Continues the series' longstanding struggle with combat mechanics. [July 2010, p.98]

Why take such efforts to unearth them in a remaster that goes above and beyond in so many ways, only to leave basic flaws intact? A puzzle for future generations of podcasters, perhaps. [Issue#359, p.114]

With only the blocky aesthetic and familiar monsters to show for its heritage, whether you're here for the Minecraft or the Dungeons, you'll feel that much more could have been excavated from both. [Issue#347, p.96]

Fortunately, the backbone of strategy means that behind every chaotic disaster lies the digestible conclusion that, with better planning, it could have been avoided. [May 2005, p.87]

There's loads to do here. [June 2010, p.105]

Far from perfect but enduringly hard to dislike. [Dec 2007, p.95]

The Hellfighters' story is one worth hearing - even if Valiant Hearts hits a few bum notes in its telling. [Issue#382, p.112]

Where FlatOut felt like racing in a field, FlatOut 2 feels like racing on a film set. It has been reshaped into the archetype, competent arcade racer. [Aug 2006, p.89]

There may not be much to the game, but Sumo has done an astounding job of bolstering it with online facilities that are entirely uncommon on the platform. For what it is, it's as worthy a remake as you could possibly want. [July 2008, p.98]

If you can forgive those insecurities, perhaps the result of trying to balance a mainstream genre game with more experimental narrative ambitions, The Old Country has an enormous amount of heart. [Issue#415, p.88]

By departing from established videogame norms and offering an experience that is unfettered by restrictive goals and objectives, Tecmo has succeeded in evoking a supremely relaxing vacation atmosphere and producing a quite unique, and singularly satisfying game. [March 2003, p.86]

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]

As adequate an expression of the genre as it is, it somehow can't quite conjure those high notes of enthusiasm - akin to the way in which a whiteboard diagram of demographics and key features fails to inspire heart palpitations. [Feb 2010, p.84]

Multiplayer’s not much better, and is a rare area in which Shadow Fall suffers technically, the action slowing to a crawl when things get busy thanks to an unlocked framerate.

Gameplay purists may scowl, but Read Dead Revolver is a triumph for beautifully observed atmospherics, characterisation and slapstick set-pieces you cannot fail to enjoy. [June 2004, p.100]

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]

As [Vince] laments the formulaic impositions of the game in successive cut-scenes, it only serves to remind you how much of a chore it is to play - and raises the question; why does every platform hero have to be a wiseguy? [Dec 2003, p.108]

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]

Where FlatOut felt like racing in a field, FlatOut 2 feels like racing on a film set. It has been reshaped into the archetype, competent arcade racer. [Aug 2006, p.89]

For all its quirks, the overriding impression of Just Cause is favourable. There’s an almost childish enthusiasm at work here – and an unparalleled sense of freedom that can be enjoyed just as easily as it can be criticised. [Nov 2006, p.82]

A few dramatic sequences do land. [Issue#370, p.121]

It certainly lacks the variety and sense of progress that great platform games can offer. But then it was never supposed to be a great platform game. It was supposed to be, and is, a great DS game. [Apr 2005, p.102]

It's not bad at all, but it's not different. It might add to Skyrim, but it doesn't enrich it in doing so.

But while it might be unreasonable to expect EVERY VR title to advance the medium, surely it's not too much to ask that a game develops an idea or two beyond its own first hour? [Issue#393, p.118]

An absorbing reminder of the power of words and how we wield them. [Aug 2018, p.114]

When it works, it's intoxicating. [Issue#406, p.106]

It's a throwback rather than an advancement. [Issue#350, p.100]

You'll need to protect your best troops as much as your idols, positioning blockers so that your big hitters can wind up. [Feb 2015, p.116]