There is very little about CSI: Fatal Conspiracy that would appeal to non-fans of the series.

It's enjoyable to play, but feels, at least at times, like playing basketball with a bum knee might. You have fun, yet the pain prevents you from playing at your full potential. Similarly, this game has lost some of its potential within the framework of its annoyances.

She Sees Red is a highly atmospheric, well-acted (but poorly dubbed) interactive movie that will keep you engaged for about the same length as a film before faltering a bit under its limited choice format.

Like its heroine, The Rockin' Dead may be pretty, but beauty is only skin deep, and to find any substance below the surface here, you're definitely going to need glasses.

NightCry is confusing mess of a game that nevertheless manages to provide a bit of schlocky B movie horror fun, particularly for those with fond memories of Clock Tower.

While The Sacred Rings has plenty of familiar gameplay to offer puzzle lovers, the absence of original ideas and creative spark means the game will have a limited appeal.

While the story and entertaining characters will keep you engaged until the end of The Uncertain: Light at the End, you will still need to wait for the next episode to (hopefully) discover who wins the battle between humans and robots.

More often than not, though, it ends up being the most painful, soul-destroying, stressful, rather-stick-a-rusty-nail-in-my-eye excuse for an adventure game I have ever played.

Of Bird and Cage is an experimental music album that pairs interactive elements with the songs to create a unique experience. However, the game is plagued by bad mechanics and a story that is uninteresting and devoid of nuance.

All told, it took me a little under eight hours to finish Undercover: Dual Motives, which would have been an acceptable length in a better game. As it is, the meagre storyline, uninspired puzzles, and limited exploration already seem stretched at such a modest play time, and even fans of Operation Wintersun will find this handheld successor a shallow and unrewarding experience.

While it remains an innovative and highly laudable idea which I hope will one day be put to better use, in Jazz and Faust it fails to be more than a misguided gimmick. The ‘two adventures in one’ angle fails because even with this feature, the game is extremely short.

Beyond KURSK‘s virtual tour of the ill-fated titular submarine, this self-proclaimed “adventure documentary” works as neither a compelling adventure game nor a fact-based documentary of the mysterious disaster.

Oh, the story. It promises so much, yet delivers so little.

Monumental feels like an homage to the heyday of bad Myst clones that no one should be particularly nostalgic for.

9 Elefants effortlessly copies what should have been a successful formula on paper, but a lack of puzzle variety and story relevance causes most redeeming qualities to get lost in translation.

The debut installment of Montague’s Mount is very pretty and atmospheric, but the lack of plot, puzzles or scares so far should have you waiting until the next episode before you decide whether to climb on.

House of Caravan successfully builds an eerie atmosphere of darkness, but the bare-bones story and lack of character empathy largely squander the opportunity.

Not only is there a huge amount of territory to cover and explore — a real surprise in an indie game like this — there are a lot of puzzles to solve. None of which I would call easy.

For everyone else, there’s some mild point-and-click fun to be had, but this is one adventure that’s simply too paper thin.

Possibly the worst adventure game of 2003, guaranteed to piss off both adventurers and twitchers.

Ultimately, Jekyll & Hyde is a bit like its dual protagonists: a very mixed bag.

DARKSTAR: The Interactive Movie is a game that takes a lot of patience to truly enjoy. It's not a game for everyone, as some are sure to be turned off by the rarity and simplicity of its puzzles, while others may not relish a return to the infamous days of live actors as their game characters, particularly when some of the acting reminds us why this isn't always a good idea.

Like a vampire out in the midday sun, Dracula 4 is a short-lived and painfully weak episodic prelude that should be consigned back to its coffin until the series develops some real bite.

Instead of a labor of love, Forever Worlds plays more like a last-minute, pieced-together disaster. A waste of time and money guaranteed to disappoint adventure gamers with its complete lack of depth, user-friendliness, and sincerity.

Various puzzles of seemingly frustrating insignificance litter the entire experience.

Hoodwink establishes an interesting premise in a unique setting, but its ease and occasional frustrations spoil some of the fun in this (undisclosed) episodic debut.

Artematica’s video game adaptation of Morbus Gravis is underdeveloped, unbalanced, and borderline unplayable. Only the most dedicated of Druuna fans need subject themselves to the game’s insurmountable frustrations.

Go home, watch the show for free, and save your money for much, much better games.