The LEGO Movie 2 is a great movie! But the Videogame has no dialogue between characters, and very little of the meta zaniness that makes the movie pop. It’s got some shining moments, such as huge boss encounters, but this brave new world of LEGO games needs some more refinement. It’s Telltale’s Jurassic Park rather than Walking Dead, then.

For us, and for anyone who thinks exploration of these worlds is the main reason to play games like Bioshock and that Prey was at its worst when it forced you to go back through previous locations - Prey: Mooncrash is hugely disappointing.

Anyway, if you want a hacky-slashy title that mocks videogame and comic conventions and never takes itself seriously then Deadpool is for you.

Things feel like they're going to start hotting up in Cognition, and while nothing's blowing me away in general I am enjoying the series. However, certain things definitely require a strong polish, and I hope Phoenix Online has time to make improvements before the next episode.

Putting it all together, Steam Marines may be a tasty little challenge for some, but it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. Perhaps it’ll be a nice addition to a rogue fan’s collection, and maybe a few indie diehards would like to pick it up to see what it’s all about.

A combat system that’s deeper than it first appears is the real star here, but you’ll likely also stick around for the perverse and disturbing universe and the story that plays out within it. The voiceover work will quickly annoy you and the difficulty is unfair, but there is still a bit to enjoy here, assuming you can ignore some of Othercide’s shortcomings. I wanted to like Othercide much more than I did.

Call of Cthulhu is an undeniably fun adventure game with some great ideas, cool stealth moments, and it never devolves into a shooter like Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth did. However, it also wastes its sanity mechanic, and the second half of the game consists of smaller and smaller locations that seem in a rush to get to an abrupt ending. The first few hours of the game are fantastic, but the rest feels like the team were forced to cram around 20 hours of exciting adventure-RPG gameplay and story into just 4 hours. The story skips to the end, the characters change instantly, and then the credits roll without the name “Cthulhu” even being mentioned. A huge disappointment.

Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India is a stealth game with Assassin’s Creed adornment. Its story barely invites you to understand more about Arbaaz Mir and Climax Studios completely fails at telling one, but if you are desperate for a stealth game, you will be challenged and fairly compensated for your time and money.

Dungeon Rushers may evoke fond memories of the Hero Quest board game but it doesn’t manage to be anywhere near as involving. Still when things are going right it’s a hugely addictive game, with simple gameplay based around risk and reward and some tremendously entertaining dialogue. Nevertheless the story is non-existent, the gameplay basic and repetitious, and nearly every stage you’ll be forced to replay old dungeons to grind your characters up a level. The level editor is the surprising highlight, and we actually found it more fun to make dungeons than play them.

Clever ideas are interspersed with components that fail miserably, making this the definition of 'mixed bag'.

Clever ideas are interspersed with components that fail miserably, making this the definition of 'mixed bag'.

John Daly's Prostroke Golf is a great display of how the Move controller can be implemented, and has officially made us excited about what the future of Move holds.

Light has great ideas but fails to use them in any meaningful way or make any lasting impression - it's like the setup to a great game that never comes. Shame.

If you're after an old-school brawler it's definitely still worth your consideration – but absolutely keep in mind that this offers frustration as well as fun.

It doesn't do anything new or exciting, but nor does it offend in any great way. There are plenty of little mistakes, and just not enough to make them forgiveable. It's a pretty average game with decent presentation. For something a bit more time consuming or in depth, I'd look elsewhere. If you just want a distraction then maybe.

Maybe hardcore Dark Eye fans will appreciate the lore and its place in the universe, but on its own it’s not a fantastic story, and it’s not a well-designed game either.

An interesting game that scratches the detective itch, without ever reaching great heights.

Shadowgate is a faithful update then, but Zojoi have squandered the opportunity to actually update the gameplay too.

Total War: Troy makes some curious changes to the Total War formula, but the less streamlined resource system, extra micromanagement, and weird mix of reality and mythology work against its favour to create a less than entrancing experience.

Years of waiting, and we're presented with a title that still feels unfinished. Gran Turismo 5's main frustrations come from the fact that, at times, the game is entertaining and a joy to play. At other times, it had us questioning if Polyphony understand what the current generation of consoles are capable of.

There are sparks of inspiration here and a beautifully realised setting, but beneath that veneer of intrigue lies gameplay that just doesn't cut it with the best. There's just about enough to enjoy in this broken version of 80's Seattle, just expect to be frustrated in digging out the treats.

In the end, Combat Evolved Anniversary is a strange package. Its campaign feels half hearted, neither fully remaking nor preserving the original game.

It's well balanced, it runs well, the graphics are alright, the level backdrops are interesting and well designed and it's, well, a tower defence game.

Randal’s Monday gets so much right it’s depressing that it gets the crucial gameplay part wrong.

In short, fix these problems Over The Moon and maybe the second episode of The Fall will be all fun and not just the last hour.

Brink is an extremely confused piece of software, that isn't quite sure exactly what it is, or what it's meant to be doing. When it gets into its stride and the gameplay flows, there are moments of beauty to behold. For the most part, however, it's all a bit irksome, as you battle with server issues, single player modes that aren't really single player at all, and a severe lack of direction.

An incremental upgrade to Dead Rising 2. It's still great fun, but just be aware this is little extra than more of the same.

Gomo isn't a great example of the genre by any means, but it's nice to look at and a fun little diversion. I found it rather endearing.

An incremental upgrade to Dead Rising 2. It's still great fun, but just be aware this is little extra than more of the same.

The truth is, Genesis Alpha One feels like an Early Access game, far from the polished status one would expect from a full release – even an indie one. While the concept is intriguing and very promising, the lack of immersion and design decisions make everything exhausting. If you’re interested in a roguelike sci-fi game, you could give Genesis a shot, but don’t expect much from what is clearly an unfinished title.

Dungeon Siege III falls victim to its lack of ambition.

Dungeon Siege III falls victim to its lack of ambition. With a little extra guts, the developers could have installed an engaging narrative, memorable characters and an online component that would prolong the title's life. Instead, what we have is an emotionless, unrewarding journey that shies away from doing anything special.

Did they hope people wouldn't notice its shortcomings? Where they conducting some kind of experiment? Did they always plan to do this overhaul?

Dungeon Siege III falls victim to its lack of ambition. With a little extra guts, the developers could have installed an engaging narrative, memorable characters and an online component that would prolong the title's life. Instead, what we have is an emotionless, unrewarding journey that shies away from doing anything special.

In all the game works mechanically well but lacks innovation and plays it too safe. The oversimplified gameplay mixed with lacklustre combat make for a game that plays well but leaves you with the disappointing notion of what could have been.

It’s a charming, lighthearted game of resource gathering and production. Unfortunately, it’s only really fun when things work smoothly and easily. Figuring out mistakes and solving problems - which should be the core of a good strategy game - are built around solving pathfinding issues, and Valhalla Hills doesn’t do much to make those problems more palatable.

So amongst the other problems, it's also short and clearly rushed.

There’s fun, then, to be had with Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, especially for those familiar with the original series, but in following a “see what sticks” approach to adding content rather than focusing on exploring and updating the franchise’s core mechanics, Sanzaru have ended up with a game that’s caught somewhere between the past and present and, no matter the nostalgia, that isn’t quite good enough in 2013.

DOOM VFR is one of the most action-packed games I’ve ever played using the HTC Vive. It’s a shame Bethesda ignored the huge amount of progress that has been made in VR development. DOOM VFR is a good game, but with a number of changes it could easily become a great game. Do not buy this game if you suffer from motion sickness as you simply won’t be able to play it for longer than five minutes at a time. However, if the locomotion issues don’t bother you, DOOM VFR is definitely worth picking up.

Other than the acting side of things, which is always an issue with smaller budget titles, there's little 'wrong' with J.U.L.I.A, it's just more of a case of what's right isn't right enough.

It would be best to continue playing your favourite ARPG or MMO instead of giving time to this hybrid.

The Unexpected Quest is by no means a bad game, as completing tasks and acquiring resources can be entertaining if you approach the title with the right mindset. Unfortunately, it’s incredibly hard to justify the price-tag when you consider the game’s relatively short length and repetitive elements. Casual players might get a kick out of the laid-back experience, but RTS veterans should look elsewhere for their resource-managing and quest-completing thrills.

If you're willing to put in a good 5-6 hours learning the foibles of the interface, and then spend the rest of your time with the game wishing it was better, there is something to be said for the setting and the heart of the action that lies beneath. It's just not enough to overwhelm the tide of poor UI decisions that unfortunately sit dominant on top.

Warner Bros. attempt at getting things going again with Gotham Knights feels largely flat thanks to unwieldy movement and a world that is more “checklist” than immersive, but in small doses it can be fun, and the heroes all feel unique and work well in co-op multiplayer.

If you have a console, get Pro Evo 2015 on that. If you’re a PC-only football fan, this is a functional if lacklustre port of a great match engine with broken online support.

The only real disappointment in the new package is Retro Revenge for being a boring endless runner rather than the arcade beat-em-up the advertising suggested. It may be a pretty mindless package overall, but it’s not completely without brains.

While it still could be saved the technical state of the game is so bad that it cannot be seen for what it does right. Even the good parts of the game are plagued by the negatives and the frequent FPS drops make gameplay vomit inducing.

Dollhouse sports some interesting gameplay features and mechanics that are let down by some noticeable flaws. As a horror package, it can provide some genuine moments of tension and panic. However, once you become accustomed to your relentless stalker it may become more of an annoyance than an object of fear. As a result, the gameplay can become rather repetitive. The story, though short, is an interesting one. However, once it’s completed there is little desire for a re-tread. That’s not to say it’s not worth visiting the mind of Marie if you’ve got a hankering for a Film Noir horror story. Once upon a time, I would have recommended this as a rental.

As it stands, it’s hard to recommend LA Cops when you can pick up the next slice of Hotline Miami’s gory abstraction at a similar price point.

Orcs Must Die is fun but in a limited, begrudgingly acknowledged sense. It's lacking a spark: something compelling to make you play beyond the first five minutes, or even through the first five minutes.

In the end, Apocalypse is an interesting – yet not essential – expansion. The only real game changer are the Colossi, as a ship type, a handful of perks, and a boring mid-game crisis are hardly worthy of an expansion pack. The team at Paradox seems comfortable with putting in the minimum amount of effort when coming up with creative options. But even while it adds planet-killing superweapons, it displays a disappointing lack of creativity in them and holds your hand the whole time, preventing you from ever using them freely. It’s bad enough that they restricted the number of megastructures in the previous patch, but this senseless clamp on superweapons mechanics just perpetuates a trend that will undoubtedly ruin the game in the long run.

We get the impression that Sonic Team wanted Forces to be the Best Sonic Game Ever, with a Greatest Hits package of everything good in the series, but they didn’t have the time, money or talent to accomplish this. The 2D sections control poorly, and the 3D sections sport the same problems that the series has had since Sonic Adventure – such as dying if you don’t play the level exactly as the designer intended. There’s fun to be had, but even then Forces feels so cheap and abrupt that you’ll be finished with it entirely in 4 hours. It’s not the worst 3D Sonic game, but in trying to do everything Sonic Team didn’t really accomplish anything. Next time, stick to just Generations 2 or Colours 2. Or even better – give Sonic entirely to other developers.

An injection of human drama could have brought the game's reality into line with our expectations, which were so cruelly raised by that teaser trailer mere months ago.

The Escapists: The Walking Dead is a decent puzzle game, but lacks the complexity and freedom of its predecessor by offering basic, linear goals.

An injection of human drama could have brought the game's reality into line with our expectations, which were so cruelly raised by that teaser trailer mere months ago.

Though it's competently made and packs in a good amount of content overall The UnderGarden makes for a fairly dull experience.

Despite being a fan of Bloober Team’s games, Blair Witch just doesn’t really work. There are far too many moments where you’re just wandering around frustrated in a forest trying to find something to do, and very few moments where the game does something unexpected to scare you. Clever gameplay ideas like the time-changing camcorder go pretty much to waste. Most importantly, despite a few good scares, in general Blair Witch isn’t really scary enough. It has really good storytelling moments and buckets of atmosphere, but we were ultimately left disappointed. It’s better than the 2000 Blair Witch games, at least.

Though it's competently made and packs in a good amount of content overall The UnderGarden makes for a fairly dull experience.

Stray is at its best when it lets you do the things you’d expect from a cat – sleeping on cozy pillows, meowing, or scratching sofas – but fails to build consistently compelling gameplay around these flavorful bits. Although it creates a believable world, I found it hard to connect with the robots you encounter across its forgotten city, making the game’s admittedly grand climax feel hollow…There’s plenty of attention to detail going into certain areas, but once the credits rolled, I was disappointed to see the cat I played as was just a vessel through which I experienced someone else’s story…Stray works and runs smoothly but is ultimately a fairly inoffensive game with a handful of special moments, that also happens to have a cat as its leading character. You can do much worse, but you can also do much better.

It’s cleverly designed and brilliant - it just can’t seem to manage all of its ambitions within the rather tight, easy-to-run framework that Maxis has placed the game within.

Had the core gameplay been better polished then Naughty Bear would have been able to get away with having only a few solitary environments to explore, but as it stands it's a hell of a lot of fun for a couple of hours, but that's your lot.

With an identical look and feel to its predecessor, it's hard for anyone but the most hardcore of players to get excited. Battles of Ardania is a continuation, nothing more.

Die-hard players will enjoy the new multiplayer content but will probably feel ripped off that it comes on a full-priced retail disc rather than a downloadable content pack for the first game.

Though it's competently made and packs in a good amount of content overall The UnderGarden makes for a fairly dull experience.

There's just so little to do, and if you don't like commenting on videos you won't see anything here but a bunch of crazy confusing videos. Lovely idea, not for me or people like me, but a community of people already love it so feel free to ignore me and give it a go.

We actually worry about Kalypso in general at the moment as well, as few of their games to date have been that well received. We had high hopes for Legends of Pegasus. It pains us to see them dashed once again.

With so many games on the horizon, the series is threatening to mimic sports franchises on an action-adventure level; the addictive same-old repackaged and resold back to you year-on-year. Mirage might promise a fresh oasis from afar, but get closer and it’s the same formula, drier and less quenching than before.

Save your money for Far Harbor.

The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing 3 is a good-looking game but the lack of features from the previous entries are a sore point

Aside from those enjoyable new Dutch republics, however, a lot of the new mechanics in Res Publica feels like content Paradox didn't have time to slot into previous expansion Wealth of Nations, so it's a little disappointing to see it jammed into another content pack rather than simply patched in.

Impire does have an interesting approach to resources, with its above world raids (it’s a 2D map) and points system of dungeon upgrades based on performance but, ultimately, Impire is flawed, conceptually and technically.

Two very good maps and a lazy, shoddy cosmetic system can’t justify the price point of Vermintide 2’s first expansion.

A very barebones remaster that is great for newcomers, but unnecessary for owners of the previous game.

So that's basically it. If you enjoy your puzzle games and like to work your brain on challenges ranging from simple to break-the-desk frustrating, then Safecracker might just be for you.

If you’re a casual MMO gamer and like the nice quiet solo life then look elsewhere – co-operation is vital in the later stages for increasing wealth and your characters power, it’s just too bad the chat and group system makes that too, a chore.

Despite a great deal of attention obviously being poured into the environments (both sea and land), there’s a distinct lack of various aquatic hazards that would make Ship Sim far more immersive; namely tides and currents.

All in all this is a game that I still feel has potential. All the right aspects are there, but the spit and polish is missing the spit.

Ultimately, it’s Heavy Weapons quick decision to leave all casual players in the lurch that leaves it scoring lower than it should.

I loved Empire Earth and still do to this day, but Empire Earth III is literally in a universe of its own. It barely takes anything of worth from its root and instead we are left with an unremarkable real-time strategy.

A mediocre game that I didn’t mind spending some time on. There are enough interesting factors to be engaging, but enough drawbacks to keep it from reaching the levels of enjoyment that it had every possibility of achieving.

The casual gamer won’t even dignify this with half a first glance, it’s a game to remind yourself that there’s a big wide World out there, and you’re missing it!

Probably the most important thing to consider with Second Chance Heroes is that it’s a game which doesn’t take itself seriously. The main problem this posed for me though was that instead of doing so in a charming manner, I was ultimately left questioning why I should either.

Developer Tripwire Interactive deserves props for simply running with an unusual premise as this and trying its best to make it work. Sadly, the execution is lacking and no matter how fun devouring hunting parties and unlocking new evolutions is in the beginning, its core gameplay loop becomes dull way before its relatively short campaign comes to a close. There’s some fun to be had in short bursts, but they’re spread out too far to leave a lasting impression. Maneater’s premise remains the only thing that stands out, painting it as a largely forgettable experience.

Sniper Elite: Resistance delivers the expected stealth-action combo the series is known for, wrapping it in a forgettable narrative about stopping the Nazi war machine from totally winning the war yet again. But even as it's a functional title, with levels that offer a decent amount of freedom and X-Ray kills that remain satisfying to watch, this follow-up ends up feeling like a tired, unnecessary rehash of its predecessor…Its forgettable new protagonist and supporting cast don't do much to help things along, while the all-new Propaganda missions feel like a middling distraction at best. If Sniper Elite 5 left you pining for more of the same, you'll likely squeeze 15+ hours of varying degrees of enjoyment out of Resistance's modes. Anyone hoping for any significant sense of evolution should wait until the next one.

All of the issues that I’ve outlined with Metal Gear Survive essentially boil down to one thing: the vast majority of the game feels boring. It takes quite a long time for certain aspects of the game to stop feeling tedious, and its very easy to feel discouraged from playing altogether as it takes so long for the game to feel like its actually going somewhere. If you can be bothered to sit through hours of hunting, completing repetitive missions and accumulating skill points at a painfully slow rate, you’ll eventually feel comfortable enough to focus on the crazy story. If exploration and survival is your cup of tea, this one may be for you. If not, this is not worth your time.

A wonderful idea, with lovely dialogue, a clever coding system, and some cute puzzles, but unfortunately it clearly couldn't be given as much time as the idea deserved.

It's a bit of a weird one then, as neither the story nor the action is particularly enjoyable, but neither is specifically bad either.

It's a bit of a weird one then, as neither the story nor the action is particularly enjoyable, but neither is specifically bad either.

The majority of the DLC is utterly devoid of surprises, treats or interesting characters and places, and you'll soon start getting bored.

Unfortunately Nail'd's core gameplay doesn't do quite enough to justify stripping back all of those extraneous details. It's a game that's begging for a little more refinement, visual polish and structural content; and without those in place it struggles to elevate itself above the frustrations inherent in its erratic engine and course design.

The majority of the DLC is utterly devoid of surprises, treats or interesting characters and places, and you'll soon start getting bored.

Unfortunately Nail'd's core gameplay doesn't do quite enough to justify stripping back all of those extraneous details. It's a game that's begging for a little more refinement, visual polish and structural content; and without those in place it struggles to elevate itself above the frustrations inherent in its erratic engine and course design.

The majority of the DLC is utterly devoid of surprises, treats or interesting characters and places, and you'll soon start getting bored.

Unfortunately Nail'd's core gameplay doesn't do quite enough to justify stripping back all of those extraneous details. It's a game that's begging for a little more refinement, visual polish and structural content; and without those in place it struggles to elevate itself above the frustrations inherent in its erratic engine and course design.

Both Terraria and Minecraft handle the basic mechanics of crafting and resource gathering better, and aside from an intriguing and visually enticing setting, there's nothing here that really makes Darkout stand out.

We don't want to say Naval War was disappointing, because it wasn't really – the preview stage showed us a simple, yet well-made title that does exactly what it says on the tin – we still couldn't help but find the game surprising over all though, and not in the good way.

Ghostwire: Tokyo isn’t bad or broken. It’s just a game that’s not particularly ambitious and almost feels at odds with itself, leaving it with a lot of wasted potential. It might yield a couple of interesting online searches if you’re uninitiated in Japanese folklore, and you can pet lots of dogs and cats, but there are ways to go about doing those things without sitting through Akito’s snoozefest of a tale.

What we're left with is a quirky combination of tones and systems that never really mesh together to create an engaging whole. The game feels like with a bit more depth, length and ambition it could've given us a pretty unique experience.