It's not a new Painkiller, but the constant carnage acts as a perfect stress reliever and it has a great variety of drastic antics, some of which, like the burning shovel-throwing kaiser zombies, make me all warm and fuzzy inside. The story is completely brain-dead, the hero's monologues worse than Vogon poetry, and the (painfully long) letters of the deceased soldiers that are read on the loading screens even worse, but these obstacles can be overcome if you are after pure, absurdly intensive action. [Mar 2009]

It has its moments - managing the family business and conquering the cities one building after another is compelling, as is the decent crime story told within. But this game looks dated, as if the GTA IV never happened. Roaming the city and the brushoffs with the police feel awkward, like an afterthought. [Mar 2009]

This ancient city planning simulator got a bit more interesting, but is still lacking many managing options and the scale is certainly sub par, especially considering that the population of Rome at its peak was over 1 million. [May 2008]

Despite it simplicity it's a well made action game that provides lots of fun not just for kids and not just thanks to the movie characters. The two player mode is also a definite plus. [May 2009]

It starts really poorly - even the disgracefully short tutorial uncovers the deficiencies of this title, namely units getting lost and jerky sounds resembling old electronic games. Then the first mission sucks you in for good. Diversity of situations you face precludes any possibility of boredom, but the presentation and unit AI deserved much more attention. [March 2008]

After the release of Medieval II this Ukrainian game still had a fighting chance thanks to its radical concept, but even putting aside the chaotic AI it's completely unplayable - it runs at staggering 5 fps even on powerful gaming rigs. [May 2008]

This game is just as enthralling as the movie, but why it has to last about as long? What saved it is the novel gameplay that makes replaying fun. But it's a great pity that there's no multiplayer at all, I'd love to see what bullet curving would do to it. [May 2009]

Smash hit of the 80s returns in style - and sadly suffers from the budget constrains that gave it the look and feel of a rushed release. Sound glitches, occasional crashes and awkward interface detract from the fun of the ruthless fight. [June 2008]

It's a disgrace that this crude port which wouldn't look out of place on PlayStation 2 is pushed on helpless hockey fans worldwide. [Feb 2009]

This standalone expansion to the respected fps released two years ago has all the telltale signs of a quick cash grab, and the time has left its marks on the engine. But turning the environment into swiss cheese among the sparks of ricochets hasn’t lost its appeal, and there is some new stuff to frighten the player and then his enemies with. [Dec 2007]

One of the two original ideas - betting on the outcome of the race - effectively nullifies any challenge, small as it were. Contrary to its overly hard predecessor, Juiced 2 allows the player to instantly bounce back from defeat using this easy money. The other somewhat original idea, the DNA that is supposed to store information about drivers' traits and skills, is a complete fiasco. Raising the stats of your driver has virtually no influence on the handling of the car and who gives a hoot about the skills of all those losers who are seen mostly in the rear mirror? Other than that, it's a lackluster Need for Speed clone. [March 2008]

Not your typical movie franchise - this one is actually quite decent. It has quests, secrets, simple yet satisfactory combat and scenes from the movie, but everything looks just a bit too much last year. [May 2008]

This beat-em-up appeals outright to my instincts with its old school simplicity and intuitiveness. Unfortunately the more I play, the more I long for the end. What initially appears so attractive, becomes stale and boring after about 40 minutes. The specials are worn after two uses, it's more efficient to use one and the same combo all over again. [May 2009]

Neither fish nor fowl, this game fails on both counts, with character development not deep enough for a roleplayer and controls too clumsy for an action gamer. The presentation is at times truly stunning, but the dumbing down went too far. [Oct 2008]

The good news is that it's the best snowboarding game in existence. Unfortunately it's also the bad news. Admittedly, riding off the trail, jumping over gorges and narrowly escaping the avalanches is lots of fun, but it barely makes up for burdensome assignments that are forced upon the player. [Mar 2009]

It’s not an action game, not with the scarce ammo and omnipresent puzzles, but it’s not Silent Hill either. Rather an adventure in a horror set created mostly with the use of flashlight, screams, whispers and lapping sounds – the monsters, when they finally appear, are somewhat disappointing. [Dec 2007]

Decent visuals, juicy combat system and the interesting character development are the games strong points, but a horde of glaring design errors pushes them aside. And it takes a lot of dedication to suffer through the incredibly boring preparations to the journey. [Feb 2009]

Unlike a typical movie franchise, this game is not just a pleasant reminder of the most hilarious moments of the film, but also a very decent arcade game in its own right. [Feb 2009]

Pixar has been lucky so far with computer game franchises of their titles. Even this simple platform/puzzle game is charming thanks to its hero and his flawless animation. [Sept 2008]

It's fast, spectacular and full of action - three attributes I require from every good racer are there, and in double helping. I can get new vehicles without stopping even for a moment. But the missions on foot are much worse and as a consequence the overall experience is rather unidimensional. [May 2009]

It's hard to make a winning shooter these days, because it's so easy to make an average one. If you don't have anything original to show, you are lost in a crowd. And that's what happened to this really decent game. The weapons and the graphics are nothing to write home about, the heroes are a bit cliched, the cooperation between them is the best part, but that's just not enough. [Apr 2008]

The concepts that work in an online shooter not necessarily translate directly to a game consisting of swordplay, archery and area spells, as this example proves. The simplified and shallow rules don't leave much room for skill development that is crucial in every game that aims to foster longtime online competition. [Mar 2009]

It's just a hack'n'slash done (more or less) right, like Loki, Dungeon Siege, Titan Quest or grandpa Diablo. Nothing more, nothing less and it wouldn't be memorable at all, were it not for the cheeky cursor - a tiny winged lady sprite who offers helpful hints and abrasive but to the point commentary of our doings. [May 2008]

Built of ready blocks and with graphics stuck somewhere between realism and cel-shading, it looks like a homage to the old 2D platformers, but it’s a game for children who, alas, never played them…Spidey cocoons the enemies, shoots the web, topples the bigger baddies to save the day and this game. What a pity that the opponents pose absolutely no challenge, no matter their size. [Dec 2007]

Interesting story and good looks won't get you anywhere if you have just the ancient keyboard and mouse to control your character fighting several enemies at the time. And there is no other way but forward, from one quest to another, so when you are blocked by a vicious bug or when a vanquished foe who clearly was swinging a sword drops a cabbage again, you can but sit and weep. [Apr 2008]

A horror that isn't scary? Fail. Awkward controls are tiring, gameplay is shockingly plain. There is a lot of new concepts, but technical deficiencies take out the fun from this game. For example the fires are amazing, but fireproof wood does the whole idea in. [Aug 2008]

Just a few attack moves in a fighting game - that does not bode well. Sometimes a thing or two flashes in the chaos of the combat and draws our attention, but in the end this tired Devil May Cry imitation gives out the moan of a loser crushed by superior contenders. [Apr 2009]

The only saving grace is the excellent, original voice acting. Instead of taking up the investigative work we are forced to partake in a string of minigames that could well serve as the developmental tools in the kindergarten, were it not for their gruesome matter. The ancient, two dimensional, low resolution graphics is also a grim joke. [Mar 2009]