It takes a lot of patience, curiosity and dedication to the A Song of Ice and Fire universe to get over all the problems that undermine the game and enjoy its only quality: the story. Perhaps some fans will feel it's worth the effort, but most RPG gamers will want to skip this disappointing tie-in.

Similarly to Civilization V, combat elements are the most evolved and those of you who favored that particular battle system will get right down to business, helped a lot by the map's visual familiarity. The positioning of units on hexagons allows for attacks from multiple directions and, just like in the eternal source of inspiration, in the lower left you get an approximate report of a fight together with any bonuses given by unit type or terrain type.

Binary Domain took inspiration from many places, but didn't manage to gather those ideas into a shell that goes beyond a decent coherence; the story is ridiculously clichéd, the dialogues are passable at best and the Trust and voice systems aren't exploited enough to really matter. Just the boss fights are somewhat fun, but ultimately it depends if you have enough patience to face the tons of (s)crap just for the thrill of taking down such huge metallic monsters.

Actually, Bugbear missed pretty much all its marks: destroying opponents isn't as fun as the Burnout takedowns; ruining the city has nothing of the adrenaline and the real danger and satisfaction from Split/Second; drifting is one more stress factor and the decision to dominate races is motivated by the points and not by the thrill of the competition. So while this mix is theoretically perfect, in reality it's just not good enough for you to spend too much time in Shutter Bay.

So after going through John Yesterday's amnesiac adventures three times in the row, the game is a journey with which I really want to be indulgent, although mediocrity follows it every step of the way. It's not a complete mess, but everything it does has already been done by others and much better.

It's too short, too small in many ways and way too conventional in a market oversaturated with AAA alternatives. Alternatives which last longer and offer competitive modes, not just a few dozen hours of co-op runs in which you can't point anything out to your teammates unless everyone has a microphone for the game's VoIP.

So in the post-Call of Duty/Battlefield/Team Fortress 2 world of today, Nuclear Dawn will not have an easy time finding a safe place, not only because of the risk it has taken as a genre combination, but mainly because of the work that the FPS side still needs.

War in the North is a hack and slash with some RPG elements and co-op, all assembled around one of the most beloved media licenses today, but with all this going for it, it simply doesn't manage to stand out. Sadly, it's just another product that tries to blend some popular elements, but with no true support or personal identity.

Overall, Disciples III: Resurrection is an expansion that features plenty of turn-based gaming hours, but these come bundled with technical issues and a couple of design choices that get more and more annoying as you progress through the campaign.

The Run bragged about revolutionizing the NFS series with an enticing story and memorable gameplay. Unfortunately, the story was better off missing in action and the only things that are memorable from the gameplay are its shortcoming: no freedom of choice, no Free Roaming, no Replay, no cockpit camera, no choice of races in multiplayer.

Unfortunately, The Cartel was rushed to the market with at least 6 months in production. If it stayed in development for at least a while longer, it could've used to the maximum potential the cooperative campaign offered and all the interesting competitive elements. But the way it is now, it only misses the mark on all the design elements that could have ensured it a good place in the genre.

Fable III proves to be a pretty unstable mix, with good visual value, but an excessive simplification of the gameplay. You might get to finish it once and then go on with any remaining secondary missions. Still, there's no life after that; the fights are boring, enemies stupid and the story too thin.

Out of respect for Stardock, I will stop here, because it's hard for me to imagine how a decent developer has allowed such a product to be released in this state, with little connection to the term of entertainment.

But on the other hand, Blood Stone doesn't rise up to its price tag unless you're so into James Bond you're wearing George Lazenby boxers.

ArcaniA is functional, it looks good, but it offers nothing special in its 20 or so hours. And if this is the bright future of the series, I can already say "May it rest in peace".

So if psychotic thriller shooters aren't your kind of game, Kane & Lynch 2 will not make it on your shopping list. For the rest of you out there, it offers too few hours of fun, so the price/quality balance might not be that attractive until you find a sale.

As it stands, NFS World is just a sum of repetitive elements gathered in a body pretending to be a game.

In the end, Disciples III it worth a try, but I can't just say "go and play". It's full of technical flaws, some of them affecting the gameplay quite a lot.

With a price tag of 11 Euros and some spare change, Alien Breed: Impact should have been a pretty easy to recommend title, but the recent release of the free remake of Alien Swarm has further thrown a wrench in the works, besides the above-mentioned issues.

As a spin-off for a legendary series, Tiberian Twilight would have been an interesting experiment. But as the final chapter of a saga that’s been waiting for its epic conclusion for 15 years, it’s a slap on the face which I’m not sure how many fans will be willing to forgive.

Ultimately, I was impressed by the length and complexity of Ego Draconis, and also by the stubbornness with which the producers wanted to present a high quality title. Indeed, if the game would have been bug-free, had a better voice acting and a more polished interface, it could have been a serious thorn in the back of Dragon Age: Origins.

Surely the strategists among you will be pleased with the new content, but those who expected more from this expansion have every reason to be unsatisfied.

As it stands, Champions Online is not meant for the elitist MMO player, who craves for a lot of sudden changes of situation and coherent universes, but rather for your everyday consumer, who can escape work in the gross quantity of perks (read Achievements), in the mini-series heroes (read Vanity Pets) and in the overall lack of sense. And that, of course, only if their personal computer can handle it. And only if the producers will put a lot of effort into keeping up with the (still) growing community.

It’s unlikely that we’ll see another Bionic Commando in the near feature, as GRIN closed down soon after the launch of the game and the title’s poor performance itself clearly contributed to their inevitable financial problems, so it’s now up to other studios to see the potential behind Spencer’s story.

A title without any kind of charm, released only to get a few more bucks from Terminator fans. Stay away from it and better look for X-Men Origins: Wolverine. At least the latter showed us that there are indeed exceptions to the rule.

Battlestations: Pacific is a “light” title in all respects, but if you enjoy air and sea battles and would like an eye-candy icing, you will be fully satisfied. There is little else than that, however, and while the Island Capture mode does offer some interesting strategic features, I wouldn’t really recommend the campaigns, unless you enjoy being a simple crosshair on the screen.

Yet even if it can’t be acknowledged as one of the best games in the genre, Velvet Assassin does its job decently. Barring some obvious flaws, it’s a good weekend title. Just have some patience in the beginning, so you can accommodate with the gameplay style.

It looks well, it moves well, the sound is good, but there are edges to be polished before it can become a serious online phenomenon.

On the other hand, Tales of Valor’s main argument for purchase is that it grants access to all the factions in multiplayer, with no need to purchase the previous titles of the series, so those who just want to see what Company of Heroes has to offer in the online mode can consider this an interesting option.

It’s simple, direct, linear, sometimes spectacular, so Wheelman can actually inject a rainy weekend with a dose of fun, but it’s not grand enough to bring the sun to a week spent in London.

The saving grace of the game comes from the fact that it is, on occasion, fun. It could have been better, sure, but, well… it isn't. So you either are a diehard fan of 3rd person shooters and will get it because there isn’t much to play this time of year anyway, or you'll probably just wait for the price to drop.

The Last Remnant is only recommended if you call JRPGs an addiction, especially if you don’t own a console, as there aren’t a great deal of JRPG titles on the PC digital entertainment market.Everyone else can probably find more coherent and compelling worlds to explore elsewhere.

If Grand Ages: Rome had been a real time strategy, it would have had a lot more value. But, seeing as it lacks the adrenaline, we are left yearning for details, for culturally and historically correct references, or for the magic of ancient lives.

Because Uprising doesn’t lack a certain charm, but even the people it addresses – devoted fans – will have to be very tolerant towards what the game can offer.

Because no matter how you look at it, paying 15 Euros for six single-player missions and two multiplayer maps which can be downloaded for free isn’t much of a bargain. Moreover, Ubisoft already released the Complete Edition of the game, which contains both World in Conflict and Soviet Assault.

For an episodic game – one that costs 18 Euros on Steam – The End is Nigh might just be worth its price, if you understand and accept its handicaps for what they are.

EndWar will most likely represent a disappointment for real time strategies fans, as it was created for a totally different market, that of “casual gamers". Because barring the voice command system and a mildly interesting multiplayer mode, EndWar unfortunately doesn’t have anything to keep you interested in long run, being more of an appetizer than the main course.

Puzzle Quest: Galactrix bears on its shoulders the burden of the glorious past created by its older brother and I’m sure that if it had been the first born, it would have been much better received.

The developers probably wanted the game to have Action and RPG characteristics in equal doses, but the blend ultimately failed. And I personally regret that the mystifying ancient Greek missed its potential in this title.

The main quest is pretty short and unimpressive, but this was never the “backbone” of a Fallout game. I’d estimate that an uninterrupted run through the main story could take around 3-4 hours, while not being particularly juicy.

But the truth of the matter is that I wouldn’t even recommend Mercenaries 2 to the fans of the series. Because the game might ruin the wonderful impression they were left with from the first title.

Sure, it’s worse than the first two stand-alone episodes and I can understand why some might be angry with the producers, myself expecting a tad more out of it. Even so, I consider the 10 dollar cost money well spent, but it’s important to know that you need the second game of the series previously installed to run this expansion.

Considering the current drought of the genre, The Abbey is a title which can satisfy adventure lovers, but also those that have had enough of frantic shooting and want a calmer game.

Space Siege is a mediocre game, trying to fool the audience with its high price of admission, which is completely unjustified compared to what you actually get in the package.

Ultimately, I think that the developers got bored before finishing Legend: Hand of God. And considering the game’s quality, it’s not really worth the admission price.

Political Machine has a major flaw, its low replay value, as each game varies very little, and aside the "unlockable" content, there are few reasons to play single-player.

Alone in the Dark could have been a great game, but in its current shape it’s just a disappointing failure.

Ultimately, Turok is the kind of game which you either like very much, or you hate and uninstall it after the first 10 minutes.

Jack Keane is addressed to those who are more attracted to the ridiculous humor that LucasArts were able to produce before endlessly milking the Star Wars cow, rather than somber, logic-oriented gamers.

The game's strong points remain the atmosphere and the script, but if you're not willing to compromise when it comes to graphics and game length, you won't be able to enjoy the two things the producers got right.

Considering the official announcement for Dawn of War 2, Soulstorm can be considered the epilogue for this Warhammer 40.000 generation, and I can’t escape the feeling that the producers wanted to squeeze the last cents with minimum efforts, especially because it's only a half stand-alone expansion which only allows the two new races to be played online, the earlier version being required if you want to play all factions.

Turning Point: Fall of Liberty is a good idea put badly into practice; what you might call an unfinished game.

So, what’s left? A decent game, annoying at times, a bit buggy, fun in multiplayer and boring in single-player, pretty to look at, which justifies the money you’ll need to pay for it only if you’re very bored, or you have nothing else to play, or maybe you’ve quit World of Warcraft, or maybe you need a gift… but overall, there are better shooters out there.

Bottom line, The Club is unfortunately a mediocre title, an arcade shooter insufficiently polished, having no other purpose other than running around, chasing a higher score.

The main problem of SunAge is that without the patches released, the game is a disaster.

The game is too linear and the freedom of movement is limited, while Crysis, for example, offers a wider environment to explore. At least if this linearity was sustained by a good gameplay, things might have been different.

The main problem of Perseus Mandate is that follows the same pattern set by the previous two titles a bit too closely.

Personally, I think you need a lot of patience to understand Loki’s shady side, and an iron will in order to wait for the up-coming patches.

With its lack of strategy, non-existent AI, disappointing single-player and annoying voices, Rage of War should not be a commercial title.

Unfortunately, the control system ruins much of the game experience, and even though a patch could probably fix this major issue, the producers have yet to release one.

So, again, PC users are treated like second-class citizens, just another source of cash for the publishers. Frankly, I’m getting tired of this attitude from the publishers, and the simplest way to show them what we think about them is to stop buying their games. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

A game with little expectation of itself, basically a title with today’s graphics featuring yesterday’s gameplay. The entire game can be best described like this: taken in small doses, it might seem interesting and fun, but even so you’ll get bored after a few days.

In the end, I can’t really tell what was Bohemia Interactive thinking when it released this game. What were they after? Was it financial success? It’s hard for me to believe that they actually thought that such an unpolished game would enjoy any kind of success.

Unfortunately for Black Element Software, this type of game has been done to death, so there were only two options for the designers to consider: a) innovate or b) use the classic recipe, but use it the right way. And even though options b was chose, the results are disappointing to say the least.

Personally TMNT disappointed me because of its low quality, but even more because, in my opinion, this title has plenty of unrealized potential.

War Rock is not a special title, but it is a quite interesting alternative to people who’ve had enough of Counter Strike and Battlefield, though the attempt to combine them is not all that new.

With many games supporting widescreen out there, it’s a shame that EA’s games still ignore it.

The game was obviously developed for consoles as well, and you’ll see this in the way the menu works, the almost non-existent graphical options but mostly in the gameplay and the overall graphics quality, which is far from 2006’s standards.

Neverend could have been a decent game, graphics aside, since graphics aren’t that important in a RPG. The story (which in this case isn’t bad at all) and the game mechanics are more important, but the latter are destroyed by bugs, too many random encounters, lack of a mini-map and an odd magic system.

Taking into consideration the awful unit micromanagement I can’t really recommend the single-player campaign, other than for those who are really interested in the storyline. For the rest of the RTS fans out there, the multiplayer will be the main course.

The simplicity of the trade system, some shortcoming regarding the interface, the lack of variety for missions and solar system design – all these could have been forgiven if Darkstar One would have had multiplayer.

If someone will ever be able to re-establish this kind of games, to make them deliver the kind of fun I’ve had with all the games that preceded Desperados 2, then I’ll clearly admit it and promote it. Until then, all I can tell you is to stay away from this game.

Since we’re in need of good games right now, I’d rather be playing an original episodic game than one of the sequels flooding the market these days.

The game is full of bugs which will crash the game in certain situations, like being followed by the Police and not taking the exact route during Michael’s escape from the restaurant.

Although the levels are pretty big and they’re full of vegetation, they look, well, dated: some of the textures are really low res, the objects are kind of blocky, there’s no AntiAliasing option in the game and I couldn’t force it from the video drivers either (Catalyst 6.2).

It just has such a bad story that you won't play it after a while.

After a few hours, the lack of variety will take its toll. Overall, nostalgia is the only reason why you would want to play Restricted Area. If you miss those sleepless nights in the company of Diablo 2, you will probably like Restricted Area. I for one prefer the dead to stay dead.

There's nothing innovative or original about it and even Karina looks pale from all those freezes and unfreezes.

The overall feeling after playing this game is that I spent my time foolishly, rather than being really excited and thinking about the game every day like it happens when I play a good RPG.

The bitter taste I had since the beginning of the game is still there.

With the First Person Shooter marked being overcrowded and the standards being set pretty high by some excellent titles, it’s difficult for any new game in this genre to stand out of the crowd without outstanding graphics, realistic physics engine, above-average AI for the enemies or the hype to boost its sales. Unfortunately, Judge Dredd doesn’t have any of those.

The maps are very detailed, which will become evident when you will use the zoom function of the camera - too bad the ambient life is pretty scarce.

If you are a true strategy fan you probably wouldn't want to miss this one, as it is by no means a bad game, only a mediocre one.

Being quite simple and with a short learning curve, it's mainly focused on players who are new to the strategy genre. Micromanagement can scare off a fresh gamer, but it can really make the difference when it comes to hardcore strategy fans.

A dull 3D Action game in the strictest sense and besides the wall climbing or web swinging that your character can do, it doesn't bring anything new to the genre

I would say that the only way you’ll want to play this game is if your house got robbed, you lost all of your CD collection and the Besieger disks were the only ones left. In which case, I’m sorry for you.

Although Spartan is quite complex, it is faulted by some ill design decisions, like the inability to build new cities, or the way battles are fought, to which we must add the mediocre technical department.

The overall impression left by Nitro Family is that it needed a little more polish, an opinion which is reinforced by the fact that you only have co-op mode as a multiplayer option.

And although the game lacks the visual splendor of "Ground Control 2," or the physics engine of "Soldiers of WW2," it has a lot more problems at launch than these two titles had.