Wildshade: Unicorn Champions is a very messy game. The racing is simple in execution but suffers greatly from a heavy use of rubberbanding, while the tracks don't offer up too much incentive to look for shortcuts. The modes are sparse, and the breeding feature is ultimately boring. The presentation is decent enough in segments, but the visions of horses tumbling while you they whinny destroys any impressions of it being a family-friendly game. This isn't an outright terrible kart racing game, but considering the breadth of titles in the genre across the two platform generations, there's very little reason to choose Wildshade over the spectrum of vastly superior ones.

It actually left me frustrated because it manages to do a lot right, but ultimately, it's too lacking in too many areas to be something I can recommend.

It's such a gnarled mass of poor pacing, non-intuitive interface hassles, and second-rate graphics that it really has no hope of being anything more than a bargain-bin purchase.

Combat is overly long and easy, and once you get the correct IPDs, the only reason you'll take damage is because of the annoying lag. The plotline is fairly boring and predictable, and most of the characters are humdrum clichés or have no personalities at all.

I'd recommend staying away from Eragon, but if you absolutely loved the book or movie and would love to swing Eragon's sword or "fly" Saphira, then, and only then, should you give Eragon a try.

It's Max Payne without the bullet-time, the control, the atmosphere, or the fun. Avoid at all costs. Don't even try to get it to have a good laugh - you'll still end up apologizing to yourself.

Crime Boss: Rockay City isn't a complete disaster. The idea of fusing together managerial duties with action-oriented shooting works well on paper since the gameplay styles complement each other. However, neither aspect plays out that well, and when you combine it with a lackluster story and worse than mediocre performances, the experience doesn't improve as you get further into it. Unless you're hard up for a crime-based game, there's little reason to give this title a shot.

I was really disappointed with Dragon Ball Z: Infinite World, and I already wasn't expecting much from it. Sure, the roster is impressive, and it definitely covers some unique characters, but playing the game feels more like a chore and less like the fun fighter it should be.

Once you get past the (incredibly frustrating) first hour or two, earn some cash, and buy or upgrade a few cars, it's an OK combat-racing game that's hamstrung by its appalling camera and handicapped AI, and both of those sabotage any satisfaction you might actually get from the game.

The content isn't even worth a laugh, and the story is so full of holes (is this based on a Croatian comic or show? It seems to expect you to know the cast in advance) and clichés that it has no value unless you're a die-hard fan of Eastern European culture.

Despite the unique look and direction this takes on the RTS genre, the feeling of "I've been here before, done this before, and seen this before" pervades the entire experience.

I simply can’t recommend this to anyone but the most obsessive of fans. Other "giant robot" games such as "Zone of the Enders" and "Armored Core" have so much more to offer, with nowhere near this many problems.

Honestly, X-Men: The Official Game for the GBA does one thing and does it poorly. It's the same platformer/brawler that seems to be the generic genre for licensed games and resembles most every X-Men game from the 16-bit era.

While the actual game is surprisingly fun, it is also poorly designed and horribly balanced, trying so hard to maintain the series' belief that "Alchemists are better than everyone else" that no thought was given to gameplay balance.

The Hardy Boys: The Hidden Theft is a boring, poorly executed and mostly thoughtless game, and our whole industry is worse off for being made to suffer through it.

Naval Assault: The Killing Tide could have been good. The idea of submarine warfare is still exciting, and the Battlestations series has shown that submarines are still very powerful vehicles of war. Unfortunately, the pacing of the title as well as the indecision between a simulation and arcade style hurts the game significantly.

It's difficult to muster up any excitement for Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs. The formula is decent, but the lackadaisical AI doesn't encourage you to play with the parts of the game that make it distinct. The lack of other modes makes this package feel expensive, while the lack of any human players this early on robs the game of any reason to keep playing. It's a dead game that makes you wish that Bandai Namco would resurrect Pac-Man 99 instead.

While you have to give credit to Spuds Unearthed for trying to be bold and merging two genres into the VR perspective, the execution does not work well. The dodgy controls make a poor impression on those trying out VR for the first time, and the lack of a narrative makes it all feel pointless. The lack of proper explanation for anything is what dooms the game, as it takes loads of unnecessary trial and error to figure things out, from initiating multiplayer to how to set up for fights, let alone how to make yourself useful in the skirmishes. While Spuds Unearthed isn't the worst VR experience out there, it is certainly one to avoid.

Truly, this game is a disappointment on nearly every level.

Truly, this game is a disappointment on nearly every level.

New Jagged Union is not merely a bad game when compared to its peers, but it is a bad game when compared to any titles released in the last several years. I cannot, in good faith, advise any fan of tactical strategy to make this a purchase.

A forgettable relic that is just another in a long list of DS shovelware and a pretty bad example of it at that.

Fish Tycoon cannot escape the trappings of mediocrity. Besides its unique status as a game that requires tedious work for minimum payoff, it also features some of the worst DS compatibility to be seen on the system.

If Contra: Rogue Corps were known by any other name, it wouldn't be so bad. The idea of a twin-stick looter shooter is intriguing, and the shooting can be decent even if the level flow isn't exciting. However, that reliance on the franchise name comes with certain expectations. The overheating guns, restricted co-op, and missing weapon sets run counter to what fans have come to expect from the series that's been around for over 30 years. If you aren't too discerning, this may be worth a look if it's in the bargain bin. If fans of the series pick up Rogue Corps, they will be disappointed.

Criminal Girls: Invitation Only is a title with a very, very, very specific audience. RPG fans will find the combat tedious and the plot generic, and those looking for a dose of scantily clad anime girls will probably be turned off by the whipping and electrocution.

Taiketsu does not live up to the bar put in place by its sister series, Budokai. It does not have the same polish in it's gameplay, and it definitely does not have the frantic feeling of the epic battles that took place in the original comic or T.V. series.

Lacking in everything that makes a game enjoyable, this one should have spent more time on the drawing board before hitting the shelves.

Not worth anyone's time, and certainly not worth anyone's money, unless someone is utterly enamored of shooting anonymous terrorists in foreign lands with no names.

For now, I'd pass on NASCAR 2011: The Game. The multiplayer is completely busted, and I'm a big fan of voting with your dollar. If you're a NASCAR fan, maybe you should let your vote be heard by not picking up this mess. For those of you who did, I really I hope that the patch delivers on the promised fixes because I'd be greatly upset if I had spent $60 on this.

The prevailing theme to come from Monster Trucks Mayhem is that it provides too little of everything, no matter how good it is.

On one hand, the core game itself is good, and the story presented here is something you don't expect in a game. On the other hand, the technical execution of the title is so poor that one is surprised that it can run at all.

For now, I'd pass on NASCAR 2011: The Game. The multiplayer is completely busted, and I'm a big fan of voting with your dollar. If you're a NASCAR fan, maybe you should let your vote be heard by not picking up this mess. For those of you who did, I really I hope that the patch delivers on the promised fixes because I'd be greatly upset if I had spent $60 on this.

For an average player, Dora Saves the Mermaids for the NDS takes about 15 minutes to see and play every single mini-game. If you're factoring in age, I could see it taking a bit longer, but I can't see anyone over the age of four taking more than an hour to play through every mini-game at least once.

First, as a gamer, I give this game an abysmal 1 out of 10. It is dull, uninspired, graphically inferior, sound deserted, and ultimately, unsatisfying. However, if this is marketed as educational software, specifically at the Middle- and High-School level, and not targeted at the gaming community, this could be an exceptional introduction to the world of National Politics, indeed. [As educational software - score = 70]

If you like racing games, play Forza, Burnout, or Gran Turismo. If you are someone who likes Hummer vehicles, go and play Mercenaries to see how it should handle.

Tedious gameplay, dumb A.I., bad collision detection, glitchy graphics, and weak audio in a video game.

This isn't a game, as there's no real reward for doing well other than unlocking more tests, and it's not really a brain-training device because it doesn't teach you anything.

The game doesn’t seem to have gone through enough balance testing and QA testing.

Spectral Force Genesis is a really disappointing game overall, and while I found myself oddly enthralled with clicking through menus, the end result is that I spent a lot of time not really doing anything at all. Anyone who's considering picking up this title should avoid it, as it's really not worth your time.

Altogether, SpongeBob SquarePants Featuring Nicktoons: Globs of Doom isn't a great game, not even for the younger players for which it's intended. It's awfully dull, with no real exciting gameplay features to speak of, and an incredible amount of tedious gameplay that doesn't introduce anything new. Hopefully, we'll see a decent SpongeBob title at some point, but this definitely isn't it.

It may only be $10, but considering the genre and the number of games that offer more or do better for that price, there isn't much of a reason to get your shooting fix from this title.

Traxxpad fails no matter what way you look at it. If it's meant to be a game, something for casual players to noodle with to make some loops and show off, then it bombs because it's absurdly difficult to figure out for no good reason. I haven't encountered sound gear this hard to figure out or use since the Roland W-30. If this is meant for professionals, then why a platform with little access to new sounds or updates, and why no MIDI?

Sudden Impact is just a slightly damaged version of the game we’ve been playing since the waning days of Sega’s Dreamcast.

There's really no reason to buy this game, especially if you're expecting anything resembling a return to Stronghold's roots of castle-building sim.

Bolt for the Nintendo DS hardly does enough to keep itself interesting, even through the short amount of time it'll take to see everything that the game has to offer.

Perhaps the best way to describe Puzzle Chronicles is that it feels like an effort out of Infinite's "B" team. We know the company can do so much better, yet Puzzle Chronicles looks and feels more like a college project rather than a AAA XBLA title.

The gameplay is boring, the design is simple and plain, and overall, I'd have more fun actually putting up real wallpaper than doing it virtually in this title.

Your time and money is better spent tracking down "Nochnoi Dozor" on DVD and enjoying it passively because, as an attempt at an interactive experience, Night Watch fails utterly.

It failed in every aspect. The gameplay is frustrating and tedious, the graphics are bland and boring and the plotline is simply incoherent.

Infernal: Hell's Vengeance has a neat premise, and that's it. The gameplay is botched in every conceivable way, and the graphics and voice acting will grate on you endlessly.

The only thing that's even remotely fun about the title is the multiplayer, and that can be had on nearly any other 360 shooter worth its weight.

The stylish storytelling and the possibilities posed by the setting can't hide the embarrassing localization, the unexciting fetch-the-key gameplay that most every other FPS has moved beyond, and issues with the graphics that might have you reaching for the nearest bottle of pain relievers and asking what happened to quality testing.

Very little is enticing about Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON'T KNOW! outside of the license being used, and even that isn't applied properly here.

It's certainly a disappointing experience all around, and I can't see any reason to buy it.

How can a game this bland and uninteresting compete with the likes of "Excite Truck" and "Need for Speed: Carbon," let alone the scores of racers available on other consoles? Simply put, it can’t; and it should be avoided at all costs.

Ultimately, Apartment Pets fails at just about everything it tries to do. It's not The Sims, it's not Nintendogs, and it's not fun for anyone.

What it lacks more than anything is enjoyable gameplay. There’s no thrill attached to the empty "hide and sneak" gameplay, and the uneven motion controls derail the potentially blissful "Wild Ride" missions.

Many lackluster games have spectacular ideas but poor execution. Rampage: Total Destruction, on the other hand, has the same gameplay it's had 20 years ago, offering only negligible upgrades.

All told, Spider-Man: Friend or Foe is an abomination, an abysmal excuse for a game. Virtually every aspect of this blatant grab for cash is flawed in some significant way, and the makers of this game clearly churned out a severely sub-par product in an attempt to milk the franchise name in the most reprehensible of ways.

Tornado is a mess of a game, with one gem of a mode buried under a piled of stinky, stinky trash.

As a whole, Just Dance doesn't work out too well. The graphics may be very spartan and the sound may be fine, but the controls and the gameplay just don't cut it.

BE-A Walker: Battle for Eldorado is needlessly cruel. The number of things you have to monitor due to the fragility of your craft, combined with the ridiculous cooldown times, make for one of the most off-putting opening levels a game can have. If you're able to power through, the rest of the game is monotonous, even if you get lucky enough to grab enough funds to mitigate the constantly depleting meters. Combined with a lackluster story and absent fun factor, it'll take someone who really enjoys masochism to power through to the end of the game. With the multitude of better shooters on the system, it's easy to skip this one.

For the most part, I found M&Ms Adventure to be a pretty disappointing 3-D platformer, and I think that fans of the genre will even agree that it feels pretty bland and uninspired.

The problem is that the entire game feels cobbled together and misses the target on a lot of very important things, like fun.

I can only recommend this game to passionate duck hunters and those with 10-year-old PCs too feeble to run anything else. Then again, I suppose this title is the best duck-hunting game I have ever played.

There's not a single reason for you to buy Puzzler Collection for the Wii. The tournament mode is pointless, offering no incentive to replay once you've beaten it, and the multiplayer is completely inane, forcing you to pass one controller back and forth among all the players.

Even if you're starving for a new mech experience outside of the Armored Core series, there's no reason to pick up this game, no matter how cheap it gets.

A bargain basement title with more press than gameplay ... and where the only piracy practiced might be the time that it steals from your day.

If this port/ remastering/ remake/whateveryou'dcallthis of Rainbow Islands Revolution was created with so little effort, I wouldn't recommend anybody make the effort to pull the box off a shelf and trade currency for it.

Maybe there is a very small demographic of people who love Egyptian-themed music and are obsessive-compulsive enough to only want to play one type of puzzle endlessly. If so, then Word Puzzle was made for them. Otherwise, save your points, save your time, and save yourself the headache.

The clever audio commentary and the decent character creator are the only positive things about a game that tries way too hard to be hip, edgy and cool — but just ends up disgracing boxing games, fighting games, and EA Sports in general.

On the most fundamental level, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? Make the Grade works. Yes, you can re-create the TV show on your computer, but the real question is why on Earth you would want to.

Turning Point is one of the worst Xbox 360 titles I've played, and the only reason anyone should ever play it is if you love to see the worst of the worst, as this title certainly gives atrocities like Bomberman Act Zero and Fusion Frenzy 2 a run for their money.

It truly is a sad day for the gaming world when a video game reviewer asks his readers to put down the game and read the book instead; you're invariably going to enjoy it more.

The poor controls make the game far too frustrating to enjoy, and even if the controls weren't there, the lackluster gameplay and low-quality visuals make it seem as if the developers were just as bored with making the title as I was with playing it.

Much like any Uwe Boll movie, an impressive cast can't change the fact that the settings are unremarkable, the monsters control and fight lamely; without a decent fighting engine or satisfying destruction element, it fails on all fronts. This has all been done better elsewhere years ago.

There just isn't a reason for Rengoku II: Stairway to Heaven to exist besides duping buyers into picking up a throwaway title, or, the most likely case, to get PS3 owners who've never played the PSP versions to pick up that game just because the franchise seems familiar somehow.

I hate to be this negative and scolding in this review, but in its current state, Babylon's Fall should not exist, especially not with such a hefty price tag. It's a live service game that's hell-bent on monetizing everything, but it's uninterested in being engaging, rewarding, or nice to look at. There are plenty of glimpses of the familiar Platinum Games talent involved, teasing the game that could have been, but it ultimately fails to make an effort except for microtransactions. Even hardcore fans of the genre or Platinum Games should likely avoid this title.

Turning Point: Fall of Liberty is a prime example of how not to make a decent FPS, and with so many better titles out there now and a lack of budget pricing, it's hard to imagine what the devs were thinking.

The movement is torture, but does it really matter whether or not you get exactly where you need to go, since you don't have to worry much about the hordes of wolf guys and lizard dudes the game will constantly throw at you?

Jeep Thrills fails to live up to the premise of its own title, which is to give players a thrilling ride on Jeep vehicles.

I'm hopeful that the Gnomes & Goblins developers can address these performance issues quickly. There's still a lot of design work that needs to be addressed if they want this game to be as great as its concept. Until then, Gnomes & Goblins is little more than a stuttering tech demo that doesn't capture the imaginative concept it so desperately craves to be.

Past Cure is many things: technically infuriating, a slog, and thematically inconsistent. While one can appreciate the effort of a small team trying to craft a game that does many things, it can't seem to do any of them well enough to warrant any attention. With a glut of better games that tackle similar elements on the platform, it's very difficult to recommend Past Cure to people, even as a quick diversion.

Prison Break: The Conspiracy is a complete mess

To put it bluntly, Tamarin is messy. The story isn't that interesting, and the characters try to make it sound important but come off as pompous. The platforming is decent once you learn that you have useful moves, but the finicky nature of some elements and the slippery physics mean that asking for precision is inviting frustration. While the thought of resurrecting a Jet Force Gemini-style game is intriguing, the execution fumbles greatly due to it casting aside the advances that have been made in third-person shooters in the last 20 years. Unless you're craving an exercise in frustration, steer clear of Tamarin.

Maybe one day the developer will have the opportunity to show us a completed idea, but based on the current build, Tennis World Tour is disappointing.

Wing Island is just not fun. It's close to intelligence-insulting in its attempts to pander to "all ages," it's needlessly difficult, suffers from exceptionally poor controls, sounds ridiculous, looks unexciting, and offers basically nothing for anyone.

This is just a poor title, taking advantage of a well-recognized Jenga license, neither doing justice to the original game nor supplementing it with features that might make the Wii video game version fun, even if it were still a bad simulation.

Turn It Around is nothing less than a slap in the face to Nintendo DS owners everywhere, a spiritual successor to Furu Furu Park in that it combines uninteresting and often non-functional games with painful audio/visual elements and a lack of replayability to drain every ounce of value from the purchase.

There is absolutely no reason to purchase Jenga World Tour over a copy of the physical game. The latter is cheaper, less painful on your eyes, and significantly more fun.

In a world where development houses like Vanillaware, Wayforward and ska Studios are giving us exceptional examples of the platformer action genre, there is no excuse for this to exist. Stay far away from Thundercats, and let's hope that we can get this right again in yet another couple of decades.

Even some bad games can be somewhat enjoyable, but this title started off badly and held up worse.

In the end, to The Top, Mammoth! is a mobile game that's found itself awkwardly ported over to the Switch. The core gameplay loop is enjoyable enough for some quick gameplay sessions, but starting things off with some devious level design doesn't endear it to the target audience. Several design decisions, from the menus to the vagueness applied to power-ups, don't help the game's cause, and the obvious padding in a few areas and some pretty big bugs leaves much to be desired. The more tactile controls make this better than the mobile iteration, but on a system that already offers a plethora of quick pick-up-and-play experiences, it's difficult to recommend this title.

A neat idea with some of the worst execution I've seen on the PlayStation 3. The title has an incoherent story, bad graphics, bad voice acting, bad level design, extremely linear gameplay for a stealth title, and a level of difficulty that seems more dumb than difficult.

Unfortunately, Coffin Dodgers is a mess. It squanders its interesting premise, and races are plagued with poor track design, ineffective weaponry, and a lack of meaningful content.

Fear Effect Sedna is a case of improperly executed good intentions. It has an intriguing story at its core, but the bad script fails to make it shine. It has lots of different gameplay mechanics at work, but none of them feel good, let alone good enough to carry the weaker parts. It has a presentation that's less than stellar, even for fans who enjoyed the originals. There's still a chance that you can enjoy the game, but you'll have to forgive the various flaws to do so.

With controls that don't work, incomprehensible RPG-styled gameplay between matches, and limited character creation utilities, WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2009 for the NDS has come from its "has potential" status from last year all the way down to "scrap it."

Chevrolet Camaro: Wild Ride for the Nintendo DS offers less than its home console counterpart, and it also manages to be worse.