A smart, bloodthirsty blend of ideas from MOBAs, action games and the RTS, with intense yet rewarding multiplayer. Beware the microtransactions, though.

With practice, intelligence, and a steady aim, you'll find your own satisfying path to greenskin genocide. [Dec 2011, p.99]

A streamlined multiplayer and less gimmicky single-player gives CoD a nice refresh.

So cheap our small complaints are trivial. [Dec 2011, p.101]

Capcom's cult favorite is worth the attention of any RPG/adventure fan out there.

Brilliant, bite-sized entertainment. [Dec 2011, p.101]

A clever cross between life sim and silly little collecting game with a lot of fun online party action thrown in, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise will appeal to a hell of a lot of people, thanks to its superbly created and welcoming open world.

Plays to Sunset Overdrive's obvious strengths while offering a few neat surprises along the way. [June 2015, p.91]

It may not be as sprawling as The Phantom Pain, but this is one of Xbox 360's greatest sneakathons and plays as well as it ever did. If you didn't buy it before, reach for your wallet immediately.

It has the wind beneath its wings. [Dec 2011, p.103]

A gripping, well-told horror story held back by occasionally awkward handling.

The aliens don't quite cut it, but Prey offers one of gaming's best settings in years. [July 2017, p.73]

A better way to learn how to play. [Sept 2012, p.102]

The wrestling is superb - but its teething problems must be patched quickly.

Truncated but still truly impressive. [May 2010, p.95]

Despite choppy performance issues, this magic puzzler is still a prize catch. [July 2017, p.76]

An excellent game that, while paying tribute to Lara Croft's heritage, certainly feels like a new beginning - mechanically as well as thematically. It's visually dazzling, narratively affecting, dangerously near best-in-class when it comes to solid shooting, vertiginous platforming and ballsy set plays... and bodes fantastically for any future instalments.

A winning tribute to TV's crassest kids, wrapped up in a fresh and fun RPG shell.

Titanfall's first load of DLC is a mixed bag of three maps, one dud but two gems. Fans of the game will find it essential, and if you're looking to come back in this is a great temptation.

Bloodstained: ROTN is a deceptively hard game (that’s a good thing), so careful exploration of each room and a considered approach to each encounter is required in order to reach the next big boss with enough health and magic points. [Issue#180, p.85]

This isn't 'the perfect Burnout' - but it comes damn close. [Feb 2008, p.86]

As a multiplayer game, Black Ops 2 is one of the best shooters around - sprawling and sagging under the weight of interesting systems. Offline, however, it's merely adequate. Despite some commendable ambition, Black Ops 2 isn't quite the match-stealing assault on Infinity Ward's turf we hoped it would be.

A carnival of grotesque and gothic fancies makes up for the finicky platforming. [July 2017, p.87]

Just enough to justify. [Sept 2012, p.115]

The sequel adds considerable depth to the original's plus points, without turning it into a serious economic simulation of trying to work out how to get the right amount of Snickers bars to feed your hungry mercenaries.

Accept its slow pace, and Cities: Skylines will reveal depth and drama you couldn't plan. [July 2017, p.90]

VT has always been a party game, and it pulls that off well enough to excuse the rough edges. If the more technical Top Spin 3 is posh dinner in polite company, this is a pie and a pint with friends - a little boisterous, maybe, but you don't need etiquette to have a good time.

At first it’s novel – and funny – to hear cats and warthogs spouting the usual high-fantasy nonsense about prophecies and world-eating serpents, especially as some of the voice acting is a bit off. But as the hours go on that all fades away to leave a well-realised setting. Along with the central mystery, it all makes for a compelling tail. Sorry – tale. Okay, perhaps we haven’t quite forgotten this is an animal kingdom. [Issue#180, p.87]