I still believe that there'll be a faction of pansy gamers, weaned on infinite continues, save points and GameSharks, that bitch and moan about how hard the game is and fail to appreciate it as a result. That's lame, really, because even if Nightshade doesn't do enough to fix everything that was wrong with Shinobi, it's still easily one of the top action titles on PS2.

An enjoyable, if heavily formulaic, RPG to get the PSP life cycle kicked off.

Occasional jankiness is made up for by a ridiculously low price and copious shooter goodness.

A better word for the new story might be laughable. I understand the rationale behind the change, but the ending is ridiculous. Thankfully the book’s ending is included, so you can see what really should have happened.

More of the same for the franchise - a solid game, with an inspired (if a bit overdone) presentation.

If you keep in mind that this is aimed at a younger audience, even an older gamer, particularly a parent sharing the experience with a child, can find a lot to enjoy.

Give it a rent if you're interested, but I'd recommend just renting an old "Ridge Racer" and having a blast with the past--or get another new, better racing game.

Definitely worth a look for fans of the series and newcomers alike, but there are better choices out there.

This is simply too flawed a title to recommend for purchase, especially in light of the competition, but it's a fantastic guilty pleasure.

It's an awkward position to be in for a game that's not bad - just not as good as it could have been.

The sequel raises the bar in the amount of things included, but the awkward use of Dragon Worlds and the Story Mode, not to mention the choppy and average fighting engine, makes this game a fan-only affair.

Since there's no way to rent PC games, most will want to pass on this and just buy an RC car instead. Good try, but next time, less physics and more fun.

Capcom may be good at 2D fighters, but when going to 3D, controls matter all the more.

"NHL 2004" and "ESPN NHL Hockey" are still the cream of the crop, but don't be surprised to see NHL Rivals join them in another year or three.

Cooperative multiplayer and the basic gunplay thrills don't quite make up for bad control and ugly graphics.

I really wanted to like Oogie’s Revenge more than I did. The Soul Robber was fun to use, and the game did a great job of recreating Tim Burton’s vision. However, the constant backtracking, poor camera, and repetition make it hard to justify anything more than a rental.

A soulless cash-in. Every aspect of the game seems hostile to anyone intending to actually play the game. The story is mediocre, the interface is obtuse, the combat is oversimplified and there's little to do or find.

Apes the best parts of "Dark Alliance" without much innovation.

It's got all the bad hair and pretty boys, but none of the fighting soul.

Some very interesting ideas are buried under a tide of sloppy coding and bad game design.

Ironically, Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu has more extras than many superior games. This title is absolutely stacked; it’s just a shame you won’t want to play for as long as the game could theoretically last.

Hopefully if Climax releases another PSP version, they work the kinks out, because this one needs some polish.

If you liked the previous games in the franchise, leap on this one. All others, approach with caution.

Even a little sprucing up on the presentation front doesn’t change the insurmountable gameplay problems that make their NBA 06 particularly sour.

The game brought nothing really useful to PlanetSide, and all of the issues that needed to be dealt with were not. SOE continues to willingly avoid those issues...One of the poorest choices on the gaming market to buy.

Despite the small cracks in just about every gameplay function of the game, Gangland still manages to be addictive fun.

Perhaps the biggest change is the smooth, clear graphics.

Right now it’s average in quality, and what should be amusing feels like a chore. It’s hard to make dragons unexciting, but somehow Drakengard manages to do it.

Despite the technical limitations, SimCity 2000 remains an enjoyable, challenging way to pass the time. It isn't the direct conversion I'd hoped for, but for twenty bucks, it's plenty sufficient to the task.

This would be an OK title worthy of rental (if such a thing were possible for PC), but Warcraft III still blows the game away. Get that instead.

Everything seems like it was created four years ago, shelved and brought out on a rainy day when a semi-popular license could be bended around it.

A game that, while it can’t compete with the hockey titles available for the PSP’s big brother, still has a solid look and feel to it, despite the gaping hole left by the lack of commentary.

While I would have liked to try the multiplayer, the sparsely populated servers listed didn’t give me much incentive to try a five-disk installation for a third time.

The value is placed in the sale price, not in the replay, and after two hours you’ll most likely be done with everything.

Taken as just another game, rather than as a part of the larger Bond iconography, it's really a fairly enjoyable time. Rogue Agent doesn't go on the "best ever" list the way "Everything or Nothing" did, but there are worse ways to pass a Saturday afternoon.

Even if the jumping weren't horribly floaty and disastrous, the gameplay would still be generic at best.

While this game makes "RedCard 2003" look like... I can't even think of a non-offensive comparison... it still hasn't gone quite far enough.

The thing is, the hooks just don't sink that deeply. It's a nice time waster, when I have time that needs wasting, and it's certainly worth packing along for those transoceanic plane flights or interminable car trips through, say, rural Kansas, but Frantix ain't making the trip to a desert island, if you catch my drift.

A pretty straightforward arcade street racing game that could have been much more with a bit more attention to customization and the inclusion online multiplayer.

Of course, the real nail in the gameplay coffin arrives with something I’m sure every gamer fears: boredom. Zapper just isn’t interesting to play, and rarely makes attempts to make gamers smile.

With lackluster sound, generic, objective-based (and painfully straightforward) gameplay, and graphics being the only saving grace (and only half the time at that), it’s difficult to recommend Shellshock as anything more than a rental for fans of the genre.

This is not intentioned as damning with faint praise but the fact that the mini-games are the most fun part of the gameplay does say something.

It's a tactical, team-based online shooter that isn't very tactical, is only technically team-based, and has broken netcode. What do you think?

Absolutely unacceptable. MMX7 not only fails to be fun, but barely works right.

The license alone saves the effort from mediocrity.

The most depressing thing about Black Monday is that parts of inspiration or beauty occasionally shine in the abyss of missed potential. This game is alright, but aspires—rightfully so—for much more, and misses the mark.

Showdown isn't a terrible wrestling game, but it isn't a very good one, either. It's an improvement, though, so if using the stars of your youth is a draw, this one is worth a rental.

The wasted potential here is like a swift kick to the face. Still, it's worth a play if you live by the gospel of QCF + P.

Originality is what Full Metal Alchemist and the Broken Angel, in the end, is lacking. The transmutation is mildly creative, but it's not going to sustain a been-there-done-that story or utterly mindless, thoughtless brawling.

Spawn lovers finally have a videogame they don't have to hide in shame, and those not initially interested in the comic will still find an addictive action title at Armageddon's core.

It's very rare when a title comes along that needs a STAY AWAY warning. Gotcha Force is that title.

It's a very crippled and undesirable game, but not so bad as to make it completely without merit. In fact, my friends still enjoy playing it even after we've suffered through all its slings and arrows.

Blade and Sword tries hard to be a classically-designed action RPG, but doesn’t seem to realize such a product comes years too late.

The vestiges of goodwill created by 187: Ride or Die's gameplay initially might have the game growing on you... but the terribly forced gangsta dialogue of the game fixes that nagging issue extremely quickly.

If you have a PS2, get that version. If you've got a PSX, and you absolutely must have baseball, rest assured that you can buy (or at least rent) this and have a reasonably good time.

If you do need a proper fix, just buy the movie and watch that instead, or rent another game. The wartime epic Dynasty Warriors 4 and ninja title Shinobi both make excellent candidates for replacing Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon on your ‘must play’ list.

If the game focused more on the highway racing, and improved the track selection, everybody would be better off. However, as it stands now Ride or Die is a game that provides more lasting enjoyment as a scratching simulator than as a racing game.

True fans of the AND 1 Mixtape Tour may be able to look beyond the many flaws of the actual basketball in this game because the presentation offers a dream come true.

Monster 4x4 is as wild as the trucks featured in the game; a real sense of control over your fate in the race is never established, since a wrong move can get you stuck thanks to some poor planning, and getting good turns and boosts seems more like luck than anything else.

It's a sad world when "budget gaming" is synonymous with "poke your eye out with a dull stick."

If Gamenikki scored games with singers instead of numbers, Get On Da Mic would be Milli Vanilli.

Unfortunately, while brevity is the soul of wit, even at $29.99, it's hard to recommend a purchase of a game that can be beaten in a rental, and offers nothing beyond that in the way of replay value.

The Guy Game doesn't shoot high with its premise: a trivia game as a vehicle for softcore porn. Little things sour this deal, like the fixed order of questions, the annoying announcer, the moron asking the women the questions, and the lack of anything interesting to unlock, but these are nothing compared to the core problems: the softcore porn is exceedingly difficult to unlock and the trivia game is godawful.

When you're trying to sell a game to a non-hardcore crowd, don't make it frustratingly hard for no reason.

Let me be honest here. I am currently watching an infomercial for Jack Lalame's juicer, which features his 80+ year old companion demonstrating that you can get juice from an unpeeled cantaloupe wedge. I am also feeling approximately the same level of excitement as when I played 4x4. This is just a boring game.

Once you've customized your car to the max, there's nothing else to do except change its color; you can't even earn new cars to customize or anything, as you're stuck with only the one car.

Like "NBA ShootOut" this year, the defensive AI is such that before you take your shot, you can simply run around until your defender gets stuck on other bodies, and then try throwing down a dunk or three until you score.

When blood effects are one of the chief highlights of a game, you know there may be something wrong. Not even the multiplayer, which suffers from the same issues of control and additional problems of slowdown, can save this sinking ship.

The recipient of the "Coaster of the Year" award. Beer steins everywhere are smiling.

The entire Ki Blast process is made meaningless, because regular fighting moves do more damage, specifically throws.

All the laws of the universe are invalid. Flight of the Falcon is a Star Wars title with horrible sound. The standard TIE Fighter howls and laser blasts are all acceptable, but the theme music obliterates any good from those. The problem starts from the beginning, with an atrocious MIDI version of the Star Wars fanfare, and only goes downhill.

To put it simply, it's nearly impossible to enjoy Bad Boys: Miami Takedown without being completely naive. The presentation, game play, and voice acting are all about 10 years behind, it's a sad state of affairs.