The game based on 2007's "Transformers" movie was decent. This year's model is a bit better.

Like the first game, "Revenge of the Fallen" offers players a pair of campaigns to play through, one for the good-guy Autobots and one for the wicked Decepticons.

Both campaigns take place in the United States, Shanghai and Cairo. Players choose missions from a world map, but the order isn't rigid.

The two campaigns are like mirror images. A mission in Shanghai may involve rescuing a downed Autobot from attackers in that faction's campaign, while the Decepticon campaign leaves it up to the player to destroy that same Autobot in the other campaign.

Finishing a mission's secondary objectives awards bonus Energon, as does finding each level's set of faction emblems. Finishing a level within certain time constraints awards gold, silver and bronze medals, and players can return to a finished mission to earn a better score or just to try it again with a different Transformer.

The Energon earned from completing missions, destroying enemies, collecting emblems and other means can be spent on faction-wide upgrades.

Each Transformer has a similar set of moves – two weapons, a special ability, various melee attacks and an alternate form, be it car, truck, plane or helicopter.

Weapons range from machine guns and grenade launchers to missiles and sniper rifles. Special abilities offer a more specialized effect – Bumblebee stuns foes in a small radius with an EMP blast, Ratchet and Long Haul heal themselves and others, and Optimus Prime raises an energy shield for a short time. Melee attacks range from combos and charged hits to area-effect ground-pound attacks. There are no grappling moves, which seems like a missed opportunity.

The robots' vehicle forms are much more mobile than their clompy bipedal shapes, but they're a little tricky to control. The robots change when the player holds down the right trigger and turn back when it's released, while letting up slightly slows them down a bit. It takes a while to learn the knack of managing speed without transforming and how to charge up a melee attack to unleash just as a robot changes back.

Where the last game was a solo affair, the sequel allows for four-vs.-four online matches over several game types. The modes are standard, but they're pretty entertaining when the players are changing form and firing missiles and energy waves in every direction.

PICKS AND PANS

INDIANA JONES AND THE STAFF OF KINGS

2 stars

Indiana Jones' last 3-D adventure, 2003's "Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb," wasn't very good. And his newest, "Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings," in which Indy searches for the staff of Moses, isn't either.

Part of the blame lies with the stiff and unresponsive motion-activated controls, which make it difficult and unwieldy to engage in combat using fists, weapons and thrown items. Jerking the Wii Remote and the Nunchuk in different directions triggers attacks, but the game isn't very responsive, and it's easy to throw the wrong punch at the wrong time.

Firefights take the form of shooting-gallery segments, where players have to figure out how to defeat armed foes. Some enemies can't be shot directly and have to be coaxed out of cover by shooting objects in the environment.

As Jones explores the game, he'll run into various Indy-style situations – crossing gaps with his whip, for example – and challenges such as maneuvering a plane through a ravine while under fire by Nazis. The graphics are decent, and the frame rate is smooth.

The title's best feature isn't in the main game at all. In the extras menu, players can find a fully voiced version of "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis," a great 1992 adventure game similar to the "Monkey Island" and "Sam & Max" series.

Nintendo Wii, also for Sony PlayStation 2

$49.99 ($29.99 for PS2)

Age rating: Teen

FALLOUT 3: POINT LOOKOUT

3 1/2 stars

By far the most free-form of the four "Fallout 3" expansions, "Point Lookout" takes place in the swampy terrain of the Maryland peninsula, which is riddled with boiling mud pits, skeletal trees and inbred cannibals.

Where the other three expansions have had a very clear through line in their questing, "Point Lookout" gives the player more freedom to explore. There's the mother who wants the player to find her runaway daughter; there's a strange old mansion to the east; there's a dead Chinese spy in an old motel whose secret orders are hidden along the waterfront. There's a weird cult to infiltrate, a bizarre hallucinogenic sequence and lots of strange new characters to meet.

While new weapons, such as the two-barreled shotgun and lever-action rifle, would be of more use to a low-level character than a more experienced one, the area still presents a challenge to seasoned players.

It's an interesting location, and the relatively vibrant (though horribly mutated) local ecosystem is refreshingly distinct from the rubble-strewn Capital Wasteland of the main game.

Nintendo Wii, also for Sony PlayStation 2

$49.99 ($29.99 for PS2)

Age rating: Teen