Many will lap up the opportunity to get to business tweaking and customising every shot, while players who might more often reach for the likes of Mario Golf or the Monkey Golf mini-games will be repelled.

With up to 50 hours of gameplay and the option of having rather straightfoward online battles, you’ll at least get your money’s worth; we’re just not sure that most Xbox 360 gamers have refined enough tastes to fully appreciate it.

A reasonably well executed dancing game package, and the idea behind it is a no-brainer.

The stylish look and off-the-wall story certainly make up for a lack of hardcore role-playing depth.

This type of game has been done so much better in the past and we just can’t think of anything that makes it stand out – not even the tacked on multiplayer which feels like exactly that.

Volition has layered misogyny and brutality throughout what is an entirely civilian setting, and without GTA’s deft wit, Saints Row is the kind of title the British tabloids have been waiting for.

Get over the interface and the steep learning curve (even beyond the tutorial, which is a bit light) and this is a stylish strategy game that, while hardly threatening to take over your life, will certainly provide a lot of challenge and reward for the time you invest in it.

Naïve, dull and unexpectedly sloppy, Cerberus’ story is its one saving grace – but it’s a story tarnished by the meagre game beneath it.

It’s automatically a better game than any in the "Dynasty Warriors" series, but still comes a distant second place to Phantagram’s own "Kingdom Under Fire" titles.

The story mode can be frustrating, but never fatally so, and in any case the combat is ridiculously moreish and often highly amusing.

The lacklustre story plus the dated look and feel of Broken World spoil Dungeon Siege II’s reputation a bit.

If you or your family like your games with a healthy dose of mental gymnastics then Safecracker is a pretty good bet, and isn’t too bad value for the money.

There’s no getting away from the fact that FlatOut 2 is damned good fun, and will bring you back to the days of Destruction Derby and its ilk. However, as much as we appreciate the tweaks – and that’s really all they are – to the first game, there are still a few too many fundamental flaws which bring out a wail of frustration or a tut as you consider how easily certain annoyances could have been avoided.

There’s no getting away from the fact that FlatOut 2 is damned good fun, and will bring you back to the days of Destruction Derby and its ilk. However, as much as we appreciate the tweaks – and that’s really all they are – to the first game, there are still a few too many fundamental flaws which bring out a wail of frustration or a tut as you consider how easily certain annoyances could have been avoided.

While the decision to expand upon the Super Monkey Ball franchise is to be applauded, the fact that the execution is so lacklustre conspires to make Adventure a less than essential purchase.

There's no getting away from the fact that FlatOut 2 is damned good fun, and will bring you back to the days of Destruction Derby and its ilk. However, as much as we appreciate the tweaks – and that's really all they are – to the first game, there are still a few too many fundamental flaws which bring out a wail of frustration or a tut as you consider how easily certain annoyances could have been avoided.

Overall Combat Mission Anthology is a great buy, if you’re looking to explore the deeper end of the World War II tactical combat pool.

The multiplayer definitely benefits the most but all in all, one of the best and most disturbingly addictive games ever has just upped the stakes once again.

Considering the game is too dissimilar to appeal to Civ fans, too simplistic to appeal to SimCity veterans and too bland to appeal to gamers looking for a Roman epic, it’s tricky to pinpoint who exactly will want to buy CivCity: Rome. It’s not irredeemably broken, but it is repetitive and a little on the dull side.

Put simply, Warpath is an unimaginative, derivative and downright pointless. It’s a clone of a clone, and an inferior one at that. The game feels outdated, clunky and lacking polish.

It’s too short, it can be too easy and there isn’t a great deal of variety in the gameplay.

Overall, and to pretty much nobody’s surprise whatsoever, Monster House is just another wasted opportunity that’ll likely be forgotten about before the movie it’s based on even reaches DVD.

Even though Prey is far too short, devoid of any challenge and guaranteed to leave you disappointed, it still manages to be one of the finest old school first person shooters out there.

Even hardcore mech fans, who may well get their money’s worth in the multiplayer, would have benefited greatly had more time being spent making the combat more enjoyable.

Even though Prey is far too short, devoid of any challenge and guaranteed to leave you disappointed, it still manages to be one of the finest old school first person shooters out there.

The Ship is a fresh and different slant on multiplayer death-matching; one not dependant on speed of reflexes and advanced techniques. It’s fun and innovative – something that some of the big name games dominating the charts seem to forget about every so often.

The control scheme feels comfortable, albeit not quite as precise as a good old keyboard and mouse, and is paired up to an equally well-executed interface.

Personally, we’d probably rather pick up the Rome DVD box set – there’s more than thighs exposed in that little number.

As far as we’re concerned, as much as we love the Cossacks series and the thinking-man’s gameplay behind it, we do think it’s time to move on in terms of technology. Cruel, but kind.

It’s most successful at emulating the film’s atmosphere, particularly with wise-cracking Jack Sparrow taking centre stage, but the gameplay feels unambitious and ultimately stuck in a rut.

If you want an inept and hurriedly put together version of an old classic, this is where it’s at. We suspect that’s one quote they won’t be sticking on the box.

If you want an inept and hurriedly put together version of an old classic, this is where it’s at. We suspect that’s one quote they won’t be sticking on the box.

The game’s saving grace is the entertaining Mission mode, which adds some much needed longevity to proceedings, with plenty of tasks to complete for more ryo.

As addictive as the gameplay can become, the comprehensive (albeit complicated) modding software is sure to trigger compulsion in the more creative players.

Night Watch has plenty of big ideas, but the overall execution is lacking.

As an RTS it’s as entertainingly humdrum as any of the sixteen billion others, but the Hero Command innovation is so wretchedly underdeveloped it mostly serves to annoy and all but ruins the game’s single player campaigns. It’s fun in multiplayer and skirmish modes for a while, but Rise & Fall is far from the classic game that it could have been.

The pounding soundtrack, the huge campaigns and the four different approaches with each side you control will certainly make this one to keep the midnight oil burning for strategy gamers.

This year’s MotoGP cements the foundations laid in titles gone by, without actually building anything of substance upon them.

Astonishia Story is far from a dreadful game, it’s just one that’s oddly devoid of even the remotest hint of charisma.

In the grand scheme of things, we’d probably rate GTA: Liberty City stories as being somewhere between GTA III and GTA: Vice City. That should give you some level of guidance when considering whether or not the £20 asking price is worth it.

With care and consistency, Cars encases the player in memorabilia lifted straight from the cinema screen. For that, the developer should be commended. It’s just a shame they forgot to ship a game with it.

We wonder if anyone’s working on software to increase the size of other parts of one’s body. Now there’s a product that’d make serious money…

It scores well in all areas, but the inclusion of StarForce will put a lot of people off. Note to Monte Cristo: Seriously, guys, don’t use StarForce on one of your products again. Ever.

The graphical upgrades and presentation improvements are certainly noticeable, while the game continues to have some of the best set-pieces of any first-person shooter. We do hope though, that for the next outing Valve puts a little more focus into creating all new gameplay scenarios and interactive experiences.

Blood Money may be tough, disappointingly short, and plagued by stupid NPCs, but there’s plenty of replay value and the discovery of new and unique methods of elimination make this a game that should sneak its way onto anyone’s shelves.

Aurora Watching is rubbish – don’t even think about buying it.

Instead of balancing on the line between arcade game and simulation, the game tries and fails to be both, giving the whole package a strange split personality that does nothing to endear you to it.

V. With its beautiful fantasy graphics and huge amounts of depth, Heroes is back from the dead and ready for the next generation of RTS role players.

There are dozens of ready-made missions and most of them can be tackled in radically different ways, which adds even more longevity on top of the mission editor and slew of multiplayer modes.

Table Tennis not only triumphantly brings a sport comparatively new to gamers to the table (embarrassing pun not intended), but actually manages to wipe the floor with the likes of the disappointing "Top Spin 2" into the bargain.

The whole thing takes about 10 hours to play, and with little to no replay value, this doesn’t exactly represent fantastic value for money. Overall, the Da Vinci Code game is like a disappointing pleasure cruise, with one or two sunny islands floating in a big, grey sea of tedium.

The whole thing takes about 10 hours to play, and with little to no replay value, this doesn't exactly represent fantastic value for money. Overall, the Da Vinci Code game is like a disappointing pleasure cruise, with one or two sunny islands floating in a big, grey sea of tedium.

As it is, X-Men: The Official Game is “officially” a horse’s turd of an experience that’s approximately as painful as Wolverine’s claws inadvertently sliding out while he’s wiping his arse.

As it is, X-Men: The Official Game is “officially” a horse’s turd of an experience that’s approximately as painful as Wolverine’s claws inadvertently sliding out while he’s wiping his arse.

As it is, X-Men: The Official Game is “officially” a horse’s turd of an experience that’s approximately as painful as Wolverine’s claws inadvertently sliding out while he’s wiping his arse.

As it is, X-Men: The Official Game is "officially" a horse's turd of an experience that's approximately as painful as Wolverine's claws inadvertently sliding out while he's wiping his arse.

As it is, X-Men: The Official Game is "officially" a horse's turd of an experience that's approximately as painful as Wolverine's claws inadvertently sliding out while he's wiping his arse.

The whole thing takes about 10 hours to play, and with little to no replay value, this doesn’t exactly represent fantastic value for money. Overall, the Da Vinci Code game is like a disappointing pleasure cruise, with one or two sunny islands floating in a big, grey sea of tedium.

Is it as good as "Yoshi’s Island," "Super Mario World," or "Super Mario Bros. 3"? No. And that is a disappointing fact. It is, however, a solid game, worth it for the nostalgic trip alone.

Rise of Legends may not break new ground, but it certainly adds to what has gone before and presses all the right buttons along the way to becoming one of the more entertaining RTS games out there.

You’d expect the first of a trilogy to be the most novel and at least as good as future instalments, but in this case we’re really hoping for a greater effort for the next outing. It’s worth noting that there’s no multiplayer and little replayability, but a Steam version of the original SiN has been bundled with it as a sort of bribe.

The combination of RTS and RPG works well, each having its very distinct place in the overall feel of the game. Throw in that multiplayer bonus and developer Phenomic is in danger of having a hit on its hands.

It never quite manages to be an excellent tactical shooter, nor is it the most action-oriented of titles, but by combining thoughtful gameplay with some simply brilliant and explosive set-pieces, Ubisoft has managed to create a compelling single player experience.

With a bit more clout in the technology and art departments, the lack of compelling gameplay could have been forgiven, but as it is Wild Earth remains more of a curiosity.

It’s not as heavy on the role-playing as a subscription MMO, and it’s not usually as instantly gratifying as an online shooter, but it strikes a great balance for the casual MMO fan and the achievement-oriented action fan alike.

The level of depth and historical accuracy is not going to sit easy with most gamers, but if you consider yourself a war-gamer or even a historian then this has your name written all over it.

The PS2 version of the game looks every bit as good as on the more powerful Xbox, and gamers would be hard pushed to distinguish it from the arcade version.

The game is simply a pleasure to behold and a joy to play; but be warned that it’s a simple pleasure – possibly too simple for some – and there is an element of nostalgia in effect here.

The break-up of the storyline as you switch from Felt in Belkhyde to Viese in Eden gets incredibly tedious over time, and the storyline – while incredibly naturally told and performed well – is rather uninspiring, but the game itself should give you a good 40 hours of gameplay.

The story is derivative, the aliens are clichéd and stupid and the gameplay is pretty bog standard for the most part.

Surely everybody knows the score by now: EA ever so slightly update FIFA. It gets new stats, new players, new kits and slightly better graphics whilst remaining pretty much the same game it always has been.

On the multiplayer side, things come together nicely, and the toing and froing that comes from the defender-biased jostling serves to keep possession roughly even between players who are similarly skilled, while giving more creative passers a definite advantage.

Ultimately this is a very predictable and flat feeling expansion that may have the hardcore few blowing the dust of their original game and reinstalling it, but will certainly not be bringing new players or those that may have passed after buying the first game in the series.

Surely everybody knows the score by now: EA ever so slightly update FIFA. It gets new stats, new players, new kits and slightly better graphics whilst remaining pretty much the same game it always has been.

Surely everybody knows the score by now: EA ever so slightly update FIFA. It gets new stats, new players, new kits and slightly better graphics whilst remaining pretty much the same game it always has been.

While more linear than the likes of the excellent Fahrenheit, Dreamfall: The Longest Journey is compelling enough to maintain your interest through to the conclusion, which itself is disappointing since the game comes to and end too quickly and fails to match the quality of the remainder of the story.

If you don’t care about frills and atmosphere then you’re probably better off with a less sophisticated poker game, but if you can put up with a little bit of waiting around, World Poker Tour has a lot to offer.

Don’t expect it to raise your IQ, but do expect it to kick off a long, long line in copycat titles.

2006 is an unforgiving time for online gaming, and a game as mixed up and inconsistent as this simply cannot make an impact, as hard as it tries with its meaty combat and awesome-looking vehicles.

Crystal Dynamics has finally made Lara into the female Indiana Jones she’s always threatened to be, and even managed to fill the game with memorable moments, such as an incident with a motorbike on the rooftops of Japan, swan diving off a high cliff into a lake, and even base jumping into the middle of a combat zone.

Crystal Dynamics has finally made Lara into the female Indiana Jones sheâ??s always threatened to be, and even managed to fill the game with memorable moments, such as an incident with a motorbike on the rooftops of Japan, swan diving off a high cliff into a lake, and even base jumping into the middle of a combat zone.

There’s nothing of note here – nothing thrilling or stirring, or any part fuelled with even a hint of passion for the sport it wants to portray. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

The whole game just sticks far too rigidly to the over-worn gameplay of the originals. Without much of an effort to harness the PSP’s power or even stretch for a physics-based dynamic, it’s really surprising that this isn’t a straight-to-budget title.

Just like the game’s music, UberSoldier is annoying and depressing. Almost every aspect aside from the game’s visuals is amateurish and badly made, right down to the overactive physics engine, which allows you to explode the glass in windows and push heavy tables over by just brushing by them.

It doesn’t look as good as it could quite easily have done, and nowhere near enough progression from the first title has been made to justify it being referred to as a sequel. However, the engine is still solid enough to provide an enjoyable and often blister-inducing game of tennis.

While Kingdom Hearts II might boil down to button mashing, levelling up and some crap mini-games, the experience itself is second to none.

The rigidly linear levels with obvious trigger points, the failure to evolve the basic gameplay and the newly random nature of the effectiveness of cover all conspire to devalue what was a novel and rather fun original.

The rigidly linear levels with obvious trigger points, the failure to evolve the basic gameplay and the newly random nature of the effectiveness of cover all conspire to devalue what was a novel and rather fun original.

While it’s not worth upgrading from the Xbox version for the graphics improvements alone, the fact that you essentially get the expansion for free does help make up for the feeling that the game isn’t as next-gen as it really ought to be.

A by-the-numbers hack’n’slash – technically competent but emotionally void.

Plain and simple: if you buy Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, you’re saying it’s ok for this lame excuse for a video game series to continue dragging everything else down with it. It’s even less amusing than it used to be now that it’s infecting next-gen consoles.

The rigidly linear levels with obvious trigger points, the failure to evolve the basic gameplay and the newly random nature of the effectiveness of cover all conspire to devalue what was a novel and rather fun original.

As with its namesake, Evolution doesn't hold many surprises, being a by-the-numbers retread through environments and situations that will now be more than a little familiar to veterans of the series.

Space Rangers isn’t going to blow you away, but it may just suck you up for a few long evenings.

A pretty basic combat flight game with some nice graphics; but a lack of focus in the single player game, annoying voiceovers and features that deserved to have been pushed a little further spoil what could have been a really manic and exciting shooter.

A huge, lazy and sometimes glitchy disappointment of a game. The character progression really doesn’t provide a strong enough excuse to keep playing after the initial joy of the combat has dissipated, and the number of times you find yourself going through the same old motions during missions smacks of padding of a magnitude normally associated with the corpulent Don.

A huge, lazy and sometimes glitchy disappointment of a game. The character progression really doesn’t provide a strong enough excuse to keep playing after the initial joy of the combat has dissipated, and the number of times you find yourself going through the same old motions during missions smacks of padding of a magnitude normally associated with the corpulent Don.

The magnificence of rolling around, attaching yourself to everything that moves or doesn’t move is lost on you so called gamers, too afraid of the words of us game journalists to buy something unique, entertaining and insanely brilliant as this. Even if it isn’t great on PSP.