Die-hard roleplaying game fans might have shrugged off its technical flaws and turgid combat if only the story had a pay-off. But instead of a tragic hero, Jason’s a dud. [Feb 2009, p.86]

The game carries you through its disappointments and annoyances on the back of its brilliantly realised microworld. [Feb 2009, p.88]

Prince Of Persia’s overalls structure never quite compels, it offers too few distractions to qualify as a sandbox, nor does it possess the quick narrative impetus of more linear games, ultimately feeling a little shallow and repetitious. [Jan 2009, p.84]

This is a series that probably needs to be retired, because the joke isn’t funny anymore. [Feb 2009, p.89]

By the second of third level you’ll feel that Get Even has shown you everything it has. The odd moment of redemption comes with an excellent boss here, a Taito in-joke there, and the invaders. [Feb 2009, p.95]

Despite the vertiginous learning curve, however, Puzzlegeddon’s mechanics intersect neatly and offer some depth – even if most early games will descend into manic clicking. [Feb 2009, p.97]

For JRPG unbelievers the battle system changes don’t address the common complaints leveled at the genre. For fans, the emphasis and pacing of its unique selling point overwhelms everything else, stripping the game of its poetry and balance. [Jan 2009, p.5]

Sonic Unleashed isn’t quite the spectacular return to form promised, but it’s a hell of a lot closer than Sega’s other recent efforts. [Jan 2009, p.89]

Judged solely on its Balance Board controls, Skate It comes up little short of unplayable thanks to a bewildering complexity. [Jan 2009, p.96]

While it’s occasionally fiddly, it has pace and spectacle and style to spare. Underworld is that rare game that manages to provide a real adventure to go along with its action. [Christmas 2008, p.95]

It’s hard to fault Lips for trying something different, even if it’s just a little. [Jan 2009, p.91]

The game’s seven levels may not boast the artistry and meticulousness of its forebears’, but they boast action that at least equals them. [Oct 2008, p.102]

Valve has taken something unscripted and dynamic, and seeded it with the right amount of narrative flavour, pacing and spectacle. [Christmas 2008, p.82]

Valve has taken something unscripted and dynamic, and seeded it with the right amount of narrative flavour, pacing and spectacle. [Christmas 2008, p.82]

Technologically something of an embarrassment and devoid of any vitality or personality, Undercover seems a sharp downturn for one of EA’s traditional bastions of seasonal sales. [Christmas 2008, p.101]

The whole production’s chintzy Hollywood feel is just right, and there’s plenty to keep its target audience entertained. [Jan 2009, p.90]

Not only is Road Trip competent, it’s full of character, with cartoon styling and gentle humour eschewing the too-cool, branding-heavy nature of its peers, while also being one of the console’s better looking titles. [Christmas 2008, p.101]

City Folk is effectively Wild World 2.0, allowing players of the DS game to migrate to Wii and continue pottering aimlessly around their mature towns, bringing their possessions and neighbours with them. [Christmas 2008, p.97]

Aptly enough, there are two opposite ways to view Mirror’s Edge, ours obviously being the less forgiving one. Its ostensible break from the norm, its sparkling monoliths and its Nordic skies perform some kind of counterbalance, but there is simply not enough depth or reward to the realisation of parkour that lies beyond that sheen. [Christmas 2008, p.92]

It may lack the emotional heft of darker epics, but it remains a tightly plotted confection with charm to spare. [Jan 2009]

Nuts & Bolts is a clever, colourful and witty game – one which deserves better than to be hidden behind stodgy tutorials, flabby interfaces and a host of loading screens. [Christmas 2008, p.84]

Treyarch has taken just enough from COD4 to make World At War a broad success, but it remains firmly in its shadow. [Christmas 2008, p.90]

Treyarch has taken just enough from COD4 to make World At War a broad success, but it remains firmly in its shadow. [Christmas 2008, p.90]

Treyarch has taken just enough from COD4 to make World At War a broad success, but it remains firmly in its shadow. [Christmas 2008, p.90]

While online play provides more convincing competition, with only eight riders supported the circuit will appear as underpopulated as the scenery. [Aug 2008, p.100]

At a time when everyone wants to turn the entertainment world on its head – or at least be seen to – it proves that the entertainment itself, whichever way up it may be, is what matters most. [Christmas 2008, p.86]

Its ideas are streamlined, its tight boundaries narrowing what could have been an overwhelming proposition, plunging players all the sooner into compelling strategic depths. [Christmas 2008, p.99]

The dev team has an eye for spectacle – a towering golem comprised of cars and other metallic detritus is a visual highlight – but these moments mostly serve to illustrate how dull your actual actions are by contrast. [Dec 2008, p.98]