Hot up-coming console games...

Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep
Why It's Hot:

What do you get when you combine Square-Enix's unique brand of Japanese role-playing with Disney's iconic locations and characters? You get another massive hit, that's what. Already enjoying great reviews and sales in Japan, this prequel to the first Kingdom Hearts game introduces new gameplay, new characters, and a new reason for Disney fans to dust off the PSP.

Why It's Not:

Just because it's got Mickey doesn’t mean it's accessible. Birth by Sleep is still very much a Kingdom Hearts game; if you don’t dig the nuts and bolts of Japanese RPGs, you're going to have a hard time getting into it.

Halo: Reach

Why It's Hot:

Think one Master Chief is cool? Imagine, like six of them. That's Halo: Reach in a nutshell. Taking place before the events in the very first Halo

game, Reach looks to go big by giving Halo fans loads of goodies, from awesome abilities (jetpacks!) to a virtual smorgasbord of multiplayer modes. If the success of the game's beta is any indication, this is bound be another major video game event.

Why It's Not:

Um, didn’t we finish the fight a fewyears ago? Between last year's ODST, the strategy game Halo Wars and now Reach, the property is in danger ofbeing overexposed.

Mafia II

Why It's Hot:

Think
Grand Theft Auto in the 1950s and you've got the flavor. Mafia II puts more of an emphasis on realism: the unwieldy cars and guns of the era handle as they should, and shootouts, while copious, won’t just erupt all over the place. It's been in development for several years now, featuring a 700-page script and over 10 square miles of city to explore. Forget those mediocre Godfather games --this is the Don you've been waiting for.

Why It's Not:

Driving a 50s car is a little like steering a boat with wheels. That sounds cool at first, but the game's slower pacing might frustrate those looking for more of an immediate thrill.

Madden NFL 11

Why It's Hot:

Despite a few odd challengers here and there, Madden is still far and away the king of the video game grid iron. To continue the trend, Madden 11 is taking a three-pronged approach by going "simpler, deeper and quicker." That means a brand new playcalling system, shorter games, and more ways to show your buddies that the Oakland Raiders don't actually suck.

Why It's Not:

We're not exactly sure how you make a game both simpler and deeper, so consider us skeptics. And while the new bells and whistles look nice and shiny, this is now the sixth official Madden game to appear on next-gen machines. Sales of last year's game weren't stellar. Are we all just sick of Madden already?