast paced, mindless combat of Dragon Age II.

Though the main challenge isn't that long, there's more than enough supplemental exploring included to give you your money's worth, and it'll be more fun and entertaining than the majority of what you've been playing lately.

For $15, it's a bit steep for a dungeon crawler, but probably worth demoing on Xbox Live if you are fan of the PC version.

If you are brand new to the Pokémon series, you are going to find Pokémon Black to be an incredibly involving RPG and darn entertaining if you enjoy the genre. It's definitely worth checking out and will probably keep you entertained up until the launch of the 3DS later this month.

A number of factors made this game a sales loser when it came out, but the passionate cult that gave it its high-quality reputation has a legitimate chance to grow now with improved graphics and a budget price as a downloadable game.

Highly recommended if you love multiplayer matches.

Namco Bandai has failed to created anything that's actually enjoyable in Knight's Contract, likely due to poor QA and so many design revisions that the original concept of the game has mangled beyond all belief during the development process. It's absolutely frustrating to play through and ultimately joyless.

You are looking at about 3 to 4 hours of playtime with this add-on pack, not terribly overpriced for 560 marketplace points ($7). The main draw is obviously the expanded storyline, ideal for Fable III junkies that want to stay engrossed in the narrative.

The ideal market for this game would probably be shooter fanatics that have a low-brow sense of humor. Those easily offended or prefer more team based shooters need not apply.

The best crowd for this game is likely 20 somethings that want another dancing game to go with their Kinect system.

All in all, they have created an amazingly large, expansive driving game that's truly a joy to get lost within, but doesn't perform well enough to keep you within that illusion.

In any case, You Don't Know Jack is an excellent choice for parties or simply those looking for a great trivia challenge with a liberal dose of silly humor.

Square Enix succeeded in creating another Mario sports title; they just forgot to make it fun.

I can certainly applaud The Undergarden's developers for trying something different, but the concept here is not nearly strong enough to support the bland and pedestrian gameplay. Even casual games still demand a level of interest from the player, and The Undergarden doesn't have it.

Tales From Space: About a Blob is a very unique and charming game that provides a nice change of pace.

Yet another game where the concept promises something great, but the execution falls far short. Despite the impressive look, satisfying puzzles and the helpful fail-safe offered by the time travel, the actual effort of manipulating the items around you is more like work than fun, thanks in large part to the awkward controls

Two Worlds II suffers from a handful of the same problems as the original, but the improved graphics engine and deeper gameplay are positive steps forward for the series.

On paper, the concept for Mindjack is definitely attractive. It's the execution of the concept that fails miserably due to lackluster gameplay, poor enemy A.I. and a ridiculously silly narrative.

While Visceral Games didn't push the envelope in regards to opening up the sequel to new twists on the gameplay, they did an excellent job of capturing the terrifying intensity of the original in addition to providing a more captivating narrative.

Sub par to moderately effective visuals and sound could wind up being a strong deterrent to players wanting to check out "Breach." Those who do and want a cooperative, tactical first person shooter, will find their efforts rewarded.

Call it Ratchet and Crank-lite if you want, but that's giving Spare Parts a bit too much credit. You are looking at about 3 to 4 hours of play time, most of which is reliant on monotonous combat.

If you haven't played the original Mass Effect or Mass Effect 2, you would be foolish not to pick this up immediately. It's an absolutely enthralling game that will easily last you 40 hours on a complete run-through if you are an explorer.

Unfortunately, this is the worst performing version of Plants vs. Zombies and oddly the most expensive.

There's also a value question around Shank. Before spending the $15, you really need a qualified co-op player on hand locally to help you get your money's worth out of the game.

Unwound Future is the best title in the Professor Layton series, but you would be doing yourself a disservice if you didn't play through the first two games to learn about the main characters.

The game excels at involving the player in the unsettling narrative and remaining unrelenting at making you fearful of every single step taken throughout the decrepit castle.

As one of the most unique puzzlers that I've played over the years, Limbo's chilling atmosphere is an example of an incredible gaming achievement.

If you loved all the other Halo games, there's little I can say to dissuade you from purchasing Bungie's last creation in the Halo series.

If you liked the previous God of War titles, you're going to feel right at home with this one.

If you are into real time strategy in any form, it's hard to ignore Starcraft II.

If you loved the first Super Mario Galaxy, you will adore the sequel.

You are looking at about 14 to 16 hours of gameplay for Kingdom Hearts Re: coded, but slogging through the entire story really lacks any substantial payoff.

Hardcore shmup fans need to give this a look, if only to try something familiar yet fresh, while if you ever enjoyed a game of Galaga, this is your chance to see where the genre's promise remains.

The 200 or so levels will eat up a solid chunk of your gaming time and is very addictive to the casual gamer.

Despite being a solid fighting game for a portable platform, it's unfortunate to see such a barebones version of Undisputed, in comparison to the console versions.

Lost in Shadow is unfortunately true to its name. The player will feel lost in a sea of mediocre gameplay that doesn't have a foreseeable end in sight.

Something tells me that another 6 months to a year of development time on Tron: Evolution could have brought a truly amazing game, but unfortunately the rushed development cycle to match the movie's release strikes again and the half-assed gameplay is the result of that.