IGN

• PS2
• WII
• 5 / 10
• États-Unis

Bratz: Girlz Really Rock! isn't the worst release the brand has seen. On the contrary, this is an effort that, while ultimately still remaining a mediocre product, showed some signs of moving the franchise in the right direction with its admittedly decent fashion-focused elements. So if the Bratz brand does manage to somehow live on after the lawsuit loss to Mattel's Barbie, there could be some elements here for a sequel to build on. And, if Bratz is truly done, it at least leaves the stage with a glimpse of the potential for the good game that might have happened in some alternate future. A final note about control -- it's pretty much even. This home console take on Bratz: Girlz Really Rock! was released for both the PS2 and Wii, meaning, of course, that the Wii version slaps a lot of motion control into the games that are otherwise more traditionally controlled on the PlayStation side. Some of the IR pointing is finicky, but it's not too detrimental. More of a concern is the repetitive waggling motions used in the music games -- you'll definitely get tired of shaking your wrist down over and over again to simulate playing a keyboard.

• PS2
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

• DS
• 8.5 / 10
• États-Unis

• X360
• 4.7 / 10
• États-Unis

Tenchu: Shadow Assault feels disjointed and lacks focus. Neither dissimilar half works well alone and together they appear confused. A solid Live Arcade game that focused solely on the style of gameplay the Tenchu series became famous for would have been great, but this is not the sort of thing old-school Tenchu fans will find attractive. As for the multiplayer game, just stick with the superior Bomberman.

• PS3
• 6.5 / 10
• États-Unis

It's great to see that The Life has crossed over to the PS3, but it's mild implementation only highlights some of the problems of this year's title. With a plethora of old bugs and issues rearing their head, NBA 09: The Inside has a ton of problems that overwhelm the title. It's still a fun, arcade-style basketball game, but you're going to have to put up strange gameplay problems that have plagued the franchise for years and some unrealistic court play to fully enjoy it.

• X360
• 3 / 10
• États-Unis

MLB Stickball is bad to the core. It has few redeeming qualities. It's overly simplistic, it's poorly thought out, it looks bad and it's boring. An MLB-licensed stickball game could have been great with the right design philosophy. Everything here is a major misstep. Avoid at all costs.

• PC
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

• PS3
• 7.5 / 10
• États-Unis

Geon is unquestionably improved over the original version of the game. Clearly Strawdog was listening to both critics' and gamers' complaints and they made serious efforts to fix things. The result is a game that plays more intensely, with more depth and above all is more fun, but it's still not quite a must-have. It's more entertaining, sure, but best in short bursts and with some local friends for split- screen action rather than trying to hunt people down online.

• X360
• PS3
• PC
• 7.9 / 10
• États-Unis

The Airborne soldiers that fought and lived through the horrors of World War II, and particularly that Operation Market Garden deserve respect, honor, and tales that highlight their sacrifices on the field of battle (as all soldiers do). Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway does an excellent job of presenting the story of these men, and is as compelling as many war movies. While many of the franchise's traditional gameplay elements return, such as the tactical controls of squads, so do the issues associated with those controls. While the visuals are better, it still has a number of AI issues, making a title that's good, and even better than its console brethren, but not great.

• PS3
• X360
• 6.5 / 10
• États-Unis

While the concept of NBA Live "made fresh daily" is a good one, there are plenty of elements that make the gameplay feel stale or incomplete. The low post play and pick and roll features work great, but they're countered by a lackluster lockdown defense and odd tempo issues that hamper gameplay. The Dynamic DNA, which can't fully be engaged for another few weeks, still has a number of issues with displaying useful info or elements that fully aid the player. Other elements, such as Be A Pro, are obviously frameworks for a deeper mode that haven't fully been implemented yet. NBA Live 09 does have some solid moments here and there, but you'll have to fight your way through a number of inconsistent elements to fully enjoy everything it has to offer.

• WII
• 3 / 10
• États-Unis

• WII
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

Certain elements of this N64 edition of Mario Golf haven't held up as well as some would have hoped, in its transition to the Virtual Console -- the graphics, the characters, the lost connectivity. But, even then, it's undeniable that the core gameplay serving as the foundation of this experience has remained unaffected by its age. The simple, straightforward way to pick up and play, the multiple different modes, the ability to lose yourself in simply going for the green for hours on end -- it's all still here. And that makes Mario Golf a worthy candidate for download. If you've played and enjoyed any of the Hot Shots titles, or Toadstool Tour on the GameCube, or even just the free copy of W ii Sports Golf that came packed in with your system, give this N64 original a shot. You won't be disappointed.

• PSP
• 5 / 10
• États-Unis

With the same quest and exploration issues from the first title, as well as lots of micromanagement problems and missing information, Valhalla Knights 2 almost feels like a rehash of the original title with a brand-new coat of paint. While the story could have been intriguing, and the flexibility of tweaking every aspect of a party member is rather engaging, all of the negatives, particularly the slow nature of the story development, overwhelm the title.

• PC
• 7.5 / 10
• États-Unis

As far as Diablo-style hack-and-slash action-RPGs go, Ascaron Entertainment's Sacred 2 is the best genre entry since Titan Quest. It offers a huge world to explore, tons of loot, plenty of monster types, and lots of ways to customize its six character classes. While it does have a quirky personality, it doesn't offer much as far as its narrative goes that's compelling, and the game suffers from numerous bugs and technical issues, including poor friendly AI, game crashes and performance problems, hopefully something that gets worked out over the coming months through patch updates. It's also not a game that tries anything truly novel, just a lot of tried-and-true quest, kill, loot, and repeat mechanics. With others online it's a much more enjoyable experience, but as of right now the US servers are more or less empty, something that hopefully changes in the days and months beyond release.

• DS
• 8 / 10
• États-Unis

• WII
• 7 / 10
• États-Unis

• PSP
• 6 / 10
• États-Unis

• PS3
• X360
• 5.9 / 10
• États-Unis

What sucks is that Fracture could've been good. LucasArts and Day 1 Studios have this awesome idea of modifying the terrain to advance through the game, but they never capitalize on it. Creating cover on the fly was neat the few times I needed to use it, but the fact that the terrain deformation is so limited means there's nothing to make this title stand out. The vortex grenades are cool and the multiplayer is fun, but the overall lack of polish, originality, and characterization hold this title back from being something you need to spend $60 on. Fracture isn't a train wreck or anything; it's just generic and forgettable.