Due to the diversity and individuality presented to the player in the game, it's not possible to adequately explain just how involving and rewarding the experience of Oblivion is, or put over the immense scope of the living, breathing world on offer. Bethesda richly deserves incredible success in producing something so captivating.

Mario has not grown older, but younger with time: more slender, more supple, more graceful. It is as if the boundaries of the genre have become transparent, allowing a unique light to shine forth. Super Mario Galaxy will influence gaming perceptions, sure to replenish any lost passion. It will frequently hug your inner child, evoke tears of joy and tug at the heart. It is everything we have always desired, more than we could possibly have dreamed.

From the very beginning of your adventure, to the final confrontation against Metroid Prime itself, you will be enthralled and enraptured.

When one picks up the controller, the ability to step into that time and place (never more hauntingly beautiful than in this latest instalment) never loses its allure. Even the most hardened of cynics would have to admit that this title is something else entirely. It's the stuff of dreams. [JPN Import]

Samba de Amigo is a seminal title amongst the Dreamcast’s mighty games catalogue, a game that truly stands out. The best music game there is.

It is quite possible to complete the game without understanding classes, geo blocks, assembly ranks and item world, but in doing so you will miss out on the very thing that makes the game hugely intoxicating.

It is in the depiction of conflict as a state of being where Kojima wins-out, though, with his character's movements on-screen depicting the strain, horror and (sometimes) glory of war.

A masterpiece in terms of design and playability. It is enjoyable for the novice, yet deeply rewarding for those who are willing to take the time it takes to learn its intricacies. [JPN Import]

Only slightly harmed by a few too many big-name acts and micro-glitches, Amplitude is nonetheless a supreme masterpiece; barring its predecessor no music-centred game will ever come close. No, not even "Rez."

This is proof that a good idea, well-executed, can stand the test of time.

Balanced, tuned and counter-weighted to within a pixel’s distance of perfection, Treasure have masterminded a game both technically adept and visually astonishing. Revel in this pean to the art of destruction. [JPN Import]

Between its towering mountains and vast waters there are surprises, in-jokes and events in San Andreas to fill at least a hundred hours. Should "GTA4" be any more involving, there’ll be no one left to see how GTA5 turns out. Half of us will no longer have the jobs to afford it; the other half will be motoring back and forth in the neighbours’ stolen car, endlessly prowling for prostitutes.

Whilst Nexus is most certainly an Armored Core game, and very good with it, a lot has changed on how the game fundamentally plays. Is it the best in the series? Well, it comes stunningly close. [JPN Import]

Everything that fans of the original have been craving and much more besides as it surpasses "DMC1" in pretty much every conceivable way. [JPN Import]

An utterly outstanding game. It is also one of the few games in existence where friends gleefully swipe said Nintendo DS hardware in order to play it, resulting in various skirmishes and the subsequent prising of gaming hardware from contorted, cold, dead hands. [JPN Import]

The sheer thrill of being able to play better-than-arcade versions of the Rave Racer tracks (probably some of the best in the series) in the palm of your hand is almost worth the price of admission alone... The best Ridge Racer game to date? Without a doubt. [JPN Import]

The towering giants aren’t the meat of the experience – it’s the beguiling landscape which proves itself to be the biggest colossi of them all. Sprawling, mystical and dream-like, it can never quite be laid to rest or overcome.

It’s a stylish and remarkably addictive title that blends gameplay with relaxing tunes, and fits perfectly on its home platform. Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s latest game appeals to everybody who samples its future-retro vibe. Luminescent. Luminous. Lumines. [JPN Import]

It’s not for everyone, but those that want to try a game that mixes a bit of twitch with some brain-strain must step up and give Meteos the chance it deserves. [JPN Import]

Football Manager isn’t a matter of life or death. It’s much more important than that.

Appropriately billed by some as a third-person tactical action/horror shooter it is frighteningly good. Although what's really scary is to think what things will look like with a few more years' development time and the know-how to push the hardware even further.

It’s a shining example of how the arcade-racing genre should be done, and it is an essential purchase for all gear heads with an Xbox360. In fact you probably already own it.

The game plays brilliantly, the controller is sturdy and durable, the songs are facemeltingly great.

MKDS is a classic reminder that Nintendo created the character-based racer and is still leagues ahead of competitors when making them.

Whether you are a fan of the previous titles or not, the wonderfully incorporated real-time system combined with the villager’s emotional-pull creates a world that has the potential to alter your sleep patterns and actually intertwine and weave its presence into your daily lives.

In an age where Nintendo feel it is fair to repackage individual SNES games and sell them as full price releases on the GBA, this anthology is undoubtedly fantastic value for money and is one of the most convincing arguments for owning a PSP yet seen. Utterly essential.

The ingenuity of design, the sheer level of fun, the warmth of nostalgia and the relief that 2D gaming is still alive and kicking, all combine to make NSMB an unmissable experience and show Nintendo are still masters of the platform game.

Tekken: Dark Resurrection is quite easily the best fighting game available on the PSP and probably all other handhelds as well. It is also arguably the high point of the series thus far.

It’s the perfect zone game, with matches ebbing and flowing as you or your opponent get ‘in the zone’, and the more you play the better you will become. Rockstar Games presents Table Tennisis a perfect example of how a sport should be digitally replicated.

There isn’t much else to say about this stupendous game. It is among the very best games to have graced the console, indeed it is among the best of this or any other generation.

The game's pacing as the pendulum swings from action to intrigue and tension is a masterstroke with so many memorable sections in such a short space of time that the player will be left breathless and, just like the end of Half-Life 2, wanting more.

While it is true that the twenty-one bosses won’t take long to dispose of, everything in the game is of such high quality that it does not matter. It’s easy to spend hours without even bothering about the main objectives, just blowing stuff up and admiring the physics at work.

Brawl has the most characters, is the best balanced, delivers the most and generally trumps both the other games so far.

Underneath the hood is a well-honed, constantly surprising beast and one that isn’t purely for FPS fans, thanks to a generous degree of auto-aim that places much of the emphasis on tactics and intelligent usage of the tools at your disposal.

Flawed though it may be, it's one of the most atmospheric first-person games ever made and perhaps the standout title of the generation so far. Dazzling, thought provoking, compelling and engaging, it's an experience which refuses to lessen its hold until you've seen it through to the end, and in doing so, lodges itself in the memory in a way that few other titles can.

This is totally freeform: ride around with a pack, do your own thing whilst occasionally bumping into other people and saying hi, or just stand around watching; it’s all good. This is what the core and vision of Skate is about – freedom and choice.

Left 4 Dead is a game which keeps things simple, but this to its benefit. It mixes all the right ingredients of tension, gore and rewards to make it thoroughly enjoyable.

Fast paced and full of relentless action, Uncharted: Drake`s Fortune is a pleasure to play from start to finish.

Resident Evil 4 on the Wii has taken everything that was great about the Gamecube and PS2 versions and tweaked it just enough to enthrall even vetran players all over again.

Umbrella Chronicles achieves greatness by being more than the sum of its parts. It takes the established Resident Evil genre, throws a dormant light-gun element into the mix, stirs it all together and still comes up with something that will amaze and thrill fans of both. This is an essential purchase for anyone who is a fan of Resident Evil, light-gun games or just action games in general. For devotees of all three, this is nothing short of gaming nirvana.

It has nigh-on perfect aiming, hilarious and fun levels, longevity through skill progression and variety not normally seen in an arcade game.

Quite simply, Call of Duty 4 is a stunning game and quite difficult to fault. It looks, sounds and plays brilliantly and offers an unrivaled online experience.

Those who’ve never experienced the story and fun on offer should take a look and owners of the original game still owe it to themselves to buy this game.

The level of enjoyment derived from the game in single player proves that this is a game best played in co-op, which is where Borderlands shines.

Dead Space should`ve been a run of the mill, copycat title destined for bargain-bin obscurity. As it stands, it`s a glorious introduction to a new game world.

There can be no more complaints from gamers looking for a unique experience when gems such as this are out there to be sampled. Miss it at your peril.

It's a gamers' game to be truly savoured - here to show anyone who forgot or missed it the first time, just how ridiculously good it is at what it does.

Tales of Vesperia surpasses every Tales game that preceded it, by building on their strengths and adding a series of new features.

Far Cry 2 is a game that thrives on the moments and experiences caused by its mechanics working in harmony and by making the player think about where they are and what they are doing. If the player can buy into the world and fiction they will have a thoroughly exciting time surviving through the twisting plot and explosive gun fights.

Combine this with the game’s superb presentation and you’ve got an excellent, albeit somewhat brief, puzzle title that really will appeal to players of all levels, whilst simultaneously bringing some refreshingly new ideas to the table.

Infinity Ward has made the wise choice of not padding the game out to satisfy angry internet comment posters but has instead provided a completely satisfying experience that sits beside the vast multiplayer components perfectly.

The game is truly epic and makes the first game feel like a prototype for the sequel. It is a deep and wonderfully involving game that is often breathtaking and constantly rewarding.

Demon's Souls asks much of you. For some it may ask too much, but, if you are prepared to rise to the challenges it presents you will be rewarded with one of the most satisfying gaming experiences of this generation.

Buy this game if you want a challenging title that will eat up long journeys or quiet evenings in darkened room; it’s a great take on the franchise and it’s made for us, for the fans.

Put simply this is one of the best games of 2009 and arguably the best game yet released on XBLA.

God of War and its sequel were two of the best games on the PS2. They exist now as an example of streamlined, entertaining and challenging games.

Things never slack off either due to the brilliant storyline and characters, whilst the tricky combat and devious puzzles keep attention fixated.

It's fun, gloriously slick and executed at the standards we've come to expect. DK94 players should consider this essential; to everyone else it comes highly recommended.

Not only does it exhibit and exemplify some of the best 2D level design for almost any action adventure game ever seen, but it also offers a wealth of engrossing replayability for those that wish to explore the gloomy depths of the infamous Zebes.

Thankfully, longevity hasn't been sacrificed for the sake of beauty: the main quest alone will take the average gamer a minimum of fifteen hours and that's without spending a single moment delving into the fabulous subquests, which will double, even triple that time...A stunning and wondrous game.

The interior textures could have done with more variety. They get awfully repetitive quickly, and one ends up looking much like the next. Some of the levels use the same layout as well, and you'll get tired of running through one area, only to enter another that looks just like.

Anyone looking for a lengthy, epic adventure featuring hugely memorable characters, a great script, and superb game mechanics, there's no better place to look than Knights of the Old Republic.

Simply beguiling, a must-experience game, which will firmly cement itself in the mind of the player long after the system has been switched off.

It joins the ranks of "Winning Eleven" as a title that can be truly decreed master of all it surveys. With the significantly improved gameplay over its peers and additional online elements, it must be considered as an essential purchase.

It's unique in today's environment, where it seems that every online game is either a FPS or a racer, and the tactical possibilities on display mean that many repeat plays later and it's still feeling as fresh as the first time you played.

All of this, along with an amusing and twist-laden story, delivered through beautifully choreographed FMVs and equally well-conceived in-game cutscenes, comes together in one of the most visually impressive games with some of the finest gaming moments that gamers are likely to experience during this generation of consoles.

Burnout 3 has turned an obsession with high-speed destruction into a masterpiece. No idle sequel, no mere upgrade, Takedown is nothing short of a declaration of war – a nosebleed racer that's faster, angrier and more explosive than practically any video game you've ever seen.

A game whose essence is defined by the two player mode is now made essential by the perennially available multiplayer options. Join the revolution - this is what online gaming was made for.

Decent physics, clever AI, online racing: this is everything GT4 should have been and wasn't, and it's allowed Forza to take the GT trophy away from Polyphony, at least for the time being. Buy it.

The pinnacle of both stealth and Tom Clancy games, and is light years ahead of its peers. The changes to the gameplay structure accompanied with the very open-ended levels make for a simply brilliant single-player game.

It offers the more dedicated players, who want to explore the depths of its combat system, almost endless scope and gameplay. [JPN Import]

Mario instils a sense of longing for when the world was new to all of us. Our childhood bright and full of wonder. When we play in Mario's digital playground, we dream about our own.

It's easy to get swept up amongst the hype, but it's hard to deny this is arguably the survival horror genre's most significant landmark title since the original Resident Evil itself.

This version should be rightly deemed as the definitive racing game of this generation, and one of the best ever made. [JPN Import]

What makes it so effective and modern is the variety, quality and consistency in the game world. It truly is in the hands of the gamer which moves to use in any given situation, making Joe such an unusual and unique proposition. [JPN Import]

The title's incredible atmospheric power is derived from how the presentation is conveyed through gameplay, and how the resulting simplicity helps strip the pacing down to a fine line.

Whilst none of the levels quite match up to the stunning quality that was Phendrana Drifts, it is, as a sum of its parts, wonderfully evocative as a playing experience and induces the same level, if not more, of internal satisfaction that Prime achieved.

Ikaruga is not an easy game. Even on Easy difficulty mode it is quite challenging, and the higher modes just ramp things up another notch.

One sure-fire classic in the making, one surprisingly entertaining competition section and an average battle game...Go on, treat yourself to a slice of 2D magic and show that once again, some of the best multiplayer experiences don't have to be online. [JPN Import]

But the moment the opening symphony plays until the concluding credits, all fear and doubt quickly vanishes like the cool whispering of an autumn's breeze. Though not flawless, Nintendo have once again demonstrated masterful craftsmanship, challenging design and imaginative artistry.

Jungle Beat was never going to be a bad game but the innovative control scheme and the deep combo-mechanic have elevated it to a genuinely excellent one.