A refreshing, immersive, massive, satisfying and hugely impressive game.

A refreshing, immersive, massive, satisfying and hugely impressive game.

More like a series of interactive episodes of the show, with the point and click bits amounting to a basic means to get to the next part of the story.

Parallel Lines at least shows that the studio is on the right track.

Let’s not lose sight of the fact that, as nice as all the extras are, it’s still essentially a two-year-old game with a new camera.

Just like a real orchestra, Red Orchestra requires a concerted effort to get the most out of it. It may not be the most popular mod right now, but it has one of the strongest communities and anyone willing to invest a little time to become a part of it will be well rewarded.

Parallel Lines at least shows that the studio is on the right track.

If you’re on the look out for ‘the next big thing’ then keep looking, but if you quite fancy a laid-back shooter that’s best enjoyed with friends, then you might want to give this a shot.

Twenty quid for dozens of modifiable cars, 4 well realised cities and plenty of online and offline races is a good deal in anyone’s book, and especially ours.

Twenty quid for dozens of modifiable cars, 4 well realised cities and plenty of online and offline races is a good deal in anyone's book, and especially ours.

A slightly fiddly control scheme, some less-than-stellar AI and perhaps the sense that the graphics could have been a teensy bit more polished are the only factors that hold this particular experience back from absolute greatness.

All told, even with the addition of unlockable race and time trial modes, Pursuit Force is actually a very short game. Certainly it is if you give up due to frustration (we wouldn’t blame you), but even if you spend ten hours completing, about eight of those hours will be failed attempts.

No doubt a new title entirely rather than an enhanced re-release would have been more welcome, but less than six months in, Burnout: Revenge provides the Xbox 360 with some glorious moments of unhinged debauchery.

The concessions are noticeable enough to affect the game adversely, which means you’re only really going to consider buying this if you’re already a huge fan of the console games.

Pokemon Link may well fall short in several key areas – most notably with the lack of play options – but on the whole, it’s actually a fairly pleasing puzzler with all the right ingredients to keep you engaged for a decent period.

As welcome an update as we could ever have hoped for. By expanding beyond the reach of the films, adding in the distinctive modes of play in the forms of the simple campaign and the more tactical War of the Ring and improving upon the construction elements, EA have done a splendid job of bringing an already solid RTS right up to date.

Black lasts only eight hours, has no extra modes and no multiplayer. Not even split-screen; not even co-op. Granted, multiplayer FPS games are a two-a-penny these days, but it leaves wide open the question of what exactly you’re paying for here.

For all its faults, 24 is strangely compelling largely due to the snappy story-telling, but non-fans of the show may well disagree.

Black lasts only eight hours, has no extra modes and no multiplayer. Not even split-screen; not even co-op. Granted, multiplayer FPS games are a two-a-penny these days, but it leaves wide open the question of what exactly you're paying for here.

For fans of the genre, this is pretty much the only game you need, or will do for a long while, while for those who are just curious, now is as good a time as any for a little experimentation.

It’s certainly addictive enough to draw in even expert players for a decent number of hours, but where it shines (whether intentionally or otherwise) is as an introduction to the genre for less experienced players.

A few minorly successful party games aside – namely Golf and, to a lesser extent, Bowling – Super Monkey Ball just doesn’t work, and is almost true to its title: It’s not super, but it does have monkeys in, and it’s mostly balls.

The third and arguably best Fight Night game is a fantastic fighter, but also stands out as the most flawed in the series, and reprehensible in its commercialism.

You’ll have worked out by now that our earlier reference to the quality of the three parts of the game refer to the space battles being pretty good, the campaign map being reasonable, and the ground battles being a bit limp.

While Age of Empires has been stripped of its frills, the core still shines brightly. Ignoring the ‘limitations’ of its chosen format entirely, The Age of Kings is as competent and enjoyable as any strategy title out there.

Huge-scale destruction is only awesome when used in moderation, not when it’s non-stop for hours on end.

With high production values, good attention to detail and well executed gameplay, it should appeal both to fans of action-platform games like Prince of Persia and people who actually know who Marc Ecko is.

Some slight unresponsiveness and no small amount of trial-and-error do mar the experience somewhat, but as puzzle games go, Exit is definitely one of the better ones currently available on the PSP.

With high production values, good attention to detail and well executed gameplay, it should appeal both to fans of action-platform games like Prince of Persia and people who actually know who Marc Ecko is.

THAW is a step backwards, with its uninspiring Story mode being mostly to blame. The PC version suffers even more thanks to it being the recipient of such a sloppy conversion.

Everywhere that the "WarioWare" series succeeds, Ape Academy fails spectacularly. Where one provides a blisteringly fast succession of well-designed quickfire mini-games, the other serves up a painfully slow collection of loading times interspersed with faulty, bland nonsense.

Number four in the series is one for the hardcore Wild Arms fans; the rest of us will wait for the next Final Fantasy as usual.

It shows off, but doesn’t have the talent to cash the cheques its looks and potential are writing.

As far as chess games go, though, you’ll be hard pushed to find anything better.

If you’re looking for an extremely cutthroat head-to-head mode then you should certainly take a look.

Other than its repetitiveness, disappointing draw-distances and dodgy camera, Dynasty Warriors 4 Hyper isn’t actually all that bad. In fact, despite its attempt to look tactical and thoughtful in its objective screens, the entirely unexpected bombastic soundtrack makes it clear that, at its heart, there’s no pretension of it being anything other than a cracking little arcade fighter.

Once you’ve played a couple of matches, you’ve pretty much seen everything that the game has to offer, and you’ll certainly have heard everything that it’s got to say.

As standalone PSP games go, Revelations is still among the most enjoyable you can buy, but those technical issues don’t do any favours for a game that may already be too confusing and challenging for total newcomers.

It may not be quite the same as owning a real table, but it’s certainly cheaper and the game feels a lot less cynical than some of the under-polished retro arcade packages that are currently available.

All the pedigree and ideas are here to make Hammer & Sickle a veritable feast of turn-based feast action. Unfortunately they’re all lost in a flawed and poorly executed example of cashing in on past glory.

Sadly what we get is some very cluttered gameplay, a nonsensical story even by Japanese standards, and not much in the way of challenge beyond that which arises from the fiddly method of controlling the tokobots during combat.

A 'merely' very good game that’s addictive, original, relaxing and exceptionally well-designed, and will literally keep you coming back for months.

If you enjoyed either of the first two games, then know that while Two Thrones isn’t revolutionary, it does combine the best elements of both and is still a fitting and worthwhile conclusion to a superior trilogy.

If you enjoyed either of the first two games, then know that while Two Thrones isn’t revolutionary, it does combine the best elements of both and is still a fitting and worthwhile conclusion to a superior trilogy.

If you enjoyed either of the first two games, then know that while Two Thrones isn't revolutionary, it does combine the best elements of both and is still a fitting and worthwhile conclusion to a superior trilogy.

If you enjoyed either of the first two games, then know that while Two Thrones isn't revolutionary, it does combine the best elements of both and is still a fitting and worthwhile conclusion to a superior trilogy.

It’s cause is certainly helped by the price tag, relatively low system requirements and the fact you needn’t have even heard of Chrome to enjoy it. Sadly, though, even if the game did take the series to headier heights, it would still be destined to be ignored and forgotten in a world filled with Half-Life 2, Far Cry and so many other top drawer PC first-person shooters.

There’s a magical quality to the characters and to the way the narrative progresses with its humour and warmth, and it’s this that makes the experience probably the most unique RPG the PSP has.

Ultimately the game’s strength, at least in terms of gameplay, lies in balancing the needs of communities and creatively planning functioning medieval settlements. It may not be deep, but it feels pretty accurate.

One of the most enjoyable if short-lived gameplay experiences. The game is practically a work of art, but that may not be enough for everyone.

One of the most enjoyable if short-lived gameplay experiences. The game is practically a work of art, but that may not be enough for everyone.

EA have, just as they did with "Battlefield 2," released an unfinished game full to the brim with bugs and annoyances.

One of the most enjoyable if short-lived gameplay experiences. The game is practically a work of art, but that may not be enough for everyone.

One of the most enjoyable if short-lived gameplay experiences. The game is practically a work of art, but that may not be enough for everyone.

One of the most enjoyable if short-lived gameplay experiences. The game is practically a work of art, but that may not be enough for everyone.

Offers neither the palm-moistening, heart-racing action of a really great arcade racer, nor the challenge and satisfying controls of a decent simulation. It seems that Namco has seriously misjudged the level of challenge in the game.

It’s just not the revolutionary title we were hoping for. It doesn’t really set an adequate benchmark for future Xbox 360 titles and feels more like a stopgap while the true next-gen titles are being developed.

Admittedly the game’s next-gen appeal is questionable since it shuns flashy graphical effects in favour of immense detail and smooth action, but the fact alone that it can stand alongside the PC version looking none-the-worse for it speaks volumes about how far console gaming has come.

A painfully routine affair then, and a missed opportunity to boot.

This is a game that has been made to promote the film, no doubt in tandem with cereal box promotions and official merchandise coming to a supermarket near you. It's just a shame, for both their sake and ours, that it simply isn't very good.

An extremely robust and well-featured RTS with hours of play stretched out waiting to be dived into. The fact that the usual selling point of such titles – the campaign mode – is rather disappointing interferes with how the game will ultimately be received.

The keywords are creepy, realistic and atmospheric, and taken on those grounds, the combined whole works very well indeed. Aside from some muddy texture work here and there, the game is audibly and visually sublime.

Project Gotham is still a series plugging away in a league of its own, but this time in every sense. Absolutely astounding.

This is the Xbox 360 dammit, show it some respect and put some effort into your ports people.

For the love of gaming Koei, this is just another mediocre expansion pack for a game that played like a glorified expansion pack to yet more games which felt little more than expansion packs themselves.

Even though it has open-ended free roaming aspects, it feels far more like a short linear game supplemented by hidden areas and bonus missions.

The Xbox 360 is no doubt the best format to play the game on, with sharp visuals and a surround-sound crowd that really draws you into the action, but it just doesn’t have that made-for-next-gen feel, and if you aren’t using HDTV, the difference is even less spectacular.

The game has style, variety, originality, plenty of content and bags of fun – but let’s face it, when you’ve seen one mountain, you’ve pretty much seen them all. The same goes for a good deal of the other unlockable content.

The lack of variety in the actual races and subsequently online doesn’t do much to justify the £50 price tag, but once you have a fast car and experience some of those intense police chases in glorious HD, you’ll be grinning from ear to ear.

Infected is one of those rare PSP games that manages to tick all the right boxes in terms of design, functionality and execution, so it’s no wonder it received so much hype prior to release. Sadly none of that translates to a particularly compelling gameplay experience.

It’s easy enough for complete beginners to pick up and play, and it has more than enough content and depth for hardcore gamers to enjoy. It’s beautiful and engrossing with literally days of gameplay.

Shadow the Hedgehog is awful. Stay away from it.

This is a game that has been made to promote the film, no doubt in tandem with cereal box promotions and official merchandise coming to a supermarket near you. It’s just a shame, for both their sake and ours, that it simply isn’t very good.

Would I rate it above the Advance games? Yes. Would I rate it above the Mega Drive games? No. And before you think it, it’s not nostalgia; this reviewer’s Mega Drive is still hooked up and in use.

But while there is enjoyment to be found in co-operative play, the single player aspect ultimately suffers immensely as a result.

We cannot emphasize this enough – if it’s not on your Christmas list, there’s still time. If you don’t get it from Christmas, don’t worry – just buy it your frigging self. If there were ever a game that was worth buying a console purely to play, this is it.

It’s great if you want a chilled out, thoughtful experience that’s slow paced almost all the time, but if you fantasise about pursuing a life of white knuckle action and adventure against those great looking backdrops, you’re SOL.

For anyone with the inclination to be educated in how games used to consist of pure gameplay magic, or for those who wish to revisit their gaming pasts, Taito Legends is a superior collection of titles, some of which are truly classics in the absolute sense of the word.

A great management game almost in the same league as Theme Park coupled with a fairly versatile and endlessly amusing movie-making tool makes for a compelling package, but the online options add the kind of polish that’ll potentially keep you coming back for months.

Somewhat annoyingly, the game often requires you to tackle each level a multiple number of times in order to collect items such as shields before the next area is unlocked.

Somewhat annoyingly, the game often requires you to tackle each level a multiple number of times in order to collect items such as shields before the next area is unlocked.

If publishers and developers insist on making PSP games with big-console values, they could definitely learn a thing or two from Fireteam Bravo.

At least if you do take in everything the game has to offer on the first sitting, you’ll easily feel like you’ve had a fulfilling experience, but unlike a GTA game, it’s pretty unlikely that you’ll come back for more once you’ve finished.

At least if you do take in everything the game has to offer on the first sitting, you’ll easily feel like you’ve had a fulfilling experience, but unlike a GTA game, it’s pretty unlikely that you’ll come back for more once you’ve finished.

One hell of a game. Fans of the series will find answers to some of their questions and find new ones to ponder over by the game’s close, while gamers unfamiliar with the Camera Obscura would do well to check it out right after the first two. It’s chilling, it’s engrossing and there’s even extra unlockable content.

Somewhat annoyingly, the game often requires you to tackle each level a multiple number of times in order to collect items such as shields before the next area is unlocked.

At least if you do take in everything the game has to offer on the first sitting, you'll easily feel like you've had a fulfilling experience, but unlike a GTA game, it's pretty unlikely that you'll come back for more once you've finished.

Somewhat annoyingly, the game often requires you to tackle each level a multiple number of times in order to collect items such as shields before the next area is unlocked.

For some the cutesy-wutsey graphics, chirpy speech and offers of handholding might be irritating, in which case say hello to the three ghosts of Christmas for us when you see them. For everyone else, this is an enjoyable, well polished game with bags of personality.

Although it's unlikely to usurp SingStar's title of ultimate party game, and is very unlikely to actually help you on your way to learning how to play a real guitar, Guitar Hero is a gaming experience that will take you to a place you’ll have never been to before.

Perhaps only a third party can produce a title that so glorifies a series that revolutionised cinema, because it’s Pandemic and not LucasArts that has created a game that lives up to the vast shadow created by the films.

Treyarch have done a commendable job with the single-player in such a tough development cycle, that just managing to make a multiplayer mode that improves upon Finest Hour’s is a fantastic achievement.

It is built on an entertaining concept, but let down by poor presentation. The dreadful frame-rate makes it almost unplayable in places, and that is unforgivable in a commercial product, especially when the graphics, sound and story could all have been so much better.

Perhaps only a third party can produce a title that so glorifies a series that revolutionised cinema, because it's Pandemic and not LucasArts that has created a game that lives up to the vast shadow created by the films.

Treyarch have done a commendable job with the single-player in such a tough development cycle, that just managing to make a multiplayer mode that improves upon Finest Hour's is a fantastic achievement.

Treyarch have done a commendable job with the single-player in such a tough development cycle, that just managing to make a multiplayer mode that improves upon Finest Hour's is a fantastic achievement.

Perhaps only a third party can produce a title that so glorifies a series that revolutionised cinema, because it’s Pandemic and not LucasArts that has created a game that lives up to the vast shadow created by the films.

It is slightly let down by some rather pointless puzzles, a few frustrating moments where it’s unclear what you have to do to progress, and the rather lacklustre character graphics. In essence, it’s a rough diamond – nice, but missing a lot of polish.