It's got a world you believe in, a cast you care about and a script stuffed with brilliant moments... Utterly stunning in every resepct. [May 2008, p.79]

Amazingly written and beautifully constructed, it's a complete emotional rollercoaster which we can't drawn any parallels with...You'll be playing this game for months to come, exchanging story elements to build up the bigger picture, and arguing about what it all means. [Sept 2007, p.88]

The presentation, the career game, the online stuff, the load times...everything's better. And with streets packed with spectators, signs and flags, it's a much more vibrant lace than Gotham's sterile cities of old. We simply have no alternative but to crown Gotham 4 the best racing game on Xbox 360. [Nov 2007, p.102]

Simple, elegant and hopelessly addictive. [Feb 2008, p.103]

It's mature: not because of profanity or nudey bits, but because it tackles complicated themes without telling you what to think. Having already sunk a distressing number of hours into ME2, the second this sentence is finished we're firing it up and exploring the rest of the universe.

This is a textbook example to other developers of the love, care, attention, polish and guile needed when crafting a sequel. An essential purchase for all FPS fans. [Ryan King]

The FPS epic comes full circle. Pure quality.

This may well be the best tenner you ever spend.

While it's worth replaying to catch the dialogue you missed the first time round - a spectacular rarity in any game - and to hunt out the hidden Rat Man rooms, there isn't enough variety in the way you solve puzzles to sustain repeat runthroughs. We're going to need DLC, and plenty of it, to keep our co-op partnership going.

Human Revolution stands proudly alongside the best in cyberpunk fiction, in any medium let alone just games... So few games allow you to carve a subtly unique path through every single encounter and, while major plot points remain the same, you'll feel like your journey was your own. [Sept 2011, p.80]

Skyrim may frustrate you at times, but it will work its way inside your skin and replace the marrow of your bones. It never gives you an opportunity to neatly stop playing. Even if you manage to tear yourself away, the locations and the people will rattle around in your head. It'll give you stories to tell your friends, (although you should remember that many people simply won't be interested), and it'll give you an entire region to bend, beautifully slowly, to your will.

Brilliantly charming and consistently entertaining, it's a true XBLA classic.

Mass Effect 3 is brave enough to threaten to destroy its very own legacy. Everything you've worked for is genuinely at risk, and horrifying things are going to happen because of some of the choices you've made. If you've spent as long as we have with these characters, the impact of this final journey will be one you don't forget for years. Brave, thrilling, and incredibly emotional, Mass Effect 3 is a sci-fi masterpiece.

There's absolutely no doubt that Fez is essential. As a fan of games in general, you should consider it required reading - it's one of the smartest, most charming games you'll ever play, let alone just this year or this console generation. Somehow Polytron has constructed something that tweaks our nostalgia for the 16-bit era and yet presents fresh, imaginative challenges.

4J has turned in an accomplished port, boasting crisp, high-resolution visuals and a reorganised inventory...In terms of console sims, nothing touches it. Minecraft's world is one that everybody should experience.

Even when we're note marvelling at this marriage of plastic blocks and Death Stars, there's something incredible going on in this game, and it's all in the little details. [Oct 2006, p.68]

This is a true classic, and a beautifully made one at that. Rediscover Splinter Cell all over again, and we promise you, there's no way this cracker will stab you in the back.

If you think you can handle the pressure, deal with the pain and put in the hours, then you'll find this one of the most frenetic, tactical and rewarding squad-based shooters ever made (despite a few annoying foibles and glitches), one that will grip and enthrall you for weeks on end - and justify the outlay for your Xbox 360 setup. [Apr 2006, p.15]

Gears of War is absolutely rammed with excitement, innovation and atmosphere. This is a next-generation game in every respect, trampling convention and really rewriting the shooter genre with flourish and pace.

Burnout: Revenge is so achingly pretty that this is one of the few occasions where it's actually worth buying all over again. Seeing it in action makes you proud of your Xbox 360 and what it's proving capable of.

Rupturing quality and oozing tension, this is stealth gaming of the highest calibre, full of imagination and augmented by an excellent two-way Trust system that leaves you pondering every choice you make and then having to deal with the consequences. [Nov 2006, p.8]

But if you want a staggering multiplayer fight game that looks better than anything else on Xbox 360, get this.

Bungie has delivered an excellent Campaign mode, arguably the best multi-player experience on any platform and almost endless replay value. But Halo 3 scores most highly for artistic vision, capitalising on all of the series' greatest visual motifs.

As good as we were expecting and hoping, it delivers on its promise to make an 'always on' Xbox Live race world, plus the car handling, sheer size of its island and the way you're left to make your own fun in your own way makes it a breath of pine-scented air in this world full of bland race games. [Oct 2006, p.108]

If you've a nostalgic bone in your body that needs breaking, this is the game.

Though the single-player provides some feasible outcomes to the what-if scenarios posed by the desperate fiscal, military and political interests of the superpowers in Kazakh oil, the multiplayer provides a more realistic answer to what might happen - endless, bloody, war.

Ultimately the game proves how powerful a storytelling medium gaming has become. Like the best cinema, the feeling of being privy to this dark world lingers long past putting down the controller. Its memory festers inside you - of a deeply disturbing experience, and an unforgettable one at that.

The only problem with VT3 is also its greatest asset - it really does play and feel identical to the Dreamcast game we played every day for six months back in 2000 and for large chunks of most years since. [Apr 2007, p.84]

It's this kind of smooth, easy perfection that floods the game. [Nov 2007, p.92]

The greatest triumph is that it'll make you laugh and go 'wow' for the entire seven hours and then some. [Oct 2006, p.8]

While the [single-player] combat is still brilliant and it looks a lot better, the unskippable cutscenes, unvaried locations, irritating characters and mini-games all really grate. However, adding in the much improved multiplayer with a variety of cool vehicles, Treyarch has really rounded off Infinity Ward's vision. [Dec 2006, p.90]

Star Wars fans, LEGO fanatics or lovers of the first game will be in ecstasy. A must-buy. [Oct 2006, p.94]

The astounding vistas of each planet combined with swelling synth chords and the cheesy sci-fi plots of Babylon 5, make this a game for lovers of sci-fi and RPG everywhere. Roll on the sequels!

It plays brilliantly and is astonishingly easy to get into...For outrageousness and pure entertainment value, Crackdown is the most fun sandbox game to date...It's all-out action. Crackdown is an absolute riot. [Feb 2007, p.8]

The car handling is incredibly complex and varied, and the superb modding Garage lets you tweak handling beyond belief - but only if you want. [July 2007, p.88]

Still brilliant, even by today's standards. [Dec 2006, p.99]

Perhaps the most impressive thing, though, is that it's managed to feel like a totally authentic Halo experience, rather than just a cynical spin-off. We've no doubt a strategy game will be a hard sell to a lot of people, but if this introduces even just a small proportion of die-hard Halo fans to a rewarding new genre of game, or indeed just a small proportion of strategy fans to the brilliance of Bungie's rich sci-fi universe, then it can be deemed a success that the now defunct Ensemble Studios can be proud of.

The beauty of Guitar Hero II is it's just as playable and addictive in single-player, with a career mode taking you and your band out of the sticks and onto the road of rock stardom. [Apr 2007, p.80]

Enormous, intelligent, wily - a true dragon. [Sept 2007, p.98]

Quite simply, GRAW2 is the game the original Advanced Warfighter should have been. It’s GRAW with a proper running time, GRAW without feeling penned in by invisible walls and the endless and constraining "You’re leaving the battlefield!" warnings. GRAW2 promised to be bigger, better and more – and it’s delivered all three.

Is the most ballanced, prettiest, deepest fighting game ever made perfection? No, but being the most balanced, prettiest and deepest fighting game is more than enough. [Nov 2007, p.94]

It’s definitely a worthwhile Live Arcade download for Oblivion fans, rejuvenating it and giving your character some wonderful new tricks. Frankly, you’d have to be mad to miss it.

With Half-life you've got a remarkable, near-perfect single-player experience, while Team Fortress 2 provides endless replay value and Portal provides a unique innovative sideways look at the physics of video games. And don't think it ends here, because Valve is a past master of the art of Downloadable Content. An essential purchase.

As a tech demo of Xbox 360's power and a showcase of how fast, skilful and enjoyable simple online battling can be when it's taken back to basics, there's nothing better around right now.

It was, and still is, a gaming masterpiece. The term ‘Must Buy’ was created for games like this.

The best music game in the world...ever! [Jan 2008, p.79]

Fluid and uniquely told. A classic reborn. [Aug 2007, p.102]

The smoothest, best looking and prettiest Hawk game of the lot. It really has been tweaked to perfection. It's going to be impossible to improve on this one next year. [Dec 2007, p.84]

COD4 is cutting-edge entertainment, but the downside to this dense and gripping delivery is that it's over far too quickly: five to six hours on Normal difficulty...COD4 is short but immensely satisfying and we can't wait for a post-modern revival. [Dec 2007, p.73]

Exploding with multiplayer fun! [Oct 2007, p.98]

The proof is in the songs, better balanced and offering enough range to please everybody. Here's to another six months of hard rock heaven.

One of the most addictive games we've enjoyed in recent years. [Christmas 2007, p.106]

The best sports game on Xbox Live Arcade. [Feb 2008, p.103]

Like all things immoral, this is tremendous fun. Buy it now...No better way of spending 400MP. [Dec 2007, p.109]

Still fresh 15 years on - and just as much fun. [Christmas 2007, p.107]

It might not be adding much to the Resi formula, but it's hugely enjoyable despite this. Roll on the inevitable and much-deserved sequel.

The best puzzler on Xbox Live Arcade. [Jan 2008, p.98]

Ubisoft has taken a huge gamble by not making wholesale changes to Rainbow Six Vegas 2, but it's come up smelling liike roses. It's still one of the very best-value, high-quality FPS packages available on the 360. [Apr 2008, p.72]

If you missed the cult the first time round, now is the time to jump on board. If you are already part of the cult, we know you'll be playing this right now.

There are very few ways that Gears of War 2 could be improved on. Only the story and the final boss in particular are a slight disappointment. Fanboys will love the fact that only one of a multitude of story arcs is concluded; everyone else will feel slightly unfulfilled. But aside from this, Gears 2 is not just the most exhilarating game you'll play this year, but possibly the most heady and downright shocking piece of entertainment full stop. Hollywood, your days are numbered. [Dec 2008, p.61]

An amazing sight to behold. [Apr 2008, p.99]

It's online that Madden 09 really comes into its own. [Oct 2008, p.88]

Ironically, Fight Night Round 4 may be the best argument for banning boxing yet. After all, when a game can get this close to the fluid, organic technicality of the real thing, why does anyone need to get hit in the face?... Solid, satisfying and totally revolutionary. [July 2009, p.81]

It's simple what Bethesda's done here - it's taken Oblivion's engine and design ethos, and applied it to a fresh franchise. The results are truly impressive, and we've no hesitation in slapping on a Must Buy badge, but you can't help but notice that for every problem it's fixed from Oblivion, a new leak's sprung.

There's a massive amount to say about GHWT, from the factoid videos teaching you the real guitar, and the vastly improved backdrop for gigs, to the superb way you can play as a band. This is a vastly entertaining package and a must buy for music lovers and GH fans.

Those worried that World War II has been done to death, fear not. Treyarch's willingness to push the boundaries has uncovered a side to the war few developers even knew existed, and we'll be damned if it doesn't make for one hell of a game to boot.

Under seven quid for one of the best one-on-one fighters since "Street Fighter II"? Bargain!

At its worst, Rock Band 2 feels like a massive expansion pack that just fills in all the missing gaps from the original game. [Christmas 2008, p.92]

As wonderfully addictive as ever. [Oct 2008, p.94]

Unique, charming, frustrating, innovative. [Oct 2008, p.94]

The best game in the franchise to date. It's genuinely good enough that it might even convert diehard PES fans if Konami's update this year ends up being as lacklustre as last year's.

A brilliant experience. No other license-shackled developer has understood their subject quite as well as Rocksteady, and this is without a doubt the definitive representation of the Dark Knight.

Far Cry 2 is this year's equivalent of Assassin's Creed... when it comes to enveloping the player in exotic sights and sounds, Ubisoft has absolutely nailed it. [Issue # 40]

Who knew agony could be so much fun? [Dec 2008, p.100]

From giant pandas to Streets of Rage-inspired brawling, this is the most complete fighting game available to-date.

The only major disappointment is final boss Seth. Given how imaginative the rest of the crew are, going toe-to-toe with a bald, blue baddie that bears more than a passing resemblance to Bioshock's Fontaine feels like something of an anticlimax.

For the price, it's unmissable, and it proves that Liberty City can support far more than the two pieces of DLC Rockstar has committed to.

This is pure videogame from start to finish - escapism at its finest. It reminds you of a time you didn't question why, you just went along for the ride. There's only one question: how the hell do you top it? [Jan 2009, p.92]

Red Dead Redemption is a truly epic resuscitation of the Western theme in games. It's also easily the best gunslinging game we've ever played.

Still one of Sega's best racers. [Apr 2009, p.92]

It's hugely addictive, enormously satisfying and will only set you back 800 points. What are you waiting for? [May 2009, p.96]

The first Assassin's Creed's charm was in the sumptuous graphics and straightforward action - that incredible climbing and free-running, and the visceral thrill of stapling evil people to the dirt with a wristblade. With AC2 the rest of the game has caught up with the brilliance of those central ideas to create a complete and coherent experience. We can think of plenty of words that could describe Assassin's Creed 2 - involving, exciting, cinematic - but there's only one word that sums it up beautifully. Killer. [Dec 2009, p.74]

It's indisputably an excellent shooter: intelligent, satisfying, and a tiny bit thought-provoking, with big ideas and big fights that are never as clunky, irritating or unfair as BioShock. You should play it. But you should also know that - and here we'll borrow the game's own central theme of parenthood - it's a prodigy that never quite leaves the shadow of its father.

The best ice hockey game yet. [Nov 2009, p.96]

The game's brilliance is distilled in those heroic moments where you shunt the person in first, whip past and then execute a perfect drift between two mines on the final corner of the final lap. This is the Xbox 360's slick, stylish answer to Mario Kart and we absolutely love it.

This is the old-school, full-bore ultra-violence that many people felt was missing from Niko's adventures. It's less a brooding crime epic and more a particularly ludicrous episode of Prison Break.

IL-2 feels like two separate games: one a solid, fun arcade flyer, the other a testing simulation of true aerial combat circa Hitler-times. It's inevitable then, that if you're at all interested in planes, or just want to embarrass yourself at a different altitude, IL-2 can hardly come more recommended.

Once again Turn 10 has produced the biggest and deepest racer on the Xbox 360.

Shadow Complex is a stunning demonstration of what you can squeeze onto the service. Play it, marvel at it, and hope that it's the future of downloadable games.

Those who've already purchased the DLC might look at that £40 price tag with concern, but - make sure you're seated - we reckon its quality, not quantity that matters most here. And ODST has bundles of in both it's superb single-player and sublime online modes.

And that's L4D2 all over: in every game, the world ends a slightly different way. You'll find a different route to take, you'll hear another dud story from Ellis, you'll try a different weapon combination, or a different tactic in the finale.

The best in the series by some distance.

Still awesome online. [Aug 2009, p.94]

The best DLC for Fallout 3 so far. [Sept 2009, p.84]

With such layered and near-endless challenges, not to mention the addition of a remarkably powerful level creator, you'll be firing this up for a quick blast for years to come. We don't say this often, deeply cynical as we are, but if for some ludicrous self-abusing reason you only buy one XBLA game this year, make it Trials HD. [R. King]

Exceptional racing with brilliant atmosphere.

Improves on the original in almost every way. [July 2010, p.90]

Earthworm Jim HD is a brilliant example of how games should be remade and remixed on XBLA.