Though it’s regrettable that Sony opted for a retrofit rather than a rebirth, and while series stalwarts might initially balk at controls that fit awkwardly, given a chance the cat-and-mouse charm shines through, and make On The Loose a fine first stab at a new wave of portable platforming. [May 2005, p.93]

You've seen most of what it has to offer before you've even unlocked all of the sculpting tools. [Issue#424, p.118]

Offers the most blissful vision of rural Britain since "Everybody's Gone To The Rapture." [Issue#360, p.120]

As a sideline between sessions with meatier games it's generally right on target. [Sept 2006, p.88]

Despite the game's lofty sky-mindedness, this is all about mastery rather than freedom. Thankfully, mastery brings with it plenty of its own rewards.

Like its titular star, the game tends to transform, flipping from triumphant to frustrating, and back again.

As an interim project, it's good to see Criterion still interested in its most beloved IP, but it's just a shame there's so little of interest in the game itself.

Watching your carefully directed army walk into each other and painfully slowly correct themselves by walking one square left, two squares up, one square right, while an army approaches is frustrating to say the least. [Oct 2007, p.97]

The majority of insights are lost in a flood of banal dialogue and sluggish, shallow puzzles. [Aug 2009, p.107]

It’s a cheap thrill, a shallow way to connect input with outcome that doesn’t, in the end, compensate for Pocket Football Club’s lack of responsiveness elsewhere.

The irony is that many of Too Human’s problems wouldn’t exist if another pair of human players were allowed to enter the fold (as was originally intended) – speeding up play considerably and making ‘just one more run’ into something a little more manageable. [Oct 2008, p.92]

Subtitling this Battle Revolution could be considered a breach of advertising standards; it's about as revolutionary as a racing game with powerslides. But while Custom Robo lacks a fresh hook, it's done with such a diligent simplicity that it's hard not to take a shine to it. [July 2004, p.108]

The flash and gore are toned down, and the henchmen never get any smarter, but that bond with the protagonist – and that investment in his salvation – make the whole game worthwhile. [Apr 2009, p.117]

If the result sometimes feels more like a robust proof of concept than a complete game, it's a reasonable outlay for an afternoon's fun. [April 2017, p.121]

While it doesn't pass as an update or a worthy torch bearer for the hyperactive, all-out action-clash that was the original Guardian Heroes, the resemblance is still there. It's more homage than successor, but it's a decent beat 'em up in its own right. [Dec 2005, p.116]

Instant deaths, glitchy combat, uninspiring boss encounters and twitchy controls conspire to make this a below-par experience. If it wasn't for the occasional flashes of imagination and the familiarity and richness conveyed through the license then The Emperor's Tomb would be utterly forgettable. [May 2003, p.99]

The joy of Pirates of the Caribbean is to be found in the variety of the elements delivered - sword fights and canon battles happily sit alongside contraband trade route management. But ultimately none offer a tremendous amount of depth. [Nov 2003, p.107]

Briefly diverting. [Apr 2015, p.121]

A hastily assembled three-in-one anachronism which proves just one thing: that terrifying and terrible are not mutually exclusive. [Apr 2010, p.93]

Balancing real-time action with tactical micro-management proves beyond Vanpool. With arbitrary limitations placed on an already meagre cash supply, and towers and fortifications proving equally flimsy, what little money is available is best poured into single-use items and permanent ability boosts for Dillon.

Its basic form is a succession of things that you hit with little emotion or interest. Approaching such a task co-operatively can only distract you for so long. [June 2009, p.95]

There’s no sophistication, subtlety or real inspiration in the design. It might have Craig’s likeness, but this Bond is more like Connery’s, a thug in a dinner jacket. [Christmas 2008, p.94]

This is a cosy, likable affair. [Issue#356, p.104]

The guns and costumes you'll be buying make Random Heroes a little more appealing, perhaps, but they're poor compensation for a wider lack of imagination.

Where the game really succeeds, however, beyond providing a robust and solid, if unassuming model of explorative stealth and attack, is in fulfilling that old and oft-forgotten criterion - putting the gamer inside the movie. [Aug 2005, p.95]

A frustrating port of an above-average game. Rather than attempting to significantly tweak Mafia's structure and narrative … the developer has attempted to replicate the PC experience to the letter. It has been only partially successful. [Mar 2004, p.109]

Realistically, Buraiden's biggest appeal lies in the joyous anarchy of the multiplayer modes. Team up two-on-two, three-on-one or every-samurai-for-himself, replace any absent human players with the game's convincing AI, set the battle parameters, and prepare for the kind of balletic carnage that Tarantino will soon be ripping off for volume two of 'Kill Bill'. [JPN Import; Feb 2004, p.98]

None of this feels like a refinement, … just a slight bulking up. With Legends, you’re buying into an upgraded suite of presentation – of lengthy career modes, of yet more movie-faithful music – than anything else. [Nov 2004, p.105]