Xbox 360 had ''Halo 3." PlayStation 3 has its upcoming ''Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots." Now it's the Wii's turn for some hype.

''Super Smash Bros. Brawl" arguably is the most anticipated game for the system, rivaled perhaps only by ''The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess" when that came out in 2006.

So does it live up to expectations? It packs a punch, literally and figuratively.

The ''Smash Bros." series of fighting games has always been about fan service, cramming in as many characters and references as it can. ''Brawl" takes this to the next level, with a whopping 20 playable characters, including two from third parties: Snake from Konami's ''Metal Gear Solid" series and Sega's Sonic the Hedgehog from, well, ''Sonic."

It's the little touches that make ''Brawl" great. Playing as beloved characters is awesome - my personal favorite is Pit from the NES's ''Kid Icarus" - but the nods to Nintendo history don't end there. The music, power-up items, and levels all point to a game in Nintendo's past.

What makes ''Brawl" even better is its level of customization. For starters, there are four methods of control to choose from: Wii remote, remote and nunchuk, Wii classic controller or GameCube controller. Then, once you pick the controller, you can set each button to do what you want.

Once you're in the game, there are tons of options for setting it up. You can select how many rounds, what rules you want, which items you want to appear and how frequently. Just about anything you'd want to change, you can do it.

But wait, there's even more. ''Brawl" also lets you create your own stages and send them to friends.

There's a single-player (or two-player co-op) story mode that I enjoyed, but the real draw to ''Brawl" is its multiplayer.

As many as four people at a time can go at it on a level, where the goal is to knock the other players out of the arena. It's not as easy as it sounds, as jumps and abilities can help players land back in bounds.

The four people don't all have to be with you, either. ''Brawl" now supports online play, either with friends or total strangers.

''Brawl" truly is for the fanboys (or girls) in all of us. Everything in the game is a nod to another game. And, honestly, who wouldn't want to see a battle between Mario and Sonic or Link and Snake?

Best of all, it's a great way to get friends of all ages together and just have a lot of fun.

The ''God of War" series has been one of the best on the PlayStation 2, but it's never had a portable iteration.

Enter ''God of War: Chains of Olympus" for the PSP. This isn't just a port of the other two ''God of War" games; it's brand new, built from ground up for the PSP.

And it shows: ''Chains of Olympus" shines with quality, from the stellar visuals (which must work the PSP to the max) to the great voice acting (all returning actors) to the solid control scheme.

It looks and feels just like a PS2 game, but on the PSP. And that's impressive.

This time around, Kratos - the angry, revenge-hungry slave to the Greek gods - must save the world from eternal darkness, brought about when the chariot-pulled sun plummets from the sky.

''Chains of Olympus" plays just like the other games, with Kratos wielding swords tied to his arms with chains and learning magic and other moves along the way. There's still a fixed camera, and you'll be collecting the same red orbs.

Obviously, the button commands are a little different from the PS2 versions, given that the PSP doesn't have as many buttons and only one thumbstick. The two shoulder buttons do double duty: Each button by itself is used for magic or a special melee attack, while holding in the left button and hitting the right button makes Kratos dodge-roll.

The controls work well, though my hands started cramping up from gripping the thin PSP. I also at times had trouble seeing things on the screen, as many of the levels are dark and the PSP screen sometimes isn't that bright.

Overall, ''Chains of Olympus" is an impressive feat, successfully transferring a fantastically epic series such as ''God of War" to a handheld system.

'Super Smash Bros. Brawl'

By: Nintendo, for Wii

Rated: Teen

Cost: $49.99

4.5 stars (out of 5)

'God of War: Chains of Olympus'

By: Sony, for PSP

Rated: Mature

Cost: $39.99

4.5 stars (out of 5)