Action & Adventure Video Games

Based on the Cartoon Network's animated series, Super Hero Squad features pint-sized versions of Marvel's comic book heroes and villains, with content aimed at a younger demographic of four- to ten-year-olds. The squad is on a mission to retrieve a series of Infinity Fractals before they can be assembled into a sword with ability-altering powers. Since Dr. Doom and his "Lethal Legion" of cohorts are also trying to recover the Infinity Fractals, you'll have to thwart their progress at every opportunity. Playable heroes and villains include Captain America, Spider-Man, Falcon, Hulk, Iron Man, Juggernaut, Dr. Doom, Wolverine, Silver Surfer, Thing, Thor, and Ms. Marvel. Each character possesses distinct super powers and combo attacks, with the gameplay consisting of punching, kicking, and blasting rivals while traveling across themed environments. Advance through six campaigns by yourself or with a friend in the "Adventure Mode," or engage up to three friends for competitive action in the "Battle Mode." ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Based on the televisions series starring Michael Chiklis, The Shield is the story of Vic Mackey and his daily life of busting crack dens, stopping bank robberies, and arresting criminals in the Farmington district of Los Angeles. Players must simultaneously earn illicit cash for Vic's retirement fund while keeping the "heat" meter down and internal affairs off his back. Players may frisk suspects and take evidence such as drugs and sell them or turn them in to the police. The game features a variety of gameplay aspects including brawling, precision gunplay, police tactics, and stealth movement such as sneaking through a building to locate and arrest mobsters and other crooks. Players can also bend the law when necessary to persuade information out of informants and other characters with words, by planting evidence, or by using their fists. ~ Gracie Leach, All Game Guide

Inspired by the 2006 feature film directed by Bryan Singer, Superman Returns features an open-ended Metropolis spanning 80 square miles of bustling activity. The Man of Steel begins the game with his superpowers fully intact, including flight, x-ray vision, heat vision, super hearing, super strength, super speed, and super breath. How players use these powers within the urban setting is up to them. Cars can be completely melted or simply cut into, objects can be blown out of harm's way or frozen in place, and more. The storyline follows Superman as he returns to Earth after a five-year sabbatical in space. The city he loves is in constant peril from the likes of Metallo, Parasite, and the indomitable Lex Luthor.

The action takes place from a third-person perspective as players complete story-driven missions, engage in mini-games, and rescue people from imminent danger. Since Superman is nearly invincible, his success is tied to the level of collateral damage experienced by the good citizens of Metropolis. Players must be actively involved in saving pedestrians from runaway trains, tornados, collapsing buildings, and much more. If the city or its populace suffers, Superman will be unable to continue. The game's story-based objectives combine events from the film with new sequences, often involving the superhero tackling archvillains in stages specifically devoted to a lone enemy and its lackeys. Superman Returns also features an original orchestral soundtrack and voice acting from the film's principal actors, including Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, and newcomer Brandon Routh. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Splinter Cell: Double Agent takes the stealth-based series in a new direction after three successful covert operations on multiple platforms. After learning his teenage daughter was killed in a car crash, a despondent Sam Fisher is unable to complete his duties for the NSA's splinter cell, Third Echelon, and is reassigned as a NOC, a non-official cover agent who operates from within dangerous organizations. His mission is to infiltrate a domestic terrorist group called John Brown's Army. For the first time in the series, Fisher cannot solely rely on his gadgets or the direct support of the NSA. He must instead fall back on his keen instincts to survive while working deep undercover.

Instead of advancing through linear missions, players will experience a branching storyline with multiple endings, where decisions made at one juncture will influence subsequent events as the game progresses. Fisher must initially earn the trust of John Brown's Army to become a card-carrying member, so he must engage in carefully orchestrated heists and even an elaborate prison break to get in the good graces of key contact Jamie Washington. If Fisher is successful in befriending Washington, he will be invited to the terrorist group's headquarters, a multi-floor structure that serves as a jumping point for future missions.

From that point on, Fisher will be faced with multiple moral decisions as he walks a fine line between working with the JBA and on behalf of his NSA mentor, Irving Lambert. He will also be partnered with an AI-controlled character in many of the missions, introducing a new twist to the single-player game. Of course, Splinter Cell: Double Agent also features multiplayer modes, including the cooperative element introduced in 2005's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory and a new spy-versus-spy mode exclusive to both the Xbox and PlayStation 2 versions. While the PS2 game's cooperative mode is not playable online, owners will experience two bonus missions that serve as flashbacks to earlier events in Fisher's storied career. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

The Japanese word for wolf, Okami blends traditional folklore from the Land of the Rising Sun with a distinctive visual style crafted by the team behind the Viewtiful Joe series. Players guide a white wolf from a third-person perspective across 3D stages designed to look like watercolor paintings on parchment. This is no ordinary wolf, however. It is the incarnation of sun goddess Amaterasu, who assumes lupine form to bring light where there is night. Amaterasu's quest involves battling an assortment of mythological monsters and demons to free the world from eternal darkness. Amaterasu can use her feral power to slash, bite, and charge enemies, or she can tap into her divine aura to solve puzzles and supplement her physical attacks. Mirrors, beads, and swords can all be acquired for added offense, or Amaterasu can alter her environment using a "celestial brush" to literally paint her way out of various predicaments. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Based on the 2006 feature film starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, itself inspired by Bally Midway's 1983 car combat game, Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run features a combustible combination of high-speed vehicle chases and hand-to-hand brawling. Cast in the role of Alec Decker, a spy hunter working for the fictitious IES government agency, players must recover a hijacked Interceptor from the clutches of the evil Gomez and his terrorist group known as NOSTRA. The action follows Decker in third-person, mission-based vehicle stages set amidst a series of exotic locales. While on foot, the character is free to fire weapons or perform such melee moves as body slams, punches, and head butts to defeat enemies. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

On the run from rival assassins, Agent 47 hops a plane to take care of business stateside in Hitman: Blood Money. Players will guide Agent 47 through a number of locales, including New Orleans, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas as he performs hits. It's up to the player to determine the manner in which a hit is executed, but the "rookie training" mode can show amateur assassins how to help targets have "accidents," by pushing the victim over a ledge or pinning him underneath something heavy. Money earned from completed jobs varies depending on the cleanliness and professionalism of the hit. Agent 47's paycheck can be spent in a number of ways including bribing reporters, customizing weapons with one of 15 upgrades, or paying pedestrians for information. An online message board allows players to post stats, skills, and other scores, determining once and for all who the sneakiest assassin on the planet is. ~ Gracie Leach, All Game Guide

In this 3D action game, based on the popular animated superhero series, players embark on a Titan team brawl-fest though a series of dangerous locations. Robin, Raven, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire find themselves facing off against the likes of Slade, Jinx, Overload, and other infamous villains, as they seek to thwart a threat against their very existence. Situations change as the story progresses, but players can switch between heroes on-the-fly, using strategy and teamwork to make it through the toughest spots. Characters have a colorful, cartoony look reminiscent of the television show, and the game's fast-paced fighting action is also designed to live up to its anime inspiration. As many as four players can team up to fight evil (or each other) in multiplayer modes. Majesco's Teen Titans was developed by Artificial Mind and Movement, known for contemporary cartoon-based games such as Scooby-Doo! Unmasked and Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Mis-Edventures. ~ T.J. Deci, All Game Guide

Rebellion invites comics fans and action gamers back to the future with this video game adaptation of 2000AD's Rogue Trooper. Players take the role of Gerry Finley-Day and Dave Gibbons' genetically enhanced super-soldier, to fight for revenge in the disturbingly futuristic Nu Earth. The game plays like a third-person shooter, but tactical concerns such as stealth, reconnaissance, mobility, and timing are also important for continued survival in the unforgiving battlefields. Although a loner, the solitary G.I. is never completely alone, as he can receive guidance and advice from two former comrades, whose personalities are stored in computer chips that Rogue Trooper carries in his high-tech helmet (Helm) and backpack (Bagman). ~ T.J. Deci, All Game Guide

Based on Ron Howard's cinematic interpretation of Dan Brown's bestselling novel, this video game version of The Da Vinci Code is designed to let players experience the twisting mystery story first-hand, and to explore locations and clues not featured in the original source material. Players guide lead characters Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu to uncover secrets and speculations as old as Christianity itself.

Appropriately perhaps, the game is in the basic form of a classic mystery adventure, compete with clickable crime scenes and tricky inventory puzzles. The point-and-click pondering is punctuated with action sequences, however, in which the heroes can use stealth and surprise to take down opponents. The Da Vinci Code was developed by The Collective, known for previous license-based games such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb, and Marc Ecko's Getting Up. ~ T.J. Deci, All Game Guide