In the story, an alien spaceship crashes in the otherwise peaceful realm of Planet Pop Star, and its pieces are scattered throughout the land. You must guide Kirby to find the ship’s parts and help an alien return to its home planet. But, this time, Kirby is not alone. At any time during the game, up to three more players can join in and play as Meta Knight, King Dedede, Waddle Dee or a different color Kirby. The game features Kirby’s Copy Ability, which allows him to inhale, spit and transform as he encounters enemies. Other features include classic and new abilities including: Sword – Kirby dons a green cap and wields a sword; Beam – Kirby wears a jester hat and can shoot energy from a magic wand; Whip – Kirby wears a cowboy hat and can lasso enemies; and Leaf – Kirby is surrounded by a whirlwind of leaves. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Along with Mario Kart 7, this title marks Mario’s debut on the Nintendo 3DS. By combining the motion sensing abilities of the Nintendo 3DS with a 3D screen, you can use depths and distances to get from one platform to the next. You can also share the game with another player using the Street Pass feature. New enemies include Goombas with tails, tall stacks of Goombas, and a Piranha Plant that spits ink to obscure your view. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Now Moshi Monsters (the popular virtual world)can fit in your pocket, in the form of this one player Nintendo DS game. Your mission is to explore eight areas of the Wooly Wilderness to see if you can spot hiding creatures, called Moshlings. There are 52 Moshlings to find, and each has specific needs that are met by shopping, searching and combining various elements such as the string with a banjo. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Drag-and-drop puzzles abound these days in the app store, but not many have animated pieces. The animated features bring a new type of timed problem solving to the challenge. For example, you can watch an animated part of the scene move, and use that as a clue to know the order in which the parts go. Songs include Take Me Out to the Ball Game, Oh Where Has My Dog Gone?, Down By the Bay, Itsy Bitsy Spider, You Are My Sunshine, Old MacDonald, This Old Man, I’m a Little Teapot, Twinkle Little Star, Yankee Doodle, Bach Minuet, Wheels on the Bus, London Bridge, Saints Go Marching, Boccherini Minuet, and Coming Around the Mountain. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
If you’ve ever tried to roll a marble through a maze (by tilting the game board), you get the idea of the Mercury games. In this new edition, called Hg (the element symbol for mercury), 60 new levels offer nearly unlimited challenge. Why? You can always go faster. The game uses the six-access motion sensing in the PS3 controller (we’re not sure how the Xbox version works) to move a ball of Mercury through a series of creative twists and turns. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Nearly identical in spirit to The Incredible Machine (1995, Sierra Online), this is a virtual invention lab with 100 levels, and 100 gadgets. The title is part of the thinkSMART series from Mentor Interactive. There are four modes of play: Action Mode – play alone and break the riddles; Co-op Mode – break the riddles with a friend; Party Mode – play against another; and Sandbox Mode – edit your own level to set up chain reactions and share with friends. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
In this seek and solve game you must unravel the mystery behind the Malgrave Island by using the Wii Remote to search for clues, solve puzzles and find concealed items in multilayered hidden object scenes. There are three multiplayer modes for up to four players, consisting of three rounds, and you can choose options such as skill level. Multiplayer games include: Swift Pick – compete to find hidden objects; Tick Tick Pick – find hidden objects and pass the bomb before it explodes; and Classic Pick – race to find the most hidden objects. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This maze game (search “A-Maze-ing” in the app store) lets you navigate through 16 detailed, hand-drawn scenes by dragging vehicles through a map. As you explore the connected maps, you find 85 hidden items embedded in the pen and ink maps. Your mission is to find them all, a task we stopped at around 11. Because up to five player profiles can be stored at once, it is possible to sign in or out and continue progress at a later time. Hidden items include stars, letters, penguins, numbers and ice cream trucks. Created in the Netherlands. The free version limits the number of levels and the amount of fuel for your car. See also Roxie’s Doors. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Like the Incredible Machine, this physics puzzler let’s you try to unite two cats — Milk and Coffee, by dropping different widgets and gizmos such as balloons, pins, speed boost and speed brakes onto a game board. There are 100 levels (and progress is saved automatically), offering plenty of content. Created in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The iPhone or iPad game uses the OpenFeint leaderboard system, and requires iOS 3.0 or later with 16.8 MB. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This 60 level physics game from Singapore lets you try to launch a kitten to catch fish. In order to advance to the next level, you have to calculate the angle correctly. Enemies include Flying Pirate ships, falling missiles, rain drops and castle guards. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This game for the Nintendo 3DS features more than 100 timed Nanogame (very short game) challenges. Like WarioWare, the challenges that last no more than five seconds each, and require extremely fast reaction time. Content includes several video clips featuring Patchy the Pirate, plus a drawing activity, where you can sketch using a pallet of colors. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This is the second Phineas and Ferb adventure for the Nintendo DS we’ve reviewed. Like the first, you can swap between characters to work your way through each level. Play patterns include skating, riding in mine carts, fighting aliens, and do surfboard tricks. Minigames include jet pack and X-ray goggles, along with a DSi specific camera controlled minigame. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This first ever 3D Sims title works only on the Nintendo 3DS, which means some additional new control mechanisms not available in the past. Besides the 3D graphics, the game plays like other Sims games, offering a top-down view of your Sim family. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
There are 27 dog breeds, depending on which cartridge you buy. Each pet comes with a different personality, unique accessories and a cat companion. As with previous versions, you can teach your pet tricks and pet it with the lower touch pad but the 3DS version has some new tricks, including the ability to see your pet move around in 3D space. Networking features include the ability to share your pet with nearby players who also own their own $40 cartridge. You can also exchange Mii characters, puppies and kittens over the wireless connection using StreetPass. Or (of course) you can buy new new content online. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Inspired by the 3D animated film, Disney Tangled, this game is full of stereotypes, and fun. Following the movie story, you can explore different environments like Rapunzel’s house. In the Wii version, you can take on the role of Rapunzel and use her golden hair to pull objects, climb, and swing. As Flynn you can climb walls, clear obstacles, engage in sword fights, and use his Flynntuition to find hidden treasures. In the DS version you can play a variety of puzzles and mini games, brush Rapunzel’s hair, paint Flynn’s wanted posters, make cupcakes, race goats and groom horses. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This third edition of Rock Band plays the same as previous versions, but includes more music (up to 1,500 songs via download), a new handheld keyboard peripheral, and up to three-part harmonies that can accommodate bands with up to seven members. Besides the additional content, the game play is similar. Content includes 83-songs, plus access to existing Rock Band tracks (Rock Band and Rock Band 2 discs, downloaded songs, track packs, AC/DC Live: Rock Band Track Pack, LEGO Rock Band and Green Day: Rock Band). That’s quite a mix of music. New three-part vocal harmonies that were introduced with The Beatles: Rock Band are included in this version, providing you have the microphones, so up to seven players can play at once. Developed by Harmonix and published by MTV Games. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Featuring a darker theme and limited game play, this mostly one player action adventure lets you explore a beautiful 3D rendition of the Deathly Hallows, as Harry Potter. Content includes 12 levels, with eight types of spells. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Borrowing from techniques pioneered in games like Super Mario Bros. and Kirby Epic Yarn this one player adventure breaks new ground in the way it uses classic Disney characters, who have never been inside a video game before. After an ornate introduction, you choose one of three game save slots, and become Mickey. Traditional weapons have been replaced with a paintbrush and paint thinner. The goal is to turn the world (Wasteland) back into a colorful, happy place. As you explore, you meet Oswald the Lucky Rabbit as you collect pins, film reels or medals. The game autosaves during each level, and there are multiple profiles, making it possible to jump in and out of the game. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This edition of The Sims gives you millions of hair/clothing/facial feature/body type combinations; along with many of the features of the Sims games. You can give your Sims unique personalities, make them them evil, romantic, paranoid, kleptomaniacs or a mix of something completely different. You can control their destinies, determine whether or not to fulfill their desires or let their dreams die, or let them try to become a rock stars. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This interactive comic book lets you become either Iron Man or The Incredible Hulk as you save the universe. In the story, the Super Hero Squad must find the lost Infinity Stones and battle evil villains, including Thanos and Dr. Doom, who are trying to destroy the universe. You smash your way through each level, in the three game modes, unlocking new costumes, powers and challenges. The DS version features six levels. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
In this DS game, Taz gets caught up in the evil plot of Marvin the Martian, who is on a mission to steal the Earth’s landscape for Mars. Hungry Taz is on a journey to find a giant chicken leg in the sky and travels across Tasmania, barren deserts, tropical jungles and ice-covered terrain. Using the DS stylus, you “roll” a large ball on the bottom of the screen, to direct Taz through a series of mazes. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Based on the movie of the same name, this one player exploration game lets you become one of the main film characters, who must find evil Kitty Galore and her gang. You can be Diggs, Catherine, and Seamus, each with unique abilities and gadgets needed to send the bad guys back to the pound. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Like it’s 2007 predecessor, you find yourself immersed in a planetary hopping theme, where the conventional rules of physics don’t always apply. You steer Mario through each maze-like level; flying, jumping or working upside down. New power-ups include a drill that Mario uses to tunnel through the planet’s surface all the way to the other side of the planet. Your goal is to collect as many Power Stars as possible, rescue Princess Peach and defeat Bowser. Other content includes the ability to transform yourself into either Cloud Mario or Rock Mario, which enables Mario to create temporary cloud platforms, or to smash through obstacles. With the Spin Drill, he can tunnel from one side of a planet to another. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
The Club Penguin gang (complete with Puffles) comes to life, in this one-player problem solving adventure for the Nintendo DS or DSi. In the game, you become one of the agents of the Elite Penguin Force, as you attempt to finish a secret mission. After you log into your game from the main menu, you can choose to either start (or continue) your adventure, or play one of four mini games. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
Designed for one player, you play as either Ratchet or Clank, as you run, jump, fly and fight your way through over five levels. Each character has unique abilities to help with different jobs. You can fly on Ratchet’s Hoverboots that allow him to travel at high speeds and great heights or utilize Clank’s time-manipulation abilities that can be used to stop Dr. Nefarious, who is attempting to control time himself. Subscribers, please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating, and see why this received our Editor’s Choice Award.
This one player adventure game lets you become a pocket-sized Ninja warrior. As you explore the peaceful countryside, you try to protect the balance of nature from the plot of an evil warlord who has turned the woodland creatures into mindless minions. Using standard jump, punch, kick, and slash types of moves, you battle against the bad guys, trying to preserve your health long enough to make it to the next level. You can also alternate between six male or female mini Ninjas, each with unique skills,weapons, and moves.
Developed by Io Interactive and Eidos for Warner Brothers. Prices are $50 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, $40 for the Wii, and $20 for the DS and PC versions. Visit www.minininjas.com. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
In this one player adventure, you can freely explore and wander around a small town, interviewing people and collecting the clues needed to find a lost dog, and eventually foil the plans of Morcubus, the corrupt CEO of Morcucorp. You’re equipped with special gadgets that you can use on the fly, such as a magnifying glass to track footprints, or a crow bar to open crates. Other tools let you pick locks, hack into computers and do molecular forensics. You will also meet and recruit other MySims, and build a team of agents to help you perform special missions. Prices are $50 for the Wii and $30 for the DS version. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
This is a simply designed, scripted narrated story for the iPhone/iPod that tells the tale of Gigi (the giraffe) and Frank (the frog).
Frank the frog
Children hear a bit of homemade narration and can page through the 50+ page book, which is arranged in chapter format, set to silent-movie style piano music. There is no other interactivity or hot spots on the pages, other than the quizzes.
Every few pages, you are prompted to “find the house with the banana on top” or to “choose something that is pink and purple” in multiple-choice format. Wrong answers result in a hint. According to press materials, the Gigi and Frank series follows the Kindergarten Curriculum Standards for California and is designed to teach problem solving, counting to 20, and listening comprehension. There are no levels or record keeping. Children may enjoy the story but the scripted format reduces the joy of this tale. Rating: 
It’s Batman vs. Joker in this beautiful one-player brawling game, set inside the insane asylum of Gotham City, also known as Arkham Asylum. You control Batman, as you attempt to stop the Joker and his helpers from taking over the prison.
Our testers hoped that Batman would come equipped with gadgets, and this game met their expectations. You can toggle between Batarangs, the Batclaw or explosive gel aerosol, and solve puzzles using x-ray scanning, fingerprint scans, Amido Black spray and a pheromone tracker. 
There are four game save slots, and three challenge levels. Exclusive to the PS3 version is the ability to play as The Joker in eight Challenge Maps that are available for download at no cost through PlayStation Network, and the Batcave Outpost Apartment which features the Batsuit, the Batmobile, the Batwing and other selected gadgets. Created by Rocksteady Sudios, who worked with Eidos, for Warner Bros. Entertainment. Visit the website at http://www.batmanarkhamasylum.com/start. Prices are $60 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, and $50 for the PC. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.
Beautifully illustrated, peaceful, and at times hard to use, this one player Wii title is an excellent example of how to use a game console to tell a story. 
Originally released 20 years ago (1989) for the Super NES system, this year’s edition contains 40 levels of sidescrolling play, set in a good vs. evil theme. There are also 15 types of blob transformations, plus bonus levels to unlock.
In the story, Blobolonia is under the rule of an Evil Emperor. One blob — colored white — has escaped, and meets a boy to help him on a quest to free his brothers and sisters. The bad blobs — all black — (make your own conclusions) can send you back to the start of a level. Developed by WayForward Technologies for Majesco. Please log into our database using your password to read the full review along with our rating.