Looks great, but not quite as full of variety as you might expect from NYC. [Mar 2006, p.92]

If there is an intriguing idea buried within RF Online, it's suffocating. [Apr 2006, p.94]

A tremendous value. [Aug 2007, p.61]

It's managed to create a whole new genre: the untactical shooter. [Mar 2006, p.104]

Visual splendour, but we find its lack of (3D) space disturbing. [Apr 2006, p.92]

Deserves to be banned over here as well. This is wack, even for toys. [Apr 2006, p.91]

Accurate rugby, but re-mapping controllers requires fiendish text file editing. [Mar 2006, p.101]

A reasonable amount of content, but lacking in genuinely new features. [Mar 2006, p.96]

You're better off tracking down a copy of "Red Alert 2" on its own. [Sept 2006, p.101]

Essentially just "THUG 2" with corridors, and Elephant Man-ugly, too. [Apr 2006, p.89]

A splendid marriage of speed, style, and sophistication. [Nov 2005, p.94]

Not so much heroic as the world's most violent way of developing RSI. [Christmas 2005, p.97]

Much improvement, but still a little lacking. [Aug 2005, p.97]

There is amusement to be found here, for those with low expectations. [Oct 2005, p.91]

"Black & White" without the creature, the plot or the bugs. [Dec 2004, p.102]

It's plagued by page after page of 'I don't daren't [sic] skip this' tutorial help, but there are rewards for those who persevere. [Dec 2005 p.89]

There's more here than meets the eye. [Dec 2005, p.97]

Great premise, but as fun to spend spend time with as a freshly exhumed corpse. [Mar 2006, p.102]

It's the sci-fi game for RTS fans who found "Dawn of War" a little too streamlined. A game by fans for fans, but few others. [Sept 2005, p.90]

All the freedom in the universe and nothing much to do with it. Prepare for a slog. [Christmas 2005, p.88]

A must-see blockbuster with that ineffable star quality. [Christmas 2005, p.94]

All the joy of "Heroes", with sinister eyebrows and crooked hats. [Christmas 2005, p.100]

Headshot heaven for FPS addicts. [Dec 2005, p.92]

If you're looking for a fine-tuned, accurate representation of air-sea combat, you'll have to look elsewhere; If you fancy classic arcade dogfights where every battle is against the odds, Heroes is for you. [Oct 2005, p.93]

Unbelievably intense and absolutely beautiful on a high-end PC. [Christmas 2005, p.93]

It's the best strategy game released this year, and if you don't like it, there's something wrong with you. [Dec 2005 p.87]

Good ideas buried under several layers of below par execution. [Christmas 2005, p.101]

Unfortunately, sheer numbers alone are just not enough to set this apart from the competition. [Nov 2005, p.90]

Hardcore RTS fans are well catered for. Casual players should look elsewhere. [Christmas 2005, p.98]

Running sideways in slow motion, blasting the head off a commando provides absurd visceral splendour, especially when you've just shatter his legs wtih a sliding kick. Some people worry about violence in games. We do too: we worry that it usually isn't this good. [Nov 2005, p.84]

Achingly mediocre and its lack of innovation is frustrating. [Christmas 2005, p.96]

Pretty funky and fun - but only for a short while. [Christmas 2005, p.96]

Games this good are extremely rare things, and as such they should be applauded. [Dec 2005 p.80]

Remarkably polished for something so infant-friendly. [Aug 2004, p.91]

Not the advance you may have hoped, but the co-op mode deserves medals. [Dec 2005, p.98]

To all intents and purposes, this game is identical to "Football Manager." The difference is while Brits understand the beautiful game, we haven't a clue about ice hockey. [Aug 2005, p.95]

Unquestionably the most impressive thoroughly mediocre game you'll play this year - but hardly a religious experience. [Nov 2005, p.98]

The franchise is improving, but gameplay niggles keep it from taking the title. [Nov 2005, p.92]

Tightly designed macho action strategy. The best Conflict game yet. [Nov 2005, p.97]

Not spectacular, but solid - a nice surprise for at least short-order strategy. [Dec 2005, p.93]

Fun for video nasty fans, but move along gamers, there's nothing to see here. [Christmas 2005, p.92]

Hack, slash, repeat. Clumsy but functional. [Dec 2006, p.118]

As dated as the Cold War, but fun. [Christmas 2005, p.96]

Lead by a strong storyline, cinematically presented and punctuated with countless chunky explosions, it's only held back by the fact that it's over quite quickly. [Nov 2005, p.89]

Barbarian Invasion doesn't devalue the achievements of its precursor. This isn't a great triumph or a fall, just a gentle decline. [Nov 2005, p.95]

Nice ideas, poorly executed in the main. Shows some promise online. [Dec 2005, p.96]

Leader of the field of one, until some credible opposition appears. [Dec 2005, p.92]

It's firmly a team game, rocketing from tense action to a tedious slog, based entirely on how the rest of your team plays. [Dec 2005 p.91]

So, there are short bursts of charm, interspersed with long sections of tedium. [Dec 2005 p.89]

Weary-feeling zoo sim with little new on offer. [Christmas 2005, p.102]

A super expansion, bringing great new toys to Dawn of War's broiling funbox. [Dec 2005, p.94]

Flawed genius - but so captivating while it lasts that you won't really care. [Oct 2005, p.94]

Flawed but irresistable - Fable is lifted by the weight of its ideas. [Nov 2005, p.93]

The adamantium claws sure are sharp, but are they really all you have? [Christmas 2005, p.96]

Evolution doesn't happen, according to this particular history book. [Dec 2005, p.98]

it is more a final sad swansong then a 21-gun salute. [Dec 2005 p.88]

A pleasant little game, but far, far too little of it released at this price. [Christmas 2005, p.62]

Exactly what you'd expect, and full of good ideas. [Nov 2005, p.92]

Soulless, if well-realised hockey simulation. [Nov 2005, p.100]

Mediocre "Close Combat" update, two years old already. [Christmas 2005, p.102]

Crisp, sharp, bike-racing fun. Could use more real-world marques though. [Oct 2005, p.96]

Minor tweaks to a solid but dull money-spinner. [Nov 2005, p.92]

Exhilarating stripped down action-RPG. Repetitive, but compulsive. [Oct 2005, p.86]

As before, there's nothing here that's massively wrong, but nothing exactly right either, and in particular, nothing that "Diablo" didn't do just as well. [July 2005, p.99]

Misses a few crucial tricks which could have given it greater mass appeal. [Mar 2006, p.97]

Ultimately, the lack of a convincing "feel," combined with a predictable and rather uninspired selection of weapons mean War World is never going to grasp you by the imagination and shake you with a hydraulic arm until you lie limp and broken. [Oct 2005, p.98]

Our favourite is the A-10 Warthog – cruising at 50 feet, on the prowl for enemy tanks, it’s one of the most exhilarating missions available in any recent simulator.

A blast from the past, getting away with it this time, but possibly not a third. [Sept 2005, p.96]

To damn it with faint praise, this is the world's greatest fire-fighting RTS. [May 2005, p.99]

A new classic. It will change every gaming instinct you have. [March 2005, p.110]

Fast, fun, and tasteless, but too many misfires to make it a winner. [Christmas 2004, p.108]

Utterly standard adventure devoid of novelty. [Christmas 2005, p.102]

A victim of its own sneers, this is the world's first self-parodying game. [July 2005, p.90]

Lazy little film tie-in with some purely irritating features. [Oct 2005, p.99]

As exciting as a glass of water, but a whole bathtub more depth. [Sept 2005, p.95]

Exhilarating to the point of giddiness. This is a martial masterpiece. [Aug 2005, p.80]

A nice idea, but the respect system eventually begins to grate. [June 2005, p.97]

Solid but wholly uninspiring. [Aug 2005, p.95]

A jack of all trades and a master of some - San Andreas tries astonishingly hard to let you do anything. And so long as you don't crave any meaningful character interaction outside of mow down with a monster truck first, ask questions later, it very nearly manages to pull it off, too. [Aug 2005, p.88]

Strategically sound, with great replay value, but weak multiplayer. [Dec 2004, p.93]

Simultaneously fascinating and flawed, it's the definition of high maintenance. [July 2005, p.86]

Quickly gets as dull as a three-hour wait in A&E. With a saucepan on your head. [Sept 2005, p.95]

You can't out-Diablo "Diablo," so don't try. [Oct 2005, p.92]

Here, kids get varied and frequently updated missions goals and plenty of welcome help. [Sept 2005, p.98]

Addictive, simple, and enormous fun, Fate's only flaw is that the endless dungeons get depressing as the decor incessantly repeats, and that the simple fishing mini-game often nets you ridiculously expensive top-level items. [Sept 2005, p.102]

It puts up a brave fight, but can't quite defeat the champion of war games ("Rome: Total War"). After all, Rome wasn't beat in a day. [July 2005, p.96]

Survival horror, that's as bland as bland can be. Cold, yes. Fear, no. [June 2005, p.92]

Despite clumsy menus, the game itself looks utterly beautiful, and as the community grows, the game will expand and become more involved. [May 2005, p.98]

More spit than polish. [Sept 2005, p.98]

It's almost as if not enough time has been spent on either this or the Combat Upgrade, making it impossible to accept RoTW as it stands. [July 2005, p.95]

A waste of time for all involved, go watch paint dry instead. [Aug 2005, p.97]

Futuristic first-person shooter with not-so futuristic game design. [June 2005, p.86]

A slightly confused combination of intimidating depth and unnerving shallowness: on the one hand, a monstrous physics engine that'll stir a petrol-head's soul, on the other some patchy graphics and a slightly home-made techno soundtrack that calls up wholly unflattering comparisons to EA. However, it does push the realism harder than the more entertaining "Live For Speed." [March 2005, p.102]

The frustration of RTS interrupting RPG is maddening beyond belief, but you won't understand what's going on anyway, so it's not worth the worry. [Christmas 2005, p.102]

It's designed to be more cerebral than current RTS war titles, and can't match the visceral thrill of "Rome" or even "Medieval Total War." [May 2005, p.102]

Nearly perfect drop-in, drop-out fantasy fun. Top-notch stuff. [July 2005, p.91]

What it does introduce is a level of pervasive professionalism, and in-depth statistical geekery that's been reserved for "Football Manager's" army of devotees until now. [June 2005, p.94]

An awful port of a dismal console game. Buying this would be a crime-in-itself. [July 2005, p.98]