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]

Pointless in the xtreme, unless you're interested in war game archaeoogy. [July 2005, p.97]

Utterly mental, but quite, quite brilliant. One of the best experiences of the year. [July 2005, p.92]

The enemy AI is slow to react, your character is slow to move. [July 2005, p.98]

A more in-depth take on strategy than normal, but not quite a "Rome"-beater. [June 2005, p.93]

Does little to enliven the usual trail of hacking, slashing and opening boxes. We're pretty sure it shows the world's worst character creation screen: you can change your hairstyle and, er, your clothing. [Christmas 2004, p.122]

Obscure rewards innovation over frenzy, and it seems only fair to do the same in return. [Dec 2004, p.94]

Top-drawer felon-neutralising action that will have you hooked for ages. [June 2005, p.99]

It's as repetitive and automatic as running in with the shotgun was in Doom 3. This joke isn't funny any more. [June 2005, p.90]

Enormously inventive and irreverant silliness, and made of LEGO! [May 2005, p.94]

[July 2005]

Cool, dark and calculating, Splinter Cell finally plays as stylishly as it looks. [May 2005, p.100]

Tragically, we lost a man. Attempting to play World at War, very sadly, he died of the most painful kind of boredom. [Nov 2005, p.100]

Earned itself a 16+ rating, but anyone over that age will find this game too childish. [July 2005, p.94]

Minor bugs aside, the game works, but lacks an inspired storyline and more content. It will frustrate the casual gamers and won't keep a dedicated MMO player hooked for very long. [May 2005, p.90]

A huge, horrible, gut-wrenching car crash, with blood-soaked teddy bears. [June 2005, p.100]

Despite all the fireworks it's hard to suppress the feeling that Act of War is as shallow as a puddle. The objectives leave so little room for cunning that if you want to use your brain, you'll have to look elsewhere. [Apr 2005, p.100]

Not big and not clever, but lots of simple, high-paced fun while it lasts... The story fits the action: it's speedy, unchallenging, over-the-top yet quite entertaining. [Apr 2005, p.108]

From the ridiculous to the sublime: one for fans of undersea combat. [June 2005, p.98]

It's rare that a game with almost exactly the same engine and characters as its antecedent matches it blow for blow, but this is the exception to the rule. [May 2005, p.95]

This is the point where the populist WW2 first-person shooter gets the long awaited reinforcements: New Ideas. [Apr 2005, p.98]