Codemasters has a record of making its racing games shine visually and aurally and DiRT 3 is no different... Each vehicle has its own timbre, and with the inclusion of the riotous Group B cars and bespoke Gymkhana terriers the soundscape has been pushed further than ever before. Revving them out to redline and listening to the motor screaming and straining the bolts is a primordial joy where noise and fury fuel your desire to push these things harder. [July 2011 p.80]

This year's game is also more of a sim than ever before as the handling model is tougher to crack than a Kevlar-coated walnut... Yet, it's ultimately not worth your time. There's an amazing sense of speed but the feedback's muted in the way the bikes brake, and the first time you jam on the anchors you'll still cascade into the gravel. Adjusting to this is by an approximation of feel – there's little visual indication or general feedback that your rider is yanking on the front lever and squeezing the ball of his foot on the brake pedal, so you just need to guess how much space to give yourself. It's also about as pretty as a bag full of elbows. [June 2011 p.79]

Problematically, because the dancing is scored by your hand movements alone, you don't really have to be particularly invested in proceedings to fudge your way through... Your overall enjoyment of Michael Jackson The Experience will obviously depend on how much you love MJ and how blitzed you are on Fruity Lexia. That said, if you're expecting a package on par with the likes of The Beatles: Rock Band forget about it. While the latter was more or less a love letter to the music of The Beatles, Michael Jackson The Experience is a late night booty call. The King of Pop deserved better. [June 2011 p.78]

The way the series approaches DLC will continue to divide; Tiger Woods 12 features 16 courses on the disc but a further 20 are already available as DLC... The game needs a course creator; it's a feature PC golf games had last century. [June 2011 p.78]

Fun in small doses... it's a good knockabout title. [June 2011 p.74]

Red River stands out as the more intelligent but vaguely scruffier cousin amongst the likes of Call of Duty, Homefront and Crysis 2. What you have is a thinking man's game that begs to be played in co-op. PS3 owners have been screaming for a great game to play with mates who will work towards the same goal, and this is it. [June 2011 p.73]

That Valve has been able to imbue so much depth to what is, at its heart, a sophisticated puzzle game proves once again it's not the genre that counts. It's the talent. Combine it with a superb physics-based game mechanic and you've got an experience that defies easy categorisation and can be recommended without reservation. [June 2011 p.67]

Ultimately Dragon Age II feels like a one step past, and two steps back from Origins. It has been specced purely with us console gamers in mind and now has a low barrier of entry that will rally new fans to the Dragon Age banner. That's admirable, but fans who did get into Origins will lament the less masterful storytelling and the noticeably uneven visual presentation. [May 2011 p.78]

Unfortunately the Move controls have turned out to be a real flop. Rather than the same sort of control over your racquet as, say, the ping pong in Sports Champions, Top Spin 4's controls feel significantly dumbed down. There really doesn't appear to be any connection between your player's arm and your actual arm – backhands you perform in your living room will be regularly interpreted as forehands by the game and there doesn't appear to be much difference between a spirited slog and a apathetic wiggle of the wrist. [May 2011 p.77]

Movie karaoke isn't a new phenomenon but Yoostar 2 has brought it into the videogame space with some digital wizardry. Yoostar 2, in that case, is to movie karaoke what Rock Band is to drumming along to the radio on your steering wheel. There are some technical imperfections; we found the lights in our office played hell with the camera and resulted in elements of the kitchen behind us popping up during gameplay as on-screen artefacts. Dimming the lights mostly fixed this but it remained a little grainy... Yoostar 2 is far from perfect but it is very different. [May 2011 p.76]

The biggest problem Bulletstorm has is that it's at odds with itself. It wants you to have a blast killing imaginatively, but gives you limited ammunition, uses cheap tactics and saves the best toys until way too late in the game. It wants you to revel in the wonderfully hackneyed story, but then suddenly gets all touchy feely, serious and humourless for no reason. [May 2011 p.75]

Like Test Drive Unlimited 2 before it the cutscenes in Apocalypse are universally terrible. The obviously deliberate digital comic approach feels cheap too, making the sequences feel like placeholders for real animation that never eventuated. It's all a bit childish, really, and features the worst approximation of a foreign accent since Christopher Lambert tried to sound like a Scotsman in Highlander. You'll know it when you hear it. We do question why Evolution bothered devoting manpower to the story mode and we'd be happy not to see it again. Fortunately, players will spend far more time playing Apocalypse than they will do with awful cutscenes. The racing is still furious and fun – and that's always the main thing. [May 2011 p.74]

It's official: Gran Turismo 5 is on notice. Like V8 Supercars 3 [Pro Race Driver 3] wooed us from GT4 back in the halcyon days of PS2, SHIFT 2 Unleashed is currently busy courting us with its incredible sense of speed, well-rounded garage, long list of tracks and impressive attention to detail... Forget what you think you know about where Need for Speed games stand in the racing sim landscape because the crew at Slightly Mad Studios has just taken a bulldozer to it. [May 2011 p.72]

For a generation weaned on Rocky movies Fight Night Champion is the ultimate boxing experience. It sounds like a throwaway sentence, really. A platitude you toss at an otherwise good game to get the hard work out of the way. It's completely true though... What's particularly clever about Champion Mode is the way it pulls strings in the background to heighten the tension. During the fights throughout the story you might find yourself nursing a broken hand, or suddenly at the mercy of a bent referee or a desk full of bribed judges. Champion Mode will uppercut you with surprises like these, ones that require you to adjust the way you're fighting, across its duration. Champion Mode is bold, different and we absolutely want more of it. [May 2011 p.70]

Don't make the mistake of viewing Crysis 2 as a new shooter on the block that has to desperately prove itself to all the established PS3 heavy-hitters. In many ways it's actually the other way around. [May 2011, p.69]

It's a game world that makes you feel like a tourist, like anything and everything is worth looking at. If Team Bondi's Los Angeles was a skirt she'd be a blonde. A blonde to make a bishop kick a hole in a stained-glass window... Combining slow-paced adventure gaming with well-executed open-world action was an audacious experiment. Infusing it with state-of-the-art animation tech that pits you in a game of wits against virtual liars was equally bold. Staging all of that in the most richly detailed videogame environment we've ever seen was outrageous. Not only does it work, it works extraordinarily well. It's the evolution of the adventure game, merging slow-burning discovery with the freedom associated with an open-world backdrop. It's the Concorde of its category, rendering fondly-remembered classics like Police Quest akin to simply flapping your arms. [July 2011 p.78]

Charming and hard to stop playing. See for yourself what all the fuss is about. [April 2011, p.81]

Telltale has absolutely nailed the feel of the franchise and the charming visuals are a treat. Christopher Lloyd is great as Doc Brown and newcomer A.J. LoCascio's impersonation of Michael J. Fox's Marty has to be heard to be believed. The music, a blend of cues from Alan Silvestri's memorable original score with a hint of Huey Lewis, is near perfect. [April 2011, p.81]

Sloppy. Lazy. Derivative. That sums up Spare Parts, from its level and character design to the actual coding. [April 2011, p.80]

Wonderfully unique and truly intoxicating. Double Fine strikes again. [April 2011, p.80]

What you have is a game that feels like it only has 85 per cent of its content, and a few fighters are horrendously overpowered or have spam-tastic attacks – Phoenix and Sentinel are prime offenders. However, if it was a choice between something that looks and plays as well as this, or had tonnes in it but felt as rough as a $3 steak, we know which one we'd pick. And it looks like we got it. [Apr 2011, p78]

The fighting component, however, is where the game hits a stumbling block. More depth to the combat could have really made this a winner, as you really only have a dozen or so regular attacks and "specials" (and that's when you level cap out at 30) combined, so it can get old after a while. SOE may be hard pressed to sustain interest. [April 2011, p.76]

Each time it wows you with a neat touch it dashes your enthusiasm with something else. For instance, we get working convertibles but we don't get working windscreen wipers (odd in a game with cabin view and wet weather effects). Just when you're getting into the driving an unskippable cutscene full of people who share more in common with trust-fund babies and hotel heiresses than actual racing drivers yanks you away from the open road. And why is everyone on Ibiza American, including the police? It's jarring and cringe worthy. [April 2011, p.74]

Those of you expecting instant gratification best move along to another playground. Yakuza 4 is a slow burn and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. The balance between intense brawling, wacky distractions and convoluted exposition is deep and detailed and guarantees you endless hours of enjoyment [April 2011, p72]

Feelplus has been so single-minded in their efforts to create a unique drop-in/out multiplayer concept, they forgot the importance of welding it onto a singleplayer game that's worth replaying and buddying-up for in the first place. And without other humans running through your game, helping, hindering – or just making things interesting at all – you're stuck playing a mind-numbing shell of a game. Or, as the case will be, not playing it. [Mar 2011, p.79]

It's hard to imagine casual types persisting with Apache for too long. It's certainly good enough for a game of its ilk but, once the novelty of pounding the ground wears thin, that's it. With just a single type of helicopter available it lacks the variety you get in most other air combat sims. [March 2011, p78]

Well worth the price of admission to earn yourself a seat. But you'll only really need the edge of it. [Mar 2011, p77]

Lush, beautifully rendered graphics with amazing particle physics. You'll not see a demonic custard tart explode more realistically... LBP2 is already a contender for game of the year. [March 2011, p74]

Yes, ME2 isn't perhaps the most technical RPG ever created, but it's easily one of the slickest, bearing the unmistakable master craftsmanship of RPG luminaries, BioWare. Not only is this supersized Sony edition of ME2 outstanding value for money – it also represents a sound long-term investment. If the Mass Effect 3 reveals are anything to go by, the conclusion of this saga will be similarly unmissable and the galactic apocalypse will be decided in our own backyard: Earth. [March 2011, p70]

Killzone 3 stands as a fantastic entry to the series and an engrossing action romp for any fan of the first-person shooter genre. All of the things we loved about Killzone 2 have made a return and have been built upon. However, with some minor issues across the board and a campaign length that's a little too Modern Warfare 2 for our liking, Killzone 3 is held back from the dizzying heights of perfection. [March 2011, p64]

Great multiplayer. Quality, yet anorexic single-player. Knock [20] points off this score if you're an offline-only gamer. [April 2011, p.68]

Obviously, after eleven years the visuals haven't fared so well either. Back in the pre-GTA days Sega's take on San Fran was drool-worthy. Nowadays it's like driving through a bad cubist nightmare. Newer gamers who go in expecting some of the modern creature comforts – like traffic AI, lip synching or a physics system that makes a lick of sense – will be slapped in the face with a culture shock. Anyone who doesn't want their objective arrow to act like a broken ouija board won't like this game much either. [February 2011 p81]

While the learning curve is a little steep, the combat and weaponry has an extremely different feel and is well worth a look for the bargain price of 20 bucks. [February 2011 p81]

But for every archaic design choice that's needlessly re-trodden for the sake of sticking to 'the blueprint', Sonic 4 introduces other new features that help to replace the nostalgia with a bit more substance. Just the simple ability to quick-jump to any zone, act or special stage in any order (and to compete with your mates scores and times) makes this instantly better than its predecessors. Long-suffering Sonic fans rejoice; the magic is back. [February 2011 p80]

Championship Edition DX is superbly balanced. It rewards skilled players with a great challenge and extremely frantic gameplay, while those that initially struggle won't feel unfairly punished when the game speed knocks itself down every time Paccers dies. You will crave to beat your highscore on the litany of tables, and every time you complete a round something new opens up. [February 2011 p80]

It helps that the graphics have been revamped, and they bloom into widescreen HD. It's a given that they look better than the PS2 originals, but even more importantly they don't betray your memory of how good they looked. [February 2011 p 78]

NBA Jam always succeeded by being better with friends, and that hasn't changed. There's an updated remix mode with a few new modes that are more gimmick and curious distractions than serious contenders for your time. You'll get the most amount of playtime out of the standard mode, especially when you're really dominating a game against your mates. [February 2011 p78]

The list of faults we've found during our time with GT5 is surprisingly long. And yet, we just keep playing it, and playing it. For all its foibles the profoundly realistic handling keeps drawing us back. The desire to tune up competitive cars from old pusbuckets keeps us fiddling with air filters and extractors. We'll criticise the final product, but that doesn't stop us drooling over the supersexeriffic premium car models, lavished with the kind a detail that we just did not anticipate seeing this generation. [February 2011 p72]

Demanding. You'll love it and curse it at the same time. Much better with friends. [January 2011 p80]

Chains of Olympus was a pretty title, but even it stands as nothing compared to this graphical juggernaut. While there's no denying that the scenes depicted within can't compare with the exercise in colossal that was God of War III, the amazingly high fidelity of the graphics are guaranteed knock your sandals off in other ways. Don't let the seemingly diminutive size of the PSP fool you, this is one of the best games in the GOW series. [January 2011 p80]

Multiplayer is pretty limited in variety, all team-based, and with a fistful of maps. Couple this annoyance with the fact that the rest of the game doesn't attempt to raise the bar in any way – and only lasts a paltry five hours – and Blood Stone starts to feel like a very pedestrian shooter. Honestly, we doubt even Xenia Onatopp on herbal Viagra could squeeze thrills out of this short ride. [January 2011 p79]

Splatterhouse's aesthetic is little bit late '80s and a little bit late '90s, like it started development a lot longer than a few years ago. From Rick's baggy nu-metal shorts to the crusty thrash riffage that occasionally paraphrases a good beat-down, it's all curiously dated in a cool kind of way – just like the license it seeks to re-imagine. While it lacks the production values and fluidity of God of War III, it does ultimately champion excessive carnage for excessive carnage's sake. [January 2011 p78]

As a standalone game it's the best music game available, even though it arguably has the weaker soundtrack compared to Rock Band and Rock Band 2. But it feels a little hollow as a standalone game; it needs you to build a massive library to fully exploit it. [January 2011 p76]

It's also a problem that punches and kicks don't usually feel as powerful as you'd like. In Fight Night haymakers sounded like truck accidents. Here they kind of feel like slightly over-zealous high-fives. [January 2011 p75]

Clocking in at a paltry five hours to complete on 'hard', The Force Unleashed II feels shorter than an Ewok's genitals. Length hang-ups aside, Lucasarts has tightened up almost everything iffy about the original game, but they also managed to drop a hydro-spanner into the parts that were working fine to begin with. For example, TFU had a stellar, award-winning Star Wars plot – this sequel's storyline comes dangerously close to breaking established canon and, like Jabba's Sarlacc, it sucks you in, only to take you absolutely nowhere. [January 2011 p74]

So while you'll be unconvinced by the visuals and voices behind the boy and his beast, when the Majin goes harumphing into battle to save you from the latest onslaught of sinister humanoid ooze, stopping only to breathe his healing gingivitis all over your battered body, you'll find yourself wondering; why this has done for you what the massive production of Enslaved could not. The answer? Heart, baby. Kid's got heart. [January 2011 p72]

We suspect that last year's excellent Shift didn't make as much of an impact as EA anticipated. That semi-serious sim has given way to a positively Burnout inspired iteration that liberally takes the better bits of old NFS titles and makes this gorgeous fast paced treat. [January 2011 p70]

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood is a more than a worthy addition to the series canon. The similar setting of renaissance Italy will trick folks into assuming this is a half-arsed expansion, but honestly, this feels like Assassin's Creed 2.99. Don't be fooled by Brotherhood's cunningly familiar disguise. Mark it as a fresh target, pounce and take it down. [January 2011 p66]

Call of Duty: Black Ops still represents one hell of a hefty package. It's bursting with hundreds of hours of entertainment that caters to every conceivable configuration of gamer out there, be they an adversarial gamer, a co-op connoisseur or a staunch offline soloist. [January 2011 p60]

Unlike Super Street Fighter IV each character here is truly unique; no two fighters are the same as each other so you're guaranteed of an interesting battle, and also longevity. This just feels like a better game all round, and while it feels great it's not for everyone. The flavour is distinctly Japanese, so if you've weaned yourself on countless anime and manga, and don't mind some Engrish, then Continuum Shift should be on your shelf right now [December 2010 p81]

Though your moves become bigger, faster, flashier, you'll rarely feel like Spider-Man. We've often thought of him as being a fluid, dynamic character and in Shattered Dimensions he's anything but, as he gets 'stuck' for a moment when transitioning onto a wall from the ground, or not being able to stick to certain objects. Not all surfaces can be clambered, and forget about web swinging and leaping onto a wall in one motion. Also, why have we gone back to swinging from invisible hooks in the sky? Hadn't we done away with that [December 2010 p80]

You'll burn through each movie pretty fast; there are only a few hours of gameplay here. The levels are designed with unlockables in mind to prompt multiple playthroughs. If you get sucked into high scores you'll likely want to give it a few goes to try and boost it. [December 2010 p79]

Unfortunately we just found the system makes the fighting itself feel quite alien and unsettling. It's that feeling of only partial control you get when you're reaching in from behind someone and using their own arms to teach them perform a task, combined with those dreams you occasionally have where your punches are all weak and flaccid despite the fact you feel like you're putting enough energy behind them to punch the rings off Saturn. [December 2010 p79]

There's really been nothing else quite like it this generation, which makes comparison difficult, and its one misstep is the fact that its only online component is a paltry ranking system. In truth, having multiplayer inside the chaotic sphere of Vanquish would have made Mikami's latest baby the prodigal son of third-person shooters. There's always next time though. [December 2010 p78]

The overall presentation is pretty dire and it's got no spark. Daly's been on the wagon since July this year but that doesn't mean you can't still have a little fun. We've seen the guy tee off from a beer can. We're talking about a man who has admitted the only reason he doesn't lift weights is because his health club doesn't let him smoke there. As it stands ProStroke Golf is about as sedate as a sloth on a triple course of tranquilisers. [December 2010 p75]

As a cerebral challenge SAW II is refreshing, fares noticeably better than the rushed original and is bloodier than an abattoir killing floor. That said, if you buy it expecting action that feels as visceral as the subject matter, you'll soon feel trapped with no way out. [December 2010 p76]

Hardcore lovers of the sport will relish the challenge, enjoy every throttling by the AI, and take their skills online. But there'll only be so many times basketball punters will endure this level of difficulty without reverting to Tourette-like hysterics. So yes, it's complex. And yes, the experience oscillates between sublime and diabolical between each game, but basketball is a complex sport. With such unparalleled presentation and unapologetic gameplay, this is likely the best basketball game ever. [December 2010 p76]

Shaun White Skateboarding just feels a bit limp. The skating itself is competent but not tactile, and trekking back to a skate shop, rather than just an in game menu, to buy moves wears thin after a short while. Kudos for finding a way of distinguishing the game from its competitors, but Skate 2 is still chairman of the board. [December 2010 p75]

While the fixed-camera isn't always your friend and the platforming relies too much on trial-and-error death, this is still one hell of a tight package. Give Castlevania: Lords of Shadow a chance to sink its fangs into you and you'll be surprised about how exquisite and long lasting its embrace can be. [December 2010 p74]

Time Crisis isn't exactly gaming's Hamlet, but Razing Storm is actually a lot more dumbed down than Time Crisis 4. Deadstorm Pirates is the third game and requires a big install. It's Time Crisis with pirates. Pirates armed with laser targeting fully-automatic flintlock pistols. We'll let that description hang [December 2010 p73]

As always, the music and the mixes make or break this package. The reuse of tracks is nowhere near as abusive this time around and, honestly, if you can't appreciate the overwhelming majority of tunes here then you're probably squarer than Spongebob. Drop these morbidly obese beats into some new multiplayer modes (that are actually worth playing this time), or let them run forever in the GH5-inspired jukebox mode to create one hell of a party apparatus. [December 2010 p72]

A wild ride, and worth the price of admission, but you've been on this one before. [December 2010 p71]

Do you have a job? Book holidays immediately. Girlfriend, boyfriend? Dump them, or tell them not to call for the next few weeks. We've found one of the most addictive and accessible PSN titles ever. [November 2010 p80]

Combat is both satisfyingly bloody and bloody satisfying. [November 2010 p80]

Evolved's fun but you'll feel little attachment to it and once the campaign's over you won't ache to go back through. [November 2010 p78]

What it doesn't do, however, is evolve the series in any truly beneficial way. Rather than make meaningful improvements to the game itself, Neversoft has focused on the more immediate gimmicks. [November 2010 p77]

Dead Rising 2 is what you wanted it to be, but it unfortunately suffers on a technical level with too many loading screens and bogus screen tearing. Despite these minor setbacks this is one of 2010's best games. [November 2010 p77]

It's a superb rally game capturing the spirit and the thrills. Recommended. [November 2010 p74]

The facial animations, the explosive combat moves and virtual acting are all top notch, elevating Enslaved to being an above-average action game. Also, there's an enthralling story being told here with entertaining characters and it proves difficult to put the controller down. [November 2010 p72]

This series is no longer for football puritans. Its for Pro Evolution puritans, and has the same strengths and weaknesses as its last few iterations. The animation and player models are brilliant, but there's still an oppressive, drab tone that could suck the fun out of a happy meal. [November 2010 p70]

Yes, we have a deeply romantic view of FIFA 11. After our initial concerns it would be too sim-like, EA have rounded the edges and made a representation of the world game that rings true. Every soccer fan will be playing this for the next 12 months. Acquire on sight. [November 2010 p68]

There's a difference between a game that is wacky and a game that is wack. Kung Fu Rider desperately tries to be the former but winds up being the latter. [November 2010 p67]

Start the Party! is great for younger kids, but the young at heart will find the fun is spread pretty thinly. The game also doesn't completely live up to its title as a 'party starter', or its exclamation point for that matter. This mainly because 'multiplayer' is a missed opportunity thanks to it relying upon a pass-and-play style rather than head-to head. [November 2010 p67]

We're impressed with this, and you should be too. Sports Champion is a strong first showing, and a great example of the strength of motion controls. [November 2010 p66]

F1 2010 is Codemasters doing what it does best. Unadulterated, realistic racing. It doesn't lose its way with a trailer full of empty energy drink cans and promo girl panties; it focuses on the job at hand. That job is to make you feel like an F1 driver and, in this department, F1 2010 far exceeds our expectations. [November 2010 p64]

The Medal of Honor series has been a bit of a shambles ever since Medal of Honor: Frontline. The quality of this contemporary reboot, then, might surprise you. The presentation is terrific. It's a far more realistic and compelling single-player campaign than either Modern Warfare 2 or Bad Company 2; we were hugely engrossed and thoroughly recommend it. [Nov. 2010, p.60]

The graphics are as strong as the combat. While everything's very simple it all runs smoothly and everything's nicely animated. Cutscenes tend to drag, though, and some of the voice acting will have you cringing, but we're truly impressed by the size of the game and the direction. [Oct 2010 p78]

When everything is laid out in the debriefing, it's clear that H.A.W.X. 2 has made worthy improvements on an already solid concept. True, the adversarial multiplayer still won't ignite many people's afterburners, but almost everything else about the game has been tweaked as per player feedback. If you enjoyed the first title, you should definitely engage. If you were on the fence, we think there's enough new stuff here to make you bank over. [Oct 2010 p.72]

As an RTS game R.U.S.E. succeeds. It's tough and it's tight. As an RTS game, however, it's destined to only be embraced by a small, hardcore community. [Oct 2010 p.75]

You're missing the point if you barrel through this trying to complete the chapters like a workman ticking off his list of tasks. For better or worse, Mafia II sometimes feels like more of a guided experience than a game but then you'll be totally engrossed some of the most epic firefights ever seen, and the sound design is amazing. [Oct 2010 p.68]

Shank is one of those games that sums itself up in its own title. It's also a game wears its influences proudly on its arm like a 'mum' tattoo. You're looking at a 2D brawler that nods at classic beat 'em ups and pretty much every arcade game released in the late '80s. Aesthetically it's a beautifully animated homage to the greatest graphic novels and golden-age comics. [Oct 2010 p.75]

The other main problems with Dog Days (besides the limitations of its ambitious visual style) are its length, its threadbare story and its realism identity crisis. Dog Days is a decent game by a talented developer, but it's still weighed down by these flaws. [Oct 2010 p.74]

Our biggest gripe is it's just too cheap and mean, leaving you very alone and swamped in single player against the hordes of enemies and overpowered bosses. Foes come thick and fast and players who charge at the edge of the screen whilst it's scrolling will get a sudden foot to the face for their eagerness [Oct 2010 p.76]

Enemies are flat-out dumb. On more than a dozen occasions we left Perseus (not voiced by Sam Worthington) standing in front of a foe, completely inert. He stood there for so long, not being attacked, that he sheathed his sword and stared back at the dullard in front of him. It took 18 seconds before anything happened. [August 2010 p78]

For the money you're laying down, Deathspank is like the glittering bags of swag it depicts. Highly-amusing and addictive as all hell. [September 2010 p78]

What LEGO Harry Potter is, then, is most probably exactly what you're expecting. A robust yet simple homage to an international phenomenon unleashed upon the world via the medium of coloured, plastic bricks. It's not going to give your PS3 an aneurysm, but it may cause children to spontaneously combust in excitement. [August 2010 p75]

Raven Software's deft handling of the oft-tricky notion of time travel disrupting the workings of the world is very clever. It's clever enough that, as you stand poised to make one of three ending-altering decisions at Singularity's calamitous finale, you're really not sure which choice to make. The question is, will you stick around that long? Most of you probably won't. [September 2010 p.74]

The biggest problem with Naughty Bear is, while it's subversive, unique and wildly imaginative, it's flawed in a few crucial areas. The camera is the worse offender. It isn't beyond managing, but it could've been more cooperative. [August 2010 p74]

Far from mindless but further from brilliance, War for Cyberton is fun without being engaging, ideal for an undemanding audience. [September 2010 p.76]

There’s depth here – you can tool about with settings, text chat to your engineers and view race telemetry – but it will frustrate some. The racing itself, though, is good. SBK fans will likely have a lot of time for this title. Solid, but not for everyone. [Aug 2009, p.68]

Toybox mode is where the game hits its peak, offering open-world style gameplay packed with mini challenges geared towards a generation of kids far too young to be powersliding buses through parked cars and prostitutes in Liberty City. [August 2010 p77]

Buy this game immediately – and a PSP if you must. As well as unfurling the Metal Gear Solid story just that little bit more, and spending more quality time with Snake, it's a truly excellent game in its own right. Engaging and rewarding, this is a solid package no gamer should miss. [August 2010 p68]

It’s simple really. If you’re not into Green Day – and honestly, we’re surprised you’ve read this far – you’ll likely feel it’s a load of dookie. If you are, however, welcome to paradise. [August 2010 p75]

Simple without being simplistic, this is a gem. It requires a bit of patience though. [September 2010 p79]

Push beyond the first world and the erratic difficulty spike (thankfully you can skip stages and come back to them) and you'll have fun with Voodoo Dice. It's a welcome distraction from the currently slew of action titles, though not an essential one. [September 2010 p79]

The main reason you will enjoy it is because the twin analogue stick controls are as simple as they are rewarding and each tackle is a cacophony of limbs that is extremely visceral. [July 2010 p73]

Obsidian has interpreted ‘be an aggressive hardcase’ as ‘be an obnoxious brat’ and, when it comes to suave, Thorton is about as subtle as sexual assault. It doesn’t help that his voice is about as intimidating as a slightly larger-than-usual cupcake. Basically Thorton is a jerkbag in need of a major identity realignment. [August 2010 p72]

UFC Undisputed 2010 may not have made leaps and bounds over its already excellent predecessor, but it is a straight jab in the right direction. [June 2010, p.68]