But without the first game’s ambiguities,? ?a sense of humour or even an ounce of? ?intrigue,? ?its story stinks.? ?It’s so slight you could play the levels in random order to? ?little ill-effect,? ?and it assumes knowledge of everything and everyone,? ?not once recognising the real-world echoes of its premise:? ?an allied invasion of an enemy? ?the allies themselves created.?

At a time when science fiction has never been handled with more vim and vigour, Star Ocean threatens to miss out on all the fun of the genre resurgence through its total lack of ambition. [June 2009, p.92]

Shellshock 2 is a scandalous FPS made with no apparent knowledge of the genre, little but contempt for its audience, and few tools beyond a spluttering engine and a hammer. [Apr 2009, p.116]

While the overall blandness means Galactrix is unlikely to truly thrill many people, it also means that it won’t exclude anyone either, and the ever-reliable pattern-spotting blends with the steady trickle of meaningless rewards to exert a pull on its audience that is truly Pavlovian. [Apr 2009, p.125]

While the overall blandness means Galactrix is unlikely to truly thrill many people, it also means that it won’t exclude anyone either, and the ever-reliable pattern-spotting blends with the steady trickle of meaningless rewards to exert a pull on its audience that is truly Pavlovian. [Apr 2009, p.125]

Relic seems afraid to let any of its ideas meaningfully vary your experience, in case the result isn’t as satisfying as the scenario it has clearly tested so well. [Apr 2009, p.119]

Race Pro engages like few driving titles manage, even if the driving model doesn’t quite meet the standards of the most advanced PC sim-racers such as Live For Speed. [Mar 2009, p.88]

Prinny sabotages the player's platforming with unsympathetic controls. [Aug 2009, p.106]

Seasoned with tragedy and humour, it’s a poignant tale that courts cliché but which, thanks to its charm and creative twists on well-worn themes, represents one of the narrative high points of the series. [Apr 2009, p.123]

The beginning is a sensible place to start, but rest assured, it gets much, much better. [Feb 2009, p.91]

If it is slight, then Flower compensates by being a very rare experience, both in terms of subject matter and the visual splendour with which it has been executed. [Mar 2009, p.94]

"Killzone 2" has the technology and spectacle; FEAR 2 has class, direction and a most mischievous sense of humour – and technology and spectacle. [Mar 2009, p.84]

It’s one of the happiest pieces of software ever released, constantly throwing tunes, trinkets and new tricks at the player simply to amuse them. [Jan 2009, p.93]

It’s difficult to be too nitpicky about one of the most flat-out entertaining games of recent times. Overkill resurrects an old franchise as anything but a shambling corpse, and raises the bar for third party production values on this generation’s best-selling console. [Mar 2009, p.89]

This actual action is not rendered with nearly half the imagination or proficiency as the premise offers – and six hours of Remote-induced carpal tunnel syndrome and grim boss-battling overstay their welcome. [Mar 2009, p.91]

Lit is consistently rewarding for its duration, the lack of handholding and clue-giving heightening the thrill of finding a solution, regardless of whether it was thought through or merely stumbled upon in the dark. [Christmas 2009, p.100]

The simple Remote application – flicks to activate instant takedowns – is one of many wise steps taken away from the convoluted mechanics weighing down other current-gen entries. [Mar 2009, p.93]

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

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]

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]

The fact that Arkedo has made such a simple gimmick work as well as it does over a longer distance is a testament to the developer’s skills at providing cheerfully mindless variety. [Feb 2009, p.95]

Black Box’s sequel ultimately struggles to offer any single compelling justification for its own existence. [Feb 2009, p.93]

Black Box’s sequel ultimately struggles to offer any single compelling justification for its own existence. [Feb 2009, p.93]

While it lasts, it’s one of the better platformers available on XBLA, and the inability to die and general ease of progression make it ideal for very young gamers. [Mar 2009, p.92]

With only the graphical layer receiving much attention it lacks the necessary breadth and depth to elevate itself far beyond the status of nostalgic curio. [Jan 2009, p.97]

Trying to balance the ceaseless button-mashing with the necessary manual camera tweaking is a bad joke, and often leaves you slashing just out of view and hoping for the best. [Mar 2009, p.93]

Could allowing complete freedom to draw support sharply designed puzzles? Mid-way through the completed game’s 80-plus levels, you’ll still be wondering. [Mar 2009, p.94]

An unpretentious blast of good-humoured bedlam – well-pitched towards the five-minute attention spans served by fellow PSN title Calling All Cars. [Jan 2009, p.94]