Armed Assaults comes with all the bells and whistles any gamer would love in a combat simulator, despite some really poor choice of menus, texts and questionable briefing presentations.

A great game that you’ll find yourself unable to step away from because you have to research one thing more, or expand to one more territory.

All in all this game is solidly average. It’s a decent if predictable story saddled with a pedestrian game.

"Reality 2.0" still stands as my personal favorite, but Bright Side of the Moon is a great way to end.

The deed system is so simple yet so great; it’s a real surprise it hasn’t been included much before.

If you have the sheer will power to push on through the vast mire of early drudgeries, there are jewels to be found buried deep within Ancient Wars: Sparta, but whether you’ll still be motivated enough to really enjoy them is another matter.

A pretty unsavoury experience. Without enough depth and presentational focus on the Huey to make it a decent simulation, and without any form of tutorial or guiding hand for the novice players, the developer has managed to straddle both camps, pleasing nobody in the process.

This is a game with a great deal of replay value, and one that will keep you immersed for hours. An extra edge of realism has been added in the reinforcement system, which forces you to win objectives before you receive reinforcements.

If you are unfazed by the inevitable, constant death, the steep learning curve, the idiot AI, the poorly-designed (but neat looking) maps, the certain index finger cramps, or the underdeveloped character creation system, you will find Dawnspire to be a unique (and economic) gaming experience.

Creating the rat cannon was a sure fire giggle and I loved collecting coins al la Mario in order to pay Bosco for his latest sales item.

It’s the best damn football game ever made, but only by a gnat’s whisker, and if anything that whisker is merely the updated seasonal player data which separates it from Pro "Evolution Soccer 5."

While many may still argue they’ve taken a too glossy approach to Tiberium Wars, it cannot be denied that it offers at its heart a lot of the core elements that made Command & Conquer the great universe it is.

There’s a bounty of new swag, interesting characters and quests to be had in these isles of Mania and Dementia; a great expansion to an already great game.

All in all I didn't have too many complaints about Bus Driver. It's a simple casual game, but it does what it sets out to do well.

Succeeds and amazes in some areas but almost horridly trips and stumbles along in others. Still I find myself liking the game and am willing to overlook its potholes.

Genesis Rising in no way reaches the potential it has bubbling beneath the surface, released all too soon and unnecessarily plastered with imperceptive, charmless patina.

Much care has been taken with character, monster and environment design, so even if it is all a bit boring and repetitive, and insists on making obvious statements, it sure is pretty to look at.

The gameplay and graphics plus the historical accuracy of the game make this game a good choice for the right kind of gamer.

It’s a broken game, unfinished, derivative and sloppily produced, filled with uninteresting environments and levels. A pirate’s life is supposedly full of action and adventure, but you’ll find none of it here.

There is definitely a case that some of the structural improvements and additions should have found inclusion in the original title, but all of them are well thought-out and implemented, adding longevity and replay value to an already deep title.

While the game does deliver a nice bundle of challenges and like a larger number of other adventure titles now it comes with a FPS feel, you could still do better.

Sure it looks the same, sounds the same, and plays about the same, but it's a whole new world out there, a world where nature reigns supreme and your sims must bow to its forces or suffer the consequences.

A fairly run of the mill expansion pack that offers few new incentives in terms of missions or units, and it’s not something for every WWII RTS gamer to snatch up.

A very fun game for the buck. It’s a nice addition to the season arc, and likely my favorite of the four.

KDV and Codemasters has a lot to be proud of in their latest creation, Maelstrom is a beautiful game filled with a lot of strategic talent and plenty of room for big pretty explosions, and squirtings of blood. If you love a royal RTS experience then grab Maelstrom and plunge in.

Supreme Commander is not without a few hitches, mainly AI orientated, but it is plainly a fantastic ride and has had a lot of passion poured into it from Chris Taylor and Gas Powered Games. Honestly this is one of the big A-list titles for the RTS genre, any self respecting gamer who’s into the real-time strategic scene must, MUST, have this war behemoth among their collection.

If you’re a fan of Dread Lords, then this expansion should absolutely be on your list to pick up as soon as possible. Go download it, I’ll wait.

Top marks for creativity, but the occasional flaws, bugs and, to repeat my oxymoron, lack of unnecessary depth, make it look like the game could have done with another 6 months of fine-tuning.

Overall Vanguard isn't a bad game, but it doesn't really bring anything new to the table of the MMO industry.

Satisfying if a bit on the short side.

You can do anything you want with this game, the limits being only your time and imagination. If any of you budding warmongers, strategy fiends or history buffs out there are looking for complete control, world domination and a great wargaming experience, look no further.

It’s teeming with new loot, better opportunities to stick it to your fellow players and has even richer music to fit the mood.

If this were a TV show, one watch of this and any TV network would commission a full series – much like any adventure game fan who tries this will almost certainly follow this series throughout its run - provided it sticks to a somewhat regular release schedule.

The difficulty of some of the puzzles could be increased, but the variety of gameplay is there and the game was enjoyable and definitely worth the price of download.

This is one just for the big Star Trek fans. The average gamer is unlikely to maintain interest for too long; especially given the main campaign has a completion time of around 10 hours.

It carries that rare trait of success where many expansions suffer miserably and leave many gamers in despair.

Perhaps the worst aspect of this game is that you, the main character, do little to actually determine the murderer. Instead you are really Poirot’s minion. The ending and solution inevitably comes from him, with a little input from you.

There is so much going for Warhammer: Mark of Chaos and while it’s beset with lingering technical woes, underneath it has the right stuff and would be well deserved of your attention.

Gothic 3 is a deep and rich world, waiting for your guidance to free or subjugate mankind. Any RPG lover must have this, but you may want to wait a while for the patches to arrive and then settle down.

This is the latest and most outstanding title in the Total War franchise, any history RTS buff or fan of the series would be psychotically imbalanced should they choose to pass on this.

1701 offers a nicely presented and deep strategy for gamers looking to sculpt a Caribbean styled empire, with fantastic artwork and interesting gameplay I would highly recommend this for players in the gaming mood to build, rather than destroy.

A great, if not fantastic adventure game that any fans of the genre must get a copy of. It was surprisingly intriguing and has now perhaps spoilt things for me, as anything less than ‘Tunguska quality’ and I’ll be gaming elsewhere.

A great chapter and one that can easily be picked up and played through for beginners like myself without becoming bewildered by past game lore.

Forces of Corruption is an absolute must-have for fans of Empire At War, it adds great new features and fantastic new units.

While there is a limit to how much replayability Culture Shock offers, with a nine buck price tag it's several hours of bang for your buck. I figure a movie costs more than that, particularly with popcorn, and no one keeps me from bringing my own candy to the computer.

Rampaging counter-measures aside; Battlefield 2142 is the latest and greatest release in the series and is well worth every pound/dollar/euro.

An enjoyable game. But frankly even if it wasn’t for the bugs, the simplicity, the lack of a campaign, and the other minor short-fallings, I’d still be disappointed because when someone like Sid Meier copies a classic genre, I at least expect him to add something new and innovative to the game-play.

SEV doesn’t bring anything new to the table but it is a refinement of the genre. It has all the features you’d expect or want from a turn-based space strategy game and it does them all very well.

If you enjoy a good horror mystery there’s definitely a lot of meat here to dig your teeth into provided you have the patience for the places that move a bit more slowly, or require a lot more dig. I think I’ll go play something warm and fuzzy now to chase away the chill.

Sadly the AI almost cripples the game and leaves questionable balances between class professions.

If you forgive it for its flaws, the game accomplishes its mission. You end up with a taste of what it’s like to be Tony Montana.

Better realism gives you far better challenges and when coupled with the graphics and fantastic audio it makes the ‘beautiful game’ into a beautiful game.

A game that demands your total attention, it will consume it, and you’ll need to refine your skills in order to get anywhere. If you don’t think you’re up to that kind of challenge then you may want to pass, and seek something a little more forgiving. For the real racing fans, and gear heads among the gaming community, you’ll want this – want this bad!

As a casual strategist or a hardcore simulation fan, Defcon contains enough elements to involve anybody in the fight for global thermonuclear dominance, and you won't want to leave any time soon.

It leaves once again a lasting impact and shows the real depths city building can go to and how strategy counts all the way. A few questionable elements hover like a dark cloud but honestly this is the best experience you’ll have to sate a city building lust, Roman or not.

This human quality and depth of gameplay is what sets CoH apart from RTS games where your units are all expendable. In CoH nothing is expendable.

The ability to drive everything and anything combined with the detailed levels and highly flexible units makes it a very realistic experience for an RTS and it's not far off being the modern-warfare version of "Company of Heroes."

A very rewarding game, it provides hours of simple fun, and with all the extra content to unlock you might be immersed in this game for a long time. However non-fan gamers might find LSWII to be somewhat repetitive and eventually even boring.

Unique and fresh strategic approach, but it lacks a compelling creamy plot centre that would make Perimeter an instant classic.

Unless someone really likes archaeology or must possess every adventure game ever created by man, then it’s doubtful anyone would bother to give Barrow Hill a glance.

An involving game, with interesting varied strategic options and challenges thrown at the player.

Darkstar One is as cold and empty as space itself once the novelty of trading or being a "system rebel" wears off.

Good, but not good enough.

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.

The acceleration, the speed and the presence of distractions and the actual destruction of my enemies are lovable on screen.

I have had experience with numerous World War II games and this game seems to be the most unplayable version of all.

This is a recommended play for fans of “control-freak” games like Theme Park, Theme Hospital, The Sims and Red Alert-genre programs.

All in all Terrawars was a disappointing experience and one that may leave you much as the paperboy in “Better Off Dead” but wanting your twenty dollars.

It has a gorgeous engine which lets you create stunning scenes with your towns and cities. Anyone with a flare for simpler Latin times or who really enjoy city builders – you don’t want to miss out on this.

Despite my lacking interest for the Cossacks game titles, I was surprisingly impressed by the game play (not that I can remain patient for long with turn-based games), though slightly disappointed at the immense strain the game causes to lower end systems.

I was under whelmed by this game. It seemed a game with all of the right elements, but they never really came together in a way that ‘smelled as sweet’ as a game by any other name.

If you like a hack and slash game in the style of "Diablo," then you’ll definitely enjoy Titan Quest. If, on the other hand, you’re looking for a true role-playing experience in which bashing things with a sword, spear, axe, bow, or some other weapon isn’t the only way to achieve your goal, you’re probably better off playing "Oblivion" or waiting for "Neverwinter Nights II."

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.

A game specifically catered to football enthusiasts who are not really on the nitty-gritty of football technicalities. Creativity and the spirit of the football game are the very elements that EA and Tiburion had wonderfully weaved into this All-American game.

I love the combat skills of the general; it makes me feel superior in the battlefield. This game makes me want to know more about the Western Civilization.

An entertaining addition, with a great game engine. Sadly I can’t see it breaking out and drawing a huge following simply because the WWII RTS genre has been done to death.

I am particularly a fan of the naval battle, actually the ramming of another ship and seeing my enemy’s armies flying high up the sky.

With it’s unique offerings it breaks away from the historical pack.

It is a simple role-playing game for slower systems. You would get far more enjoyment from playing something such as "SpellForce: Order of Dawn" for the same cost.

A great adventure game and certainly worth the time for fans of the genre with its blend of beautiful environments, sounds and entertaining puzzles.

I love the first person point of view. It does nothing for me as far as making better building choices, but being able to wander around street level and see what all my little people are doing is fun.

Just perfect game pacing, splendid atmosphere and top-rating production value.

If breathing through the rifle’s scope, watching your subject walk unaware of his soon-to-be demise is not enough to make you feel like an assassin, then this may be the wrong game for you.

The equation got heavy on the negative side with a dull collection of ammunition, mediocre mission objectives, obsolete and redundant computer infiltration techniques as well as game pacing that is confusingly inconsistent.

It may however be frustrating for some to play the game, which seems to be predictable and far too quick.

I am truly spellbound by the splendor of this game.

The turn based combined with RTF is unique and fun, providing a little time for thinking and not so much twitchy trigger finger.

It has some nice features which make it better than an average FPS, but the things that are missing mean it’s never going to be great.

It is what it is…a fairly mediocre game aimed at being a marketing plug on a movie franchise. With those expectations it succeeds, and for a random afternoon of whack a mole with a turtle and a golf club it’s enjoyable.

The gameplay of Paradise is fair, but nothing that will impress. A typical point and click third person style interface, with plenty of pixel hunting and manipulating of levers, dials, switches, etc.

Obviously there are a few limitations such as only having 5 characters, but that’s not too much of a problem. I was personally impressed.

If I had to describe in one word the high point of this game, it would be Atmosphere. This game has it by the mega tonne.

The problem is that as much as it wasn’t a bad game it wasn’t a great game either, falling somewhere in the realm of mediocre. Then again...so is most reality TV.

There was one mission that brought out the intensity that I expected, but it was over too soon and right back to the problems that preceded it.

The game provides enough shots of adrenaline to pump up your heart after those “barely-won-battles” which makes it worthwhile.

All in all this is a good set of games for burning away spare hours with high seas hijinks. Now if only it came with a Captain Jack action figure!

While it’s no mega contender, it does have its charm and could easily be one of those games you find yourself visiting time and time again.

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.