It looks like the PlayStation 2 editions. It plays like the PlayStation 2 editions. And considering that the PSP is, well, portable, that's a pretty impressive feat.

But at the same time, the handheld title's similarities to the PlayStation 2 editions create some problems, especially for series veterans. While it's nice to have God of War on the go, it's hard to shake the feeling that you've played it all before. Keep reading...

When you think about it, there's something vaguely sinister about a game like Patapon; a game in which you, as god of a humble people, lead your followers on a crusade back to their stolen homeland. Your people are small, spherical imps, and instead of whispering dogma into the ears of the mad, you simply pound your drums. But beneath this bizarre tableau of tribal warfare, rhythm and action lies one of the most compelling, addictive games released on the PSP to date. Read more..

I'm going to knock this game around a bit, but it will be a fatherly sort of beating, tough love with well-meaning intentions underneath the gruff, abusive exterior. Because I really do love Sins. It's a well-rounded, mostly-polished hardcore space strategy game for the PC. How often do you see that on a store shelf anymore? If the concept at all piques your interest, you will likely not regret a buy.
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In other words, it's pretty much everything you'd want in an action game. That's not to say Devil May Cry 4 is perfect--it certainly has its flaws--but it is fun, it is enjoyable, and it is one of the best action titles currently available on either PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360.
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It is an ambitious step forward for the series, one that ends up having both advantages and drawbacks. Read about both in my full review.

What is less great is crashing into a wall a matter of seconds before the end of a race, then not being able to retry the race without driving all the way back across the city to its starting point. Paradise City is quite large, which is one of the game's marketing bullet points but also has the side effect of making it a big pain in the ass to easily get to where you want to go. In the quest to eliminate loading times, Criterion has removed any kind of fast travel or shortcut system--if you want to get somewhere, you have to drive there. I applaud their principle, but am nonetheless frustrated often. Read more...

Draglade is a rather competent 2D brawler at heart, and the story mode provides a nice mix of character customization, one-on-one duels, and sidescrolling beat' em up segments. There's support for local wireless co-op, just in case someone in your immediate vicinity happens to have a DS and a copy of the game. You can even hop online and fight against other players.

It is not, as the back of the box suggests, a rhythm-based fighting game.
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Continues are precious in this game because, thanks to the IR-based aiming and lack of a reticule, regardless of how well you know a particular encounter, you are almost guaranteed to lose lives when you pop out of cover, see an axe hurling at your face, and lack the ability to sharpshoot it out of the air because the absence of a reticule means you haven't gotten your bearings yet.

There are certain fights that demand countless attempts, as the massacre of all the enemies in an area triggers another wave or two. There is very little satisfaction in carefully picking off ten heavily-armed pirates only to fall victim to the grenade-launching bastard that rushes in, and my curse-laden exclamations and the frustration I felt at such points were identical to those I experienced during Gears of War.
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But right from the opening scenes, Mass Effect quickly distinguishes itself as a wholly new experience. Simply put, a video game has never been this cinematically engaging. Just gazing at a simple grain-filtered shot of a planet--complete with lens-flared sunlight, Star Warsian framing, and a disparate synth-heavy sci-fi score by Richard Jacques--can be an exciting moment. Even the most insignificant environment or character is rendered and shot in a compelling light--or shadow, as the case may be. Rarely does the polish fade. From back to front, Mass Effect is one of the first games to truly approach an actual cinematic quality. Read more...

But enough about the pain side of this masochistic endeavor. What about the pleasure? If you're the type of hard-bitten gamer who has read this review thus far and, rather than being scared away, has responded by growling "Fuck yeah" through clenched teeth while a demented gleam sparkles in your eye, you know the sense of achievement that comes with conquering a game like this.

This is the kind of achievement born of an earlier age--the kind of achievement that distinguishes you as a certified gaming badass, not the kind of achievement that says you collected a hundred dolls and gives you fifty points on the internet. Read more...

The game continues to stay utterly fresh, surprising, and inventive despite its fundamentals becoming expected. In another game, such a masterful grasp on this kind of platforming that is so in tune with both its roots and with the cutting edge would be plenty, but on top of that Galaxy keeps throwing more and more at you with every level.
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The game's chapters are broken up into scenes like a movie, with each segment labeled after choice tidbits of talk between the two. With titles like "Stealing your own shit" and "The old fucker took it," you can imagine what the fuck-filled dialogue is like...

Once, I was holed up in a small wooden HQ building, sitting in the window and alternating picking off enemies--scanning while cloacked, squeezing off a headshot, then ducking out of sight while my shield recharged, feeling very pleased with my stealthy self. I swear to you, when an enemy grenade rolled up and blew away half the building, leaving me exposed to a group of now very pissed off North Koreans, I nearly shit my pants out of sheer surprise and shock.
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This subscribers-only restriction to online matchmaking is somewhat understandable when you consider that the same service on the Xbox 360 also requires a Gold account. However, those not shelling out for a monthly subscription on the PC will have only a basic list of matches to choose from, a list which glaringly lacks a column for displaying your ping to each game. And though a Live Gold account is easily justifiable on the Xbox 360--required in order to play multiplayer at all--the same can't be said for PC-only gamers. Because the only major incentive to a GFW Live Gold account is matchmaking, this seriously reduces the value of the service in comparison to Xbox Live, forcing Gears-hungry consumers into a conundrum. Read more...

Luckily for Flagship, when it comes to persistent online games--which Hellgate qualifies as, despite also containing a separate offline mode--"patch" isn't always a dirty word. Bug fixes, interface overhauls, system tweaks, and content expansions could be the shot to the heart it needs in order to live up to its potential. Down the road, the company's first major effort could very well turn into the flagship title it was meant to be. But it will be one rocky road in the meantime. Read more...

Speaking of experiences, maybe the most buzz surrounding The Witcher is due to the "censoring" of nudity in the North American release. However, before we talk sex, let's clear something up: these changes are not the result of some ominous board of old men out to ruin your hedonistic pursuits--at least not directly. CD Projekt's decision to remove bare breasts from the game is no more an act of censorship than when I "censor" McDonalds from my diet to avoid a burning gut. Read more...

There could be a few more maps. Of the included six, only a few truly capitalize on the subtle mechanics of the game, the rest often devolving into futile, tug-of-war stalemates or crushing defeats. The classic 2Fort map now feels somewhat stale, antiquated. Default respawn times seem a little high. The classes will never be perfectly balanced--such is the nature of class-based combat. And so on.

From the moment you start playing, the game's immersive, self-contained story unfolds without a break in the action, in signature Valve style. A feminine robotic voice greets you when you awake in a sterile, gray observation room and guides you from one test chamber to the next.