For all its problems off the pitch, there’s no doubting that PES 2009 is the most fun football game on the market.

Memorable, beautiful and unique, something that stays in your mind long after you've moved on to something else. It's a game that's as fascinating to watch as it is to play, a thought-provoking spin on the power fantasies of the traditional god game.

There’s certainly no arguing that Project Origin is an excellent, albeit, old-school shooter. It’s 2009 though and, from the game’s well-worn jolts right through to environments consistently drawn from the big book of FPS clichés – hello subway system, hospital, derelict street, science lab and underground bunker – there are simply too few moments that alleviate proceedings to the top tier of genre daddies.

Despite its failure to move the series forward, Underworld is still fundamentally an incredibly enjoyable experience and a real return to captivating tomb raiding on a grand scale. It might be the same Lara we’ve enjoyed over the years but there’s no denying the lady’s still got style.

For all its problems off the pitch, there’s no doubting that PES 2009 is the most fun football game on the market.

A blisteringly energetic, entertaining experience. It might lack variety on a basic level but it’s still engagingly solid, if not out-and-out spectacular.

Despite its failure to move the series forward, Underworld is still fundamentally an incredibly enjoyable experience and a real return to captivating tomb raiding on a grand scale. It might be the same Lara we’ve enjoyed over the years but there’s no denying the lady’s still got style.

Midnight Club: Los Angeles is unarguably a high quality racer that admirably bridges the gap between a freeform gaming world and a more structured race setup. Yet for all its visual thrills, extensive (if never exhaustive) customisation options and high production values, it feels as though Rockstar San Diego has played it a little too safe here.

Midnight Club: Los Angeles is unarguably a high quality racer that admirably bridges the gap between a freeform gaming world and a more structured race setup. Yet for all its visual thrills, extensive (if never exhaustive) customisation options and high production values, it feels as though Rockstar San Diego has played it a little too safe here.

Another excellent entry in Nintendo’s burgeoning hybrid franchise, effortlessly straddling the demographic divide thanks to its beguiling mix of approachable puzzles, gentle adventure and triple-A production values.

If you're looking for an intelligent rival to Tomb Raider you'll be disappointed. If it's nine hours of giddying high-def, Hollywood-style entertainment you want, Uncharted more than fits the bill.

The dry subject matter will keep it well below a lot of folks’ radars, and while that’s understandable it’s a bit of a shame. You really don’t need death rays and power-armour to have a fine, shooty old time – rattatat and all that is more than enough.

True, some elements of the game are by the numbers but when you’re dangling, one-armed, off a helicopter, taking out chasing vehicles with a rocket launcher, you can’t help but forgive Just Cause 2 some of its shortcomings.

There is surprising depth to its puzzles, and it’s great to see the DS host such a great and intuitive idea again after months of copycat shelf-filler.

True, some elements of the game are by the numbers but when you’re dangling, one-armed, off a helicopter, taking out chasing vehicles with a rocket launcher, you can’t help but forgive Just Cause 2 some of its shortcomings.

It might be old, but Rune Factory is still very, very good - a welcome reinvention of the Harvest Moon series by a developer who clearly loves it almost as much as we do.

Unfortunately, it’s these failings that defined our experience of the game, though for anyone keen to sample a shooter that dares step into the leftfield we recommend endeavouring to get to the heart of what feels like an uncut diamond – rough-shorn but not bereft of value.

As a technical feat the game is a triumph, but it seems a slave to its own spectacle, manacling the gameplay to serve its own bombastic vision and ultimately while the excellent combat and stunning visuals are enough to recommend it, they're not enough to earn it a place amongst the series’ top rank.

More than just unique, it’s a thrilling and stylish venture to untapped territory that’s assured in its firstperson take on platforming. Though an inane plot and limp combat see it falter briefly, the strong visual design and dynamic mechanic ensure it still emerges as a game to be celebrated.

System 3 has managed to produce a thoroughbred racing experience that manages to retain so much of the charisma of its source material - and for those so inclined its one of the best racers available on the PlayStation 3.

More than just unique, it’s a thrilling and stylish venture to untapped territory that’s assured in its firstperson take on platforming. Though an inane plot and limp combat see it falter briefly, the strong visual design and dynamic mechanic ensure it still emerges as a game to be celebrated.

Whether there’s enough here to maintain longevity is yet to be seen, but for the time being we finally have a Football Manager game that can be enjoyed against other people and in short bursts, a game that’s subtly addictive but never life sapping.

Halo Wars isn’t rocket science, and it isn’t perfect either, but it’ll satisfy Halo fanatics to the exact same degree as anyone hankering for a decent console game where you tell a large piece of rolling ordinance which direction it should be rolling in. And that, when you think about it, is quite an achievement in itself.

Though it’s certainly a competent package, the overall feeling engendered by Resistance 2 is underwhelming. For every breathless set-piece that powers the single-player campaign, there’s another moment not far behind that peddles mediocrity, and every glorious vista is offset by sometimes derivative play.

Deeply flawed as the structure of the game may be, there’s no doubting it still offers the definitive automotive experience in gaming.

At its best, it's nerve-janglingly tense as you plot and then implement the next firefight – where decisions you make have very serious consequences. But be warned, it's not a game that gently welcomes those more used to running-and-gunning, and even for the hardcore, there are serious problems with awkward command menus for your squad and bland missions at the top of the list of minus points.

If you like playing co-op, or you don't mind trading moments of frustration for a smarter, slower war experience, this is recommended.

It's a game with a song in its heart and romance in its soul, a sweet-natured slice of old-fashioned escapism underpinned by taut and satisfying rhythm-action systems. If a hopeful tilt at a sequel in its closing moments seems rather naively optimistic, you can hardly blame SEGA for dreaming.