Divisive ending aside, whatever choices you make in life should lead to you playing this. [Xmas 2014, p.87]

The only regret is that it's so approachable as to make it less effective as a dancing tutor: the ability to muddle through moves and still succeed, and the lack of a hardcore boot camp that shows what you actually look like, means Jacko-esque proficiency isn't guaranteed.

Personality overwhelms in Unbox: Newbie's Adventure, making the world feel alive and kicking - if boxes had feet, that is.

The frantic 2D play, the limited movement options and the massed death from above make it a challenge even to twitch gamers. Throw in four-player survival, a boss battle mode and great co-op and it’s a must-buy.

So while Battlefield: Bad Company 2 has improved in single-player, it's the leap in multiplayer that makes it worth the reinvestment.

We can't tear ourselves away from the purity of the trick system, the pleasure of exercising long-dormant 'hardcore gaming' abilities and the tantalising target that is the top of the Live friends leaderboard.

The minimal animation style underscores that this is the deepest strategy and most hardcore game on Live Arcade, if not on the Xbox 360. [Jan 2007, p.96]

Vibrant and vivacious violence. [June 2013, p.91]

Solid - but lacks the intelligence of "GTA"... Without a doubt, Saints Row's biggest contribution to the genre is multiplayer. This also happens to be the most fun part of the game. [Sept 2006, p.8]

The smartest dumb game on Xbox Live. [Dec 2008, p.101]

Simple ideas knit into a beautiful platformer, if one that's too reliant on a few tricks to earn it essential status. We expect even greater things from Coldwood in the future. [Apr 2016, p.78]

A gimmicky but fun mix of fan service. [June 2013, p.103]

Excellent value. [Dec 2009, p.106]

F.E.A.R. is a good-looking FPS with great sound and amazing gunfights, but it lacks variety – sharing Condemned’s bent for basements, air vents, abandoned factories, offices and so on, and the identikit enemies don’t help.

Excellent single-player offering for those who aren't usually into fighting games. [Christmas 2018, p.74]

Just great action, a love of superhero cinema, and not one overpriced level pack in sight. [Apr 2016, p.82]

If you can demonstrate a bit of self-control, though, or better yet actually risk failure by limiting the number of continues you get in the menus, this is definitely one of the better sidescrollers around.

The Clone Wars is no bold new chapter for the evergreen franchise, but give it five minutes and you'll soon succumb. The Force is still strong.

Perfect if you can't afford a real dragon. [June 2011, p.103]

Perfect multiplayer customisation. [May 2007, p.94]

With Xbox Live play, leagues and mini-games you're never going to be bored - unless you just don't like American football. [Nov 2006, p.100]

Find turn-based strategy too intimidating but puzzle games too lightweight? This inspired hybrid bridges the gap perfectly, mashing up two stale genres and finding something fresh. [Apr 2016, p.88]

The personalities are great, and brilliantly caricatured. The matches are as much fun to watch as they are to play. The attempts to add variety don't always work - four-player tag teams are fun, but the rest is fairly uninspired - so it might not last too long without DLC.

While the polish is there, the Rockstar sense of humour and typical depth and complexity of experience are both sadly absent. [July 2006, p.80]

A good-looking and therapeutic dose of bird-tweeting, ripples of applause and gasps of mild horror. If you're happy paying the price of admission for a more streamlined experience and the Augusta National, don't let us stop you.

It adds visual punch, improved multiplayer, a better sense of progression (as new licenses must now be acquired to unlock further tracks) and an intimidatingly powerful editor with the potential to punt the game's longevity into the stratosphere. For 1,200 MP this is as unmissable an XBLA title as its predecessor and, while it's not quite an evolution, it's certainly an example of intelligent design.

A stylish, unsubtle but solid co-op shooter with lashings of old-school charm. [Nov 2018, p.75]

The most polished WWE game for years, with MyPlayer mode a highlight. [Christmas 2018, p.88]