Where other games treat romance as a reward or an optional curio, Airport dares to put love at its centre. For that, at least, it deserves praise. And a treat. Perhaps even a belly rub, too. [Issue#360, p.123]

Residents themselves are a colourless bunch, a series of knowing archetypes – goth girls, hip DJs, Italian chefs – that lack the effortless charm of Animal Crossing’s simple ciphers. [Dec 2007, p.97]

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]

Had the level design have been a touch more ingenious, and the creatures exhibited more guile, this could have been memorable. [June 2004, p.106]

The plot lacks the slight unpleasantness that tinted Wright's best cases. There are still killers, but their motivations are more straightforward. [Mar 2010, p.98]

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

Like a horse swishing its tail with futile persistence, Hunted never manages to rid itself of bugs.

There’s a vibrancy that ensures progress is a pleasure and backtracking is seldom a chore – in fact, the game is often at its best when you’re free from the demands of unlocking the next section and simply revelling in your buoyant weightlessness. [Nov 2004, p.110]

Hugely entertaining while it lasts. [Jan 2007, p.73]

Both the platforming and the shooting hold up, then, but they barely develop after the first few hours. [December 2016, p.116]

Spider-Man 2 presents players with a city ripe for action and exploration, but once you swing down out of the clouds and take a closer look at the grubby streets and roads strewn with vehicles, you'll find little to pique your interest. [Sept 2004, p.100]

There's a sizable adventure here but the repetition of basic tasks makes it seem padded rather than epic – too many dungeons send you on fetch quests for plot devices wherein the rule of three is doggedly applied.

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]

The game suffers from a slow start, the first six chapters indistinct and repetitive. [July 2008, p.92]

The subtlety of these exchanges suggests that a strategy game of some greatness exists beneath the cumbersome framework, and we trust Stardock, a developer of proven diligence and passion, to continue refining it. [Nov 2010, p.93]

It's the misjudged reuse of ideas like this that makes the game feel like a classic '80s rock song being played by the band's contemporary line-up.

It’s a slick slice of B-movie alien blasting, in short, but we’re glad it’s standing alongside a more authentic take on XCOM rather than wearing its visage but not quite acting the same.

Tokyo Crash Mobs might not be the best version of Puzz Loop around, but in allowing us to briefly abandon our traditional British reserve, it becomes one of the most satisfying variants we've played.

That twist, however, is the root of the game's disappointments, hinting at something beyond a typical platform game, yet leaving players to go through the genre's familiar motions - just in the shade. [Dec 2010, p.91]

For the game's opening third, this all works brilliantly as you move through claustrophobic, yet forgiving, urban environments. But a trip to the city sewers further down the line places platforming over survival and reveals that Deadlight's controls just aren't up to the task.

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]

The game is as interested in making you laugh as making you think. [Issue#384, p.104]

What had the potential to showcase to the uninitiated what makes fighting games so special has become a game aimed too squarely at those who already know.

Demon Stone suggests more potential than it fulfils, but it’s a not-entirely-failed experiment in teaching old dice new tricks, and a follow-up with the same attention to detail but more ambitious design would be welcome. [Nov 2004, p.108]

The finely tuned platforming lays solid foundations for a leaderboard racer, and the custom leaderboards are well implemented, but this just doesn't feel like something you'll be playing in a month, never mind three years. You can't fault its ambition, and it may yet transform itself into an essential title, but presently, 1000 Heroz falls short of its lifespan.

Once again, Volition delivers exceptional tech, but fails to shape it into a truly engaging and sustaining experience.

Wins you over with its charm rather than its virtue. [JPN Import; Jan 2007, p.84]

This is no Guitar Hero, or even a rhythm-action game, but something more akin to a portable notepad for musicians. [Nov 2007, p.97]