Ultimately, Revelations leaves behind a bittersweet taste: it's the end of a saga (or two, depending on how you view things) and integrates fairly well in the timeline of the series, but... it's nothing more than a detour that answers a few questions, not an actual step forward.

One of the most original games released this year, not to say ever, and it’s perfect for those breaks between two "UT2004" deatmatches.

The Shift ability is the element that makes Driver: San Francisco an interesting game. No matter how stupid the idea behind it is, the possibility to use any car (not just those affordable to you) gives huge freedom. And mixed with varied missions and a good multiplayer, but with a crippled AI and some control issues, Driver manages to revive not only the cop, but also a series that almost no one believed to be viable anymore.

Playing Myst V was one of the saddest moments in my life. This game is nothing but a prolonged agony. Each puzzle you solve is one more step towards the end. The Myst universe is one of the most beautiful manifestations of human imagination.

Despite its high technical requirements and some weird choices made by the developers when implementing the control system, TDU is a nice experience for both single and multiplayer.

By far the best strategy released under the Star Wars banner and a real success for Petroglyph Games.

For an add-on of only 9MB, Vae Victis added many things to a game already complex, with a learning curve that’s quite steep and not accessible to everyone. But those who will discover its secrets will be rewarded with a realistic and historical experience that will keep them glued to the computer for many hours on end.

With some more polish, SH4 has the potential to surpass its predecessor and to take its rightful place as the best submarine simulator ever made.

Compared to Anno 1503, the pathfinding has been improved substantially.

However, considering how slow, confusing and unappreciated the 3D versions seemed, a lightweight remake for today's networking capabilities is more than welcome if you're longing for this stuff.

And I dare say it's the best title Telltale game released so far.

Even so, Assassin's Creed remains one of the best games of the year. It's not THE game most probably expected it to be, but it's a solid base on which Ubisoft Montreal can build the rest of the series, now that they have the solid backing of the impressive worldwide sales.

I was never a fan of racing sims, of complicated control schemes and the need of a wheel attached to the desk to be able to enjoy a game. On the other hand, the Burnout series, Split/Second, even Blur, offer easy controls and focus on the thing I like: explosive shows.

Mirror's Edge is a game with an innovative approach, but unfortunately it is rough around the edges, and with a little more work on it would have been an amazing title.

Its flaws are largely subjective; there are no open wounds for me to pour salt on, but don’t worry – a race or two would be enough for you to decide whether it’s worth investing time in.

Loses a few points in the strategy department, but makes up for them in atmosphere, one in which I'm sure Uther Pendragon himself would have felt quite at home. On my part, I would have loved a deeper economic system and a better unit balance during the battles, but on the other hand, I was pleased by the character complexity and the RPG elements.

It is the most captivating game I have played lately.

In many ways, King's Bounty is a step forward regarding the combat aspect for turn-based games of the HoMM variety. But barring this, Katauri Interactive's latest creation is nothing more than an RPG in which the only hero evolves in terms of basic genre principles that are already set in stone.

Still, for a title which is worth less than five Euros, the Misadventures of P.B Winterbottom are recommended to any indie-loving player.

It still has some issues regarding the controls, and some of its puzzles are way too difficult. In the end I feel it’s enough to say, without taking any chances, that I give the whole Myst series a 100/100 rating.

I wholeheartedly recommend it, with a small caution sign reserved for the little ones, because the game is violent on quite a large scale.

As a full package, Overlord 2 certainly deserves your money if you can get a good deal on it, because it’s still a breath of fresh air in the gaming world of today.

Project Origin isn’t a bad game. It’s pretty nice and you can recommend it to your friends without remorse.

Compared to the recent titles of the series, Paths to a Kingdom is a real step forward, both in terms of bringing back gameplay elements specific to the Settlers series and introducing new options that allow for greater complexity: the Victory Points system, conquering sectors and increasing the productivity of your followers by filling their bellies.

Better than its predecessor, but unfortunately, it doesn’t pack enough novelties to really make you to want more, unless you’re a Star Wars fan.

If you liked Doom 3, then Resurrection of Evil is exactly what you've been expecting all these years. The new weapons, levels, monsters and multiplayer are attractive even for a non-hardcore Doom fan.

The concept is as bizarre as it is successful, the gameplay is well fleshed out, and I'll be totally honest and tell you that sometimes it's best to kid around, if only we'd be blessed with products such as this more often.

In other words, Dead Rising 2 is to Left 4 Dead what Saint's Row is for Grand Theft Auto. It's got a lot of customization options, it's unpretentious, fun in a lightweight, stupid sense, while losing points in the atmosphere, storyline, complexity and production value aspects.

Ultimately, LoL's minor disadvantages are pretty damn redundant – we could complain about the details if it actually cost anything. Well, it doesn't. The main pro and con of the game is the same feature – the concept of a slow, simple DotA.

Nevertheless, Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 remains a good game, recommended for military shooter fans and action games alike, because it represents the ideal combination between realism and action.

Even though the beginning is a little slow, the second half is downright exhilarating and the ending is a bit surprising as well.

The multiplayer clearly deserves the admission price.

Thus, I can't recommend buying this unless you (still) like the fast pace, the customizable weaponry and the short matches, of about 10 minutes each. With the very important mention that, essentially, nothing has changed.

A decent first person shooter, which manages to paint the Star Wars universe from a different perspective, a move which is to be commended, since originality is something very rare in most of today’s games.

If you’re one of those who don’t get moved by the atmosphere and lyrical construction of the game, know this – it’s without a doubt a very good sequel, and the standard it set will make it very hard for Requiem, the last episode, to live up to the Penumbra name.

Drawing a thin line, Bound in Blood is far from being a perfect game. Fortunately, the story has such a rapid pace and takes you from one area to the other that you won’t really have the time to get frustrated.

Medal of Honor: Airborne, is a game that’s generally good, but with a few problems here and there.

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

It's a simple game, without gameplay complexities, extraordinary AI or difficult tactics, quick reflexes on the mouse and plenty of life potions being enough for a victory.

Nevertheless, Mount & Blade: Warband is not a single-player title and the campaign is nothing more than a bonus for when your Internet connection isn't working. Otherwise, you will find yourself again connected to the official servers, slashing and hacking opponents from all-over the civilized worlds, cursing for being unhorsed or jumping with fear at the sound of an arrow.

Some of those who've already gone through everything Armored Princess had to offer might argue that the novelties of Orcs on the March are insufficient for a replay. And this is why I recommend a healthy dose of patience, because I'm sure that in the near future we will see fan-made campaigns that will satisfy even the most pretentious fans.

Bottom line, if you care for your mouse and have no desire to kill thousands upon thousands of monsters, you can safely skip this one, but if you’re a fan of the hack and slash genre you certainly won’t regret the time spent in Titan Quest.

Yes, it's full of clichés, I saw them coming from a mile away, but it's exactly what you need to create that feeling of respect and even appreciation for what really were (and still are) cruel murders, blood baths, territorial fights, extortion or drug traffic. But all of it elegantly done, in a tie and suit, in fancy restaurants and (stolen) luxury cars.

Overall, I smell Hexen, I’m sniffing Undying and there’s a distinctive scent of The Time Machine, with the one note that Zeno Clash is very, very far away from the potential it could reach.

The complexity of the game is very natural, which is a side-effect of the producers desire to make the game as real as possible. But despite this, the complexity of the game doesn’t seem forced or overwhelming for a minute.

For some, Global Domination won’t be a real challenge, seeing as it’s not a multiplayer mode, but a skirmish one, against the AI. For others, Global Domination will increase the add-on’s replay value, especially if they’re fed up with the LAN and Online matches, where you can still find cheaters and players that prefer to disconnect rather than lose a game.

Universe at War is a diamond that is a bit rough, a game with great potential, but it is sabotaged by the LIVE system and some elements which can be repaired in an ulterior patch (the bugs, the limited zoom and the path-finding).

The lack of minigames is a bit dissapointing right now, but there's still time to implement them. The interface wasn't improved at all, and although I don't mind that, others have complained about a few bits. What's certain however is that no pixelhunting is involved, no elusive hot spots and from this standpoint nothing will get in your way of solving puzzles

Although the road to store shelves was long and painstaking, Nexus came out as a high-quality space strategy game (personally I would call it a Fleet Simulator, but that’s just me), which has no reason to hide in shame when confronted with the Homeworld games.

Even though it’s closer to real life football, FIFA 08 seems like it could’ve been just a large patch. The main issue with this version is that the developers showed that they could implement an even better graphics and physics system on the next gen consoles, but PC fans will have to wait to see it in action, at least until the next title in the series.

But yes, I do recommend it to anyone passionate about spatial puzzles that require switching dimensions (and more). Some of its shortcomings, like the platforming sequences, could be regarded as relative, because some people will be better than others at appreciating distances and the moments at which they need to react.

The potential of Spellborn is huge, with the game being so different from the others, in a good way.

If you've never played Heroes though, the current installment isn't that bad: 50 campaign hours, Hot Seat to keep my friends close, online multiplayer and many customization options. If the bugs are solved and the designers actually listen to the criticism, the next game will gain more favor.

Ultimately, Endless Space can be a fun experience, even though I disliked the superficial combat mechanics and the skinny tech-tree. Yet the game's biggest problem is the low replay value, with each game being eerily similar to the previous one, which is not a very bright point for a 4x strategy.

Thanks to the good implementation of voice commands, EndWar manages to tackle one of the most problematic aspects of strategy games on consoles and enter the club of good games.

I rarely come across a title with such an atmosphere, competent AI, interesting combat system and fleshed out characters.

It might be a one-way road, a one-time ride in a fancy car, but considering the alternatives it’s a pretty neat little gem. Let’s hope Activision will drop the bad habit of launching a game without seriously ironing out all the bugs in the process.

Although it’s not a fundamental revolution of the genre, Perimeter has managed to bring a breath of fresh air in an already over-crowded RTS genre.

The Darkness II is indeed short, but it does achieve part of its goals: a few fun hours for a rainy spring afternoon, with some interesting characters, a dark story and, most of all, two demonic arms always hungry for beating hearts.

Despite its flaws however, regarding the story and multiplayer, the people at Midway have translated Woo’s films rather well on the PC. The game is exactly what we would’ve expected from such a migration and will not disappoint those who only wanted to shoot the bad guys from Hong Kong.

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.

Even if it's short and single-player only, From Dust has at least one statement to make: that there are still special ideas around. Not necessarily perfect, due to the control and pathfinding issues that will annoy the not so patient players, but with a huge potential to evolve in totally new directions.

Ultimately, Singularity is a first-person shooter that you'll enjoy over a weekend (preferably on Hard difficulty, in case you find the standard one too easy), but which stops at the "Ok" level, missing that little something to make it memorable.

Impressive because of the combination of these genres, making it recommendable to RTS fans (offering more than just a closer look to units in the form of total control) and simulation fans alike.

Nevertheless, if you’re looking for a quality tactical shooter with excellent feeling and addictive multiplayer, you should definitely give Advanced Warfighter 2 a try.

Well, the overall concept is fairly simple to understand, and beginners have a set of recommended items, to understand the idea of an inventory build at least at a basic level. Then there's the tutorial that will further explain the gameplay mechanics, which you can go through entirely or selectively, depending on how much you already know about the game.

When compared with some previous titles of the series, Delta Force: Black Hawk Down doesn't bring some of the promised improvements (more complex AI, coop mode) but it still comes with a few innovations (a certain variety in the single-player missions, a completely 3D engine, the possibility to roll when proned or the peek like in Soldier of Fortune 2, the Progressive Spawn Points) which improve the multiplayer, the main aspect which made this series so popular amongst players.

Despite the excellent technical aspects however, Battlefront ends up as a game without much of a soul, which without extra game modes or mods made by the fans will not last long in the multiplayer arena, where the battle is already heating up and where second place just doesn't cut it anymore.

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.

It truly deserves applause for the courage to confront us so harshly with our own character, even if our choices sometimes seem forced or useless. But if it could have found another way, less tiresome and monotonous, to let us get to them, it would have had substantial chances to become a classic.

Thus, I warmly recommend the Saboteur not only to sandbox fans, but also to people looking for a special atmosphere beyond anything else, placed at the beginning of World War II.

The great aspect is their flexibility, the how and when to use them being at your disposal. You don't get too much time to breathe in this kind of game, but overall R.U.S.E must be appreciated for having the guts to be innovative and implement its features in a way that makes them the basis of the gameplay, not just an option thrown in for the sake of it.

A decent first person shooter, that you can easily finish during a weekend, without being sorry for the time spent in his company, especially if you're a "Deus Ex" fan, like myself.

Yes, you can easily say that Din's Curse is another Diablo clone. And it actually is, since it uses the rules made law by the Blizzard creation. But it also has good parts that will make you come back to Aleria for at least a few hours as therapy after a hard day's work.

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.

But Forgotten Sands, I feel, was only made for fans and with a terrible fear of "not ruining the recipe". Or maybe it was only made simply as a movie tie-in for the Prince of Persia blockbuster, which can more easily be digested, both by Jordan Mechner fans as well as newcomers. In any case, this is not the glorious return of the Prince that I'm sure many were expecting.

If games will ever be considered a form of art, then Dreamfall: The Longest Journey will stand as one of the most important representatives of its time.

The matter is simple – the game is free to play and, if you take my word for it, an excellent shooter. In a perfect world, it would knock the CoD series on its ass. Of course, in a perfect world its name wouldn't be Blacklight: Retribution and in a perfect world, it would have better ballistics and the graphics would be equally as good on all lanes.

It has it flaws and shortcomings, but it can also make you laugh out loud on more than one occasion, which is truly something for a strategy where the main goal is world domination.

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.

Just like Din's Curse, Demon War is fun, but I still recommend it in small doses. The action tends to get repetitive after 4-5 towns and, if you're no collector of sets and rare items, you won't find many interesting rewards in the idea of endlessly killing brainless monsters; not to mention that the dynamic side of the world can frustrate less patient players. So if you don't get along with the idea that in a game you get random, uncontrollable events that are out of your influence (just like in real life), then Demon War won't keep you interested for too long.

If you’re a fan of the first B&W and you were just itching to see how your favorite game could get better, you’ll probably be disappointed by the sequel and be left to ask, like me, how on Earth could Peter Molyneaux have released such a game in the first place?

To sum things up, Savage 2 is an enjoyable experience, and even though the mix of genres brings nothing new to any of them, it is still well-implemented and fun to play.

Nine episodes times around six months is a really long love relationship (and expensive), but it may very well prove to be the next best thing in mature gaming.

The sound, except the voices (Peter Cullen is Optimus Prime, who else?), isn't remarkable either, so in the end the question boils down to: is War for Cybertron worth it? The answer is yes, but with some minuses, because there are plenty of problems ruining a nicely done story and the thrilling multiplayer is killed by technical hick-ups that shouldn't have been there in the first place.

And although BattleForge doesn’t always perfectly combine the genres it belongs to, with delicate attention and a thorough balancing of gameplay, it could actually become an electronic sport. Maybe one to match StarCraft.

If pure tactics and the intense fighting that took place in Europe and North Africa in all those years is what you're craving for, then Blitzkrieg: Burning Horizon is exactly what you need.

The interface was very simple, it was the same point 'n click system but from what I understood, characters had some problems with their paths. The voices used were just perfect and the ambient sounds used to freeze your heart for a moment.

A platformer, a rare sight nowadays, has to be technically perfect, otherwise it shoots itself in the foot because this kind of gameplay is essentially repetitive. The same thing goes for the puzzles (too easy ) and fights. Still, the game catches you in its crazy universe enough so you really want to see if Alice remembers that faithful night and if it really was somebody else to blame or it was her that gave life to a criminal fantasy…

Drakensang is interesting and can keep you glued to your seat, but its replay value isn’t quite as high as it could have been and the sometimes overzealous difficulty can be a turn-off for newcomers.

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.

The design ideas are great, but the implementation resulted into a lackluster story and boring missions in limited levels, coupled with intense, but ultimately boring fights. There's loads of adrenaline, but no consistency to maintain the motivation level up, an aspect partially visible in the multiplayer too. But even so, for a serious chunk of mayhem and destruction, the end of the world has really come to Mars.

All in all, Space Marine captures the essence of the Warhammer universe: huge, classic factions and their infinite fight for control, the weapons and the power of the high tech future.

Ultimately though, I can only recommend you Magicka. At 10 euro it's a good offer and the closest thing to PC Mortal Kombat; sporting spells, monsters and Scandinavian heroes, but with that drive to learn combos and experiment.

Through MA and MAN, Wargaming.net has managed to revitalize the good old TBS genre. And while they don’t bring anything new to the table, these games have that certain “je ne sais quoi” that makes you go “ok, one more turn and I’m done, honest”.

Rejoice that Wolfenstein has more to offer than the simple serious shooter, oversaturated with wars and consequences.

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.

That said, I’m sure that a lot of “serious” gamers scoffed at the score, so if you’re a member of the group, you can take down some 10 points to get an “objective” mark and sleep soundly tonight. For everyone else, I strongly recommend that you at least try the demo, because it would be a shame to miss out on one of the most fun and relaxing games of the year.