There's practically no aspect that doesn't appear half-hearted. Black Isle's drawn-out death has undoubtedly poisoned Brotherhood, but it's hard to tell if there was ever a good game here to begin with. [May 2004, p.109]

Rarely does dying feel like the player's fault and, in typical "Sonic Adventure" fashion, the best bits are when you find that the majority of control has been taken away from you, and you're flung around the world at escape velocity. [Mar 2004, p.105]

This is a perfectly awful conversion with poor controls, cumbersome combat, an antiquarian save system, inadequate maps and clumsy menu design. [Jan 2004, p.111]

You get the impression the only person who cares about Kain's legacy any more is the writer. The turgid battling lets an average game down. [Jan 2004, p.107]

Max Payne isn't a bad way to spend a train journey, but those who've already played the original will have little reason to buy the conversion, apart from to smile at how mini-Max so cutely apes his big brother. [Apr 2004, p.110]

Nobody, nobody at all, walks into a game shop and thinks: "Hey, goblins are pretty cool. Today I want to be a goblin." When the goblins in question have been rendered with almost no character or charm, this merely compounds the lack of emotional connection. [Mar 2004, p.106]

It's an 'experience' as much as a game, meaning that it will leave as many people cold as it grabs by the right half of the brain. Beyond good, then, but not quite excellent. [Christmas 2003, p.104]

A victim of its own success. By creating a story and an atmosphere so far in advance of what we have come to expect from a videogame, it throws harsh light on the conventions we accept without question in lesser titles. It maps out just how far there is to go in marrying sophisticated narrative and meaningful interactivity. [Feb 2004, p.96]

For a title trying hard to inject personality into the genre, the experience feels irreparably mechanical. There's plenty of variety in terms of racing categories and machinery, but the overall lack of involvement is inexcusable. [Feb 2004, p.102]

For a title trying hard to inject personality into the genre, the experience feels irreparably mechanical. There's plenty of variety in terms of racing categories and machinery, but the overall lack of involvement is inexcusable. [Feb 2004, p.102]

A fairytale comeback. Extravagance was one of the signatures of the graphic adventure: extravagance to bring them in, and a cracking story well told to keep them. Both tenets of the Broken Sword series remain intact here, and that's all the devoted fans could have wanted. [Christmas 2003, p.94]

Gotcha Force has all the requisite cute and vibrant stylings of another Japanese phenomenon, but it's let down by a pallid game dynamic. [Jan 2004, p.99]

The freedom of movement requires a new level of spatial imagination. Before Prince of Persia, platform games were like playing Tetris with only the blocks and bars. [Christmas 2003, p.100]

We need more games like this - ones that are confident and individual - but we need them to be less roughly hewn. The core of the game is solid, but the way it's applied throughout the levels just isn't interesting enough. [Mar 2004, p.98]

Ultimately, Invisible War is a very fine game spread too thin. It's a game that's made the effort to name the cat in the secretary's desk photo but not to make jumping work properly, that bothers to script loving exchanges between insignificant NPCs but pits you against clumsy and stuttering AI. [Feb 2004, p.94]

Is this the most violent game of all time? Maybe. Its ragdoll physics may not match the flying limbs and broken faces of Soldier of Fortune, but its throwaway approach to life and death is genuinely shocking, leaving a bitter, metallic aftertaste. This is neither a fall nor an ascension. This is an update. [Jan 2004, p.105]

Ultimately, Invisible War is a very fine game spread too thin. It's a game that's made the effort to name the cat in the secretary's desk photo but not to make jumping work properly, that bothers to script loving exchanges between insignificant NPCs but pits you against clumsy and stuttering AI. [Feb 2004, p.94]

We need more games like this - ones that are confident and individual - but we need them to be less roughly hewn. The core of the game is solid, but the way it's applied throughout the levels just isn't interesting enough. [Mar 2004, p.98]

It's an 'experience' as much as a game, meaning that it will leave as many people cold as it grabs by the right half of the brain. Beyond good, then, but not quite excellent. [Christmas 2003, p.104]

Pac-Man Vs could hardly have barer bones. No options, no game modes and no high-score tables are included here, and as a consequence there's nothing here to dilute the strength of the original idea or the subtle excellence of its execution. [Feb 2004, p.103]

We were hoping for a passionate display of Square's rekindling love for the RPG craft. Instead, Sword of Mana hangs around its competitors in relative mediocrity instead of blazing the trail the SNES title did all those years ago. [Feb 2004, p.109]

Avalanche imparts the varying depths of snow, anything from sheet ice to knee-deep drifts, much better than its nearest rivals. Crouching for speed, leaping precipices and then absorbing the shock upon landing is a majestic sensation only bettered by the original. [Feb 2004, p.104]

Feels cheeky to be criticising a scrolling beat 'em up for being too shallow, but TMNT is possibly one of the most tedious ever. Repetition is only acceptable when you're repeating something gratifying. [Jan 2004, p.109]

Is this the most violent game of all time? Maybe. Its ragdoll physics may not match the flying limbs and broken faces of Soldier of Fortune, but its throwaway approach to life and death is genuinely shocking, leaving a bitter, metallic aftertaste. This is neither a fall nor an ascension. This is an update. [Jan 2004, p.105]

Seeing the game from beginning to end reveals its true artistic merit: it never gets stale; every episode has been drawn with minute care and attention. It would have been an incredible achievement if the gameplay had matched the outstanding art direction. [Dec 2003, p.94]

Acclaim's latest manages to tick all the required futuristic race sim boxes, except the one titled 'memorable'. There's one really good thing about XGRA - it's all over very quickly. [Nov 2003, p.109]

There's no style in LowRider's low-riding - it's all about robotic timing, brute force and repetition over elegance. [March 2003, p.99]

It's an 'experience' as much as a game, meaning that it will leave as many people cold as it grabs by the right half of the brain. Beyond good, then, but not quite excellent. [Christmas 2003, p.104]

Structurally, the game is a waking nightmare. The hub world is vast and unnecessarily confusing, and it is possible to become trapped in levels if you can't figure out where to go next. [Mar 2004, p.108]

Despite the simplicity of the puzzles, it's an unnecessarily bewildering game for the first hour or so. There's an RPG's worth of menus, full of abilities and stats you just don't need to know about yet. [Mar 2004, p.109]

Seeing the game from beginning to end reveals its true artistic merit: it never gets stale; every episode has been drawn with minute care and attention. It would have been an incredible achievement if the gameplay had matched the outstanding art direction. [Dec 2003, p.94]

Seeing the game from beginning to end reveals its true artistic merit: it never gets stale; every episode has been drawn with minute care and attention. It would have been an incredible achievement if the gameplay had matched the outstanding art direction. [Dec 2003, p.94]

Like "GTA" there's more to this than shock and awe. Within its linear structure there is a lot of freedom within which to act, much more so than both "Splinter Cell" and "Metal Gear Solid 2," the titles which Manhunt most closely resembles. [Jan 2004, p.96]

This is ballsy, brash, confident gaming at its best - a lesson in how games don't have to be perfect to be brilliant. [Christmas 2003, p.102]

Over-familiarity and stagnation has bred a cancerous apathy among gaming's cognoscenti. FFX-2, like it or not, gives players a reason to take notice again. [Jan 2004, p.98]

Argonaut's latest platformer is certainly a curious brew. You get the impression that loads of ideas have been thrown into the pot but, unfortunately, none of the weaker ones have been rejected. [Feb 2004, p.101]

Isn't a game that does anything obviously or overtly clever or innovative. But any game that takes such a simple premise and polishes it, hones it and refines it until it's this engrossing, this absorbing, and this much fun, is quite obviously doing something very clever indeed. [Christmas 2003, p.114]

Isn't a game that does anything obviously or overtly clever or innovative. But any game that takes such a simple premise and polishes it, hones it and refines it until it's this engrossing, this absorbing, and this much fun, is quite obviously doing something very clever indeed. [Christmas 2003, p.114]

Thankfully, the conversion from keyboard and mouse to pad has been made with rare judgement - movement is smooth and aiming is easy. The classic gameplay has made the transition too, and is as rewarding as ever. [Jan 2004, p.110]

There's no denying that Project Gotham Racing 2 is one of the most aesthetically accomplished titles ever produced. Yet this doesn't stop PGR2 from feeling a little heartless. In terms of excitement PGR2 is found wanting. [Christmas 2003, p.113]

The freedom of movement requires a new level of spatial imagination. Before Prince of Persia, platform games were like playing Tetris with only the blocks and bars. [Christmas 2003, p.100]

This is ballsy, brash, confident gaming at its best - a lesson in how games don't have to be perfect to be brilliant. [Christmas 2003, p.102]

Despite the simplicity of the puzzles, it's an unnecessarily bewildering game for the first hour or so. There's an RPG's worth of menus, full of abilities and stats you just don't need to know about yet. [Mar 2004, p.109]

Seeing the game from beginning to end reveals its true artistic merit: it never gets stale; every episode has been drawn with minute care and attention. It would have been an incredible achievement if the gameplay had matched the outstanding art direction. [Dec 2003, p.94]

Isn't a game that does anything obviously or overtly clever or innovative. But any game that takes such a simple premise and polishes it, hones it and refines it until it's this engrossing, this absorbing, and this much fun, is quite obviously doing something very clever indeed. [Christmas 2003, p.114]

The freedom of movement requires a new level of spatial imagination. Before Prince of Persia, platform games were like playing Tetris with only the blocks and bars. [Christmas 2003, p.100]

This is ballsy, brash, confident gaming at its best - a lesson in how games don't have to be perfect to be brilliant. [Christmas 2003, p.102]

Comparisons with "Halo" are inevitable. Unfortunately, Fire Warrior shows how developers can steal elements from superior games, while fundamentally misunderstanding why they worked so well in the first place. [Nov 2003, p.101]

Comparisons with "Halo" are inevitable. Unfortunately, Fire Warrior shows how developers can steal elements from superior games, while fundamentally misunderstanding why they worked so well in the first place. [Nov 2003, p.101]

A fairytale comeback. Extravagance was one of the signatures of the graphic adventure: extravagance to bring them in, and a cracking story well told to keep them.Both tenets of the Broken Sword series remain intact here, and that's all the devoted fans could have wanted. [Christmas 2003, p.94]

Beautifully detailed with impressive lighting, accurately modelled protagonists and a terrific sense of speed. A refreshing and captivating direction for the series. [Christmas 2003, p.115]

Beautifully detailed with impressive lighting, accurately modelled protagonists and a terrific sense of speed. A refreshing and captivating direction for the series. [Christmas 2003, p.115]

Excellent. The rhythms of the day quickly become second nature and hypnotically absorbing. There're never enough hours in the day. [Jan 2004, p.106]

Superstar Saga does justice to Miyamoto-san's original vision: a world of deliciously impossible creatures and impeccably illogical logic. A world where you never know what'll happen next but, once it has, you know it's what always should have happened. [Jan 2004, p.100]

Beautifully detailed with impressive lighting, accurately modelled protagonists and a terrific sense of speed. A refreshing and captivating direction for the series. [Christmas 2003, p.115]

Mario Kart isn't a racing game any more. It is a party game, and anyone buying it for anything more than frantic, foolish, social fun will grow tired of being cheated very quickly indeed. [Christmas 2003, p.98]

Beautifully detailed with impressive lighting, accurately modelled protagonists and a terrific sense of speed. A refreshing and captivating direction for the series. [Christmas 2003, p.115]

With no real sense of connection with your monsters, or of engagement with the clumsily delivered plot, there is little here to help the game overcome its tendency towards charmless, chore-based repetition. [Jan 2004, p.106]

This is a stupefyingly linear experience. While the individual stand-offs and shoot-outs are exhilirating, the removal of any sense of choice or any requirement of tactical thought makes this more of a theme park ride than a military operation. [Christmas 2003, p.117]

You get the impression the only person who cares about Kain's legacy any more is the writer. The turgid battling lets an average game down. [Jan 2004, p.107]

It's an 'experience' as much as a game, meaning that it will leave as many people cold as it grabs by the right half of the brain. Beyond good, then, but not quite excellent. [Christmas 2003, p.104]

On retreading the levels enemy attacks become predictable puppet shows, with mad-eyed soldiers lining up to get killed exactly where they did many times before. It's the kind of repetition more commonly associated with lightgun games these days. [Christmas 2003, p.109]

Ratchet & Clank 2 shows all the signs of a game that's been focus tested to death; at no point will you have to repeat a section more than three times. It's a frustration free journey but sometimes feels anodyne. [Dec 2003, p.97]

Nobody, nobody at all, walks into a game shop and thinks: "Hey, goblins are pretty cool. Today I want to be a goblin." When the goblins in question have been rendered with almost no character or charm, this merely compounds the lack of emotional connection. [Mar 2004, p.106]

Even when driven in full race trim, every vehicle feels ponderous and with overly soft suspension often resulting in an unnecessarily laborious control method. It's not a bad game, by any means, but the enjoyment provided is limited. [Oct 2003, p.101]

Nobody, nobody at all, walks into a game shop and thinks: "Hey, goblins are pretty cool. Today I want to be a goblin." When the goblins in question have been rendered with almost no character or charm, this merely compounds the lack of emotional connection. [Mar 2004, p.106]

You get the impression the only person who cares about Kain's legacy any more is the writer. The turgid battling lets an average game down. [Jan 2004, p.107]

On retreading the levels enemy attacks become predictable puppet shows, with mad-eyed soldiers lining up to get killed exactly where they did many times before. It's the kind of repetition more commonly associated with lightgun games these days. [Christmas 2003, p.109]

On retreading the levels enemy attacks become predictable puppet shows, with mad-eyed soldiers lining up to get killed exactly where they did many times before. It's the kind of repetition more commonly associated with lightgun games these days. [Christmas 2003, p.109]

The freedom of movement requires a new level of spatial imagination. Before Prince of Persia, platform games were like playing Tetris with only the blocks and bars. [Christmas 2003, p.100]

Were spirits to play a game while they waited in Purgatory, surely it would be Mario Party. It can take an age to get to the end, and the minigames are interspersed with a turgid board game section that tests the patience to its limits. [Jan 2004, p.109]

It's entertaining, but if SOCOM II is the pinnacle of Sony's online achievement - and it is - then Microsoft has convincingly won the online battle. At least for this round. [Mar 2004, p.100]

If you take away the window dressing, the epic sounds and the preordained surprises this is a derivative, one-note and sometimes flawed game, but see it as a spectacular amusement ride and you can play and it's a distinguished achievement. [Christmas 2003, p.110]

This closing chapter of the Dynasty Warriors series is admittedly a neat full stop, an exhausting book-end for the enthusiasts, but it offers exactly the same baby step forwards as every other sequel-cum-update. [Feb 2004, p.108]

If you take away the window dressing, the epic sounds and the preordained surprises this is a derivative, one-note and sometimes flawed game, but see it as a spectacular amusement ride and you can play and it's a distinguished achievement. [Christmas 2003, p.110]

If you take away the window dressing, the epic sounds and the preordained surprises this is a derivative, one-note and sometimes flawed game, but see it as a spectacular amusement ride and you can play and it's a distinguished achievement. [Christmas 2003, p.110]

As a place, Los Angeles simply isn't as much fun as Liberty or Vice. Too much of this silicon LA exists simply because the designers wanted to show that it could be done rather than because it serves any gameplay purpose. [Christmas 2003, p.107]

As a place, Los Angeles simply isn't as much fun as Liberty or Vice. Too much of this silicon LA exists simply because the designers wanted to show that it could be done rather than because it serves any gameplay purpose. [Christmas 2003, p.107]

As a place, Los Angeles simply isn't as much fun as Liberty or Vice. Too much of this silicon LA exists simply because the designers wanted to show that it could be done rather than because it serves any gameplay purpose. [Christmas 2003, p.107]

Feels cheeky to be criticising a scrolling beat 'em up for being too shallow, but TMNT is possibly one of the most tedious ever. Repetition is only acceptable when you're repeating something gratifying. [Jan 2004, p.109]

Undersized and profoundly linear, but that cannot shake its solidity and the sheer intensity of the spectacle it creates. The most fun thing you'll get on the PC this side of Christmas. [Christmas 2003, p.108]

There are neat touches: you've got infinite ammo, brilliantly, and inhaling gas leaves you with a temporary cough that ruins your aim … but it needs a few more tactics to make it more than the sum of its admittedly solid parts. [Christmas 2003, p.116]

Objects that can be interacted with are circled with an icon, but this only appears if you are looking at exactly the right spot. Indeed, much of Rogue Ops is spent trying to make this cursed cursor appear. It's not a pleasant way to spend an evening. [Feb 2004, p.108]

There are neat touches: you've got infinite ammo, brilliantly, and inhaling gas leaves you with a temporary cough that ruins your aim … but it needs a few more tactics to make it more than the sum of its admittedly solid parts. [Christmas 2003, p.116]

Objects that can be interacted with are circled with an icon, but this only appears if you are looking at exactly the right spot. Indeed, much of Rogue Ops is spent trying to make this cursed cursor appear. It's not a pleasant way to spend an evening. [Feb 2004, p.108]

It's often unclear whether or not your shots are hitting, which inclines you to blunder out from your cover and head for close quarters - which in turn destroys the developer's intention of forcing a tactical, cautious approach. [Nov 2003, p.105]

A commendably brazen and unfussy shooter, featuring one continuous dialogue of throwaway gunfire and nothing else. [Feb 2004, p.106]

The best tennis game of this generation, if not ever. A crisp, responsive and consuming sports title where the act of hitting the ball is made so effortless that your focus can be instantly diverted towards thinking about tactics and exploring the subtle depth on offer. [Jan 2004, p.105]

Amped 2 is Amped with the right trigger gently pressed: it's tweaked. Balance meters take away some of the series' grace, but make it more of a game, like Tony Hawk's tilted downwards. [Christmas 2003, p.122]

Objects that can be interacted with are circled with an icon, but this only appears if you are looking at exactly the right spot. Indeed, much of Rogue Ops is spent trying to make this cursed cursor appear. It's not a pleasant way to spend an evening. [Feb 2004, p.108]

The fifth Tony Hawk's title doesn't just suffer because of its embarrassing attempts to be edgy and urban, it's poorer because it lacks the verve and imagination so prevalent in previous iterations. [Christmas 2003, p.122]

The fifth Tony Hawk's title doesn't just suffer because of its embarrassing attempts to be edgy and urban, it's poorer because it lacks the verve and imagination so prevalent in previous iterations. [Christmas 2003, p.122]

Pitch detection is accurate and, for the songs you know, Konami couldn't have provided a better arena for belting out the warbles you've perfected in the shower. But for the songs you don't know - and there are likely to be many - those warbles will be your undoing, capsizing an otherwise satisfying quest for high score. [Aug 2004, p.106]

While it's not as cleverly structured as the pinnacle of the series, "Symphony of the Night," it resurrects that game's hallmarks of seductive exploration and satisfying topographical progress. It breathes new life back into one of viedogaming's oldest franchises. [Jan 2004, p.92]

Feels cheeky to be criticising a scrolling beat 'em up for being too shallow, but TMNT is possibly one of the most tedious ever. Repetition is only acceptable when you're repeating something gratifying. [Jan 2004, p.109]

One of the finest WWII games of recent memory. Hidden & Dangerous 2 manages to distract you from errors that would cripple a lesser game through its sheer ambition and scale. [Christmas 2003, p.120]

Another decent GunCon arcade experience from Namco, which shoots all of the (now very familiar) lightgun game boxes. Fun for a while, certainly, but there are no surprises. [Dec 2003, p.107]

Crimson Skies really comes to life online. Up to 16 players can duke it out in the skies and the dogfights are terrific. This is better than you'd ever have expected. [Christmas 2003, p.123]