Except for a few missing background animations, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 on the Vita is an exact copy of its bigger brother on the PS3. A technical marvel if you ask us, since Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 isn't known for its static gameplay. [March 2012, p.59]

Not changing a damn thing about your initial game formula in over seven year means you are either an extremely lazy designer or that the formula is so genius it doesn't need to be changed. Luckily designer Mizuguchi is anything but lazy and Lumines is still a winner. [March 2012, p.58]

Escape Plan's visual style is so well done, you will probably fall in love with it at first sight, just as we did. The game's opening has you waking up Lil by tapping the touch screen as he tries to push your finger away. He is absolutely adorable. [March 2012, p.56]

Judging by how bizarre some of the fighters are (like a Polish punk rocker who also happens to be a dentist) we're guessing that the guys over at Novarama are definitely on some kind of drug. Which would also explain why the actual fighting is so crappy. [March 2012, p.55]

Everybody's Golf is the premier example of a pick-up-and-play game perfectly suited for a handheld console. Despite its initial appeal we got bored pretty quickly due to a lack of variation and innovation over the previous installments. [March 2012, p.54]

Creating your own track has never been easier or faster. Use your index finger on the front touch screen to draw the track. Then add some details and an impressive mountain range using the back touchpad and you are set to race. [March 2012, p.53]

Sometimes the touch controls work magnificently, like in a game of Wac-A-Mole. At other times, though, they drive you crazy because the creators tried to cram every single feature the Vita has to offer into their collection of minigames. [March 2012, p.52]

Deploying a series of a deadly mines and hearing that soft, distant bang behind you when your opponents run into them is still as satisfying as ever. The same goes for taking the top spot in the final seconds of a race thanks to a conveniently placed speed pad. [March 2012, p.48]

Certain gimmicks however do show some creativity. At one point you're required to hold the Vita up toward the sun to reveal a hidden text on a piece of parchment. It goes to show that the Vita does have the potential for some crazy puzzles. [March 2012, p.46]

Unit 13 is the first proper shooter on a handheld console and, if we have anything to say about it, it certainly won't be the last one. If they are all as good as Zipper Interactive's latest outing on the PlayStation Vita, of course. [March 2012, p.50]

Jurassic Park: The Game is best described as a low-budget Heavy Rain knock-off filled to the brink with quick time events. But where the buttons you had to press in Heavy Rain made more or less sense, they are completely random in Jurassic Park: The Game. [February 2012, p.104]

Trine 2 still is a very beautiful game with some very entertaining gameplay even though there aren't any significant improvements over the original. The newly added online co-op sort of ruins the game as puzzles become very easy to solve when playing with one or two friends. [February 2012, p.102]

Psycho Soldier is a straight forward port of 1986 SNK-classic and is still an entertaining side-scroller, but only for those who have embraced their inner nostalgic self. You do have to face the fact that this the exact same game you played all those years ago, without any improvements. [December 2012, p.101]

This SEGA-classic is considered by many to be the best Sonic-game ever made. Sonic goes so fast in this iteration that he can even travel through time, making the pimped out DeLorean from Back to the Future seem like a pushover. [February 2012, p.101]

Dungeon Defenders consists of two phases. First you strategically arrange your defenses, then you use the abilities of your characters to repel every goblin coming your way. Playing Dungeon Defenders in co-op is a must, since you can combine the powers of certain characters. [February 2012, p.101]

The basics of Choplifter haven't changed one bit since its debut in 1982. You still control a helicopter on a 2D plane, rescuing people. Unfortunately you don't always feel in control of the chopper you're flying, which can lead to some unnecessary deaths. [February 2012, p.100]

With the exception of a few scary moments Amy is anything but frightening. The puzzles are uninspired, the controls awkward, the voice acting horrible and the checkpoint system is one the worst we've ever encountered. [February 2012, p.100]

We had to wait nearly seven years for this former Xbox-exclusive to return and even after all this time the strange mix between third person platforming and first person shooting still works fine. You'd have to be crazy not to download this title after such a long wait. [February 2012, p.100]

Yet another twin-stick shooter involving brainless, brain-eating monstrosities. All Zombies Must Die tries to change things up a bit by throwing in RPG-elements en co-op, which unfortunately you can only play locally. [February 2012, p.100]

In Marvel Super Hero Squad: Comic Combat you control your superhero by drawing lines en symbols unto the uDraw-tablet. It's surprising to see the developer making such great use of the uDraw this early in its lifespan. [February 2012, p.99]

Drawing with the uDraw-tablet is not that easy and can lead to some less than stellar results, making us wish we were playing the real deal. On the other hand, watching a drawing on your television is a lot easier than having everyone gather around a small piece of paper. [February 2012, p.98]

Neverdead is a strange, but fascinating creature. Originality is hard to find nowadays, but Neverdead has plenty of it. Many of the game's puzzles require you to deliberately grab hold of an electric conductor until your body explodes into a flaming spark. [February 2012, p.94]

The rush you feel when striking down an opponent with a perfectly timed swing from your mighty sword remains one of the best and unique experiences in the entire beat 'm up-genre. SoulCalibur still can't compete with the likes of Capcom's fighting games, but it's getting close. [February 2012, p.90]

We were relieved to discover that FFXIII-2 had much more to offer than its sterile CGI-driven predecessor. Not only are there some great mini-games in the form of time paradox puzzles, there are also plenty of side quests. It goes to show that Square Enix truly listens to its fans. [February 2012, p.84]

This game is aimed at players aged 3 to 6, so the protagonists are all cute little animals like a rabbit, a panda and a turtle. There are several minigames that can be played with the Sixaxis or the Move, but only the latter is actually fun to do. [January 2012, p.88]

This is a bargain if you look at what you get. This shooter is long, challenging and has a great sense of humor thanks to cutscenes that remind us of Ratchet & Clank. Mega Man was also an inspiration: you get to use the weapons of every end boss you defeat. [January 2012, p.85]

We don't want to offend the longtime fans of the series, but we honestly can't understand why anybody would want to play an archaic RPG like Wizardry when there are fantastic games like Skyrim around. Being nostalgic is one thing, being ignorant another. [January 2012, p.85]

Voltron is an anime series from the eighties in which a team of fighters controls tiger-shaped (we 're not making this up) vehicles that can combine with each other to form a huge robot. The sad news? We've waited 20 years for this and the result is rubbish. [January 2012, p.85]