Computer opponents are simply too good, too tireless. Points constantly drag on, as your foe can get to almost every ball that you hit.

One of those games which you'll find to be a great laugh or a shallow bore. With not much to the gameplay in terms of variation, things can quickly get tedious.

A lackluster release with very few real improvements, not healthy innovation or genre-busting action.

If only Blade Warriors was a better, deeper, more fun game -- then it could really deliver for fans of these characters.

A decent game to play if you're obsessed with the adventures of the family Parr, but it could have used a lot more polish and whimsy where it counts.

For a game that manages to capture the look and personality of Viewtiful Joe, Red Hot Rumble is strangely demanding and uncompromising.

Much like Dante and "Devil May Cry 2," let's hope this is just a sophomore slump, and this series will come back stronger in a future installment. If not, it truly is dead to rights.

An overly liner, repetitive action game with very little personality.

There didn't seem to be any specific gameplay difference with NHL 2002 and its immediate predecessor. All my on-ice moves were the same as in the older game.

As a musical creation app, this program has plenty of capabilities, but is lacking in the user interface department. As a videogame, MTV Music Generator 2 is about as boring as it gets.

Graphics bump aside, little has changed since we clicked the mouse one million times in "Diablo."

Graphically, you're in for a treat. What strikes you immediately is the great job the designers have done with the lighting effects.

Long time fans of the game will grumble about its flaws, while new players will be put off by the lack of direction in Quest mode. In the end, it's a game that suffers from "jack of all trades, master of none" syndrome.

Some will no doubt be so happy to see such a fantastic sim that they'll be willing to put up with the lack of amenities like a horizontal real-time swing and slow loading, dull background graphics.

It'll be too frustrating and unforgiving for most people to get into. If you enjoyed "SSX Tricky," and like the thought of a harder, half-platformer-half-racer hybrid version, though, you'll probably find it just right.

Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash is a reasonably solid game of arcade tennis that’s accessible for newbies, yet challenging enough to give more experienced players something to chew on. But despite the glitzy visuals, it’s a predictable serve that lands well inside the line, rather than a decisive, smashing ace. Tennis fans — and Matthew Perry — deserve a little more.

The simple truth is that Juiced is behind the curve. The racing isn't bad, but the game places emphasis on the wrong reward system.

No lines are crossed and no boundaries are broken. Good stuff, but still stuff you've seen many times before.

Whilst the new challenges offered in the expansion will amuse and frustrate those megalomaniacs amongst us for some considerable time, there is nothing spectacularly new about Paradise Island.

While the game's nod to realism (and somewhat stiff control) are less friendly to racing gamers overall, car-caressers will find much to amuse themselves.

Need For Speed’s solid driving and fantastic graphics are worth experiencing, but I wanted more darkness, more danger out of this game. I wanted consequences. Without it, we get an odd Need For Speed that presents a strangely empty, Disney-fied version of an “underworld” — one with guardrails on the sides of the road.

If you're the type to enjoy that style of gameplay, we're honour-bound to point out "Super Smash Brothers: Melee," a superior game in about all aspects, and with infinitely more to do.

It is as rough around the edges as its main character and most players will probably be put off after an initial bout of controller frustration. Those who stay with it will find an enjoyable and somewhat satisfying single-player experience, but nothing incredibly memorable.

The game's mediocre in too many areas, and is generally inferior to its predecessor. Yes, mechs are cool. Yes, it adds maturity to the genre. However, "Disgaea," "Final Fantasy Tactics Advance," and "Advance Wars" all blow Front Mission 4 out of the water.

If you're more interested in multiplayer mech action and a not quite as brilliant single player game, then you should give Mechwarrior 4 a look.

Provides a decent amount of enjoyment, but is let down in a number of crucial areas, particularly longevity, and its realism in certain areas.

A relatively short game, occasionally repetitive, and has a few poorly structured missions. And we would've liked to see more anime sequences woven in between missions, too.

The problem is that the innovations seem incomplete, and without them, it really is just another RTS.

If you want to go high on adrenaline and never mind the pain, then this might be the right prescription - so long a s you can get to grips with the controls.

It's an easy bump for 360 owner's GamerScore, but otherwise the full experience is not very satisfying.

There is a certain "been there, done that" feel that weighs everything down. That, plus a few significant design miscues, make for a game that comes up a wee bit short when compared to the often outstanding original.

Despite its good intentions and ocassional co-op fun, Tri Force Heroes lacks the depth — and charm — we’ve come to expect from the franchise.

An interesting blend of genres that never really delivers a full-featured strategy game.

Roughly a third the size of its predecessor, meaning that you'll be able to go from eagerly installing the game to disappointingly removing it from your hard drive for good in just two or three nights.

Rising Tide sometimes feels all wet, but Civilization’s ship can still be righted.

There's not enough action/platformer fiber, and even the young'uns may find themselves longing for the mini-game galaxy of Neopets.com.

Gets many things right - gameplay, map design, game modes like trailer, and the physics really do make for a promising experience, but the complete lack of a community (in Europe), the poor netcode and the ho-hum single-player bot AI make for a decent effort that'll, at the moment, just gather dust on your shelf.

Simple, no nonsense action. Like a Stallone or Schwarzenegger movie from the 80s, it does not really cut the mustard in this flo-mo Matrix/Max Payne era.

Def Jam's most damaging flaw is the single-mindedness of the combat. Unleash all the punch and kick combos you want, but in very short order it will become obvious that environmental hazards are the only way to take an opponent down.

The novelty of the Hulk scenes wears off eventually if you're not a huge fan of the comic books, and the Banner sections are disappointing. Still, it doesn't anger us as much as some movie tie-in mediocrities.

Ultimately, the problem with Jak X is that the underlying game is utterly generic. Strip away all of the characters and you're left with a racing game that borrows from the genre, but doesn't give anything back.

Full Auto feels like someone came up with a good concept and a few fresh ideas, and just expected the game to design itself. It didn't, and we're left with tons of wasted potential. You need gameplay and modes to tie together the combination of racing and shooting.

A respectable weekend time-waster. It's got enough going on to fill a late night or two, and not so much that many gamers will pine for it when it's gone.

The flight model, graphics engine and overall design clearly represent an ambitious and genre-changing attempt, yet the corner-cutting cheapens the otherwise superlative effort.

Dull, depressing, and monotonous. Although the combat system is reasonably interesting, the game doesn't come close to making the most of it.

There’s some incentive to replay the missions (to attain better scores and complete your card collection) but when similarly priced RPGs offer 50+ hours easily, Lost Kingdom’s value for money has to be questioned.

There is one reason to look into this dim sequel: it packs in "Turtles in Time," the excellent four-player arcade release from over a decade back.

An adventure game that could have been much more if players weren't preoccupied with the game's poor voice acting and bugs. That said, if you're itching to play a new point-and-click PC adventure with good puzzles, you might not be disappointed with this sub-$30 game.

What Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb amounts to is lots of riddles, lots of combat, too many deathtraps and jumping puzzles, and a decent, if contrived story.

If you're content playing pretty much the same game in pretty much the same place with pretty much the same toys, GRAW2 is a good way to recapture the same fun you were having a year ago. And you'll get the cool new multiplayer mode thrown into the bargain.

The unyielding linear story, the decidedly average puzzles and the ease with which you sail through the levels will ensure that it gathers dust on your shelf after the first play.

Set on simulation, MotoGP 4 is a real challenge. It'll delight bike fans looking for a taste of the challenge and power from these awesome machines, and petrolhead types will be happy to overlook its shortcomings in the process.

Aspirations aside, the gorgeous screenshots represent a game that is distressingly mediocre in motion...Without the ambitious graphics engine, Killzone's linear run-and-gun combat would vanish into the swarm of generic shooters.

The perfect game for obsessive fans of the comic franchise, those who never tire of senseless violence, and activists looking for scapegoats, but it simply doesn't have enough to offer anyone else.

A slightly improved Star Trek tactical simulator, but that's pretty much all it is. The production values are still bland, and the user interface is just slightly better than before.

While PSP owners get a polished looking racer, Ridge Racer DS looks more like a relic from earlier days of gaming, and plays like one too.

There are very bad collision problems with the ball and the fielder. I can't explain how frustrating it is for a player to catch a ball that is seven feet away from his glove.

Short.

But we can't get behind playing it for very long, even as fanatics.

Sorry, RF Online: Life's too short to play a mediocre MMOG.

It offers little incentive to reinstall the rapidly ageing masterpiece.

One of the game's most interesting levels even has you riding a lizard mounted with big Wookie bowcasters. It looked cool on Tatooine and it looks cool here.

It has a decidedly limited range of licensed cars, an unsatisfying handling model, a dull course and a difficulty level that's way out of whack.

It may fall between two stools. It isn't realistic enough to please the sim crowd but action players may find some of the restrictions placed on them -- only four weapons to choose from, the inability to point the nose where they want and the need to rely on concealment -- too confining.

If you like the humour in the Farrelly films or if you're partial to "Tom and Jerry" cartoons you will love Stupid Invaders.

Spookily enjoyable, throwing enough challenges and new creatures at you to prevent boredom setting in.

The linear gameplay may bore some and there are moments in the game that are confusing and seemingly impossible without starting the level again and retracing your steps.

Although it's diverting, there's nothing new here - occasionally you can fire weapons (including on top of a moving train) and there's one bizarre sequence where Mac has to outrun his pursuers and try not to get shot or have his leg chewed off by a vicious dog.

It would have made a much better college game where blaring soundtracks and sparkling animation effects are not as important.

Falls a bit short. Still, a relatively compelling story, good flight controls, and a nod toward realism help block out the graphical glitches and penchant for system-crashing memory leaks.

Experienced urban architects longing to delve deeply into Rome's characteristic social and economic structures will be fully disappointed by Glory's simplicity.

Freekstyle just doesn’t drip with love and attention the way "Tricky" does – its characters are nowhere near as appealing, its sound not as characterful, its gameplay not as polished and the package not as coherent.

So while the core gameplay is great fun, longevity does suffer from the inevitable repetitiveness and uneventful missions. Be wary.

When Lifeline works, it works niftily... but when it doesn't, it actually isn't working at all.

If you approach Air Command as a three dimensional traffic-routing puzzle then it's a lot of fun.

Ignoring the lackluster controls and bad animation, there's a decent action/adventure experience in Headhunter: Redemption, with a lengthy quest punctuated with plenty of gunplay and occasionally interesting puzzles.

The best that can be said is Chibi-Robo may satisfy patient children. The rest of us will grow weary of the hurdles and slow text, and pull the plug to go looking for something else more our speed.

A surprisingly well-executed game (after the patch) which is unfortunately obscured a bit by the difficult interface.

Seriously lacking in terms of pacing and challenge.

Ignoring the lackluster controls and bad animation, there's a decent action/adventure experience in Headhunter: Redemption, with a lengthy quest punctuated with plenty of gunplay and occasionally interesting puzzles.

Rebel Strike's control issues and lack of a manual camera option bring added frustration to an already difficult game.

The resources might have been ripped off from "Settlers," but they're perfectly balanced and you get a genuine sense of achievement as you build a thriving town from a few sticks and a couple of peasants.

If you're envying all the fun your buddies are having with their 360s and Advanced Warfighter, you're better off staying with "Halo 2" and the recent "Far Cry: Instincts" than springing for this -- you'll be in for a disappointment.

The simple truth is that Juiced is behind the curve. The racing isn't bad, but the game places emphasis on the wrong reward system.

It's solid-looking, but terribly tedious and irritatingly hard at points. In co-op, it's better, but it's a still a long way from being good.

It definitely won't win the war for your Xbox 360 gaming dollar -- especially when the newly released "Dead Rising" does something similar but comes off infinitely fresher.

If games like "Midnight Club" and "Smugglers Run" are your cup of tea, then this way well fit snugly into your PS2 collection.

For fans of the comic, Rogue Trooper is a satisfactory effort, but it's a hard sell for the rest of us. The average gameplay and short length make it good for a weekend rental, but the weak multiplayer and absence of replay value mean it's not worth adding to your permanent collection.

Cerberus doesn't come close to capturing the timeless appeal of FFVII, although if you're desperate for more insight into Vincent's background you'll probably struggle through it.

On the one hand it has a terrific atmosphere and a style that fans of the movie will most likely adore... Yet on the other it is exceedingly frustrating thanks to the lack of an in-mission save feature.

A great concept, brutally funny and accompanied by some beautiful sweeping melodies, but it suffers from some basic technical flaws and dips of interest in gameplay.

As is so often the case in this genre, the minigames miss as many pitches as they hit. We'd actually recommend the Xbox predecessor over this one, if it didn't suffer horrible performance problems when running on the 360.

This take on the Hogwarts crew is purely by the numbers, not at all emblematic of the magic wielded by the characters within.

The enemy AI seems to be a mixture of wunderbar and dumkopf - they frequently rumble you when you're convinced you're well concealed, yet sometimes you can swing a punch at them from one foot away and they totally ignore you.

Whether you're a fan of anime or not - long after you know you've seen all the surprises there are to see, there is still something very cool and rewarding about all that crazy-missile combat.

It's a pity the game is so linear, because the game does look great, atmospherically set in the style of the Thief series, and the character is gloriously evil, thoroughly powerful and malefic.

Gameplay just hasn't changed enough. You feel like you're playing a throwback, or a golden oldie, not a new release.

Sadly, Tenchu on the Xbox has been out-stealthed by "Splinter Cell," and out-ninja'ed by "Gaiden."