The Force is cheap. Laser swords that repel blaster fire, lightning bolts at your fingertips, Jedi mind tricks; where's the sport in all that? Revenge of the Sith has 16 brief levels, where the key to success is steady use of the infallible block button, which leads to an experience Darth Vader would describe as "All too easy."
The spoiler-heavy action scenes cling tightly to the events of the film, so if you haven't seen the movie yet ... then you're probably blind and will neither be playing this game nor reading this review. The repetitive hack 'n' slash combat looks as pretty as it does in the film, and certain boss battles—like the one with General Grievous—are worth drooling over. If you prefer fan-boy masturbation to a challenging gaming experience, then grab hold of your lightsaber and have a blast.
ENTHUSIA PROFESSIONAL RACING (E) (3.5 stars)
Konami
PlayStation 2
For many years, the lonely road of hyper-realistic driving simulations has been dominated by Gran Turismo, but now there's a new car on the course. Enthusia Professional Racing makes a promising debut with its nifty collection of unlockable vehicles and dozens of dashboard instruments to continuously assure you that every aspect of your Sunday drive has been accurately re-created. When the next few incarnations iron the bugs out, it'll be hard to go back to my clunker in the parking lot.
RAZE'S HELL (M) (3.5 stars)
Majesco
Xbox
Cross Care Bears with Troll Dolls and you get Kewletts, an adorable race of creatures intent on bringing sunshine and rainbows to the world. Only problem is, Raze likes his world gloomy. There's subtext in Raze's Hell's humor involving manifest destiny and ethnocentric views that borders on brilliance, and when a game has subtext at all, it's immediately noteworthy. But dull run-and-gun game play ultimately limits the title to pleasing those of us who still find joy in eviscerating stuffed animals.
MVP BASEBALL (E) (3.5 stars)
Electronic Arts
PlayStation Portable
As with the PS2 version, realism is still MVP Baseball's strong suit. You can actually see your team's fatigue growing on the field. But it's odd that they're getting tired at all, considering how much less they have to do in the PSP version. Online play, franchise mode and the minor leagues all failed to make the cut to the little disc. MVP still has a lot of what made its big brother a star, but at this size, it's playing Little League ball.
Matthew Scott Hunter has been known to mumble, "Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start" in his sleep. E-mail him at
[email protected].