If the rest of the game was half as well thought out and interesting as the crafting and combat systems, then Blade Dance: Linage of Light would easily be the best role-playing game for the PSP - but after a while it gets tedious, and neither the crafting nor the combat can save the experience from sinking into mediocrity.

Strictly a game for fans of the series, although even these people might be put off with the slow-sailing pace of the game.

If I've come off as very sarcastic in this review, it's simply because, compared to Brain Training, the game is mostly boring and I was amusing myself at its expense to keep myself sane.

The amount of cumbersome game elements, flaws and omissions I've experienced while playing, plus some ridiculously hard missions and repeat ad nauseum trial and error gameplay, bog down what could have been a much more streamlined and user-friendly experience.

Commandos: Strike Force does have some unusual ideas that it brings to the war first person shooter, such as peeking through keyholes and sneaking around strangling Nazis while dressed as one of them, but it's simply not enough to earn it a promotion through the ranks, not with so many great shooters out there.

It's above average and makes a change to the rest of the fighters, with its massive monsters destroying cities as they fight, but its bound to get lost amongst the more appealing games in the genre.

It's a great outlet for fans of Backgammon to go and play their favorite game with other people, without the need to wander around with a small briefcase looking for other players.

Players with infinite patience and the strength of will to complete the game will be well rewarded, but those expecting the same level of intuitiveness and accessibility as other Wii or SSX games will be more than a little frustrated.

It kept my sisters entertained for a while - they enjoyed how it looked and they appreciated the voiceovers, plus little spontaneous things, such as receiving text messages, but after a while I'd imagine they'd get bored.

As an introduction into the world of shipping and sailing it's not a bad effort, but as an in-depth and richly detailed simulator, it's something better left alone until Ship Simulator 2007 comes along and adds the much needed features that are sorely lacking here.

Unlike Open Season, which kept me thoroughly entertained from start to finish, I found "Ice Age 2" to be something of a repetitive chore at times.

Section 8 lies paradoxically somewhere between innovation and mundanity: it has its moments (zipping around the battlefield in overdrive mode is a good laugh and the orbital drops are simply awesome) but for all its good intentions, it simply can't overcome its eventually-boring gunplay.

Dynasty Warriors 6: Empires likes to think that's it's a massive, deep game - there's even an encyclopaedia of historical events included in the start menu, so you can brush up on the background to your mindless slaughter - but the problem is, whilst it is certainly massive, it's a long, long way from being deep.

A very disappointing release and to only marginally improve on a title that was already a huge disappointment is almost criminal.

Urban Jungle fails in providing enough replay value to justify a definite purchase, its finely tuned fast-paced shooter gameplay at least makes it a worthy tie-in for fans of the show to take a gander at in anticipation of the debut airing of the like-titled special episode.

Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai 2 is a game that's geared towards fans of the TV series, rather than a wider audience.

The concept of splitting up the gameplay into a myriad of mini-games and separate just doesn't work and just about all of it is inexplicably boring.

Despite the lack of depth and bullfighting, all of the action is pretty fun - this won't be the most fun you have playing a game this year, but the set ups and environments work pretty well at delivering tense moments and engaging gun battles.

The "evolved" angle isn't worth much, unless you really want the ultimate Warlords experience (which is admittedly awesome).

Be it frustration at the difficulty level or just boredom at the lack of variety, your Urban Reign is pretty much guaranteed to be a short-lived one.

A bit of a disappointing first attempt at a shooter, considering the power of the PSP. The sound is reasonable and the graphics vary between good and excellent, but the gameplay lacks somewhat.

I'd suggest a weekend rental rather than picking it up full price. And while it might be short-lived, there's nothing quite like leading a horde of zombies around to convert every last citizen you can lay your decomposing hands on! Say it with me folks - "BRAINS!"

It pains me to say this, being such an adoring fan of the Call of Duty franchise and all, but Call of Duty 3 is probably the weakest game I've played on the Wii so far, and I've played nearly the entire launch window line-up.

Unfortunately, playing the game leaves you with this constant feeling that you're watching a film while occasionally tapping at one of the buttons on your controller to continue the story.

The horribly short lifespan and the bad controls of Kong degrades this title from a must-have to a must-rent.

Its main selling point is realism, not in all aspects but enough to make the game more unique than it would first seem. It's flawed, but if you give it a chance you'll discover a reasonable game wrapped up in an excellent story.

I don't care how much it hurts to say it, but I'm dropping out of this 'bonus' tour. There is no way I can stand up on stage and pretend to have fun playing Shakin', Radar Love and all the other bogus songs you put in front of a sold-out crowd who had no idea just what they were buying into.

If you must bring elegance into your neighbourhood, or you must own every Sims release, or you have a partner who is crazy for Sims and you'd like to purchase them a reasonably priced gift, then The Sims 2 Glamour Life Stuff might fit the bill - but with so many snobs in real life, surely you'd be glad to escape them in the virtual life?