Ratings are out of 10.
Folklore (PlayStation 3, $59.99)
A leisurely paced adventure sojourn set in an Irish village in which the living and the dead are believed to be able to communicate, "Folklore" oftentimes feels more like an interactive movie or comic book than a game.
Granted, you do plenty of fighting. Playing as one of two characters — a young woman looking to contact her deceased mom, and a cynical occult-magazine reporter — you battle enemies and harness the energy of their souls, which you use as weapons.
The story unfolds in animated, voice-acted scenes, in-game dialogue text boxes and sometimes in comic-book panels. It's slow-going for the action-oriented player, but "Folklore" can lull you into a spell like a good novel. What holds back the package are its incessant loading screens, which stifle the already languid pace, and forced repetition, which has you finish several missions as both characters, first with one and then the other.
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Rating: 7.7.
NBA Live 08 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii, PSP, $29.99-$59.99)
After hitting a low point last year, EA Sports' "NBA Live" rebounds to new heights, nearly enough to take down rival 2K Sports' "NBA 2K8."
The video game has a deep franchise mode, as well as online play that allows for fantasy drafts and leagues. The weak-link Wii version lacks franchise and leagues but does include online head-to-head matchups with up to four players per machine.
"NBA Live 08" is also the best-looking hoops title on the market, with top-notch, in-game commentary from Marv Albert and Steve Kerr. Graphics and gameplay in last year's game have been ironed out for the most part, allowing for a smooth, fast-paced game of basketball that can be easily mistaken for live footage.
What "NBA Live 08" lacks is strategy. You can run the same play every time down the court, and the defense probably won't wise up.
Rating: 8.
NBA 2K8 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, $29.99-$59.99)
The king of NBA simulations excels in another strong outing. Its side-court view, a throwback to sports games of the 1980s, worked so well that EA started copying it for its basketball titles last year.
The biggest improvement in "NBA 2K8" over last year's entry is its graphical detail. Players move and behave just as they do on TV, from Steve Nash's no-look passes to Kobe Bryant's slashing dunks. The announcing team often angrily questions you when you take a bad shot or blow a defensive stop.
No baskets come easy in this game. You need to formulate strategies on the fly, then modify them when the defense adapts to disrupt you. The challenge level is intense, making the game resemble chess in sneakers. Online you'll find some players so tough that you'll hardly be able to get the ball past half-court.
One hindrance comes with the presentation, which too often switches into momentum-busting replays, forcing you to watch what just occurred in slow-motion close-up. You can skip the sequences, but the split second it takes gives the defense time to recuperate. And in a game this intense, the opposition certainly doesn't need any help.
Rating: 8.5.
Project Gotham Racing 4 (Xbox 360, $59.99)
A cross between the arcade-style madness of "Burnout" and the realism of "Forza Motorsport," the "PGR" series has what it takes to both hook and let down fans of console racing.
The big draw in the game's graphics are the weather effects, which cause rain to bead on the body of your car. The gameplay is also engaging for the way it rewards you for driving with flair. When you pull of stylish moves, you're rewarded with points called "kudos" you can spend to unlock new cars. So even if you've messed up so badly early on in a race that you have no chance of winning, there's incentive to forge ahead rather than give up.
The community aspects are also solid, allowing you to race on teams with friends. You can modify screenshots and replays of your in-game action and upload it to the server so others can vote on them.
On the downside, "PGR 4" is a little too complicated and unforgiving for fans of arcade racers who are used to being able to jolt their car into turns without spinning into the wall. And fans of realistic racing games will feel like the game is treating them with kid driving gloves.
Rating: 8.3.
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (Xbox 360 Live Arcade, $15)
A download-only title for the Xbox 360 Live Arcade, "Puzzle Quest" mixes two genres that have nothing to do with one another — fantasy role playing and puzzles — and join them together for an odd, yet fulfilling fit.
The story mode is a generic hero's quest, in which you travel from town to town, building up experience, learning spells, making allies and building up your stronghold.
When you confront an enemy, you drop the sword and play a clone of the puzzle game "Bejeweled," in which you flip pieces on a grid to line up groups of the same color, making them disappear and harming your enemy or adding to your magical powers, which can be used to hasten victory.
Neither aspect of the game is particularly strong or original, but when blended they become better than the sum of their parts. Quick-hitting puzzle action has a way of smoothing out the grind of a role-playing adventure, and the low-key, strategy-heavy RPG aspects help settle your nerves after a frantic puzzle battle.
Rating: 8.5.
– Phil Villarreal
