Mistmare’s slow pace and dependency on dialogue steals the thunder from many of its fantasy elements.

Would have made 70% if not for the atrocious control system.

It’s a strangely deflating experience. There’s the bare bones of a good title here, and as a FPS, Elite Force II does dish up some satisfying action. It’s certainly an improvement on the first instalment. But it should have been far more than a game fighting to get out of the paper bag, rather than one that was ultimately suffocated by its own franchise.

Fascinating, infinite possibilities, but it's rough around the edges. [Feb 2005, p.84]

Undrentide’s additions bring new life to a flagging game, and though its story isn’t much to write home about, it’ll certainly tide us over until Bioware’s next magnum opus, "Knights of the Old Republic."

Despite advances in the game’s graphics, and a few extra tracks, we feel a little underwhelmed – it’s just too similar to its predecessor. Don’t get us wrong, MotoGP 2 is a fine racer, but it could have been so much more of a dream machine.

While other games may offer more to immediately get excited about, its charms will last long after their 3D glories wane, and for fast-paced but thoughtful strategy action, you simply cannot do any better.

Now here’s the clever thing – there are three sides fighting for the planet Auraxis but the battle is worldwide. It’s not the simple small arenas of Counter-Strike and Team Fortress, nor is it the enormous maps but frustratingly futile team versus team of Tribes 2.

It works, and it’s playable, but its remarkable fighting isn’t enough to pull it out of the mire labelled average.

Everything here is bigger, better, brighter, faster, longer, sicker, cooler than the series has ever been before (and almost any other game you care to mention).

A fresh breath in the MMORPG genre. In some respects it's ELITE on steroids.

We admit that the dynamic has changed. Weaponry feels less accurate, the maps are smaller, though we don’t see the inherent problem in that. It’s true you can no longer hear the enemy’s footsteps, but this isn’t a fatal oversight.

Stuff the storyline and just play the game.

Surprisingly, there is no option for random generation of islands, nor is there any scope for multiplayer frolics, making it feel rather limited.

Enthralling, humorous, and a real must for all "Civilization" fans.

Vietcong is everything Platoon should’ve been: realistic, immersive, tense, reasonably flexible, and thoroughly addictive. How ironic that two Czech developers should be the first to create a truly brilliant Vietnam game.

easily the best instalment yet – it looks great, plays great, and has oodles of expansion potential. The only downer is that even on higher-end machines, things can really chug in crowded areas. Still, that’s the price you pay for freedom.

An interesting campaign and siege capability give it an edge, and the abilities of the troops and handsome locations pull it up over the average RTS, but it’s more Gibbon than Plutarch. If you’re a strat addict with a penchant for heavy armour, or a classical scholar, then you’ll love it. Others might as well wait for "Rome: Total War."

Overall, the simplicity is really the only thing that holds Operation Genesis back: it comes across as more of a children’s game than a fully-fledged management title and doesn’t have the enduring challenges to really snare the proper calculator junkies.

Not wholly innovative, but a rewarding tactical shooter.

It might not be universally perfect, but it’s certainly the king of infinite space.

Blasting action with more depth than your average FPS.

Very probably the greatest secret agent game around.

It graphically depicts some very horrid things, and on a fundamental level, trivialises the kinds of international, cultural and religious issues which affect us all. Apart from that, it’s ace.

Forward-looking tech, backwards-looking gaming.

The same, and happily just as oops-where-did-the-weekend-go addictive. Buy it, and resign yourself to some five-hours gaps in your memory you may have difficulty explaining to the police at a later date.

A welcome mutation, but not as evolved as you’d think.

Frightening and utterly absorbing in equal measure.

It’s loaded with replay value, given the enormous number of permutations involved, and for those who can deal with it, it will turn out to be massively rewarding.

Hardcore RPG players will probably hate AC2, deeming it too simple to be worth their while. It is simple, certainly far simpler than AC1 or EverQuest, but it’s not simplistic. Turbine has merely removed much of the annoying faff and limitations from the genre and concentrated on the game itself.

If you can put up with the banality of the missions and NPCs, and the fact that all the player characters look the same, Neocron is slowly becoming one of the most interesting MMORPG worlds.

Harry Potter may posses a certain charm that transcends the generation gap, but don’t expect this game to weave the same magic.

RalliSport Challenge is a cracking rally game that just falls short in so many places it can’t make the podium. For sheer content and powersliding potential, it’ll deliver in spades until "Colin McRae 3." Just don’t expect a perfect ride.

Attractive, accessible and plenty to do – for a golf game, anyway.

A shining example of the genre, and one that will be remembered for a whole twelve months. As the series carries on there are fewer defining moments which mark one instalment from the next: a little gameplay gloss here, a graphical rennovation there.

It’s managed to make ostensibly the same game as it always has, but with just a little bit of lateral thinking has revolutionised its own formula. Bring on Age of Bomber Jackets, already.

Achingly beautiful, eccentric combat in the clouds.

When it comes to looks, Strike Fighters is a stunner.

Yes, to the casual user it feels little different – and not that much faster – to the original game; but frankly, no one can criticise Firaxis for giving Civ junkies the multiplayer hit they’ve been demanding for the last year.

There is a hangar full of new additions including new 3D cloud textures that make hide-and-seek dog-fighting a real possibility.

Stick with it through those slow, opening Hobbiton chapters and you’ll be immortalised in the terrible poetry of Elvensong. No doubt.

Fans should definitely indulge but more frugal souls who choose to meet Monica for the first time via a budget copy of the original game are certainly no fools.

Challenging, cerebral, and maddening.

An excellent FPS, and easily one of the year’s best. It’s varied, funny, imaginative, challenging (on anything other than Easy mode, which you could complete blindfolded) and has a lot to offer. However, despite all this, it lacks its predecessor’s spark of genius and genuine originality. If we sound a little on the negative side, it’s only through mild disappointment that it’s merely a very good game rather than a repeat performance of a genuine classic.

UT2003 may not be a revolution, but after a raft of unexciting "Counter-Strike" clones over the last couple of years, it’s the finest game you’ll find gracing any server right now.

An interesting twist is the lack of fog of war. This takes a while to get used to, but works surprisingly well.

A bona fide labour of love that evidently had the blinkers on.

Entertaining, but little innovation to write home about.

Battlefield 1942 is absolutely a multiplayer title – and don’t let anyone tell you different – and in that respect it really does the business.

Shiny graphics and slick production can’t hide the tedium.

As cinematic games go, Mafia is in a league of its own.

There’s little new that stands out in Icewind Dale II to recommend it. There's a lacks the style and emphasis on story that characterises the genre’s best.

The Thing isn’t a classic but it is a superbly executed, engrossing horror shooter that almost everyone will enjoy, once at least.

Strategy game of the year, perhaps of the millennium.

While certainly more approachable than its US Election themed follow-up "Political Machine," TCM is a much older game and really doesn't have the same smoothness or fun value. [March 2005, p.113]

A fun, involving strategy game with unsophisticated visuals featuring online play and modding to ensure plenty of longevity. [Oct 2008, p.111]

Reasonably entertaining space-shooty madness. [Dec 2004, p.104]

The game itself is too lightweight to stand much repeating, leaving two possible outcomes: you'll become a paranoid conspiracy theorist, or get bored, shoot the driver, and watch them all perish in the resulting crash. [Feb 2005, p.93]

It's imposingly deep and demanding. [Dec 2005 p.89]

Engaging, turret-waving fun that unfortunately lacks "Battlefield 2's" variety. [Oct 2005, p.92]

Hard as nails, and cute as kittens. [Oct 2006, p.102]

Engaging and absorbing. Prepare to lose yourself again. [Dec 2006, p.106]

Just when ragdoll was becoming an irritant for gaming, Toribash swoops in to demonstrate why it's the best thing since shaded pixels. [Mar 2007, p.78]

Unfinished and unrewarding, the game's gorgeous artwork is not matched by the plot or the nonsensical puzzles. [Feb 2009, p.98]