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

More expansion pack than full game, without the same level of challenge. [June 2006, p.89]

A well-executed sim, on the whole, but it lacks genuinely unique features. [June 2006, p.86]

Simple, entertaining platform/puzzle fun for the little people. [Feb 2005, p.89]

ToV's singleplayer campaigns will do nothing for CoH vets, but the MP extras might just keep its head above water. [June 2009, p.90]

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

Slightly grotty in parts, but entertaining. [Feb 2005, p.93]

Momentarily entertaining clicky clunky puzzling, but lacking enough real imaginative freedom to make it truly essential. [Sept 2008, p.110]

Some nice cosmetic effects, new jobs and, er clothes await you the, Sims fans. If you really have to. And we know that some of you do. You sickos. [Apr 2007, p.73]

It's a fresh idea, more than worth a few of your Earth lunchtimes. [Feb 2009, p.101]

Played the original? Then you'll probably enjoy this. [June 2005, p.92]

Utterly unremarkable. [Jan 2008, p.72]

Challenging, but not always in the right way. Invade elsewhere.

Mildly engaging. [May 2009, p.97]

For the jaded gamer with a few hours to spare it's like a zen garden for the soul. [Oct 2011, p.104]

It's just not as 'hilarious' as perhaps it seems in its native land and, although it's sometimes a pleasing adventure, at 30 quid, I'd struggle to recommend it. [June 2009, p.101]

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

A love letter to PC gaming, scrawled in crayon by an alcoholic bigot. Wait for the bargain bin to say goodbye to Duke. [Aug 2011, p.98]

The best comparison is a C-list Hammer Horror film. Yes, clearly utter trash – but trash that attempts to overcome its limitations through determination and imagination.

If, however, you've played Myst before and hated it for its slow pace, its limited movement and the distinct lack of (perceived) gameplay, then this new version will do nothing to change your mind. [Dec 2004, p.88]

The idea is excellent, but overall a weaker expansion than the first and not as exciting. [July 2010, p.98]

If you can stand the aesthetics, fun lurks within. [Sept 2006, p.97]

Pretty but tedious, Alpha Prime is a solid but supremely derivative shooter that's more often a chore than a pleasure. [June 2007, p.60]

A damp squib, really. The single player is far too short and the multiplayer only occasionally rises above the average. [May 2011, p.90]

Claustrophobically restricted by some uninspired level design, and all too often your soldiers are boxed in by clumsy dead ends, making more complex troop manoeuvres virtually impossible. [March 2005, p.109]

All that leaping and fighting doesn't fit very well with keyboard controls. [Jan 2005, p.98]

The unique graphics engine much vaunted by CDV sadly enables little innovation in the rendering of 3D effects, and only the magical powers offer something a little different, which is telling – overall the emphasis is on over-the-top adventure, rather than realistic recreation of history.

Just manages to scrape into the "different enough to be interesting" category. [Oct 2004, p.100]