Given all the admirable character work and tactical substance on display, it's a shame that individualism isn't spread more evenly. [Issue#391, p.118]

Direct comparisons don't do Ronin any favours. Its grappling is reminiscent of Sekiro, but the procedure never feels as urgent or dynamic as it does in From's game. Its combat follows rhythms previously explored in the Nioh series and also Wo Long, but it rarely feels any more refined, nor more satisfying... But it is consistently charming. [Issue#397, p.102]

The promise of the Dark Pictures series remains fresh, then, but the systems supporting it are staring to creak with age. [Issue#366, p.119]

Style can be substance, but it's fuel that burns quickly. [Issue#391, p.119]

This is a package filled with value and historic charm, but viewed devoid of nostalgic mist, the earliest installments of the series feel little more than average. [March 2003, p.106]

For all its polish, Reflect Missile has managed to retain the loose energy of a quirky prototype: a 500 Nintendo Point exercise in pure mechanics that is lithe – and slight – enough to suggest that a talented designer may have knocked the whole thing up over an inspired series of lunch breaks.

As tightly designed and finely balanced as it is, it's hard to shake the feeling that you're endlessly replaying a tutorial.

The pacing ensure playing Kingdom Hearts III is a bit like being dragged through a theme park while hungover. [Issue#330, p.112]

The mix of leaping and pushing blocks forces you to exercise thumbs and prefrontal cortex alike, but jumping between the two can jar. [Issue#363, p.123]

It may have few aspirations beyond being a dumb FPS, but it never fails to make the most of its limited talents. [Christmas 2007, p.97]

Uncharacteristically watered-down. [Aug 2015, p.121]

For all the spectacle of Resonance's gunfights, the game feels restrictive. It's a strategy game in which your tactical options are limited to one or two reliable strategies, and an RPG in which character development is chained to similar lines. [May 2010, p.96]

The handling hasn’t evolved and a year on, with the masking novelty of the game’s tuning aspects worn off, it’s disappointingly limited and remote. And despite the increased choice and plot introduction the whole exercise can often feel soulless. [Christmas 2004, p.60]

It's a game that follows the steps of another while changing the rhythm - and in doing so, never settles into its own groove. [Issue#330, p.114]

Colourful, crafty, and cheerily free of ambitions, it's the perfect companion for a drowsy early morning commute.

Design flaws include a bizarre decision to cordon off most of the ship after completion, locking away any unique items you previously overlooked. Much of the game commendably favours stealth players but the rest can feel shambolic.

Eventually you come to feel less like you're changing the world so much as being given a half-finished jigsaw: there's a certain pleasure to slotting in the missing pieces, but completing the job can be a laborious process. [March 2018, p.114]

This is the kind of ornamental contraption that elicits oohs and aahs when examined from afar, but was never REALLY designed to be played with. [Issue#366, p.123]

It's an easy game to play, and even enjoy, but a tough one to love. [March 2018, p.116]

Though the setting is clichéd and you’ll have experienced all the tricks Frictional has pulled to construct Black Plague’s menacing atmosphere before (echoed voices, bestial groans, oppressive shadows, flickering lights), they’re highly effective. [Apr 2008, p.96]

It’s rarely elegant – a horde of zombie cosmonauts exited our ship as quickly as they entered after arriving next to a hull breach – but in battling back from the brink of obliteration there are moments you’ll feel like a surrogate Kirk. Crashes, glitches and repetition break the spell, but when it’s time for some thrilling heroics Star Command proves itself a worthwhile enterprise.

The comic hit rate is lower here than you might have hoped for, but Telltale shows a commendable knowledge of when to simply emulate the Sam & Max of old and when to move forward. [Dec 2006, p.89]

Regrets? Team Ninja may have a few. It's chartered course doesn't seem particularly well planned, nor its steps along the byway especially careful - and it certainly bites off more than it can chew. Yet while this curious, distinctive spin-off may not be close to the finest hour for its developer nor this storied series, its' makers can stand tall knowing that, to paraphrase Ol' Blue Eyes, they did it their way. [Issue#371, p.108]

As an example of unabashed, often exuberant Britsoft that pulls out the SRPG's staples and rebinds it in approachable ease, Future Tactics is remarkable, deserving of cult status. [Aug 2004, p.99]

Eastshade may not be the game it could be, but it paints a picture many others could learn from. [Issue#330, p.122]

Indeed, Tactica is very much a Persona 5 game, with all that entails: conceptually sound, visually stylish, lovingly assembled - and needlessly drawn out. [Issue#392, p.116]

Rad is another great Lee Petty idea, then - though in its current form, it's a few mutations away from reaching its full potential. [Issue#337, p.114]

Those seeking strategic depth may find Bulwark wanting, but if you're happy to kitbash without consequence then Sala's atmospheric world is worth a return visit. [Issue#397, p.112]