While Mirror’s Edge Catalyst opens up the city rather than confining you to discrete levels, its design woes feel precisely like the original. The odds of me clearing a mission on the first try were approximately zero. Not because my reflexes weren’t up to snuff—I swear it!—but simply because the missions are so tightly timed, the positioning so precise, that there really isn’t any time to figure out what the plan’s going to be: you simply have to do. And while that may (I can only assume) genuinely recreate the sorts of fast decisions you’d have to make if you were really trying to outrun the cops on foot, it doesn’t make for a game experience that feels fair.

It sounds confusing. It is confusing. It’s also not optional. This is how you play Star Fox Zero. It’s the shooter equivalent of rubbing your stomach while patting your head and also keeping a hacky-sack in the air with your foot.

No continues or saves, no level selection, weapons aren't balanced.

But even the best programming can't save this game from the flaws in its design. There's nothing horribly wrong with it, but it also fails to bring anything remotely new or original to the genre.

But like a jazz-master bringing new life to an old standard, or a Jazzercise-master making leg warmers fashionable again, Bloons TD 4 transforms the familiar into something fantastic. If, like me, you've wandered away from the tower-defending fold, this might be just the thing to bring you back.

No continues or saves, no level selection, weapons aren't balanced.

At some point, you realize that looking back at each of Viking's qualities, it's hard to really put your finger on anything that's truly standout -- and yet it's compelling.

You won't find endless fun here, but you can play around for many hours before feeling like you've mastered the game.

Deadlight isn't a poor game, just average. Mediocre. Inoffensive. If Deadlight developers Tequila Works developed another game with some more original ideas, I'd like to play it.

The other side of this coin is that Nier bites off more than it can chew: It wants to be Final Fantasy, God of War, Zelda, Monster Hunter and FarmVille all at once. And the problem with trying so many things is that every new feature you add is a new opportunity to screw the pooch.

I wouldn't recommend that version of Sega Superstars Tennis to anyone who isn't a massive fan of the company. I had high hopes, but with so many simple yet crucial issues here, it looks like we're going to have to wait for the inevitable sequel before truly enjoying our trip down memory lane.

A game centered on replay. With five characters and six chapters, the game counts on players to visit and revisit the castle to improve their scores and find new treasures. Dismaying as the rate of reward may be, I'm excited to tear this incarnation of Dracula's Castle wide open. Repeatedly.

Two Worlds II is just a pale shadow of the games it attempts to imitate. While exceptional open-world RPGs like Oblivion and Fallout: New Vegas encourage exploration by hiding pieces of narrative and flavor in every little corner of the map, the massive fields of Two Worlds II are lifeless and empty.

I wouldn't recommend that version of Sega Superstars Tennis to anyone who isn't a massive fan of the company. I had high hopes, but with so many simple yet crucial issues here, it looks like we're going to have to wait for the inevitable sequel before truly enjoying our trip down memory lane.

In short, I was left wanting to know more. The fact that you can start a new campaign with your character and continue to level him up didn't really entice me back into Too Human -- I want more story. To that end, I'm looking forward to the promised release of "Too Human 2."

Better break-time puzzle rounds and a story that's not throwaway filler would make a truly excellent game; this is merely a fun diversion.

At some point, you realize that looking back at each of Viking's qualities, it's hard to really put your finger on anything that's truly standout -- and yet it's compelling.

The enhanced interface and new skill system make this 3DS version more than the sum of its borrowed parts. Given the choice between Mercenaries and Resident Evil 5's Mercenaries mode, I prefer the handheld version to its high-res but lumbering ancestor.

Yes, it is quite a bit more fun to run down Federation Force‘s hallways and headshot its Space Pirates when you have a group. But a lot of that, it seems to me, is because the game is designed to be much easier when you have a team and very challenging, even inhospitable, to a solo player.

Magikarp Jump, as a result, takes what could be a mean joke about one of Pokémon Company’s sillier creations and turns it into a pleasant, engaging little game about companionship and raising a school of beautiful baby fish. When your first Magikarp reaches maturity, you gain experience as a trainer and can catch another Magikarp that grows even larger and jumpier. Let them swim around your pond, feed them, and train them with a variety of exercises to help them reach their full (albeit limited) potential. As with most mobile games, you can pay for bonuses that help your Magikarp grow up faster, but they’re unobtrusive and don’t break the game.

Wii Music is Wii's "Nintendogs." It's not a traditional videogame with challenges and goals, it's an interactive playground. While some gamers will "get it" and have some fun with it, they'll likely abandon it after a little while. Most hard-core gamers will stay far away.

But even the best programming can't save this game from the flaws in its design. There's nothing horribly wrong with it, but it also fails to bring anything remotely new or original to the genre.

Even though some stages (like the penultimate aerial battle) felt like they lasted forever and ever, Dark Void is a pretty short game with an anticlimactic ending that does little more than set up a sequel.

If you're a Pokemon superfan, you'll undoubtedly enjoy chilling with the very creatures you've spent so much time trying to catch.

Gameplay is pure repetition; fun in short bursts but little lasting attraction.

Even though some stages (like the penultimate aerial battle) felt like they lasted forever and ever, Dark Void is a pretty short game with an anticlimactic ending that does little more than set up a sequel.

If you're a Pokemon superfan, you'll undoubtedly enjoy chilling with the very creatures you've spent so much time trying to catch.

The best thing I can say about Overdrive is that it feels just like Blaster Master, with a few great new improvements and a few small new flaws.