Despite a plethora of technical problems that make Mercenaries 2: World in Flames feel like an unfinished title, it remains a lot of to play. You can bring down a city with the press of a button, and the explosions are simply breathtaking. I had a lot of fun while I was playing, but the mediocre length and frequent bugs make the title a little hard to recommend for $60.

It is a loving re-creation of an experience from a bygone era, warts and all. Keep that in mind going in, and you won't be disappointed.

It does have its fair share of flaws and rough edges, but it also has quite a few areas where it absolutely shines.

All told, Pipe Mania for the PlayStation 2 is an excellent example of what companies should do to revive old games.

A fairly solid economic strategy simulation where the player can utilize a number of varying tactics and maneuvers to gain an advantage in a well-designed medieval environment. Unfortunately, the impressive level of detail and the interesting gameplay options at your disposal take a backseat to the technical issues and repetitive micromanagement.

As much as I personally love it, there are plenty of people out there who will outright loathe it. Many won't manage to see past the colors and will simply be unable to play the game. It can also be deeply unforgiving, and while there are concessions in the form of the automatic save, you'll usually advance two or three levels and then hit an absolute brick wall of a stage that will take multiple tries to finish.

For all that it does and doesn't do, Call of Pripyat is a unique experience that only S.T.A.L.K.E.R. can be counted on to deliver behind the Irradiated Curtain.

One of the best storylines I've seen for a while, but to my surprise it also had poor game play. It's probably one of the first times I've seen such reverse psychology.

A slow starter, especially when enemies run away from your character like there's no tomorrow. Once you acquire charge attacks, the game gets a lot more fun.

Not a bad game, but with its lack of replayability and quick playtime, it's just not a keeper.

The game is not much fun from a single-player perspective, but it can be incredibly entertaining if you are playing with friends.

Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife has some very good and tense moments. It gradually lures you into quite a few scary encounters, and it doesn't rely on jump-scares but an atmosphere that is carried by its strong audio design. It isn't necessarily a looker, and the visuals are a bit janky at times, but if you get over the slow start and occasional annoyances, you're left with about eight hours of a creepy and entertaining VR adventure.

Midway has actually succeeded in creating an acceptable sequel to The Suffering, one which fans of the original should definitely look into.

It's not unplayable, but there are so many flaws that consistently and almost constantly crop up. The lack of post-launch support makes it feel as though Call of Duty is a victim of its own success, and it really doesn't matter what state it's in or how quickly it gets fixed because millions of people have already purchased it, and it'll all be forgotten before the launch of the next one. My hope is that the players won't be simply taken for granted going forward, but in the meantime, Modern Warfare II certainly subscribes to the mentality of, "Screw it. People are going to buy it anyway."

It possesses the sort of open-ended gameplay structure that will nurture your addictive tendencies and have you tweaking and expanding your city way beyond the time you promised yourself you would stop.

Taken as a whole, the selection of games in JPP5 is more than solid, with better-than-average games and a high-profile version of YDKJ ensures that this is one of my favorite packs so far. It doesn't have extreme standouts like Quiplash or Fibbage, but apart from Zeeple Dome, they are all fun and have the potential to become a favorite based on player preferences. It's the consistency that makes JPP5 one of the better ones, and if you're a fan, there isn't anything to worry about here in terms of quality.

Puzzle Quest: Galactrix does an admirable job of trying to hold your interest for a lengthy puzzle game, but it has a weak story, the AI feels cheap, an aggravating hacking game and the extremely weak multiplayer drag down the experience.

Fans of the WWII era or the RTS genre — or both — will get the most out of Sudden Strike 4. It is a high-quality product in terms of graphics and immersion, and the title provides a great experience full of tense and satisfying moments. There's a lengthy campaign that'll take more than a dozen hours to get through, and multiplayer and skirmish modes offer endless playability. The multiplayer portion requires planning ahead with friends or joining the small online community. Gamers who are on board with all of that will be fine with buying the title now, but others may want to wait until the price drops a bit.

Solatorobo: Red the Hunter is easy to play and appropriate for all ages.

Although engaging, the single-player campaign is just too short and will provide very little replay value.

Katanaut is a perfectly fun but ultimately rather forgettable Dead Cells-style title. It's perfectly competent at what it sets out to do, and the strong presentation goes a long way, but at the end of the day, it doesn't manage to carve out its own identity. It's absolutely worth a shot if you're burned out on similar games, but don't expect quite as much replay value.

Concrete Genie is far less than the sum of its parts. A strong early game is lost by a bizarre late-game twist that undoes a lot of the charm. If it had just focused on the genies or had been about combat from the start, Concrete Genie would be a much more cohesive experience. Instead, the game has a lot of good moments but ends on a particularly dissatisfying note. There's still a lot to enjoy, but the flaws stand out as brightly as the strengths.

If you enjoy flight games, can still stomach WWII-themed titles and are willing to step away from the single-player campaign when the later missions make you start grinding the enamel off your molars — better yet, if you'll forego the campaign mode altogether — Blazing Angels 2: Secret Missions of WWII is well worth your time for a different sort of deeper, involved multiplayer flight game.

The Career mode may be a bit too simplified, but the arcade nature of the Top Shot mode makes it fun for those who miss classic light gun gaming. With good graphics and sound, the game ranks up there with some of the best the series has offered, and fans will immediately take a liking to this entry.

Despite a ho-hum presentation and some odd design decisions, Unsolved Crimes is definitely one of the more solid adventure titles on the DS.

Hollow Survivors is a good game that's held back by a lack of content. The core gameplay loop is a ton of fun and provides engaging gameplay, but there's not enough meat on the bones to keep it fun and compelling for more than a couple of hours. If you're looking for something swift and breezy, Hollow Survivors does the job, but it's lacking when compared to other similar roguelikes on the market.

The mixing of fighting game mechanics with a more modern beat-'em-up set of mechanics works well thanks to the fact that you're flooded with varied enemies. The leveling system and the inclusion of a good roster of characters adds replay value, while local co-op play makes up for the lack of online play, especially since the Switch has been touted as being big on local multiplayer. Overall, Battle Grounds Overdrive is another good choice for the console.

It's a healthy combination of Fight Night and WWE mixed together in terms of gameplay, and if you love mixed martial arts, you'll find something to love about this title.