Now, however, it's been nailed: simultaneous turns, variable game speeds, the ability to join a game on the hop by taking over an AI opponent and game dynamics that leave you despising your best friend. Quite frankly, you needn't buy another game for the entirety of next year - Civ will suffice, and it gets deeper each time you play. [PC Zone]

It's just a pity about the lacklustre responsiveness of the characters, as that downfall makes this a decent game as opposed to a good one. Hopefully Shrek will triumph in the next, inevitable tie-in. [PSW]

The game takes the proverbial pants off every other GBA shooter, and leaves them flailing around their ankles.

Spartan is great fun, but we can't help but feel a little disappointed that the mighty Assembly's console debut isn't much more than a pretty-looking "Dynasty Warriors." [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

We'd have liked to see a more controllable camera as it's pretty static and doesn't allow for too much close-up action, but with such a bright and batty Shrek universe to demolish, we didn't find ourselves caring that much anyway. [Official UK XBox Magazine]

A brilliant game whether you buy it for the single-player, the multiplayer or both. [PSW]

The GTA formula we all know and love has been flawlessly integrated in this handheld edition, complete with an insane amount of new story content padded with hours of potential car chase action. [PSW]

That's the thing about The Sims, if you want a gigantic, long term game that you can learn to love over many months and aren't fussed about a few flaws, this is approaching perfection. A great game for people who like tidying up and washing their hands 100 times a day. [PSW]

Considering just how much the FPS genre has progressed, specifically the squad-commanding, war-themed FPS sub-genre, it's really not worth your time unless you're particularly fanatical about the original. [PC Zone]

The game draws on the rich material inspired by Lovecraft's twisted world, and actually recreates its creeping, claustrophobic horror surprisingly well. [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

A brilliant multiplayer game and an entertaining single-player one wrapped up in one shiny package. [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

It's the same old Sims, and yet so utterly different. Draw the blinds and say goodbye to your friends - real life doesn't get any better than this! [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

A sprawling adventure that offers plenty, but delivers it in a strangely disjointed format that makes it less than the sum of its many parts. [PSW]

Quite frankly it's an insult to have to pay 35 quid for something that starts getting irksome in under half a day and is only genuinely entertaining in 20-minute bursts. Mindlessly fun and manically intense it is, innovative and essential it seriously isn't. [PC Zone]

If you enjoy squandering time away on the original title, you're bound to find more joy and excitement from the additional animals and buildings included in this expansion.

Fusing two genres into a single game might have seemed like a good idea at the time, but with neither part offering up anything particularly impressive you have to wonder why they bothered. It's more crash victim than Crash Bandicoot. [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

It's surely the best-looking traditional real time strategy game out there at the moment, and more importantly it's a real blast to play. Boom! [PC Zone]

It's a game that'll remind you why you got into games in the first place. Essential. [PSW]

The forgiving handling and a near-Burnout level of speed make Jak X arcadey, but there's strategy too.

So while Sniper Elite is tense and fairly riveting, it's never exciting or completely satisfying. The game feels like a chore to play through and the concept is just too limited to be truly enjoyable. [PSW]

Enemies are now far more intelligent. Less likely to be hemmed in by your squad's suppressing fire, they themselves will try to sidle down the blindside of your position and take pot shots at you. [PSW]

The presentation, solid storyline and good use of the X-Men characters lift Rise of Apocalypse into the top echelon of PSP games. [PSW]

You still won't bother with the walking bits, but with two-player cooperative Classic levels, online play and a smart new version of LA to open up and tear apart, this is a return to form for the Hawkster. [PSW]

It really is the most accurate depiction of a scope we've seen in a game, easily outstripping "Halo's" sniper mode or the arcade nonsense of Konami's "Silent Scope." [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

But if you don't have Live, World Poker Tour is little more than a glorified game of cards against the computer. It does put a lot of effort into catering for the single player, with a full career mode and several real-life players to challenge, but it won't take long for any half-decent player to figure out how to exploit the somewhat basic AI. [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

If you're a Fable virgin now's the time to pick up one of the most unique, entertaining games to appear on Xbox. [Official UK Xbox Magazine]

Sadly, The Warriors is never more than running about smashing people's heads in to cool 1970s music and listening to clichéd gang speak. We demand more these days. [PSW]

Grumpier gamers will find fodder to gnaw upon, but the fact remains that it's a prima donna of a game that more than succeeds in its attempts to scare and scintillate. Despite everything, I adore it - and strongly suspect you will too. [PC Zone]