VIDEO GAME REVIEWS

'MAGNETICA'
(Nintendo) For DS Genre: Puzzle
Rating: E, for Everyone
Grade: C
What to do with a game that neither impresses nor disappoints?
Such is the quandary with "Magnetica," a game that most have seen before in some other form but is making its way to the DS for handheld gamers. It's a puzzle game like many others, and with that comes its blessing and its curse.
The controls and overall premise are easy to grasp, so you won't be staring at both screens wondering what to do next. You're given a looping string of colored balls that are winding their way to the center, and you must get the string to move in the opposite direction. To do this you must fire similar-colored balls at the string to destroy the string and, coincidentally, alter its course.
Of course, no matter your skill level, there is a game here for you to play. And, again, none of them is primarily disappointing or particularly spectacular. There are three different single-player modes and also some multiplayer games as well; either way, you won't be searching for something that fits you.
-- Chris Campbell, Scripps Howard
'GRAND THEFT AUTO: LIBERTY CITY STORIES'
(Rockstar) For PlayStation 2, PSP
Genre: Action/Adventure.
Rating: M, for Mature
Grade: C
It was just a blip on the calendar for PSP owners, but "Liberty City Stories" debuted on that system back in October. It has been ported over to the PlayStation 2 in a bit of reverse-engineering. Normally, games are ported from the console to the handhelds, not the other way around. But then, this is "Grand Theft Auto," and you can expect the unexpected.
What is unexpected here is how thin this product is once you start playing it. The game returns to the scene where "GTA III" took place, only the story -- you play as a mafia hitman named Toni-- is more streamlined and there just doesn't seem to be the depth that gamers anticipate from the company that brought you "GTA: San Andreas" and "GTA: Vice City."
-- Chris Campbell, Scripps Howard