Rayman Arena

It's inevitable: have mascot, will branch it out to other genres (just take a look at Mario, Sonic and, well, just about every other popular character in our industry). But unlike most of the kart or party games on the market. Arena has a spark of originality to it. The minigames here aren't all direct rip-offs of what you've seen elsewhere (like say, Crash Team Racing to Mario Kart). The combat levels, for example, have a bit of first-person-shooter-deathmatch personality to them--totally unexpected for a game of this type. Even the racing modes...gameplay-wise, they're very derivative, but the large, creatively designed stages allow for multiple routes that take skill to navigate. And with 30 total levels to open up, Arena gives a decent bang for the buck, especially if you're looking for a multiplayer party game that will provide a few distractions here and there, just don't expect this disc to do much more than that. It's not a finely tuned, polished title tike the others mentioned above. The combat games, while fun, are hampered by a pretty half-assed targeting system that takes some getting used to (and once you do get the hang of it, it's still not ideal). The racing games don't have that control problem, but every character is armed with an automatically recharging freeze ray. What's wrong with that? Imagine how downright stupid multiplayer races get when players are freezing each other every other step of the way.

I generally like the Rayman style. In fact, I'm a big fan of his first two games. But Rayman Arena doesn't feel like it should be a stand-alone product to me. Maybe as a collection of minigames in a bigger title, this package would make more sense. But honestly, outside of the straight racing, I didn't have a whole lot of fun with any of the play modes in Arena. I really don't like the fact that, in multiplayer, you're limited only to arenas you've unlocked in the single-player mode. The problem is that the solo game just isn't any fun after about an hour (and trust me, it'll take a lot longer than that to unlock every level in this game). A rental at best.

Somehow Ubi Soft managed to make a "party game" that's addictive and fun whether you're entertaining a group of friends or a party of one. Of RA's two game types, the footracing quickly pulled ahead as my favorite. Beautifully designed, lush tracks have just the right amount of shortcuts, traps and other hazards to keep things close without ruining the racing feel. Finishing the multiple race types means exploring every inch of track, so there's lots to do. On the flipside, arena battles are bogged down by awkward camera and strafing controls, but the levels are also well-balanced. This is a solid choice for weekend warriors looking for a good rental.