As fun and addictive as it is, though, it's still a basic shoot 'em up which you would be likely to quit were you handed any higher profile titles. The real-time ranking system is inspired, particularly for the stat whores amongst us, and multiplayer is of reasonable appeal, but Biology Battle is still only a time waster rather than a truly enveloping game.

Overall this is a great value game, which will last longer than most other arcade games you buy either from the PlayStation Store, or Live Marketplace. There is something frustratingly addictive about the game, meaning you want to come back for more and beat that high score you’ve just posted.

It’s Football Manager, but online on a vast scale. You can’t beat playing against human managed teams.

What it lost in this pursuit of silver-screen-esque mayhem was subtlety and character. It's a solid First-Person-Shooter – one I would recommend to any fan of the genre – but it doesn't quite possess the same diversity as the first – something I never thought I'd miss.

It will extend the length of an already long game, and the 100 points are easy to get. I do however think it is slightly over priced.

Neversoft is getting better at these Guitar Hero games. But if the developer can't get its note charting in order - and give us the option to choose which guitarist's track we want to play (rather than constantly moving between them) - then Guitar Hero 5 may not be as well received as World Tour.

The real saving grace though for The 40th day is the multiplayer options.

The real saving grace though for The 40th day is the multiplayer options.

The continued concentration on stat-grinding rather than creating a game where player skill matters and the lack of real change in the sport really does make me believe that the Tiger Woods franchise needs to take a vacation next year while the whole basis of the franchise is rethought.

Sure, it's fairly hideous in comparison to most of the multitude of games released recently, the narrative is weak and it has some of most cringe-worthy sound I've ever encountered, but it poses a solid, structured set of challenging puzzles that are light enough as to not timelessly absorb the player, but engaging enough to keep you coming back.

There's plenty of potential in the Officers franchise. Few games manage to capture WW2 this well at the tactical level. But a few problems with friendly AI and stability do drag the score down somewhat.

At £5.99 on Steam I find it hard not to recommend this off the wall piece of budget brilliance.

As it stands now, Mario and Sonic Olympic does have some scope as an entertaining multiplayer game, but isn't really thrilling enough to be remembered as a classic outing for these videogames icons.

If you are looking for a tycoon style meal then chow down on this because you won’t find a better restaurant management game out there.

It's a real shame the full potential of the franchise hasn't been realised here.

At the end of the day you get a pretty good game here, as mentioned it's an adaptation on Nintendo's classic Zelda series with a ninja theme, albeit a little dumbed down, but it's fun while it lasts.

It's a shame that ArmA II has suffered the same problems as its predecessors.

The only additional gripe is the awful frame-rate (there is no reason whatsoever for the constant dips in performance). Sam & Max is, otherwise, enjoyable to play, offers sensible solutions to the puzzles and, at slightly less than 300pts per episode, is pitched at just the right price for the content on offer, unlike TellTale’s other series, Wallace and Gromit.

Electronic Arts have delivered a pretty good package here for the fans, it looks the part, plays well, and has a good selection of game modes to keep most people happy.

Although the main quest line is not as long as previous content releases, Point Lookout has a large game environment, with lots of places to explore and several other side quests.

As good as Trine is it left me slightly wanting due in part to its length-at about 6 hours maximum it’s very short for its price tag. If it’s a higher price, it should be full length.

I really enjoyed playing Dirt 2. It breaks my heart really to give it a low overall score, but you just can't expect people to pay high prices for very little content. In these hard economic times value for money is as important as gameplay.

It’s not the best DLC pack released for Fallout 3, but it’s certainly not bad.

If your nerves are shot to pieces with the glut of zombie gore 'em ups out there Osmos will do a sterling job of rubbing those aching temples and making the nightmares go away.

A solid, well put together RPG that has quality where it counts. It will not appeal to everyone, but existing fans of Star Ocean as well as RPG fans in general will not be disappointed.

It’s not groundbreaking in any way, but what it does offer is a solid MMORPG that can be just as engaging as the likes of WOW and yet is completely free. This game has quashed the age old myth that free games lack quality.

It’s a more enjoyable and slightly more challenging game than the first, and it’s perfectly suited to the system and to the typical Wii demographic.

As it stands EyePet is a fun, funny, cute and diverting little game for your children that will also raise a few smiles among adult gamers too.

Gratuitous Space Battles manages to strike a respectable balance between casual gaming and deep, engaging strategy.

As retro remakes go this certainly isn't a bad one, but there's a couple of flaws in the gameplay that means it falls short a little of what it could be.

If you are a Wii owner and looking for a flight game then you really should give this a go, it's by no means perfect, but it is a lot of fun.

Napoleon: Total War shimmers with genius at times. The series is still the undisputed king of strategy games, but this latest expansion takes two steps forward and one step back. The numerous improvements are greatly welcomed, but the core element that is the AI still remains broken and until CA fix it the game remains a flawed diamond.

There's plenty to like about Max and the Magic Marker, such as challenging puzzles, novel ideas and great gameplay mechanics. But the emphasis on creativity won't appeal to everyone - especially those who remember when this was all just fields, pipes and clinky gold rings.

Sepulveda has so lovingly created? No, absolutely, unequivocally not. Darwinia+ deserves to be experienced by as many people as possible. It’s not going to be for everyone, that’s for certain. Some won’t even give it longer than the first couple of levels (which are painstakingly slow and confusing to boot) or be able to forgive it its frailties.

Personally I'm not a big fan of strategy games, but Greed Corp has made me look at the genre in a different way, if all strategy games had this kind of pacing and fun atmosphere then I think it would be a much more popular type of game right now.

It's a family friendly fun romp that's inoffensive and visually interesting with a nice quirky style. Just don't expect a great co-op time unless you can work together within a tight camera angle. This is one Wii game that's better to play on your own.

There has been an enormous development over the past 10 years in the shooter genre and Perfect Dark obviously can not measure up with the latest in this genre . But if you know what you're getting you'll have plenty of fun with this welcome re-release.

As a grizzled and scarred veteran of the original this expansion pack offered a satisfying challenge to get my teeth into. Anyone who enjoyed the game will enjoy this expansion.

Warband extends the gameplay with new features and multiplayer antics, and the hardcore enthusiasts will be able to overlook the flaws; it is the best medieval horseback combat and real time strategy kingdom building sim role playing game on the market. But then, it's the only one, and the execution of Warband never quite lives up to the excellent concept.

A riotous blast that smacks of old school game mechanics and nonsensical fun.

If nothing more than an interesting footnote in the evolution of gaming ideas, it would be a real shame to let this game fade into obscurity without at least coming to your own conclusion.

The question remains as to whether any Vietnam based game can be actually highly entertaining and satisfying as a game, while keeping true to the spirit of conflict. Men Of Valor provides us with a little food for thought in this regard, at least.

The camera, for instance, is more often than not pointing in entirely the wrong direction. It points in the direction that you were last moving but rotates very slowly.

If you liked the original, or love games like Prince of Persia or Ninja Gaiden then it is definitely worth a look at.

If the setting and atmosphere were any different, say a sci-fi or fantasy setting, I doubt that the experience provided by Red Dead Revolver would seem anything more than mediocre, if that.

Unlike many other games, there is little satisfaction in the subtle degrees between the player's success and failure, only the obstacles in the way of the next point in the plot.

It fails as a boxing sim and it fails as an arcade fighter. It succeeds excellently as homage to the Rocky films and should please fans of the movies.

There are times you want to be challenged, made to think, swept away by something unique and brilliant – and there are times where you just want to kick back and be entertained. For the latter, step up Project: Snowblind.

The final marks I'm giving the game reflect my frustration with the defending aspects of the game and the poor implementation of Xbox Live, but if you're a fan of flight action games this is one of the better ones around.

CMR2005 is a competant and at times exciting game, but it has two better rivals in "Rallisport Challenge 2" for Xbox owners and the excellent "WRC4" on PlayStation 2.

A flawed, funny, likeable game that doesn't quite live up to expectations.

Wrestlemania 21's outrageously flawed A.I. and emphatically clunky control integration sully an otherwise outstanding display of wrestling prowess.

It never even gets close to matching the presentation and gameplay of the PS2's Sly Raccoon and Jak and Daxter and even Voodoo Vince, the other Xbox exclusive platformer, knocks Blinx 2 for six half the time.

Two Thrones just lacks that special spark. Thus it is difficult to think about Two Thrones without feeling regret.

Those of you who experienced the original and didn't like it, you won't like this either. Those of you who enjoyed it will enjoy Ten Hammers and the extra vs. mode.

The characters don't move with the speed and finesse of those in Smash Bros and the fighting has less finesse. The recognisable characters help to make this title stand out and it's not necessarily a bad thing.

Square have tried to give us a chance to tell our own stories through this game, but their rules and prerequisites are often too restricting and the rewards not always enough.

Its playability may be assured simply because of its clone status to "Resident Evil," but the overall package just isn’t that well put-together to warrant more than an average recommendation.

It’s not as good as any of the “proper” stand alone Resident Evils, so unless you’re a hardcore zombie fan this can be quite quickly crossed off your shopping list.

While the game itself isn’t too short, the lather rinse repeat style gameplay is only rarely challenged and you’ll never get stuck wondering what special gadget to use next.

As for actual challenge or feeling of gaming accomplishment it doesn’t always succeed in making its mark and it falls all too readily into genre clichés that are already beginning to look stale. A finger across the lens really.

It’s difficult to avoid recommending the game, when I honestly had fun, but £30 to £40 is too much to pay for such a short game.

It’s sad that the game doesn’t use Todd McFarlane’s artwork more effectively, because a Max Payne approach to the story telling would definitely have resulted in a better score.

It isn't a bad game at all, and is fairly entertaining - but it is also very simplistic and has a tendency to annoy you and get repetitive fairly quickly.

The game does, basically, offer lots of variety, a flat learning curve and a decent story mode for those that aren’t just looking for the latest in car physics.

This is adequate entertainment that does nothing terribly wrong, but never manages to shine in any one particular area.

While it looks beautiful, and often immerses the player in a very effective way, some of the repetitive fighting sections really undermine the considerable work that has obviously gone into this game. I only wish that the controls had been tightened enough to create a more functional game.

Blade Warriors could have been a simple guilty pleasure, if it didn’t insist on constantly reminding us that there are better games to be played.

At present, the online community is visible, but it's hardly expansive. Without it, Trackmania is good entertainment for a few afternoons, a short game not due to a lack content, but simply a lack of serious challenges.

When you begin to fear the tedium of yet another awkward, uncoordinated fight sequence more than the unspeakable evils themselves you know something’s not quite right.

It’s always a shame when a game arrives perfectly playable and pleasant enough to glide through without too much in the way of frustration, while at the same time being devoid of actual thrills or jaw-dropping moments.

Unless you happen to be a die-hard wrestling fan or a female equality activist, I’d go and play a more sincere wrestling game that doesn’t try exploit the good ol’ sex sells idea and is considered less of a gimmick for the deprived.

If you manage to at least enjoy killing hundreds of people in Drakengard’s world, you can enjoy killing thousands to make it to its end.

The dialogue and the one-liners are simply inane. This and other aspects give you the feeling that the game was rushed out in time for the movie.

A thrillingly tedious experience.

The aspects it draws on do add a new element to the genre although they do slow down the action, making you work even harder to build your railway. The presentation makes the game feel half complete and the learning curve on the interface is unnecessary and sloppy on the tutorial.

A fantastically deep strategy game. This is good news for fans of this genre and particularly for fans of Europa Universalis. However, it brings little new to the genre and re-uses an old and tired engine.

Something of a one trick pony. It’s all done competently, and there’s certainly enjoyment to be found here, but it lacks character; that exciting spark or polish that distinguishes the truly great RTS games. Once the novelty of the dual layer system wears off you’ll pine for a fresher, less workman-like, experience.

Demon Stone may entertain in its straightforward nature as a button basher with cinematic pretensions and presentation, yet it?s also let down by a camera that often obscures the action and by the repetitiveness.

Mostly resembles a "Dead or Alive" version for the poor.

So if you’ve always dreamt of playing golf with frogs, you probably need some kind of therapy, but are likely to enjoy Ribbit King in the meantime. The rest of us will probably find it an amusing curiosity.

Chaos League doesn't quite hit the mark because it fails to replicate what people most enjoy about sport - its unpredictable nature and the triumph of skill and control. By curbing its own ambitions, it's scored an own goal.

There is tactical depth, but it’s more busywork than anything else, given that despite your choices, the game is still relatively easy.

It’s marred by a lethargic combat system, slow level grinding and general lack of polish. My hope is that they will improve it in future patches and expansions but I’m not holding my breath.

So Sabre Squadron is preaching to the converted, playing on the strengths of its predecessor but without trying too hard to smooth its rough edges, edges that are starting to look a little rusty now.

The satisfying conclusion does go far to wrap up everything brought up in the game and reminds you of things you may have forgotten.

It’s heritage only goes to highlight its pedigree as solider sci-fi we’re all a little familiar with. Another pint of Saturn’s finest, barman.

There are a few moments in Musashi Samurai Legend that’ll raise a smile or even make you laugh out aloud, and it’s generally a fun game to play.

Four aside in tiny pitches, no matter how variable, loses its charm rather soon. So even if you get bored of the main beef of the game the prospect of throwing ten minutes into a friendly is a little out of the question.

With such an accomplished and unique cinematic source, we really did deserve better.

The combat is the title’s biggest blessing and curse. On the one hand we have a multi-faceted scheme that relies on a veritable orgy of button bashes in order to unleash the nest moves. But it’s entirely counterattacked by dodgy enemies who rarely change beyond what race they are.

It seems to borrow too much, and doesn’t really deliver in terms of an immersive story, hoping that the gameplay itself will be addictive enough to keep an audience captive and paying extra per month.

If you’re after something to play with your mates after the pub, or are looking for a short burst of knuckle-cracking violence, Urban Reign might be worth looking at if found going cheap.

Hobbling a good game with awful controls is a crime and in this respect I judge Pandemic guilty as charged.

It’s the sort of game that even the most ardent tactical shooter fans are going to find frustrating.

But good sound isn’t going to save the game. There’s wasted potential here in Devil Kings, perhaps a sequel could bring that out. As it stands it is a flawed game thanks to repetition and some technical issues.

The new web swing system and the new fighting system are not up to the level of it predecessors but there are still highly playable.

My advice: wait for the PC version, where you will have a fighting chance of playing the game with a better framerate and refined controls (and hopefully Activision will issue patches to cover its holes).

When I previewed the game in September it oozed potential greatness, but somewhere along the line Arkane and Ubisoft have lost their way and we're left with what I can only deem as half a game.

It might come as a surprise, but I would actually have preferred a direct conversion of FIFA 06 to this.

The gameplay, graphics, multiplayer, sound and everything else are all okay.

PoPoLoCrois’ main downfall is that it really doesn’t bring anything new or original to the RPG arena.

By letting you explore the mansion and other location at your own discretion, we could have had a brilliant title on our hands.

But don’t be looking for any semblance of a story here despite the developer’s claims and attempts to infuse one. And don’t be looking for something deep.

It’s horribly unbalanced (you can walk out of one boss fight straight into another with no save ability in-between). It’s still a goof game on a purely destructive level – where the hacking and slashing is as good as the series has to offer.

There are elements of the game that are enjoyable, particularly when it comes to the puzzles, but often the Da Vinci Code is as flat as its voice actors.

A very amiable game. You really want to it to be better than it is, and with its flashes of brilliance it's easy to get deceived into thinking it's far more playable than initial appearances.

This is not actually a bad game but it has some technical flaws going against it. If you’re bored of using guns and in the mood for slicing up some nasty-looking monsters without getting scared out of your wits, by all means pick it up.

Airborne was supposed to be a WW2 masterpiece, but it failed to be nothing more than a disappointment.

Despite its annoying flaws, Dynasty Warriors 5 Empires isn’t a bad game. It's just a pitifully bare improvement over its predecessors when it should be hitting its oft-teased promise.

The sound, animation, story and enemy AI are all lacking to some extent. This causes the game to be a lot less fun than it should be. The lack of story means that you're running around without a purpose and the lack of enemy AI really make this a rather flat feeling title.

The actual depth available for the player is amazing with a large number of missions, mini-games and mission types (including free-roam), but unlike Grand Theft Auto, they aren’t seamlessly integrated into the world, rather a big list of activities for you to choose from the menu, which seems to be a step back in my eyes.

Ubersoldier has been made with some interesting ideas (although the choice of a WW2 setting seems strange considering the crowdedness of the genre and the nature of the story), but the execution of these ideas is far from perfect.

Without any identifiable storyline or single-player incentives, the various challenges on offer simply fail to motivate, and can become tiresome as a result.

The visual swagger of Red Steel is that of a been there, done that affair.

If you're willing to ignore Star Force, willing to ignore the dull single player mode, the complete lack of charm and character and the difficulty of unlocking all vehicles then there is fun to be had here if you’ll make good use of the multiplayer modes.

It’s clear that this game is aimed at children. If you have a child that’s a fan of the film, this will no-doubt appeal to them and they may well find it a lot more enjoyable than older gamers.

There are some unique ideas concerning health replenishment and inventory management.

The ending is abysmal, although it is nice to see that the crew decide to have a party to ensure that they feel that enough has been accomplished for one day.

If only Codemasters had at least given us the option of something a bit more slippy then this might have been one of the best driving games released this year.

A lazy effort. Xbox Live play is poorly implemented and those seeking online racing are better off trying the PC version.

Essentially, Need for Speed: Carbon is Need for Speed: Most Wanted in the dark, but with a more expensive price tag.

A lazy effort.

Sitting, uneasily as it does, between pure bred sim and arcade flyer, it should serve well as an introduction to the genre for those who've yet to reel through their first barrel roll, while the more hardcore player should find some challenge with the difficulty level ramped up.

I can’t help but think that if Microsoft had worried less about putting PC gamers on Xbox Live and more about giving us 360 owners a complete game we could have had something special here, but it just hasn’t happened.

By the end of the game I ended up hating both sides, which was perhaps the intention, but I wanted to be able to play the game my way.

The game is resplendent with in-jokes from the series, and a ridiculous amount of content from the series is present in some form. The trick is to see past the occasional frustration, and simplistic gameplay.

For those looking for a strategy game that matched the Second World War in intensity then you may wish to look elsewhere as Making History fails to storm the beaches of excitement and in the end is driven back into the sea.

There is very little to fault Metal Slug: Anthology. Big guns, big vehicles and some colossal enemies is a combination that seldom comes under serious scrutiny, and of all the big platforming shooters out there, Metal Slug owns the field.

Cheap, cheerful and a good laugh, even if it does lack a little longevity.

With over 40 characters to master, there’s a fair lot of classic brawling to be had here. Had it actually included a more substantial experience, rather than feeling so empty, it’d definitely be worth recommending to both fighting fanatics and casual goers alike. Instead, it feels more like a relic of a past age, thrown together to into an exceedingly demo-like affair.

It’s all so utterly forgettable so, I guess, just forget it.

Manhunt 2 isn’t a bad game as such, and had a lot going for it, if it had been released in the PS2’s heyday. It wasn’t, and a year later, those polygons aren’t looking any smoother.

When you're making a game that's purely designed for online play, you have to make sure the basics are in place, and the frame rate is the fundamental factor in all shooters, but in Quake Wars it's all over the place, which is a shame.

The control issues will kill interest in all but the most determined casual gamer, however, and the graphics will cause even those with 20/20 vision to squint from time to time.

Sadly rather disappointing. It's all the more disappointing because it promises so much and because it is so reminiscent of the classic "Theme Hospital."

A great concept and it really should have been a great title. But with a poor track list and a front end that implies even Activision views this as a cheap cash in, how can we view it as anything else?

It looks and sounds ok, but one play through and you’ve seen all you need to see. Mindless blasting can be fun, but this is soulless blasting.

It’s certainly not the most incredible PS3 experience out to date, and if you’re going to buy just one PSN game, I’d say unequivocally go for Super Stardust HD, but if you’re a fan of that kind of shooter and fancy a challenge, Nucleus remains a unique, challenging, entertaining if simplistic shooter.

The Marathon fan base out there who played the game over 10 years ago will most likely be the only ones to get any real enjoyment out of this one.

Overall this is a fairly solid title, nothing awe inspiring yet nothing dismal, and unfortunately for a movie tie-in that is quite an achievement.

Chipping in a shot from the rough on the far side of the green, and watching it sink really does come with a sense of achievement, you feel like you earned it. However the number of small glitches and design issues really hinder the enjoyment.

It’s still strangely alluring, enough so that even after completion (which only took seven hours) I went straight back and played the first two levels all over again.

That is perhaps what is largely wrong with FEAR 2: as quintessential a First-Person-Shooter as it is, it doesn't have the heart and soul of games like, for example, Half-Life 2; your character is merely existing in the world rather than living in it, and that's a departure from which even the new quick-time events cannot save it.

Taking into account the design flaws, AI inconsistencies, the lack of progression and that the PS2 version is arguably a lot better (and cheaper) than the ‘next-gen’ versions yet again (albeit very little different to PES 6 save for some subtle differences), but also taking into account that for some people the frame-rate issues and online play aren’t as bad as they are for others, PES 2008 still just about manages to scrape a six.

Eidos and Beautiful Game Studios are getting there. It’s a slow process yes, but they are getting closer. If they can concentrate on more of the basic stuff, team talks and being more interactive with players, rather than on the fancy stuff such as the 3D matches, then next years match could be a close one.

So, £25 or thereabouts for some reasonably entertaining times (and a few real stand-out sequences) over about 10 hours, 500 or so easy Achievement Points, and that’s about it. If that seems worthwhile to you, then go for it.

It’s just a shame that more wasn’t done to combat the repetitiveness as, with more variety, this could have lived up to its massive potential.

What's up with having an analogue controller that can only aim in the old style 8 directions? What's up with the huge loading times and rubbish user interface design? All these failings could be solved in patches in the future but they really shouldn't need to be.

It even brings some clever and unique aspects to the game design including two fun sections where you can manually spin platforms around to create the best route.

Dynasty Warriors 6 is a hard game to recommend to anybody that hasn’t enjoyed the series before or expects a bit more depth from their gaming, while at the same time unlikely to disappoint those wanting more of the same.

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is a system selling game, it's too beautiful in adverts and demo mode not to. But it marks a failure of evolution in a series that was once groundbreaking and is now becoming a little stale.

The game is good, the editor not so good, but there doesn’t seem to have been any real development from the original. The game hasn’t taken a step forward; it’s where it was when it was first released.

Sky Diving remains a cheap and cheerful title that will get your Sixaxis muscles flowing again.

Sufficient sums up Iridium Runners quite succinctly. It's surprisingly entertaining, especially with four of your friends in multiplayer, but it's by-the-book in every way and you simply need more to be able to compete with today's higher profile offerings.

The main success of Cities XL is that it has the basics right. The developer has created a solid city builder that's addictive and enjoyable. It's only hampered by the numerous bugs/crashes and the over-priced planet offer that mainly promises more than it delivers.

I would certainly recommend MK vs DC, perhaps not at full price but at a sub-£20 price point I can’t see it disappointing many, and it actually does enough to deserve a seven.

But poor storytelling, dull mission structure, lack of variety in the location and a lack of polish left me wanting much more.

I have to admit that I enjoyed Crash: Mind Over Mutant, and really wrestled with what overall score to give. However, take away the dialogue and the voice acting (they get an easy 11 out of 10) and I really would not have stuck with its frustrating inconsistency.

It's a noble failure with much to admire, but it is still a failure. All very well harping on about the handling then have to contend will really terrible damage modelling.

Quantum of Solace is a pretty slick, well presented and polished product. The gameplay is rather simple, but the game is aimed at the simple end of the market. Yet I feel that James Bond deserves more than this, more than a cheap and very short punt into the cheap seats.

FIFA Manager has come on leaps and bounds the last few years. Once considered one of the worst in its genre it can now stand up and call itself one of the big guns. However, it fails to live up to the high standards set by Football Manager and your left with a game with bags of ability and potential, but no end product.

Tales of Valour just doesn't add enough new content and what it does add is pretty much useless. This one is only for the die hard COH fans.

So, the movie and the game have something in common: they try hard and have some cool, fun moments, but lack the necessary substance or flare in order to make the time between each thrill worth enduring.

Under the Ashes is immediately framed as being little more than build up to Tomb Raider Underworld: Lara’s Shadow. With spokespersons from Crystal Dynamics clearly more excited by Shadow than by Ashes, you’re maybe going to be left with a sour taste. Did you just spend seven quid for a quite enjoyable jog to a cutscene? Quite possibly.

Fans of turn Russian developer 1C's Fantasy Wars title will feel at home here and novice players may be attracted by its simplicity and omission of in-depth resource management, but Elven Legends does little to break new ground in its genre.

One of the Achievements to nail in Epilogue is to complete it in under two hours. So, you’ve paid 800 points for two hours of additional content that, on balance, isn’t really all that good, and does little with the narrative save to clumsily set up Prince of Persia 2.

Certainly there is some fun to be had here - mostly in brief stints as a party game - but the track list is not what it could have been. When combined with the lack of DLC or interoperability with World Tour, I find it difficult to wholeheartedly recommend Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits.

The gameplay itself is pretty average for the genre, and the graphics do make it a bit difficult to spot some of the objects you are looking for, but it's plus points more than compensate. The games storyline holds the average gameplay together well, the overall presentation is pretty good, and to top it all off is the games budget price.

It isn’t the most exciting game in the world and it offers nothing new but the excellent multiplayer options help it to stand out as a PSP title.

Bearing in mind that Cogs is a budget game from the Steam network I would still have to say that I could only recommend it to the minority who actually like sliding tile puzzles if they ever come down from their hilltop monasteries, and maybe at a push, trainspotters.

Overlord as a game has so much potential and I really hope they get another crack at it with a third installment, but they've certainly not done themselves many favours by playing it so safe with the sequel and not pushing enough boundaries.

If unoriginal story line, repetitive fights and subpar AI don't bother you or if you have never played a JRPG before, then you may enjoy Magna Carta 2.

A glorified track pack.

Nier is potential squandered. It has some great and not so great characters and enemies placed into an inconsistent world where large portions of your time are spent yawning as you travel through an RPG that has stagnated in a pit of ten year old Japanese RPGs and tries nothing new to make it a worthy purchase.

What could have been a really excellent horror game, perhaps the first actually based on a film license, is sadly rendered mediocre by the design work.

It fluctuates in both difficulty and quality, never quite realising the potential of such a ghastly setting.

Madballs in... Babo: Invasion isn't going to blow anyone away. The name is fairly ridiculous and the whole Madballs fad is long-gone, but there beats an enjoyable shooter underneath the bland, uninspired exterior.

The game completely failed to charm me and it lacks an addictive hook. A valiant but ultimately doomed effort to break the dominance of the old firm, FIFA Manager 10 is set for mid table obscurity.

The core gameplay is fast and furious enough to keep it alive if more variety is added and I know I will pick it up again at some time in the future.

I'm not exactly sure how much Wii points cost, but I don't think one thousand of them is too high a price for this game, it's not brilliant, but it's some nice simple fun that you'll enjoy sharing with your friends.

A simple facelift doesn't disguise the fact that it's still the same old game, so unless you're a newcomer to the series, you might be better off keeping your money.

It doesn’t provide an experience – it merely provides the tools with which to make an experience. Therefore your enjoyment is really dependant on whether you’re the type of person who is likely to seek out and become a member of an existing clan, or have enough online friends to create your own. If you’re not, then you’re much better off sticking to the more user friendly Battlefield, or COD: MW2.

Perhaps White Knight Chronicles is trying to accomplish too much and ends up spreading itself thin.

If, like me, you have warm fuzzy memories of the glory days of LucasArts, Revolution and AdventureSoft, you'll enjoy The Whispered World. And I did. But there are simply too many shortcomings here to give this game a hearty recommendation. Muted praise.

It’s fun while it lasts and definitely an above average puzzler and highly recommended for puzzle addicts but it’s difficult to get too enthused about.

It will grab you, but you'll have to make an effort to reach out and hold its hand for a while through the rough spots. The problems are the times when it lets go, leaving you lost without a hint of what to do. Or when it just turns on you and beats you down after hitting the same boss twenty times straight.

Mafia looks, sounds and feels dated on the Xbox, maybe because we’ve been spoilt and we know what the machine is capable of this just doesn’t satisfy.

But the problems with the game can be summed up in a mission to defend a factory, where failure meant game over rather than the continuation of the battle from that point on.

It feels very much like a first attempt, although this is in fact the third in the series.

But daylight racing is not enough to mark this game out from a crowd of games that while steadfastly sitting comfortably in their niches and not taking risks, ultimately are a lot more fun to play.

It tries too hard to be Halo rather than finding its own niche in the market and comes across as a game that doesn't try hard enough. There are moments of enjoyment, but not enough to recommend this.

The most frustrating thing I found with it was an autosave that occurred just as I destroyed the engine on my plane right at the end of the first mission.

If the thought of using noxious farts to temporarily disable mad mid-western farmers at Knobb Cheese Farm (where the password to get in is cornhole) has you laughing uncontrollably, then Stubbs the Zombie will keep you entertained from beginning to end (assuming your tendency to drool doesn't short out your controller).

Big Red One comes across as rather flat and uninspiring online, and even though there's room for 16 players, most maps will feel quite empty.

Shattered Union's problem is that it tries to cram far too much in, and instead lacks and kind of real depth in any area. The enemy AI is weak, and far too unwilling to take advantage of the many errors you'll make early on.

A lazy effort. Xbox Live play is poorly implemented and those seeking online racing are better off trying the PC version.

In trying to be both a realistic squad based game and an arcade shooter, Rainbow Six 3 has sub-machine gunned itself in the foot, making too many concessions to each style to play very proficiently in its own right.

A funny little gimmick and quite a good party game, but that is all. In itself, it quickly wears out its welcome, even if multiplayer does stand the test of time somewhat better.

It provides the classical Simmer gameplay, with minor changes to accommodate the hand held format, but do not hold your breath while searching for any major innovations with regards to the DS side of things.

A step in the right direction. It's just plagued with mistakes that make it an uneven ride of missed chances. What makes it all the more galling is that it's presented so beautifully and uses the touch-screen in enjoyable ways.

It's funny, I had a feeling all that development time would've given us something more.

While it may be a fun little jaunt with the appearance of a clever strategy/action game, if you attempt to play it that way you soon find out that it is fundamentally broken. A lesson from history, one hopes.

The basic problem with B&W2 is that once again you're micromanaging a world for people who are too lazy and stupid to be able to do the simplest of tasks, such as build a house or find someone to mate with, for themselves. It's a real shame.

Forbidden Siren’s greatest strength is that it hints at depth, even giving brief unnerving glimpses, but it still fails to express itself well enough for many of us to understand, and for the rest of us to bother.

This is one title that could have… should have… would have…. been better without its similarly irritating controls. Rent it if you’re a Jet Li fan, pass completely if you aren’t.

There's little imagination, little independence inside their tiny minds and this makes looking after them a joyless activity. Micromanagement leaves no time for voyeurism.

It’s little more than a clone of a more successfully designed game, produced as a good idea for garnering a license respect rather than a good game in itself.