A pleasant enough diversion that’s unlikely to hold the attention for any great length of time. It’s fun enough while it lasts, though.

This game is an unchallenging space shooter made a little more difficult with frustrating design and a terrible camera angle. Even if you’re a fan of the TV series, we really cannot recommend a purchase.

Presentational hiccups aside, such as the graphics that are blocky by even the DS’ standards and the blasted screen which keeps popping up to unnecessarily show you day turning to night and vice versa, this makes a nice alternative to the compelling but flawed Lost In Blue / Stranded Kids games which have come before to handheld formats.

Target Liberty has a good atmosphere and the controls have been well thought out, but the story isn’t at all convincing and the gameplay doesn’t have enough merit in the end.

It is worth re-emphasising that the core game is still intact, and is still better than you might expect had you not played it before. It’s just such a crying shame that the control system, as functional as it is, does absolutely nothing for the gameplay.

It’s almost a shame that this wasn’t a launch title, because it may well have achieved a much higher profile, but if you are looking for something fun and engaging without all the cute kid-friendly trimmings, look no further than this.

A deeply confused game. It tries to pander to both of its rivals’ fans, but falls well short of satisfying either court. It doesn’t have enough gameplay options, the ball play is slick but unbalanced, and no matter how regularly updated or different it feels, it’s a disappointing exclusive title for Sony.

With something like 30 hours of outstanding single-player gameplay, plus a solid multiplayer mode and even a whole new audience being introduced to one of the greatest game series to have been produced, make no mistake, the release of The Orange Box is An Event.

In fact, though a good bit shorter than the original Half-Life 2, Episode 2 quite possibly rivals it in terms of memorable sequences. These include some lengthy vehicle sections, some stunning scenery, some stand-out plotlines and a good few damned enjoyable fight sequences.

Save yourself the money and just shake your wii-mote randomly and violently, shout quotes from the series and cry softly to yourself in the corner for an hour afterwards – you’ll look less like an idiot and have just as much fun.

By tackling the epic levels of Dungeons & Dragons, Mask of the Betrayer has a lot to offer both as an adventure and as an upgrade to the existing game.

With more than a dozen planets to fight on, plus the space battles above several of them, and the large selection of weapons, kits and vehicles, Renegade Squadron goes a long way to provide you with the kind of variety and longevity you look for in a game like this.

With more than seventy hours of tactical RPG battling, intricately woven story and an army of characters to build up, Final Fantasy Tactics is an immensely addictive and rewarding experience, even for those who managed to import a copy of the PSone original.

Every step of the way during Folklore, it’s as though developers Game Republic have been afraid of experimenting with the capabilities of the next-gen, sticking rigidly to formulas that were outdated and poor on the PS2.

Yes, the leagues are here; the players are here; the stadiums (well, some at least) are here. But FIFA 08 represents EA’s first real attempt in years to do something with the franchise other than just repackaging what has gone before. Here’s a game that makes a real (if occasionally flawed) effort to move the sports sim forward.

Yes, the leagues are here; the players are here; the stadiums (well, some at least) are here. But FIFA 08 represents EA’s first real attempt in years to do something with the franchise other than just repackaging what has gone before. Here’s a game that makes a real (if occasionally flawed) effort to move the sports sim forward.

With no fuss and no nonsense, this is a title pulling off into the distance, watching its rivals fluff and flounder in its mirrors.

Thrillville: Off the Rails is aimed squarely at mid-teens and under, which is no bad thing. The management side can be toyed around with, but it otherwise practically runs itself while you’re off planting rides, indulging in mini-games and trying to turn teenaged guests into your love slaves.

Thrillville: Off the Rails is aimed squarely at mid-teens and under, which is no bad thing. The management side can be toyed around with, but it otherwise practically runs itself while you’re off planting rides, indulging in mini-games and trying to turn teenaged guests into your love slaves.

Mistaken assumptions aside, the Xbox 360 doesn’t exactly have a lot of new, colourful, non-shooty blood and gore type games, so if that’s what you’re shopping for then while you couldn’t do much better, you equally couldn’t do much worse right now.

There’s no doubt that Quake Wars is a good deal of fun to play, and that counts for a lot, but in terms of winning and losing, it’s clear that the onus is primarily on the defending side to get and stay organised, as only then will the attackers need to do the same.

The game’s back-of-the-box claim of ‘Mega Instant Fun’ is somewhat misleading, as the mini-games are neither mega-instant nor mega-fun, but they are certainly pretty speedy and usually enjoyable and challenging on some level.

This game has basically been done before and been done better. Even for hardened action RPG fans who are looking for their next fix before Diablo 3 hits, it would be difficult to recommend much about Loki that would provide them with any sort of new buzz.

A robust, well-rounded, highly enjoyable and easily recommendable racer with a twisted sense of humour and a good all-round sense of fun.

Race Driver: Create & Race is an extremely well assembled racer which falls short of excellence thanks to its handling style falling squarely between two stools, and the niggles relating to the opponent AI and graphical in-game presentation.

If you’re a fan of portable online gaming, Logan’s Shadow has a lot to offer, improving on Dark Mirror in a number of ways.

It would be impossible to point out one area where it significantly outclasses its brethren, but from the choice of tracks to the game’s competitive spirit, it’s hard to imagine Bizarre Creations ever compiling a better package, or a better advert for racing on the 360.

It just seems that not much thought has gone into the level design and gameplay beyond “could a five-year-old play this?”.