The title's incredible atmospheric power is derived from how the presentation is conveyed through gameplay, and how the resulting simplicity helps strip the pacing down to a fine line.

Unshackled from the limitations of ‘vertical-only’ movement, this update is more intuitive than its predecessor and turning the DS ninety degrees is a wonderful touch too.

Big Brain Academy is a lot of fun, but its ability to improve brain power is probably a little more contrived than with Brain Training.

Tourist Trophy is far from the real riding simulator it claims to be; it misses out on one of the most fundamental things of riding bikes: fun. There may be some hardcore racing fans out there that will get some satisfaction from this game, but for the majority it will be a very frustrating experience.

RR6 is perhaps best thought of as a succulent appetiser, foretelling of the potential of what a full blown next-gen Ridge Racer game could be like if Namco truly set their minds to it. And for now, this is enough. Just.

It is just a crying shame that the online capabilities of the console were not properly harnessed, and that there is a shocking lack of any real extras for those who already own the original versions.

They need to elevate PES to the next stage of its life that it so deserves, and the only way they can do that is to give players more of what they want rather than take from them.

It celebrates the perverse catharsis to be found in bringing quick justice to bad people, and the pride found in doing it well.

As an RPG, Atelier Iris undoubtedly fails. As competently constructed as it is, as bright its script and characterisation may be, its principal design elements simply do not offer enough to consistently provide much beyond a standard role playing experience.

Those who are not immediately drawn to it or enamoured with its subject matter will doubtless find very little to sway their mind towards purchasing or maintain their interest, with Infected's repetitive nature and lack of longevity doing little in the way of making it a standout title.

With a fantastic clutch of Pac, two great shooters, Dig Dug, and the bizarre inclusion of THREE Rally X games, there's no way that any Namco fan is going to feel gypped out of the budget-level asking price. [JPN Import]

With everything ultimately both bigger and better, with more destruction, and much more depth, Bugbear Entertainment are coming ever close to a winner. If the handling is tightened, and the rest of the game makes another healthy step forward, another sequel on the next generation of consoles could be the first certain winner.

An enjoyable, though fairly standard platformer, but one that has a great amount of charm to it. You’ll spend an average of 15 or so hours running around, collecting power-ups and items, jumping from high ledges to other high ledges, and fending off beasties along the way. That isn’t very long.

If you get your head round the fact that Avalanche is trying to do its own thing whilst still keeping to the spirit of N64 1080, it gives constant thrills and a slightly new slant on the snowboarding genre that will be returned to time and again until each course is rinsed.

Fun, then, in moderate doses and more a tantalising promise of things to come rather than an essential early entry in the 360 canon.

There is a limit placed on the skills you can develop, where speed and multi-tasking are the only real requirements, after which there isn't much else to explore.

A hybrid of a game that, whilst doing nothing outstandingly original, is still enjoyable, especially when joined by a fellow human player.

Double Trouble, like previous games in the series, is a good 12-15 hours long on the first play through. However, this time repetition sets in far quicker than before with quite a few of the later levels becoming quite laborious for all but the most determined of gamers.

The pickup-and-play nature of the Checkmate mode lends itself perfectly to the portable medium, but it's no more than a simple puzzle experience that can be found on millions of Desktop PCs. [JPN Import]

It's a beautifully crafted game and the work Andamiro have put into it has to be respected. Rather than the same rehashed and reused background images over and over again there are polished, well-animated videos. [JPN Import]

Episode 2 is comparatively short not only in terms of Episode 1 but in comparison to RPGs in general. Whilst its length seems well paced in terms of the combat and exploration aspects of the title, its narrative just doesn't quite do enough.

Here's hoping for a censorship-free translation to the US and PAL territories. Bravo Clover!

While it’s great to see it on the newer generation of systems (and on a Microsoft system at that), it doesn’t feel like it’s progressed very much at all since its first iteration, a problem that dogged even We Love Katamari, but which feels even more apparent here.

Whilst Nexus is most certainly an Armored Core game, and very good with it, a lot has changed on how the game fundamentally plays. Is it the best in the series? Well, it comes stunningly close. [JPN Import]

Mini Ninjas is an utterly cute and charming game that may not have the complexity and amount of content ‘hardcore’ gamers look for, but anyone who disparages Mini Ninjas for its simplicity is missing the point.

Those looking for an RPG-lite experience to ease them into or even help them return the world of RPGs, or looking for a chunk of throwaway fun, will no doubt enjoy Contact as an easygoing romp.

Most importantly, ExciteTruck is massive fun to play, which is still the most vital of aspects in any game.

HAWX does what it does admirably in most cases. It provides an enjoyable and entertaining diversion in a rarely explored genre with just enough content to keep gamers with friends busy.