It's a cruel irony that the one major change made to the Worms formula over the years only serves to erode the fun of the original incarnation. Implemented differently, perhaps 3D could have worked. Yet when its presence adds camera issues, reduces the power of weaponry to destroy scenery and elevates water-deaths to an art form, it's only reasonable to conclude that it is a failed experiment.

And that's where the final fact comes in to save the day: the price. Mercury Hg is a mere 400 Microsoft Points, and it's certainly worth every penny. It doesn't do enough with the interesting concept and it's not a hugely lengthy title, but it'll give you a good few hours of enjoyment, and it's hard to ask more than that for £3.50.

Each one has its flaws (with linearity being Lonesome Road's biggest drawback), but overall they're a fantastic, collective achievement by Obsidian and should make the (surely) inevitable New Vegas 'Collectors Edition' a must-buy for anyone who hasn't yet sampled these expansions.

Each one has its flaws (with linearity being Lonesome Road's biggest drawback), but overall they're a fantastic, collective achievement by Obsidian and should make the (surely) inevitable New Vegas 'Collectors Edition' a must-buy for anyone who hasn't yet sampled these expansions.

If Red Orchestra 2 appeals then I daresay you'll have a great deal of fun, but you might want to leave it a month to see if things improve.

That being said, PES should still be top of your shopping list if you're after a game that takes the most exciting elements of the beautiful game and concentrates them into one package.

That being said, PES should still be top of your shopping list if you're after a game that takes the most exciting elements of the beautiful game and concentrates them into one package.

If you're looking for a realistic, thoughtful and exhaustive recreation of the beautiful game then Fifa 12 is the best option you've ever had.

Once again, Fifa redefines what we expect from a football sim. Improved defensive systems and physics, along with expanded game modes, result in an even more beautiful 'beautiful game.'

Aside from improved visuals and the (admittedly rather welcome) handling changes, there's no radical departure from the TrackMania formula here. If you read that as a criticism then, well, maybe you've already overdosed on previous releases. For everyone coming fresh to the track, TM2 is a rapid-paced, rapid-restart extravaganza and still an absolute delight.

To be blunt, TS2012 is a hard game to score. It's a fearsomely niche title (and I play Paradox strategy games for heaven's sake) with a fanbase who'll be judging it by a completely different set of criteria. To them, the interest may be in how accurately the Horseshoe Curve is represented or the potential for inclusion of their favourite engine. My job is to critique it as a game.

It's a light game but with a lot of entertainment for 800 Microsoft Points, and while you might not play for hours at a trot I daresay you'll keep coming back to it. Burnout Crash doesn't quite have the weight for me to call it a must-have, but it's certainly a must-strongly-consider.

It's a light game but with a lot of entertainment for 800 Microsoft Points, and while you might not play for hours at a trot I daresay you'll keep coming back to it. Burnout Crash doesn't quite have the weight for me to call it a must-have, but it's certainly a must-strongly-consider.

One step forward, two steps back...

If you're a fan of Formula 1 and/or F1 2010 then this is a must buy, the new features and improvements making it more than worth your time, money and effort. Anyone not so ingrained in the sport will struggle to see the upside of spending another £40, however. No matter what though, this is a better game than last year and (once again) the bar of expectation has been raised going into F1 2012.

If you're a fan of Formula 1 and/or F1 2010 then this is a must buy, the new features and improvements making it more than worth your time, money and effort. Anyone not so ingrained in the sport will struggle to see the upside of spending another £40, however. No matter what though, this is a better game than last year and (once again) the bar of expectation has been raised going into F1 2012.

Gears of War 3 is a brilliant piece of blockbuster game design that shows, when in the right hands, the 360 still has more to give. More than that though, this is a fittingly spectacular finale to the Marcus Fenix trilogy and evidence that no matter how loud, how brash, how violent a game may be it can still be intelligent and emotionally affecting.

Despite flaws it's a cheap and extraordinarily satisfying way to scratch that racing itch – and if enough people do so, that multiplayer problem might cease to be a problem at all.

But while Sengoku has the stable basis of a game, its biggest problem is a feeling of emptiness.

Perhaps more than any other long-running series that has featured on the current generation of hardware, Madden NFL 12 has that classic end-of-console-era feel to it. The team have seemingly stopped trying to improve the game in any major way and are waiting for the next generation to take things to the next level.

Perhaps more than any other long-running series that has featured on the current generation of hardware, Madden NFL 12 has that classic end-of-console-era feel to it. The team have seemingly stopped trying to improve the game in any major way and are waiting for the next generation to take things to the next level.

For once, I think the experience can be summed up by the main menu. It's very pretty. It also has a transitional animation, in between sub-menus, that lasts four seconds. Want to change your graphical settings, then load an old game? You're going to spend about thirty seconds just watching a transitional animation repeat. Pretty, functional, and then hopelessly irritating for no good reason: that's Hard Reset.

Think of Dead Island as a B-game and you'll be fine. It seems like a bit of an insult to reel off the old cliché of "if you can ignore the bad stuff and only look at the good," but for Dead Island that line actually rings true.

There are much better Men of War games out there. This one is a gruelling quagmire.

Even more so than the likes of Child of Eden or Okami, El Shaddai is one of those rare games that's worth playing simply for the quality of its art direction alone, crushing the idea that only games with standout gameplay are deserving of your time.

If it wasn't for that second act, Resistance 3 would be looking at a higher score. However, given its duration and the disappointment it heaps upon you, it's that middle third that prevent it from living up to the potential it clearly possesses. It's certainly worth playing but, equally, it's certainly not a classic.

Still, it's a generally fun romp, so let's close on a high note: the ending sets the stage for a sequel with plenty of scope for fantastic areas. If Hothead continues to work on the gameplay side of things and gets the environment back up to par, we'll be in for something truly spectacular next time.

Tropico 4 is a fantastic game, there's no denying it, but its core audience is the one that's likely to be most disappointed with it.