A spectacular heart-warming and utterly enchanting adventure. [Christmas 2009, p.66]

Dripping with style and generously packed with content, Left 4 Dead 2 refines every aspect of its predecessor. [Jan 2010, p.82]

Despite some presentation concerns the rest of what was on offer during this match was truly thrilling. [Sept 2009, p.60]

The best release for EVE in years, another evolutionary step forward. [Apr 2011, p.55]

If you liked Lemmings but thought it could do with more brain munching, this is the game for you. [Issue#254, p.68]

Has DICE made the Great War Great again? Well, it's certainly delivered a fresh-feeling shooter in a very saturated market. But the missing modes are felt. [Issue#257, p.58]

Short for what you're paying, Fated is nonetheless a prime example that VR is not just about flashy action and virtual heroics. [Issue#254, p.69]

Excellent flight controls make this an intuitive simulation, while elegant graphics and an engaging soundtrack pull you further in to the experience. [Issue#257, p.60]

This is the expansion pack that Chaos Rising should have been, and essential strategy gaming! [Apr 2011, p.58]

Fan service of the highest level, though feels a little samey at times. [Nov 2014, p.54]

A terrific plot, excellent characters, and fantastic worldbuilding elevate the game's unexciting puzzles. [Issue#272, p.44]

Slick controls, great writing, and a solar-system-wide mystery to unravel - what's not to love? [Issue#272, p.46]

A surprisingly good mix of adventure and puzzle wrapped in a pretty shell. [Nov 2014, p.62]

It's fast, frenzied and brutal, and despite its simple concept never manages to get old. [Apr 2011, p.66]

A compelling narrative experience, structured like a classic science fiction short story in which you can drive a sentient vacuum cleaner around.

In full stride Kane & Lynch comes up trumps. It offers an action-packed ride of memorable settings wrapped around a couple of gritty-as-hell characters. [Jan 2008, p.55]

A triumph of polished design. [Oct 2012, p.64]

OCD-fuelling obsession for some, brain-melting difficulty for others. Choose, and perish. [Apr 2011, p.70]

A beautiful and rewarding action adventure. [Aug 2011, p.65]

Enough of the classic Mass Effect, with enough new mechanics to keep the game fresh. [Hollingworth; Issue#261, p.55]

Perhaps too complex for some but a beautiful, sprawling city management game nevertheless. [June 2010, p.58]

Loot interacts with combat far better than Death's abilities. [Oct 2012, p.68]

Burn through the plot so you can unleash yourself upon Far Cry 3's open world for a worthy FPS experience. [Jan 2013, p.66]

A polished revision of the famous multiplayer shooter that chooses to play it safe. [Oct 2012, p.70]

If the online performance issues can be fixed, Arma III will be the finest military simulation ever created. [Nov 2013, p.78]

A deep tactical - and strategic - RPG. [Issue#262, p.58]

Some good old honest space combat fun, with an inoffensive free-to-play model. Worth your time, and possibly even your money. [Apr 2013, p.86]

Sharp, sweet, with intelligent puzzles and stunning backdrops, Lemma is definitely worth a play. [June 2015, p.61]

Fitting lead-in to the final installment for this season. [Jan 2010, p.86]

Versatile, detailed play combines with alternative history to provide hours of squishing little men under heavy automatons. [Nov 2013, p.84]

Outlast 2 may have proven to be controversial, but it's also proven to be a genuinely unnerving survival horror game. [Issue#262, p.60]

Despite some less-impactful tweaks, Natural Selection II remains a hardcore, quintessentially PC multiplayer shooter. [Jan 2013, p.78]

Volgarr does difficulty really well - but there's nothing here for anyone who doesn't like the taste of their own tears. [Nov 2013, p.87]

Feels like a focused Bethesda, no longer stretched too thin in its task of crafting a world the size of Skyrim. [Apr 2013, p.93]

The lack of focus can be frustrating, but the world is so interesting that it'll draw you back in. [Issue#269, p.55]

Sometimes the randomness gets in the way, but otherwise Asura is a blast. [Issue#262, p.63]

A great game of action and exploration, with rich, interlocking mechanics. May be a little bit derivative, but a tonne of fun nonetheless. [Issue#263, p.56]

Like Leicester winning the Premiere League, FM18 Touch knocks over its more fancied rival. [Issue#269, p.56]

When it's at half price or less thanks to a Steam sale, grab it. [Issue#262, p.64]

Despite some pacing and story flaws, the thoughtful, tactical combat is always engrossing. [Issue#263, p.58]

Creepy and cute in equal measure, Little Nightmares is a short but tense ride. [Issue#262, p.65]

Definitely worth the price of admission. Runic Rampage is simple, moreish dungeon bashing. [Issue#263, p.64]

Devoid of plot, yet highly recommended on the strength of its combat. Beautifully balanced, complex and challenging. [Nov 2013, p.96]

Not Platinum Games greatest title, but still an absolute blast. [Issue#263, p.68]

Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition maintains the franchise’s unassailable position as the king of chess sims. [Mar 2008, p.64]

A smart, satisfying puzzler wrapped in an equally smart, satisfying narrative layer. [Issue#269, p.64]

Thanks to the addition of magic, Mirage breathes new life into the competitive melee arena. [Issue#263, p.71]

Rage won't change the FPS landscape, but it's beautiful to see in motion and a bombastic delight to play. [Dec 2011, p.52]

An ingenious, original puzzler hiding behind a highly difficult barrier. [Oct 2012, p.84]

An essential purchase for every true Battlefield fan. [Feb 2011, p.55]

Improves physics, feedback, and AI, but overlooks important details and under-utilises its immersive role-playing elements. [Dec 2011, p.60]

A damn fine - if at times somewhat unforgiving - turn-based game with strategic depth and hours upon hours of play. [Christmas 2011, p.52]

Dripping with passion for motor racing, Assetto Corsa is a racing sim that can only get better thanks to regular updates. [Feb 2015, p.13]

The most terrifying survival horror game released in years. Buy it. What's the matter, too scared? [Dec 2010, p.58]

One of the best racers in years. However, AI disappointments and bugs may kill the appeal for some. [Dec 2010, p.60]

Despite lacking variety in activities at the moment, it has laid the foundation for a very special space sim. [Feb 2015, p.22]

The gaming equivalent of a popcorn flick. Won't win awards but it doesn't need to - simple, unpretentious fun! [Dec 2010, p.63]

Familiar design that's thankfully still thoroughly unsettling. You'll never look at bacon the same way gain. [Oct 2013, p.78]

Delightful and thoroughly addictive genre-blending fun teetering on the cusp of greatness. [Oct 2013, p.80]

Inventive, funny and a whole lot of fun. An excellent way to break up the over-serious grind of most strategy titles. [Oct 2013, p.82]

Clever storytelling makes this an essential addition to the collection of any sci-fi or adventure gaming fans. [June 2011, p.64]

As much as it can wear you out, Papers, Please is a game to reflect upon and cherish. [Oct 2013, p.90]

Though the strategic side suffers, this XCOM remake still offers a worthy tactical experience.

This is the freshest that Sam & Max have been in a while. [July 2010, p.60]

The best Resident Evil game in years is only bogged down by the blatantly RE bits. [Issue#259, p.58]

A unique take on the zombie apocalypse, and one we would love to see more of in the future. [June 2011, p.67]

A strangely serene and evocative game, lying somewhere between strategy and chaos. For the resourceful and imaginative player. [June 2012, p.54]

The Last Starfighter of Political Science. [June 2011, p.68]

Though it lacks the subdued intelligence of Chaos Theory, there's still some cracking good sneaking to be had. [Oct 2013, p.92]

Simple but effective puzzling bolstered by an excellent soundtrack. [Issue#259, p.61]

An average MMO but an excellent Star Wars game. [March 2012, p.42]

A little too abrupt to be entirely satisfying, 1979 Revolution is still a powerful and memorable slice of history. [Issue#251, p.60]

A bigger, better, prettier sequel to the wonderful Legend of Grimrock. [Dec 2014, p.57]

Ronin's turn-based combat is a breath of fresh air. A solid game in spite of its brevity. [Aug 2015, p.64]

A challenging game full of tactical puzzles and some really engaging mechanics. [Dec 2014, p.62]

There are very few fruitless, time-wasting missions here. [Jan 2010, p.50]

For the Sims 2 fan whose enthusiasm has been decaying in the six months since Bon Voyage, prepare to be bombarded by new things. And for those gamers who haven’t yet experienced the world’s highest grossing game series, perhaps The Sims 2 is now exhaustive enough to deserve a second glance. [May 2008, p.61]

The diamond in the rough gleams more brightly, but still a chore to properly enjoy. [Jan 2010, p.56]

The online game is excellent, but the lack of some beloved features is very irksome. [Issue#264, p.59]

Combat is flawed, but does little to detract from the game's breathtaking depiction of lunacy. [Sept 2011, p.61]

"Deliverance" with a laser rifle - more fun than it sounds! [Sept 2009, p.67]

A near-enlightening shooter experience held back by big-disclaimer co-op and dark-grey microtransactions.

Be a Lethal Weapon in single-player, enjoy a different take on multiplayer. Visceral gives you the best of both worlds. [May 2015, p.57]

The perfect game to sit back and relax with while pondering the end of the world. [Feb 2011, p.63]

Finally, a Lemmings clone that's up there with the game that inspired it. [Feb 2011, p.64]

An excellent fighting game, even if you're not a fan of Dragon Ball. [Issue#270, p.54]

The bottle-blonde of racing games; gorgeous and loud, but something you'll want to spend time with in a group of friends. [Jan 2010, p.59]

A tense and demanding procedurally-generated story-telling device. [Issue#264, p.62]

A refreshing change of pace for jaded MMO gamers. [Mar 2010, p.68]

Lewd, crude, and possibly dangerous to know, Shadow Warriors 2 is nonetheless a rollicking first person shooter full of boomsticks and gibs.

Sometimes the best way forward is a humble step back. [Jan 2010, p.60]

First and foremost a game, the anthropology lessons are happy to sit in the background. [Issue#270, p.55]

Rise & Fall doesn't reinvent Civ VI but it does expand its repertoire in meaningful ways. [Issue#270, p.56]

The story is great but the surfeit of ideas means that none are fleshed out particularly well. [Issue#264, p.63]

An incredibly well-made puzzler. [Jan 2010, p.67]

Invites you into a beautifully realised, wholly consistent and ever-so-slightly alien ecosystem and keeps you wondering what you'll see next. [June 2012, p.63]

Nothing groundbreaking, but polish is ideal for those who escaped last year. [Jan 2010, p.68]

Writhing out of its niche, slithering, roiling tentacles endlessly grasping for the larger audience it most definitely deserves. [Issue#264, p.64]