A few extra credits at your discretion are no bad thing when you want to sample the delights that latter levels might bring, so in this case I'm happy to agree with SNK's decision to leave credit allocation to the prudence of the punter.

A strange backwards step, one that manages to retain some of what made the original great while getting lost in its own peculiar sense of drama and never adding enough worthwhile of its own. What should have been the return of a racing great instead feels like another curious offshoot, leaving Dirt now clearly Codemasters' premier brand.

This is a beautiful game. It scared me. It moved me. Most of all, it made me stop what I was doing and think. [Recommended]

With a tiny bit more polish Rebelstar Tactical Command could be not only one of the best games on the GBA but one of the best games released this year.

It took me around ten hours to complete, and while I was never on the edge of my seat, I was charmed for most of that time, sticking with it until I'd picked up the last gamerpoints. If your gaming palate favours such gentle fare, A Kingdom for Keflings is a lovely way to spend the day.

If you're looking for an ATV game that offers solid arcade-style gameplay, a wide range of events and decent offline multiplayer options, Offroad Fury 3 does the job.

When the core gameplay is so obviously hamstrung by fundamental design issues, there's no real incentive to get stuck into the meat of the game, and thus the chances of being able to enjoy the two-player link mode disappear into the ether.

Under the hood, Namco's designers have upgraded the series' engine and mechanics in effective and interesting ways, making this the strongest Ace Combat in a decade.

Why it truly sings, I think, is because the game has created such a perfectly irritating place: a place where photocopiers won't fit through doorways and wi-fi routers miss huge swathes of the office. Good Job weaponises your frustrations with the real world, and the glory here, of course, is that you can do things about it all. You can fire photocopiers through walls and push docile colleagues around on their chairs until they have the signal their devices require.

Samurai Gunn is a game about little else, really: you spawn, you fight, you fall, and then you spawn again - and fall again...This is hectic and hilarious and exhausting, in other words, and it's also very clever with its focus.

This tale of two brothers marks a more intimate and accomplished return for a studio keen to tackle tough issues with honest characters. [Eurogamer Recommended]

It's stratospherically mad. At the point where I emerged out of a narrow corridor into what turned out to be a vast stadium and a gyrating dance master exploded from the sea in an outfit that would make Lady Gaga proud, I almost collapsed with joy. If that sounds like you, this could the best thing you buy this year.

If you love the film it's impossible not to like this game, despite its faults. That would be like hating a puppy just because it's got a wonky leg. This might not be the best videogame ever made but it's one of the better movie tie-ins out there, and it's the closest to being a Ghostbuster most of us will ever get.

This is a high-quality game by anyone's standards, but that doesn't change the fact that I spent a good deal of my time playing it feeling blasphemously bored.

Massively multiplayer games are all evolving things, and we're very, very keen to watch Tabula Rasa's evolution. The initial launch is incredibly promising, more than anything else.

Dead Rising 3 is the weakest in the series, then...Just beware, once you get over the pleasure of the first few combo weapons, Dead Rising 3 is just a solid zombie brawler set in an open world, not the strange game of tender heart that used to be so funny and surprising.

If you're a Star Wars fan wondering where the magic went, look no further.

It's not the easiest game for newcomers to approach (the tutorial's dreadful), but even stealth virgins will see the light after an hour or so in the dark, and probably ought to add another mark to the score. Make ours a double.

Far from being "crippled by unintuitive controls", the reality is that it's beautifully intuitive, and just about shades Virtua Tennis 2009 on Wii by simply having a more satisfying feel to it.

At 800 Microsoft Points which equates to a couple of Big Mac meals and a side of chilli cheese tops, it definitely offers the kind of quality that some say is lacking at the moment at a more than reasonable price. However, do be warned that the game gets insanely difficult half way through and although the multiplayer modes are fun, it's fleeting.

A game which is good, but not great, and certainly not up to the standard of Nintendo's best 2D platformers.

What's most disappointing about the whole thing, though, isn't so much the lack of me-too deathmatch variants, but that LucasArts didn't bother to allow players to play the campaign mode co-operatively as Red Storm achieved so successfully in the likes of Ghost Recon 2, Rainbow Six 3 and Black Arrow... As it is Republic Commando deserves huge respect for managing to be the best Star Wars shooter ever.

The simple pleasure of holding out against the enemy in an area that looks a little bit like Pat Sharpe's Funhouse, meanwhile, cannot be understated.

For all its exterior charm, Park Patrol is a game built largely on repetition and slow steps.

Dead Space 3 is a contradiction. Gorgeous but scruffy; tightly packed yet stretched too thin; often frustrating, frequently thrilling and bursting at the seams with stuff, not all of which fits comfortably inside the boundaries the series has set for itself. It's certainly not a great game, except perhaps as a poster child for the kitchen-sink development mentality of a console generation in its twilight months.

It's brave, and manic, and fun to play, and that's everything it needs to be.

A competent, atmospheric adventure and truly a new direction for the characters, but at this length it simply isn’t worth the £35, let alone the cost of the console.

Alice in Wonderland is surreal, dreamlike, well-crafted and very beautiful.

It's better in some areas than 6, and is certainly brilliant played against real people, or just picked up and played properly with the nitrous turned off in arcade mode. But it's not really as challenging.

And if the shield was gone and the enemies were fewer, and more varied, it could have been a lot like an actual videogame, with a difficulty curve, rather than a bewildering ascent up a six-foot cliff onto an endless plateau of tedium.

It's hard not to like Tropico 4, because it's based on a solid foundation that is naturally engaging. It was and remains an enjoyable if slight take on a dry genre. Its tragedy is that it hasn't bothered to build anything worthwhile on top of that foundation, preferring instead to coast on jaunty music that makes you feel like you're playing in Nando's and broad satire that fails to sustain the game beyond the first few days of play.

Lumiose City could do with work, but Pokémon Legends: Z-A is a much more tightly focused - and delightfully goofy - return to better form. At least by modern Pokémon's standards.

For the cheaper-than-usual price it's going for it's definitely well worth a look, but once again bear in mind that it's never going to be one of those games with the greatest of lifespans. Burns brightly, but briefly.

A brilliant central mechanic and a game of real craft and character. [Eurogamer Recommended]

PES 2010's team management options are a warning sign that the Japanese developer still has some tricks up its sleeve, and people for whom the transition to another football game is simply too much to countenance will buy and enjoy this, and discover it still plays a good, grass-roots game. For everyone else though, up is still down, because FIFA wins again.

So, here's to another FIFA 22, much like the last one, and the one before that, and the one before that - a game that would be so much better for the soul were it not dragged down by the clawing hand of capitalism. Much like real football, I suppose.

Mega Man 10 doesn't quite perhaps have the sparkling feel of reinvention that its predecessor enjoyed, but if you were one of the many who considered MM9 a welcome return to form, then this is another must-buy. Everyone else is perfectly entitled to look confused.

Yes, the often exhausting depth might prove to be off-putting for those who prefer the more intuitive Virtua Tennis, but that's precisely part of Top Spin 3's more simulation-minded appeal. With fantastic online play and an obsessive career mode to dive into, it's the thinking man's tennis title.

It's bursting with happiness. And so am I when I play it.

It's a stunning little game to play for a while after the pub or while waiting for a taxi to turn up, and a complete contrast to the involved multiplayer experience you'd get with FF:CC. If a copy lands on your lap, you'll probably love it - you just wouldn't pay thirty quid for it.

Where ilomilo felt like it was created by rosy-cheeked elves beckoning you to snuggle up to it with a warm blanket and hot cup of cocoa, English Country Tune is more akin to Futurama's smarmy Professor Wernstrom. Rather than being off-putting, its priggish demeanor motivates you to rise to the occasion and show it up. As creative as it is maddening, English Country Tune is an acquired taste.

A vibrant interpretation of golf that expands on the series' distinguished lineage without compromising, or distracting from, its strengths. [Recommended]

I'm glad the launch version has tweaked the balance slightly in favour of the player, giving you a bit more health and replenishing it more readily, because I was banging my head against Atomicrops a bit in the version before. And it was only really that which made me hesitate in recommending it to you. But now, upon release and with some fine tuning, it sings. And a very jaunty song it is too. [Eurogamer Recommended]

It's a great concept, and it's perfectly enjoyable, but it lacks the excitement and flourishes it needs to really come alive.

Although pleasingly wrapped in all the right legends, there's nothing here that fully chains us to the PC. It's too repetitious, too derivative and too fiddly to exult, especially when there's so much more artful PC RPG fodder that I haven't yet defeated.

Ghost Recon is undoubtedly a chunky, enjoyable addition to the 3DS line-up, and a slick if unspectacular strategy blast.

The bosses, too, are consistently inventive.

FromSoftware's multiplayer spin-off is an exhilarating rush and a celebration of the studio's prior achievements Souls veterans will devour.

The gameplay is solid, the visuals are pretty and there's just something brilliantly enjoyable about making the Prince skip gracefully around well-designed levels, just like in the old days.

All round, Mutant Storm Reloaded is the kind of sympathetic update that reminds us exactly why gamers gets so foamed up about supposedly outdated concepts. Sometimes things just work, and always will.

It's not just half a dozen great diversions and a few more besides; it's sweet fan service that celebrates Nintendo's catalogue with more heart and less calculation than we've seen of late. Better yet, it reclaims the used and abused mini-game compilation from the hollow hinterlands of the casual cash-in, lovingly restores it and puts it back where it belongs - amid the hustle, the buzz, the urgent appeal of the arcade.

It just about passes muster as a stopgap release to tide fans over until the long-awaited Kingdom Hearts 3, but those looking to rekindle fond memories may find nostalgia's bubble all too easily pricked.

Beautifully animated, wonderfully voiced and witty to boot, Loco Motive ticks a lot of right boxes for point and click likers. If only its underlying mystery wasn't quite so sidelined and predictable.

What impressed in 2007 is no longer enough, and while Starhawk is a perfectly fine entry in the third-person multiplayer shooter genre, it's unlikely to inspire much long-term passion in its current state.

Those savvy enough to see beyond Yakuza 2's slightly dated visuals will enjoy a richly rewarding openworld brawler - one that's every bit as immersive and entertaining as the original.

Some of DMC HD's content is far from classic, and there are undeniably rough edges. But as a package it offers two fighting games of exceptional quality, with Devil May Cry slick and stylish enough to overshadow its creaky camera, and Devil May Cry 3 still one of the genre's highpoints.

A wondrous dreamlike world to explore in or out of VR, but a story that doesn't always hit as hard as you might want.

Sega Rally is easily the freshest arcade driving experiences to have emerged in years, providing more wide-eyed excitement in five minutes than most games manage in five hours. Not since "Burnout 2" has a driving game stood out as so completely different to everything else, and provided so much instant, moreish entertainment to such a high technical standard.

Even though this is undeniably a good representation, the feel of it is really not all that different from the SNES and Mega Drive titles of yesteryear.

It's pretty, it's quite a challenge, and is loaded with rewards. But you'll quickly come to the conclusion that for all its charms, it doesn't offer enough new ideas, and that its competition is just too strong.

Almost to its detriment, it doesn't play its hand early on; if anything, the game takes fully three or four hours before you really start to unravel its charms, and even then it never feels like a game in a hurry.

By simply making sure that absolutely everything in the game is designed to remove the usual restrictions on fun, Sumo's created something that practically transcends rivals like PGR3 and Burnout before you even done anything.

Golden Age Baghdad, along with a return to a more focused, stealth-based design, makes for a rich and characterful adventure.

The lack of character development and some lacklustre supporting players result in a feeling of detachment from a game that only excels if you are invested in it. That's a shame, because there was potential for Crimes and Punishments to be a great truly great detective game, instead of just a mechanically sound one.

Amnesia: The Bunker corrects the missteps of its predecessors and adds in a sense of invention, creating a truly unsettling adventure.

Eets is of most value to players who enjoy experimenting. In much the same way that it's fun to replay the same level of "TrackMania" or "Mercury Meltdown" over and over to find a better solution, finding a way to complete a level in Eets without using up all of your available tools is satisfying - and the game credits players who use their imagination, too, with a range of achievements reserved for players who can get through without exhausting their inventory.

No one else could pull this off, no one else would even dare try. It is a brilliant, wholesome and memorable way to spend your time, and while it might borrow from Lego and origami, and probably a million other places, it is unique. [Essential]

With five excellent campaign missions to master, and local or online play for up to five players, it's hard to think of a single reason why you wouldn't enjoy battling it out with malicious cats, malfunctioning robots, slavering zombies and hairy yetis.

A relatively minor instalment, but in a series this magical, that's still good news.

There's a thousand more things I could say to justify my hearty recommendation of this incomparably rich war sim.

Back when all games cost upwards of £30, it wasn't easy to keep up with games like Death Rally. Nowadays, you've got literally no excuse to hold off buying the best top-down racing available on mobile platforms. Better late than never.

A straightforward remaster that struggles to outshine the Switch port of Tropical Freeze, but Returns HD is still a challenging and satisfying platformer that stands the test of time.

SoulCalibur has always excelled at offering an accessible style of combat with a level of single-player content that other fighting games have only recently begun to match. These qualities haven't changed - and now, after what seemed like an uncertain return, the historical fighter is staging its best performance since that fateful Christmas of 1999. High five!

Above all, it's a proper western, set in a tangibly real Wild West, with proper, honest-to-goodness cowboys, Indians and bandits in it. Experience tells us that's harder to pull off in videogames than you might think, and it counts for a lot, no matter where it comes from.

Although Field Commander has plenty of options, it's doubtful hardcore strategy heads will find enough to get lost in.

With an attractive PBEM option and game durations that can be measured in hours rather than days, this is definitely the grand-strategy title for those of us lumbered with obligations like jobs and school.

A fantastically involving and solid fighting game, enhanced by being set in one of the most imaginative and beautiful universes in the medium.

This year's Modern Warfare 2 has some good moments, some beautiful cinematics and some typically moreish multiplayer - but it's a cowardly retconning of the original's story.

It's still a solid platformer with some neat ideas, but it's undone by a host of camera and control issues. If you popped your gaming cherry playing Banjo as a youngster, prepare for nostalgia tinged by disappointment, as you discover it's not quite the classic you remember.

The game is beautifully minimal and has the kind of difficulty curve that makes the best of such games so compelling.

A game that offers a decent amount of fun, with great combat, occasionally inspired set-pieces, but sub-par driving and a half-baked story mode with barely enough variety to fill a long evening.

Project Zero 2's gameplay is pretty basic throughout and showing its age in areas - although the graphical makeover, bar some dodgy textures, is very good. But with the lights off, it's as spine-tinglingly scary as any game I've played, with some truly haunting moments and gasp-inducing set-pieces delivered as it reaches its disquieting climax.

Quotation forthcoming.

Sustained by the strength of the moment-to-moment play, this add-on packs a punch. While Raam's abilities are arguably too straightforward to sustain a full game, they fit a shorter DLC mission perfectly. Meanwhile, the structure that has you switching between two warring sides as they close in on one another is interesting and well executed, resulting in a strong, worthwhile expansion.

A commendable example of a last-gen game that's still willing to evolve and offer more for your money.

While most will be more interested to see where EA LA takes the ideas they've played with here next, there's much more for a C&C fan to get excited about than imagining Natasha Henstridge is talking to them. Although that is pretty exciting.

At its best, Men Of War: Assault Squad provides hours of tactical chin-stroking, some stonkingly memorable engagements, and a whole kit-bag of replayability, especially in co-op.

For a while, it's intensely good fun, but every man has his breaking point. At some stage, mania sets in, and fending off the determined alien hordes requires a desire to replay levels that only a gurning leatherface should tackle. You should know which side you're on by now.

Levels come thick and fast, but what starts off as a charming, casual diversion soon bares its teeth and has you utterly absorbed in its gorgeous and inventive platform puzzle madness.

Intelligent and enriching, this is a preview worth playing. [Recommended]

If you'd like to know how easy it can be to ruin an excellent work, you can cry yourself to sleep thinking of all the squandered potential in Dawn of the New World. But if you can bring yourself to ignore it, this is still a fine reissue of a great game.

An intense, challenging and well-designed game, simple enough to come off extremely well on the PSP and strategically engaging enough to keep cerebral players involved.

Limited enemies and environments don't hamper some of the best VR blasting out there.

Part management sim, part open-world adventure, this is both weird and familiar, and deeply comforting stuff.

A neon-lit murder mystery unable to uncover a deeper core.

That's a testament to how beautifully Sprinkle Islands captures the childlike joy of splashing around, but it does tend to leave the puzzling element feeling progressively soggier as the levels progress.

It works because it's not subtle...But beneath all this clamour you can detect the stable, confident hum of a decent racing series finding its feet – in its improved boost mechanic, substantial feature set and streamlined campaign.

The Last Guy's another decent example of a simple, slightly risky game perfect for PSN, even if it seldom feels particularly essential.