FIFA Manager finally made an effort to combat stagnation. Now Bright Future needs to rewrite the game's flawed 3D engine to give Sports Interactive a run for their money.

Moore and Gibbons bestowed Watchmen with incredibly rich atmosphere, but you can’t make a masterpiece out of atmosphere alone. Too little of everything. Too monotonous. Too unoriginal.

Blades of Time is a step forward compared to X-Blades, Gaijin Entertainment's previous offering. Alas, the hack and slash action is too monotonous to enjoy, and there is nothing else to draw you in.

MLB 2K12 is a classic case of "more of the same".

By opting not to use the comprehensive ratings system from Trials 2, RedLynx drastically shortened the lifespan of Monster Trucks Nitro.

Compared to other Sims spin-offs, The Sims Medieval is a bold game. But once you complete your first playthrough, you will hardly crave for a second helping.

Theatre of War 3: Korea brings a welcome change of scenery to the series, but the boring strategic mode is a poor replacement for the traditional single-player campaign.

MAG is a multiplayer game to the core. It doesn’t have a single-player campaign, scripted sequences or AI-controlled bots – only online battles and nothing mode. In the times, when Battlefield and Unreal Tournament feature storylines, cinematics and dialogue, Zipper’s creation feels like the last of the Mohicans. But the lack of a story is not what killed MAG. The concept, the release time frame and the rivals did.

Angry Birds Space introduces enough changes to avoid being called stale, but, ultimately, it's more of the same.

In the attempt to capture the feel of a Hollywood movie, the developers went so far that they completely turned Call of Duty into a mindless run from one objective marker to another. There is a mediocre on-rails shooter under all these blurry visual effects and nice music, a game no better than Secret Service or Code of Honor 3. It just looks and sounds nicer than its low-budget brethren. Multiplayer is the only worthy thing about Modern Warfare 2.

Majesty without a random map generator is like a chicken without a head. I understand that I shouldn't ask too much from a $2,99 title, but randomness is one of the things that make the original Majesty so fun and addictive even today.

Looks like Bound in Blood is bound for the bargain bin. The six-hour single-player campaign and stock multiplayer modes are so forgettable that one can’t help but wonder what a true sequel to the original Call of Juarez could have been like. At any rate, it would have turned out better than a forced prequel.

Outdated visuals, sloppy innovations, dead multiplayer… no, that’s not the way to continue a great series.

Despite its shortcomings, the game is enthralling. The excitement of progress – you want to be faster and more powerful than the rest. Colony expansion brings money, new expenses and a truckload of problems. The interface is not easy to get used to, but still, all information is neatly organized, and key tools are always at hand. Light of Altair is a spiritual younger sister of more popular 4X strategy games, it just has less “X”s.

KTX Software has to draw people's attention to Haunted's original multiplayer modes, otherwise the game's already humble potential will be lost in brainless monster-bashing matches.

Modern Times is a good excuse to return to the familiar world of Tropico, but, frankly, the game has almost outstayed its welcome.

Not giving a damn about sponsors and marketing, Pierre Gilhodes made Gobliiins 4 almost single-handedly. A classy, but ill-advised deed, because there was no one to tell him that horrible-looking 3D scares people even faster than pixelized sprites. That autosave-only policy is an insult to PC gamers. That even a puzzle game should have a coherent story.

It is almost a masterpiece and a horrifying example of bad Japanese game design at the same time. But, if you want to be challenged, get Dark Souls, and you will discover a very captivating RPG.

Outdated visuals, sloppy innovations, dead multiplayer… no, that’s not the way to continue a great series.

Dungeon Siege 3, just as Obsidian's previous game, Alpha Protocol, is an RPG that adds absolutely nothing to the genre.

Conviction is just a casual-oriented actioneer with simplistic gameplay mechanic and big-budget production values.

Enjoyable single-player campaign, fast and fun multiplayer skirmishes, great eye-candy… It's a pity that the game is so skimpy on the content. It'll take you just a couple of days to thoroughly explore Oil Rush.

Despite the amazing scope and intensity of the battles (during the Omaha Beach offensive I’ve burnt 750 German tanks and killed 17500 soldiers), there will come an inevitable moment when Officers becomes boring and turns into Blitzkrieg 2 on steroids.

PES 2013 continues the course that Konami charted three years ago. It's more confident, makes less mistakes, but still, it lost the final battle for soccer domination in this generation of gaming platforms.

Burnout CRASH! is just a silly mess of fire, numbers and wrecked cars.

Nation Red is not as simplistic as Legion of Man, DiezelPower’s previous creation, but it’s still dull and unimpressive.

The adventures in the lifeless town are long and at times boring, but you will get your $10 worth of entertainment.

The game's endearing visual style and amusing (albeit clichéd) story are let down by the overall laziness of its creators.

The Dragon Knight Saga is a rare game that received massive fixes not from desperate fans, but from the developers themselves. The decent expansion pack improves things as well.

Chinatown Wars is not an evolution, but a step back. The same city, the same gameplay, the almost forgotten top-down camera angle, cardboard clichés starring as main characters. This is the first GTA game that I didn’t want to explore.

You squeeze a laugh or two from Precipice of Darkness 3, but why putting up with the boring gameplay and ancient visuals when you just go and read a fresh comic strip by Penny Arcade?

I'm sure that for some of you this product will be more than enough to kill some time after a hard day's work, to meet up with your friends online, to drown in nostalgia, reminiscing about great action/RPGs of yore... Yet it's a Blizzard game we're talking about, and, as such, it was expected to be better than just a rehash of old ideas. Instead of bringing the genre to the next step of its evolution, Diablo 3 dwells on the past.

DeathSpank has stylish "paper cut-outs" as characters and scenery (which are especially impressive at a full HD resolution on PC), sharp dialogue, and nice music – it only needs thought-out gameplay to succeed. The game is hardly worth a second playthrough, and that's a death warrant for any aspiring Diablo clone.

This decent strategy game is bogged down by lots of aggravating mistakes that stem from Colossai's lack of experience with the genre.

The first fruit of Zynga's "new model of partnership" really shows what modern mobile devices are capable of, but as far as the gameplay goes, the world of Horn is empty and lacks fresh ideas.

Shadowgun mimics Gears of War so closely that if it were published on consoles, it would have been immediately branded as a desperate knock-off.

It doesn't matter how well-polished Winter Sports 2011 is; this game has zero depth.

It is sad to see so many good ideas killed by their implementation.

Weak intrigue is a traditional soft spot of the Blackwell adventure games. The investigation is predictable, and all of our burning questions are answered in such a dull, ridiculous manner that all build up flies out the window.

Infinity Blade as it stands now is simply an intriguing test of a very promising technology. I'm not sure that you'll get your $6 of fun from Infinity Blade, but if you want to impress your friends, this is the app to buy.

Repetitive levels, same-looking explosions and faked car damage kill all the fun.

Red River is not a rival to modern high-budget, high-tech blockbusters. It looks worse than Modern Warfare 2 or Black Ops, and you can't destroy the environment like in Battlefield: Bad Company. But, compared to its overly serious predecessor, this game is a real gift.

The single-player campaign is poorly balanced and very short, but, since Castle Crashers never materialized on PC, Magicka is the next best alternative. It is fun enough to last a couple of evenings, but doesn't have a lasting appeal.

If you're still not tired of WWII-themed RTS games, give R.U.S.E. a chance. It's a nice alternative to Order of War, but don't expect it to dethrone Company of Heroes.

Looks like Codemasters really struggled with DiRT 3, piece by piece cutting everything that could have saved this game from going off the cliff.

Iron Brigade could have become an alternative to Dungeon Defenders, if not for annoying bugs, blurry graphics and very low difficulty that kill most of the fun.

Even if you turn a blind eye to simplistic puzzles and short gameplay, or squint at the scenes lifted from classic LucasArts adventures, you will still have a hard time enjoying Ceville.

Terminal Reality did well to capture the atmosphere of both Ghostbusters movies, but failed to include captivating gameplay. On the other hand, it’s way better than the Riddick game sequel from the same publisher.

Borderlands 2 is awfully simplistic as a first-person shooter, and it's not deep enough for an action/RPG game.

The most shocking surprise in Black Ops is a full version of the classic text adventure Zork: The Great Underground Empire, hidden deep in the CIA computer. The game that 30 years ago created an entire genre and stood at the very frontier of electronic entertainment, is now embedded in a derivative, formulaic, overwhelmingly linear shooter. I imagine that this irony is lost on Treyarch.

Look past the glitz of technical achievements, richly designed sets, ostensibly interactive environments, and you will see the real L.A. Noire – a vapid adventure with a hole-ridden plot, a boring unsympathetic hero, and rough stitches in places where content should be.

Look past the glitz of technical achievements, richly designed sets, ostensibly interactive environments, and you will see the real L.A. Noire – a vapid adventure with a hole-ridden plot, a boring unsympathetic hero, and rough stitches in places where content should be.

Even the so-called "hardcore" games should be fun to play, but Geo-Political Simulator 2 is too stodgy to let you have any.

The Russian subtitle of this game is "At Twilight", and it gives a pretty clear idea of where EA was going with Late Night. If you're not into vampires and are not in a hurry to leave the suburbs, you won't miss this expansion at all.

The fatal flaws of Dante’s Inferno are not even its dated graphics or depressing lack of originality. It’s monotony and endless repetition that will drive you nuts.

Pro Evolution Soccer is like Kaka – in mid-noughties it was cherished and loved, but today it's just a pale shadow of its old glorious self.

If you don’t have access to PlayStation Network or you have no one to play it with, Fireteam Bravo 3 is a waste of money. The game’s single-player campaign reminds of age-old Spec Ops and Conflict series and is basically a complimentary bonus to the multiplayer mode. And the latter is a solid contender for the title of “portable Counter-Strike”.

Here is hoping that Paradox will fix the bugs, iron out the glitchy AI, and add more multiplayer modes. And if not… well, Defenders of Ardania will not be the first game with a great concept to get crushed under an avalanche of flaws.

The fatal flaws of Dante’s Inferno are not even its dated graphics or depressing lack of originality. It’s monotony and endless repetition that will drive you nuts.

A surprisingly well-made platformer, albeit simple and extremely short.

A Valley Without End is your typical ugly duckling; an intriguing concept marred by shoddy execution. It's worth a brief look just to see how they managed to mix all these genres, but not exciting enough to play it.

Remove the original premise and beautiful sand-swept skyscrapers of Dubai, and all that remains is a humdrum TPS with Marcus Fenix's DNA at its core.

"Unpolished" – this word describes every facet of Armada 2526. Why bother playing this game when we already have the brilliant Galactic Civilizations 2?

The linear structure of the original game masked many of the game's shortcomings; the expansion highlights them instead.

Conviction is just a casual-oriented actioneer with simplistic gameplay mechanic and big-budget production values.

A relatively successful attempt to liven up a (still) mediocre game.

Multi Massacre looks and plays exactly like its boring 2009 predecessor, Foreign Legion: Buckets of Blood. In fact, this is not a sequel, just a bunch of new levels and multiplayer modes that should have been released three years ago.

Black Water is too peculiar to warrant an "instant buy" recommendation, but if you're into westerns, this is a great find.

Four years is a long time. The once humdrum, but spectacular console slasher is now a humdrum, plain-looking PC game.

The subtitle is the weakest part of Need for Speed: Most Wanted, because it invites comparisons. That's when you realize that the new game is a step down from its 3- and 7-years old predecessors.

Close Quarters was definitely made for fans of Call of Duty – it offers everything that Modern Warfare had from the beginning. Smart tactics is thrown out the window and replaced by confined spaces and fast-paced shootouts.

Lacking innovations and overly simplistic, Hell & Damnation is still much better than other Painkiller games – the abominable Redemption, Resurrection, and Recurring Evil.

War of the Roses is a good base to build upon in future installments, but until then, Mount & Blade has nothing to worry about.

Don’t look for great accomplishments and fresh ideas in Flock!. It’s foolish to expect something revolutionary from critters that gave rise to the word “mutton-head”.

Supreme Ruler: Cold War can quickly become a chore, despite the amount of detail that went into this game.

It's a modern fairytale with a muddled story, flawed logic and ho-hum graphics. Sometimes the entire thing feels hollow-hearted, but, thankfully, it's not as disappointing as was The Whispered World.

Dead Island is yet another tombstone upon a grave of excessive ambitions. Our condolences to those who fell for that excellent cinematic trailer – it has nothing to do with the actual game.

Mildly realistic combat and addictive RPG elements put Lionheart above Crusaders and XIII Century. Unfortunately, the lack of a strategic mode and technical glitches are serious turn-offs that won't stop only the hardened fans of the Crusades epoch.

An urban version of Split/Second from the creators of FlatOut. This sentence evokes two distinctly different feelings, depending on when you read it, before or after playing Ridge Racer Unbounded.

Autumn Dynasty is a bright spot in a sea of faceless tower defense clones, but it doesn't hold up when compared to a decent RTS game. Everything is too predictable and simple.

Right now Demigod is a source of constant annoyance. In multiplayer, one normal session is usually followed by three horrible ones. In skirmish, stupid bots are boring to tears. Even if Gas Powered Games and Stardock eventually manage to revive Demigod, it won’t erase our memories of this involuntary beta testing.

By changing the setting in Call of Duty 4, Infinity Ward saved the series from stagnation. World at War is a step back. WWII has been done to death, and even the Pacific campaign feels like a retread of Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault.

Syndicate is amazingly dull and thoughtless for a game where you can kill people with your brain.

Alcachofa Soft managed to produce only a half of a potentially great adventure. And I mean it literally - the two opening chapters are so different than the last two that you won’t believe your eyes.

It's a pity that Monday Night Combat is not good enough to serve as an alternative to Team Fortress 2.

G-Force lacks in character and originality, but gadgets, robomonsters and nice little details make up for a nice pastime.

DeathSpank has stylish "paper cut-outs" as characters and scenery (which are especially impressive at a full HD resolution on PC), sharp dialogue, and nice music – it only needs thought-out gameplay to succeed. The game is hardly worth a second playthrough, and that's a death warrant for any aspiring Diablo clone.

DeathSpank has stylish "paper cut-outs" as characters and scenery (which are especially impressive at a full HD resolution on PC), sharp dialogue, and nice music – it only needs thought-out gameplay to succeed. The game is hardly worth a second playthrough, and that's a death warrant for any aspiring Diablo clone.

Only those who never saw previous games in the Prince of Persia series, will find The Forgotten Sands interesting. By ripping off their 2008 Prince of Persia in everything except for backdrops, the developers failed to keep their promise and didn't even try to fill in the blanks between The Sands of Time and Warrior Within. Ah well, who cares about some old plot holes when there is a Hollywood blockbuster to milk?

If you love Monopoly, but couldn't care less about online play, get a 2008 version. It makes no sense to pay extra for pretty much the only new feature.

You will not remember Risen 2 when you're done with it. No exciting moments, no pleasant surprises, no great one-liners, not even hilarious bugs… Twenty hours of your life will drown in dark waters.

There is a slim chance that Fatshark will eventually manage to fill Lead and Gold with content, like Valve did with Team Fortress 2. But right now the game is not worth its $15.

The weak narrative sucks all the emotional drama from the game's story, while beautiful hand-drawn backgrounds are saddled with the ugliest examples of character animation.

All the sore spots that we hated in Sacred Underworld have found a new home in the sequel. Take any modern MMORPG, and it will offer you all the same things as Sacred 2: rudimentary story, copy/pasted quests, constant grinding. And much more than that.

Medal of Honor: Warfighter is a slavish imitation of Call of Duty, while its multiplayer doesn't hold a candle to EA's own Battlefield 3.

Frequent boss fights, excellent cinematics and great animation keep you glued to the screen for the first thirty minutes. Alas, oversized bugs which use the same attacks over and over, tiresome QTE sequences, useless combos and weapon upgrades will get under your skin.

WRC feels like an unfinished game, and many of its ideas, whether they're good or bad, are poorly fleshed out.

Rebellion is clearly an improvement over the original Sins of a Solar Empire, but it's still a not very successful attempt to cross an RTS with a 4X strategy game.