Developments to the battle system ensure that this is the most enjoyable Kingdom Hearts title in terms of its raw systems, but the storytelling and structure fail to delight in the same way.

A wonder of animation and AI smoke-and-mirrors, the beast in The Last Guardian is primarily a masterpiece of observation. [Essential]

If you've got the stamina - and the space - then Sprint Vector is an awful lot of fun. [Recommended]

On one hand, the game is an incredibly unique and original departure from the normal conventions of this genre, offering the kind of dark stylish twist that RPGs have lacked for so long and building onto it some very solid gameplay. Balanced against that, however, is the somewhat unforgiving battle system and, most crucially, the whole random battle issue.

For all its stumbles - and there are an awkward handful - Mists of Pandaria nevertheless represents a WOW participating in the massively multiplayer genre rather than revelling in the cult of its own personality.

Nintendo's trickiest game in years is also one of its most joyful. [Recommended]

It's unashamedly one of the PSP's brightest, most endearing, beguiling and long-lasting games, and its protracted residency in our PSP slot this month speaks as a louder recommendation than any number of orthodox, adulatory adjectives.

Recettear is one of the best indie games to arrive this year.

Developer Balloon Studios cultivates a beautiful puzzle game with the timeless allure of a summer's day stroll.

Another handsome, well built and entertaining Forza rolls off the production line - though there are controversial changes under the hood. [Recommended]

Chasing scores is always an exercise in masochism, and in giving you potentially infinite second chances, Time Surfer risked taking away the sense of achievement. Instead, it adds a whole other dimension.

All of this would have been acceptable in the nineties, but expectations change. Sure, it's only a few quid, but for once it feels like you're getting what you pay for.

With each word you correct, you're rebelling against the system, raising a middle finger to oppression. It's a good feeling, and it's prompted by nothing more than black text on a white background. That's the power of the written word, all right.

From time to time, it will get the better of you, and at that point it's not about difficulty so much as accumulated failure, a burden Midnight Club: Los Angeles forces you to carry, and one that's tough to bear for all the game's other successes. Tolerate the lashing of agony that accompanies every one of these moments, though, and this is fast, brutal, ingenious racing drama, dragging you into the screen every bit as thoroughly as Burnout Paradise, and delivered in a manner that befits the publisher that financed GTA IV.

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter leaves you with several amazing memories; moments that you will want to talk to your friends about for hours and will take great pains not to spoil for other people. The fact it packs those so painlessly into a three-hour game while other developers create empty works that take ten times as long to complete speaks volumes.

The bottom line is you won't find a better value, more generous or more diverse FSX add-on than this one.

If nothing else, it's entirely fitting that a game that's always been brilliantly brainless is now genuinely brain-dead as well. Oh, and I finally got that bloody Mario-themed Achievement. SCORE.

When an RTS is as unpredictable as this it becomes less about scheming and resource management and even more about simply reacting, and that's not going to be to everyone's taste. That said, everyone loves the sweet taste of co-op, so if you've got a friend who's a fan of either RTS games or cleavage (or both!), Red Alert 3 can and will show you a very good time indeed.

A frighteningly moreish game that represents ludicrous value for money, and is highly recommended to anyone taken to competitive twin-stick shooters.

For all its foibles though, I have confidence that Valve is at least pushing the game in the right direction. After all, both CS: Source and CS:GO evolved considerably after their initial launch and became classics in their own right, and all the building blocks are here for Counter-Strike 2 to follow the same trajectory - and from a much better starting position. The bottom line? This is already an incredible game that's well worth playing - after all, it is Counter-Strike, too.

But, story-wise, I'm hooked. The characters are fascinating, the plot heavy with potential, and my faith in Telltale's skill is high. Consider this score a work in progress then, with the expectation that it will rise over the coming months as Mr Wolf's investigation deepens.

An all-time great.

Simply put it borrows a hatful of ideas, implements them well but never truly wows you as a landmark gaming experience.

FIFA 08 is, on the whole, a triumph. Had the Be A Pro features been more fleshed out and the lower difficulty settings somewhat more forgiving, then it would undoubtedly have scored a 9 rather than an 8. However, thanks to the promise of the former feature, multiplayer games that are little short of superb (due to the lack of AI defenders thwarting your every attack), the usual exhaustive array of official league and cup competitions and some stunning visuals and animations that milk next gen power for all it's worth, it very much feels that the FIFA franchise is genuinely teetering on the cusp of greatness.

Want a challenging, tactical experience with long-term rewards? Then PES 2010 is the game for you, though if you bought last year's version you may want to give the outlay some serious thought as this year's nuances are few and far between.

It's just a shame that that success had to be tempered by a somewhat overenthusiastic approach to the unpredictability inherent in the genre.

If you're going to play a King's Bounty game for the first time, make it The Legend - and I'd say that whether or not it was available so cheaply. If you're all done with that and crave more, then Armored Princess will not do you wrong.

A fun arcade karting experience is often too chaotic for its own good, but a tight handling model with a high skill ceiling offers surprising depth.