With the PC's internet potential yet to be realised it could well be the making of a classic.

Luckily for a game with such unapologetic cinematic pretensions, Dead Space: Extraction does a fine job of weaving an engaging sci-fi narrative into a slick action game. Far from being a stripped-down side-show to the main event, Extraction provides yet another reminder of how brainlessly entertaining the on-rails shooter can be when it's done properly.

TrackMania 2 Valley's another Nadeo title as brilliant as it is scruffy, and I wouldn't want it any other way.

For Battlefield fans, this is an essential expansion.

A masterful sequel to one of the genre's most beloved games, but it carries an ink stain that's hard to ignore.

At its best FIFA 11 is enormous fun and brilliantly engineered, but in its battle to be more varied and realistic it has lost some of its momentum, and off the pitch returns are starting to diminish too.

You can't cut-and-paste the artistry and attitude that Vlambeer has brought to this extravagant bit of disposable nonsense. You can't copy a true original - even before it's out.

A busier, louder, and more emotionally resplendent take on this singular hiking sim.

Possibly the wisest tweak is the balancing of the gameplay, which with a bit of practice ought to see players able to compete with Colin and co. within the matter of an hour or so. Previously the barriers to entry seemed to be set inexplicably high.

Charming and witty.

At its best FIFA 11 is enormous fun and brilliantly engineered, but in its battle to be more varied and realistic it has lost some of its momentum, and off the pitch returns are starting to diminish too.

A joyous and rugged display of rally racing, with exquisite handling, lightly flecked by technical issues.

Two and a bit out of three isn't a batting average to be ashamed of, though, and since Castle comes packaged with the usual array of playlist polishes to keep the game fresh, there's absolutely no reason for anyone still loving Halo 4's multiplayer not to embrace it. After all, it's a long wait for Halo 5.

Middle-aged role-players should need no encouragement to plunge into Grimrock's depths, but for new players discovering the genre through sprawling epics like Skyrim, its robust reliance on the strength of squares will make it a refreshing experience.

This is a muscular and confident game, one with the utmost faith in its own fiction and a dedication to gameplay satisfaction at a microscopic level, paid off in dozens of situations that feel completely random and organic, even when they've clearly been planted there for you to find. Tighter control and a more generous approach to replay value would elevate Dishonored to true classic status, but it stands as one of the year's best all the same.

Undertow is a fun, no-brainer and is a welcome addition to Xbox Live. Make sure you convince a couple of mates to fork out for it as well and you'll have a blast.

More of a smash and grab than a smooth raid, then, but you can't deny that it's come away with the goods.

It's both more of a role-playing game than it's ever been before, and more of a design game than it's ever been before. It may suffer a few glaring compromises, but it's an essential play for anyone with an interest in what videogames can achieve outside of a targeting reticule.

An enjoyable history lesson that survives the test of time.

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.

There’s more fluency to the [Hitz] gameplay, and the “on fire” element is handier than EA’s aptly named “gamebreaker”.

It's not every day you get to roll a decapitated dominatrix robot head around in the name of quality mobile entertainment.

For your massive 59 pence outlay, you get 27 tricky-as-you-like courses, rendered with the requisite loving care, and the chance to obsess over your times with your equally OCD friends. Honestly, what's not to love?

Dissidia certainly isn't without its faults. The rate of descent once airborne is too slow, and the combat fundamentals occasionally feel jerky compared to more traditional and refined fighters. But these minor criticisms aside, it's a very accomplished fighter that's worth your time - whether you're a fighter nut or Final Fantasy fan.

Stellar Blade has a fair bit of weirdness, but its killer tunes and vibey, flow-state combat - plus a transformative hard mode - are enough to leave you entranced.

It offers highly refined gameplay married with a rich art style, and by acknowledging fan feedback in an effort to make a well-rounded game even more polished, Ultra feels like the work of a developer that's content to please its core audience rather than trying to grab everyone else's attention. That's rare, especially from a studio that was responsible for Resident Evil 6.

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.

As for its translation to Xbox, it's a revelation. Not only is it as visually faithful as anyone could reasonably expect, with no discernible compromises save for the resolution, but even the controls feel right.