If you are looking for a strong single player puzzler or a multiplayer party game—this should definitely be on your short list.

A game that while still fun, is nowhere near the level that it should be. A game this popular and that is this much of a money making machine should not have some of the problems that crop up every single year.

This is one of the most amazing worlds in gaming and the fact that it's brimming with so much action and intrigue makes it that much better.

Mercurysteam had been developing the title before Konami proposed that Lords of Shadow would be the new Castlevania game. It really shows that this is very much their vision of Castlevania without fealty to fan expectations or demands, and I think it absolutely paid off given that the goal was to revitalize and modernize an aging brand.

A gorgeous graphical update and two new characters are more than enough to satiate the appetites of ardent followers; however, there really isn’t much here that significantly sets this fifth installment apart from previous efforts. This, along with the glaring lack of online features, makes Virtua Fighter 5 limited in its appeal.

General Knoxx may suffer some as a result of all of the fiddling, but in the missteps you can see the start of something bigger than what Borderlands was originally intended to be.

THQ has, once again, put together a strong MMA fighting game with the UFC license. UFC 3: Undisputed will, ultimately, please MMA fans. Its attention to detail and inclusion of many likable fighters and big personalities from the sport will draw you in and the hefty fighting system will keep you coming back, despite its flaws.

Red Faction Guerrilla’s unabashed destruction is so much fun that the lengthy load screens gave me an unfamiliar feeling of anxiety. I desperately wanted to move on to the next area and come up with a cool, entertaining way to execute a mission.

The game may not make use of all of the strengths of the Nintendo DS but it makes full use of the ones that really matter, bolstering an already impressive game for a new generation of as well as those who look forward to replaying through a classic staple of the role playing genre.

This is not your father’s shooter, full of brain dead opposition that makes each level a carbon copy of the previous one. F.E.A.R. is a game that will keep you on your toes, keep you guessing, and keep you interested until the final credits roll. That’s worth a lot these days.

Graphically, the game is a masterpiece. It is, without hyperbole, the most gorgeous MMORPG I have ever played. Characters look richly detailed, and the environment seems alive.

An old-school, level-oriented presentation with unrelenting difficulty, making it one of the most refreshing experiences to be had on the DS this holiday season.

General Knoxx may suffer some as a result of all of the fiddling, but in the missteps you can see the start of something bigger than what Borderlands was originally intended to be.

If you are looking for a challenging platformer that will test your gamepad skill to its fullest – Prince of Persia isn’t that game. Still, despite its lack of overt difficulty, this game remains special, and while it didn’t take terribly long to finish, and replay value isn’t too high unless you get obsessed with seed collecting, it was definitely nine to ten hours well spent and is an adventure you should not miss.

It gives you lots of reasons to pick it up again and again, chief among them being the extremely well-realized story and the amazing atmosphere of dread. Silent Hill 3 is a tense, powerful game.

For everything Infamous does well there’s a counter-balance of agitating design decisions.

Even if you’ve never tried Space Invaders before, the title is totally worth it for the sheer bang for your buck factor. When $20 buys you one of the best-updated classic games of all time, you have no reason to complain.

In creating such an enormous experience you'll need to devote a huge swath of your life to it, and yet it does remarkably little to make that moment to moment grind even moderately fresh. This is a must play for fans of Star Wars who want a traditional MMO experience with high production values and a lot of spoken dialogue. If you're looking for an innovative MMO set in the Star Wars universe, you will likely be disappointed.

This is one of the most amazing worlds in gaming and the fact that it's brimming with so much action and intrigue makes it that much better.

The online play and interactive leagues are superb and the thrill of scoring a goal in the 90th minute online was a fist pumping "Heck Yeah!" experience which I haven't felt in a long time playing an online game.

The game delivers a level of destruction that will make grown men giggle like a child and it is this level of interactivity that makes it special.

The multiplayer is as solid the series has seen yet and is capable of carrying the game, but it is disappointing to see the single player campaign waste so much potential.

You spend most of the game with dominant powers treating you as a pawn in their own game, when the reality is that no one can achieve their goals without your intervention. That's fertile ground for an RPG to harvest and New Vegas ultimately succeeds in doing that.

The perfect game to port to the DS. Its addictive qualities will keep you staring at the small screen during your lunch break or while waiting for your flight.

The game is funny. REALLY funny. It makes fun of itself, of typical Japanese RPG conventions, even of Heaven and Hell. Disgaea is the best game of its type to come along in a long while.

It still blows my mind that the most hardcore golfing experience in video games today is found on the console universally decried as being too "kiddie" but that is the stone cold truth.

A tremendously well done game.

I don't mean to say that Crysis 2 isn't competent. It is. It's a perfectly bog-standard, uninspired, derivative, middle-of-the-road, ultimately incomprehensible, attractive enough, buy-it-used-if-you-must shooter that no one will remember by summer.

The minigames are a blast although the replay value probably dies off once you have won the World Tour.

With some new gameplay, a ton of new loot, and lots more choices for character creation and advancement, Hordes of the Underdark is a must buy for fans of the original game.

The game is a lot of fun because it's not as tedious as games like Zoo Tycoon or as inane as raising a puppy on your Nintendo DS. The game strikes a good balance between managing your pets and making a buck and offers lots of fun activities along the way.

Guitar Hero: World Tour is Activision’s answer to Rock Band, and while adding drums, bass, and vocals was necessary to keep up with the Joneses, a whole host of new problems are introduced with their inclusion.

Fighting game fans have been blessed with an embarrassment of riches over the past few years, and SFxT is definitely a top shelf example of the genre.

‘Splosion Man is a game that does things right from beginning to end and even though it may have you cursing up a storm every now and then, it’s a game that you can get a sense of satisfaction from, either playing it for an hour or for five to ten minutes at a time.

Beyond Good & Evil was ahead of its time in 2003, and it fits 2011 like a glove. This is still a great game that's unquestionably deserving of your $10 – especially if you missed it the first time. Admittedly, it's showing its age, but it's less like a disgusting chunk of old cheese and more like a glass of fine wine.

The game delivers on overall superbly realistic racing experience, while still being able to maintain the sheer fun that keeps you going back for more action.

It's sometimes the little details that are thrown in for the fun of it that really bring a game to the top of the stack, showing that those involved weren't just pumping out another game, but actually took the time to give it some personality.

One of the biggest, and most appreciated, changes is the toning down of the training mini-games. In story mode, you hit the bag every great once in a while but you aren't required to lift weights and run laps in twitch-reaction style as you might expect.

Ultimately, for the $20 price D.N.A. isn’t a bad experience at all, and the official website offers several demo options to learn more about the game before splurging, so it’s definitely worth a look for casual gamers on the go.

It’s still an enjoyable experience, but multiplayer is the absolute reason to pick up RE5. It’s the feature that we’ve been wishing for since day one (Outbreak didn’t count), and Capcom delivers a fine show.

Just a very playable version of Tetris on your DS. The additional modes are fun for a little while, but I still found myself drawn back the standard mode that started it all.

With such basic visuals and a story that is heavy on dialogue and light on exploration, Devil Survivor doesn’t strain to appeal to a new audience.

Battlefield 3's multiplayer earns top marks because it is almost exactly what any fan of that series would want-a new edition of a classic game that brings forward its best assets while introducing meaningful new elements. If the single player game were at least competent, this would easily be a no-brainer solid "A" game and one that I would recommend to any shooter fan.

No matter how you slice it, though, UFC Undisputed 2010 is another blissful, brilliant recreation of the sport.

This is one of those games that creates gamers and is easily one of the best Wii games to date.

Control is dead on accurate, but for those FPS junkies, you'll need to get used to yet another slightly different set-up.

It oozes style and has enough heart n' soul to clearly illustrate how much the developers really loved their baby.

Outland is an outstanding game, easily one of the best examples of its genre to emerge on the console download services. I think it's a far better, more dynamic game than something more single-minded style-over-substance games such as Limbo or Braid.

Despite a few frustrations, this is a fantastic basketball game with enough variety to keep each game fresh and enough replay value to keep it in the rotation for many months to come.

It should be an instant classic, but the bugs and design oversights keep it from reaching its lofty potential.

Even with its repetitiveness and awkward camera angles, Devil May Cry 4 provides a solid addition to the series and even towards the end, with its descent into a puddle of annoyance, the game features some exceptional gameplay and cinematics.

The control of the Hulk is a love/hate relationship.

Ultimately, if you like Metallica (a lot), and if you like the standard Guitar Hero gameplay formula, then this game is well worth the price of admission. If you don’t meet both those criteria, however, you really should move on.

In a way, Desperate Struggle is the definitive example of a gamer's game – a work of self-gratifying passion that is absolutely engorged with style and intensity.

If you want a deep strategy game, this is certainly not what you want to play. Spore is more diversion than obsession.

There are reasons to choose this game over others in the field-namely the heavier-feeling physics, the visual design, and more thoughtful multiplayer options, but I question if it has a distinct enough identity to hold its own without reference or comparison to other titles.

It's as immediately accessible and likeable as Costume Quest, and even more rewarding towards diligent players who aren't satisfied with simply finding easy solutions.

What makes this game interesting is the speed of play and the sheer, as mentioned before, chaos of it all.

The game is just plain unapproachable to the average gamer... Is it possible that whoever play-balanced Devil May Cry 3 is a bitter person who loathes humanity and is working actively for the death of joy in the world?

Gameplay is the perfect mix of adventure staples and brain twisting puzzle devilry. Professor Layton's world is one you are happy to spend time in and hesitant to leave.

If you can handle the C Button syndrome while mid-air, you'll be winning championships like you were the Hawk himself.

Just Cause 2 combines over the top action, a cheesy plot and voice acting, and an open sandbox world in all the right ways.

Fighting fit and ready to rip off your head, it's definitely the best Mortal Kombat game released to date.

The pacing is accelerated in comparison to the original game.

Even with its repetitiveness and awkward camera angles, Devil May Cry 4 provides a solid addition to the series and even towards the end, with its descent into a puddle of annoyance, the game features some exceptional gameplay and cinematics.

The game isn’t flawless, but it is solid where it counts and does drive the series forward if only by a small margin.

Incredibly addictive and loads of fun...Sadly, the game only takes a few hours to beat on easy, and is ridiculously hard on the higher difficulty setting.

Just about everything in the Hulk can be destroyed and just about everything you can find can be used as a weapon.

Split Second's longevity isn't in its innumerable tracks. It's in finding new ways to better yourself in its smaller set of them.

DJ Hero will only give you a glimpse into the realities of mixing and scratching, with some of the coolest mash-ups I’ve ever heard to entertain along the way.

This is yet another Reynolds strategy game that aims to please the hardcore gamer while being accessible enough for new players to learn the ropes if they are willing to put the time in thanks to the amazingly intuitive interface and striking game balance.

Bulletstorm is violence distilled into a bombshell of unbridled mayhem that tries to be so over the top and brutal that it often struggles to live up to its own posturing.

The game has a 100 percent pure Tony Hawk pedigree. For gamers looking for more innovative experiences for their innovative little system, it probably should be a rental-before-purchase situation.

Unless you're the evil kind of person who eats kittens and hates candy, I don't think you'll get anything but satisfaction out of Ace Combat 5.

What EA has done here is reinvent a bloated franchise, and turned it into a product that the hardcore and the more casual among us can enjoy equally.

Volition has done an excellent job of giving you a place to play and toys to play with, so grab a partner, an SMG, and start making your own stories.

As a pure driving game with neat car collecting and modifying elements, it's simply amazing and the level of passion for the subject on display makes calling it "cold" or "sterile" almost laughable- Forza Motorport 3 is much drier and far less human.

The game isn’t flawless, but it is solid where it counts and does drive the series forward if only by a small margin.

One of the best games this year for the PSP and one of the only solid RPG experiences out there right now.

Packed with so much stuff to see and kill, Borderlands offers plenty of things to aim your spiffy new weapons at, all the while providing one of the best co-op experiences of the year.

As much as I want Team Madden to tighten the screws on its franchise modes and ship the game in a state that plays more like real football before altering in-game settings, it's impossible to deny that Madden NFL 11 simply plays a better game of football than its predecessor.

This doesn't feel like a knock-off Lord of the Rings game, rather it comes off as a true labor of love from designers that have a very good understanding of the material from which they are working and the finished product is much better because of it.

With the inclusion of a fully accessible level editing utility included with the game, as well as the capacity to accept third party modifications, Battlefield Vietnam is probably going to make as big an impact as "Battlefield 1942" did.

All in all, with a price of $29.99, Ghost Recon 2: Summit Strike has a few flaws and annoyances that can be over looked for the punch it packs.

A worthwhile download for any role-playing fan and an absolute must have for Guild Wars fans.

Disgaea 2 is ultimately about the characters you create, the battles you fight, the equipment you improve, and the party you level up and kit out. Like many of the best games -- Civilization, X-Com, Diablo, Pirates -- Disgaea 2 is about the story you create in the playing.

The enormous, epic battles, the variety of classes, weapons, upgrades and the stacking mission objectives for each map will have you enjoying the game for quite a long while.

Sure the game can be difficult at times, and some players might not like the way you have to navigate the world, but if you can look past that you'll find a unique storyline and some pretty engaging gameplay mechanics that are worth the price of admission.

In the end the company has created an excellent game with good graphics, great controls that you can change, and one that runs smoothly even with 32 people playing at once. Warhawk is truly a benchmark for the PS3 and easily one of the best games in its lineup.

There are a few niggling problems and annoyances on and off the field that keep the game from being picture perfect, but by and large, MLB The Show 08 for the PS2 offers a very realistic and entertaining brand of baseball.

Once beaten, there is little cause for repeat playthroughs, but the initial experience is so captivating that this hardly matters. Too many people missed out on the first game, and I hope that they don't make the same mistake twice. Trine 2 is easily one of the year's most enchanting puzzle-platformers.

This is easily the most satisfying and wildly entertaining one-on-one brawler I’ve played on a console.

While Rift still has some things to iron out in terms of balance, bugs and lag, that's par for the course for any new MMO and since launch, the Rift team has been actively talking to the community and addressing their concerns. Although many of the quests could use a heavier dose of originality, the game as a whole offers a large amount of interest and fun; so much in fact, it just might lure more than a few players away from that other MMO.

One of the best dungeon romps I've played this year. The scale of the adventure may not be epic but the overall package is pure unadulterated addiction. If you like role-playing games then you'll love FATE.

Even if you played the original version on the DS, it's well worth it to jump back into the game via the HD version. Every unit and background is now hand drawn and units have excellent attack animations, complete with some fantastic audio.

If Child of Eden suffers from one significant drawback it's the length of its campaign. For serious players looking to rush through, it's possible to finish all of the stages within a few short hours. Finishing stages does unlock new visual filters and opportunities to mess with samples in-game, but if you're looking for 8+ hours of genuinely fresh content you will be disappointed.

Prepare to get addicted all over again.

While I am enjoying Road to Rome, I've a feeling that it will only live from now until the time Secret Weapons is released.

Delivers on the promise of offering a modern day tactical game that is totally different from the average title, yet is incredibly easy to pick up and play. My grievances focus around the slightly linear mission design, occasionally idiotic AI (both enemy and friendly, though more so the former), and a short campaign, but everything else the game offers left me with an excellent experience that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Lapses like the holds in pit-lane, the AI nuisances, and lousy rules enforcement prevent this game from reaching its full potential.

Despite a non-existent story and poor characterization, Vanquish manages to breathe life into an otherwise stagnating genre.

Are there enough improvements to warrant a purchase of 09 if you have 08? That’s hard for me to say. The dynamic ratings are fantastic, but with a majority of the courses being identical and the gameplay being almost identical it’s a tough sale.

Sadly, the bugs I encountered during the game (especially with the way the graphics engine started chugging so severely in the later levels) really hurt my experience, and the action just eventually ended up being reduced to using the same strategy over and over again.

The time you spend earning it is well worth it, not just because it makes your hero stronger but also because of the additive fun you have along the way. Despite the torturous AI, Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is easily one of the most original games to hit the PlayStation Portable.

This is, for all intents and purposes the same game that was released for the DC over a year ago. It was great then, it's still great now.

Spy Hunter has left me stunned, proving itself to be one of the most fun and addictive games to hit the PS2.

In releasing this DLC, Gearbox and 2K have done what seems to be so difficult for other studios: drop a well designed, value laden expansion pack in a timely manner.

It has been a while since I've had so much pure joy while playing a game.

What makes this game interesting is the speed of play and the sheer, as mentioned before, chaos of it all.

The single player is a complete waste despite the hefty amount of content put into it. If you're going to enjoy Kid Icarus: Uprising, it's because you can stand the awful controls and really badly want something to play online. If you're considering the game for any other reason than that, I highly recommend catching the next updraft and tossing it into the sun.

Just like "Sly 2," Sly 3 controls like a dream. In very short order any gamer of moderate skill will have Sly and the gang traveling quickly about the levels and running roughshod over the bad guys with the very tight and responsive controls.

Certainly, a game with well-developed characters, intriguing storyline, and entertaining play is not one that should be passed over too lightly, nor forgotten too easily.

Bugs and roster issues aside, for $20 this is a no-brainer for hockey fans – it's one of the best, if not the best, hockey games of all time and no fan of the sport should miss it.

A success due to a number of reasons including an inspired artistic style that is simple but strikingly beautiful, characters that are both eccentric and charming, and a catchy soundtrack that you won't get out of your head.

Yes, we can still dream of online leagues and a real franchise mode, but what we have here is very impressive, and gives you thanks that there’s no exclusive license in baseball.

A truly satisfying adult game on the Wii—which is a true rarity. This game may not be everyone’s cup of tea with the violence, language and mature subject matter that hits you from everywhere, but despite the rated R subject matter, there is no denying that this is one of the best games available on the system.

All in all, ODST is a solid addition to the Halo franchise.

When I was done, I was disappointed that I couldn't start it up all over again as like any adventure game, there's no real replayability here, but ultimately I was glad that I got to spend time with these characters and set up endings for them that allowed them to be as happy as they had made me.

A sleeper hit.

A must-own baseball game. The price is a bargain ($39 for Wii) and you could be playing this game alone all the way to next opening day.

DiRT is a great game to show off your Xbox 360’s graphical capabilities and is a fun and addictive racing game with a high amount of replay value.

Even with no multiplayer, Hulk: Ultimate Destruction is a game that is well worth the time.

Undeniably charming. Technically, it's not the best role-playing game on the market but it is loaded so much personality that its problems melt away underneath a blanket of just plain fun.

It’s still an enjoyable experience, but multiplayer is the absolute reason to pick up RE5. It’s the feature that we’ve been wishing for since day one (Outbreak didn’t count), and Capcom delivers a fine show.

Pay attention folks, THIS is how you make a "Special Edition."

The single most brilliant, most thorough, most customizable baseball management game in existence.

What EA has done here is reinvent a bloated franchise, and turned it into a product that the hardcore and the more casual among us can enjoy equally.

The Xbox 360 makes NFS: MW an even better game and it should absolutely, positively be one of your first titles with the console.

This is a must buy for fans of the original Bangai-O, Treasure addicts looking for an excellent, sustained fix, and old-school shooter fans of all breeds.

Surely, if you already have a version of the game, two or three new boards won’t sway you into a re-purchase, but this is the definitive classic pinball sim on consoles.

It may feel a bit different from the Final Fantasy you're used to, but Final Fantasy XIII deserves the chance to branch out and develop on its own.

In the end what you have is gameplay that is as good as it has ever been – not perfect and still with some frustrations but clearly NCAA 10 is the most respectable version of this series to date.

But what really blew me away was the inclusion of a cool and intuitive (if limited) map editor and the online facilities for players to trade their works of art amongst one-another easily and efficiently.

Packed with so much stuff to see and kill, Borderlands offers plenty of things to aim your spiffy new weapons at, all the while providing one of the best co-op experiences of the year.

Crackdown does everything right and doesn't let the narrative (which assails you at every turn) get in the way of the fun - and there's plenty of fun to be had.

A brilliantly crafted work art in almost every respect. It just never became fun for me. It always seemed like I was supposed to be working for something, but I never figured out what that this was.

This is easily the most satisfying and wildly entertaining one-on-one brawler I’ve played on a console.

The Lost Chapters looks as good as the original game, which still can hold its own against any other game released on Microsoft's game system.

What you are left with is a great 2-player game, a lot of features that the well established fan base most likely won’t care about (even though Backtrack and Rewind are both pretty good ideas), a half-baked online league system, and gameplay that is at times highly polished and entertaining yet also plagued by AI issues.

Let’s just say that the game looks great by PlayStation 2 standards. Double plays really feel like double plays – diving for grounders and the physics of the ball are amazing.

“Easy to pick up but hard to put down” has become a trite phrase but it fits Picross DS perfectly. It’s hard to believe that such a fun and puzzle packed game only costs 20 bucks, especially when many “next gen” games clock in at three times the price with barely as much content.

The jewel of the EA Sports lineup.

It is utterly breath taking at times. Anime and video game fanatics unite! The start of a truly excellent series is here!

If you're a fan of mindless violence and are willing to be satisfied just pulling a trigger on some very neat technology, Resistance 3 could tickle your fancy. With stunning visuals that once again push the Playstation 3 to its edge, there's plenty to be satisfied if you're looking for a Bruckheimer-esque production. Walk in looking for anything else though and you'll find a six to seven hour campaign that fails to spark anything more than basal satisfaction throughout.

Picross 3D is that kind of game, the kind that burrows itself into your mind, puts down hooks and never, ever leaves.

This game is just a blast to play – it's too bad there's no 2-player or cooperative mode via a link, but it's easily the best Game Boy Advance game I've played in quite some time.

A solid, predictable, and competent game. It's not a revolutionary step by any means, but the gameplay tweaks are for the most part meaningful additions.

Like the very best puzzle games, this one gets in your head and refuses to leave.

The main elements that work against it are the length, the somewhat generic and stale pacing towards the middle-point of the campaign, and the fact that the portal system really wasn’t pushed as far as possible.

Darksiders has set 2010 off to a running start. With gory hack-and-slash action, challenging dungeon puzzles, an intriguing (albeit sometimes annoying) guardian demon, gorgeous scenery and a story that begins with killing mankind, you get a little bit of everything.

Quibbles aside, MLB 08 The Show packs quite a bit into this smaller platform and it makes a great companion to the console counterpart and is easily the best handheld baseball game on the market.

The game offers a cool setting, interesting characters, a great combat and skill system, and lots of extracurricular activities, providing countless hours of RPG fun.

As a campaign inFamous 2 is a sub-par experience, but it makes up for that disappointment plenty with a rich and enjoyable sandbox. It's still recommended that you play through the story for context, but this is a game enjoyed most when you color outside the lines. The flaws in this game would kill any other, but the sense of freedom and strength that come with playing Cole MacGrath outweigh any complaints making this a more than competent experience for anyone looking for a power trip.

And while it is clearly geared for a younger crowd, it nonetheless shows off well the DS experience – something that no other system currently has a prayer of duplicating.

It’s gorgeous, fun, and is easily one of the very best racing games available for the console.

The game’s story mode is relatively easy – you can finish it in less than a full afternoon, but the fun doesn’t end there. The replay value is through the roof as every game you play will be different and always enjoyable.

You may not have heard of it, but you owe it to yourself to play this game.

No other title has ever gone so far in attempting to capture a realistic feel to mech combat, and Capcom would deserve acclaim for the attempt alone, even if it were not so well executed.

You'll be grinding your teeth every few minutes as you realize the difficulty that Acclaim has sunk into this thing. It's one of those racers where you need to be pretty much perfect each time, as well as constantly upgrading your vehicle.

Despite the story in this outing leaving me lukewarm, I'm still interested in seeing where the story takes Layton, Luke and Emmy. Level 5 has done such a great job making the characters so delightful to hang out with, that even a subpar addition by Layton standards still makes for a good puzzle game.

And while it is clearly geared for a younger crowd, it nonetheless shows off well the DS experience – something that no other system currently has a prayer of duplicating.

Games that are this good out of the box are relatively rare. Add in the fact that the game can be found for $20 and it's a absolute steal. Race '07 is a exemplary game that will provide many hours of racing bliss at a superb price.

It’s unfair to criticize the game too much for being just a Souped Up World Cup version of FIFA 10. It’s really more than that. Yes, you can make the argument that dropping 120 bucks for two similar soccer games in a six month stretch is asking a tad much, but when the actual World Cup starts play in June and you want to get in on the act you’re going to want a copy of this game—and EA Sports knows it.

It’s a shame that Dragon Sword is such an uneven game.

For what could have been just another jump in a sea of platformers, this game stands out because it has personality. Don't miss this one.

Patient newcomers will likely have a good time, warts and all, but if you already have the Xbox 360 version Sigma 2 doesn’t really add enough to the experience to warrant a second purchase.

Another lesson in how to take a franchise in different direction entirely - and with great effect in this particular case.

The game is a lot of fun, even if the challenge level is out of this world. If you’ve been around for all 20 years of Contra, this is a must purchase.

F1 2001 has superb graphics, great sound and unbeatable realism. There's not much more you can ask for in a racing game period.

With the lack of Xbox Live support, the limited split screen multiplayer modes, 2 player co-op, Scramble, Race and Arena are not quite as interesting as the Multiplayer should have been but the single player aspect more than makes up for it.

And Yet it Moves provides an adventure that is both challenging and relaxing in equal measure and shows that complicated controls and crazy move sets aren't needed to give players a compelling platforming experience.

The graphical updates, online play and extra modes from the original release more than make up for the $10 price.

Between the medals, the tasks, the mini-games and the levels themselves, there's more than ten Kirby's worth of content here, all wrapped up in the charming and creative wrapper that the Kirby franchise become known for. Kirby may never reach the same level of gaming fame as some of Nintendo's other properties, but if the pink puffball's status as a second tier character allows him to show up in such innovative, out there titles, I'm all for him staying out of the spotlight.

While the dark spooky woods environment can get a little tedious - as can the combat, the story telling is compelling enough to keep you moving forward and just when you finally think you know what is going on, the game will turn it upside down, flip you the bird, and have you rethinking everything all over again - right up until the credits roll.

This is a heavy metal fairy tale, spun with love and copious amounts of good humor from Shafer and crew – and it’s every ounce the game fans hoped it would be.

Marvel Ultimate Alliance does what few do – it actually improves on the two original games and adds something new to the series.

If you've already played Disgaea 2 and abused the Magichange system of Disgaea 3 for all it's worth, the handful of bonus content is probably not enough to do it all over again. However, if you haven't sunk 200 hours into your elite team of Prinnies, or won’t dry heave at the thought of another geo panel puzzle, Disgaea 2 is probably the perfect portable SRPG.

Battlefield: Bad Company provides some fantastic gameplay on and offline and features some of the best audio of any game in recent memory.

Nothing gets the gamer closer to experiencing the epic battles of Star Wars than this game.

The new Colonization walks the fine line between mod, expansion and remake.

Although a little player control is sacrificed, the amount of influence you have directly on your team’s positioning and the movement of the ball more than make up for it.

And while it is clearly geared for a younger crowd, it nonetheless shows off well the DS experience – something that no other system currently has a prayer of duplicating.

But as a single player game, there’s nothing quite like Europa Universalis III. Not even Europa Universalis II offers this much replayable wide-open history.

The music selection kicks ass. No Doubt, Powerman 5000, Orbital, Crystal Method, and more. The sound effects also kick much but. Control is dead on.

A complete joy to play and one of the best baseball games I’ve played in quite some time.

The episode is brimming with pop culture references that range from The Color Purple, Se7en, The Shining, and even Samuel Adams beer.

Superb graphics, great sound and unbeatable realism. There's not much more you can ask for in a racing game period.

Replay value is enormous, the game is a blast to play even though the main story mode is over relatively quick.

While some players may ultimately find the combat and inventory limitations to be more than they can bear, Odin Sphere deserves much credit for its artfully elegant approach to a genre that is too frequently weighed down by yawn-inducing cases of déjà vu.

This is a winning formula, backed with truly inspired writing and art direction. I'd be happy to come back any day, no matter the occasion.

Every DS gamer should give it a whirl, regardless of their design ambition, even if just to get a sense of what wacky creativity lies in the minds of their fellow gamers.

One of the best game collections i've had the pleasure of playing this year. It deserves high marks for offering a wide variety of game titles and some pretty hefty game titles that fans of the 16-bit era will appreciate.

Fans of the original games and new comers to the series alike will all take to this new outing and know why Lara was and always will be gaming goddess she is.

The multiplayer is disappointing due to the sloppy netcode, making the game primarily a single player or co-op campaign experience (two players only this time, though.) However, the solid gameplay mechanics and control scheme backed by impressive visuals and audio make the campaign game shine and is one of the best tactical shooters in recent memory.

This is one of the first N64 racers where you can actually see down the road a bit. No turns or mountains pop up from nonexistence to halt your speed. The framerate is very smooth and consistent throughout the courses, regardless of how much is going on in the race. Now that's something!

Once you get a continuous game going to the point you are bored with it, there isn’t much incentive to being a new continuous game, even on a higher difficulty level. It will take you tens of hours to see all the content available to you, and once you do there’s not a lot of reason to go back and see it again.

A fun and engaging game of golf.

It is an easy game to hop into and play, so people of all ages can join in.

Speaking for myself, I'd rather play through Cave Story again five times than have a second run through the tedious and dated Ocarina of Time, and discovering this game's unique world in a new 3D format has been surprisingly rewarding. It may very well be the 3DS' best game to date.

Fans won’t find much of anything substantially new to digest, so think of Extraction as a fast, psychedelic trip down memory lane with a lot more firepower.

It's also an important game for the 3DS in particular because it demonstrates the viability of a hardcore-oriented franchise as well as how powerful the 3D effect can be in creating a game environment.

Are there enough improvements to warrant a purchase of 09 if you have 08? That’s hard for me to say. The dynamic ratings are fantastic, but with a majority of the courses being identical and the gameplay being almost identical it’s a tough sale.

It’s unfair to criticize the game too much for being just a Souped Up World Cup version of FIFA 10. It’s really more than that. Yes, you can make the argument that dropping 120 bucks for two similar soccer games in a six month stretch is asking a tad much, but when the actual World Cup starts play in June and you want to get in on the act you’re going to want a copy of this game—and EA Sports knows it.

A very good simulator for naval combat that includes realistic ships, aircraft, mission types and mission areas. This is a great naval experience whether you have legs born of years at sea or if you are just looking to get your feet wet (that pun was intended).

PopCap has done what modern science can't, made an insanely cheap time machine, capable of transporting you hours into the future with every match of a gem.

Stellar tuning options are perfect for diehard racing fans and, assuming you're playing online, the integration of Autolog makes this one of the most competitive racing games on the market. Even so, peculiar choices in presentation and very questionable actions on behalf of the A.I. make Shift 2: Unleashed an alternative to other simulators, rather than a replacement.