You need to know the sport to master it - hence no 10/10 this year - but PS3's greatest sports series is on the verge of once more dominating all contemporaries. [June 2016, p.94]

Valkyria Chronicles has had a rocky history in the West, with the third game never even hitting our shores, but Valkyria Chronicles 4 is just what the fans ordered. [Issue#155, p.96]

It suffers from a couple unfortunate problems but counters these with some neat new innovations. [July 2012, p.101]

A wild and varied sandbox shooter that dazzles with sublime scenery and delights with a thriving animal ecosystem. Frosty fun guaranteed. [Jan 2015, p.75]

An essential purchase for anyone with two thumbs. [Dec 2009, p.18]

The combat's a bit bust but not a deal-breaker, and the characters are deep and likeable enough to make for good company for the 12 or so hours you'll spend with them. [Christmas 2008, p.84]

Enchanting. [May 2018, p.81]

There's something hugely satisfying about playing Civilization: Revolution. It feels clever, but it's actually about as educational as reading the ingredients off a box of Cheerios and pretending you've got a PhD in chemistry. [July 2008, p.102]

Looking for a content-crammed explore-'em-up for your Vita? Well, dig no further. [March 2014, p.92]

Prettier and choked with superfluous PS4 control additions, yet still the same brilliant game underneath. Never played it? Buy this. Want to re-play it? Stick to the PS3 version.

It looks, sounds and feels like nothing else out there, and while you might not squeeze quite as much out of it, you're still looking at the first great gaming experience of 2013. Welcome back, old pal.

A cunning, demanding game, but never overwhelming or confusing. It wants to challenge you, but it also wants you to succeed, feeling like the coolest killer of all. [Oct 2017, p.96]

At last! The long-awaited PlayStation release proves that great game design never dies, and now it's even better with Cross-Buy. Fresh hell, hot from the infernal BBQ. [Dec 2015, p.79]

An engaging fantasy visual novel elegantly supplemented with an addictive and unique sport, Pyre is a true original. As gaming obsessions go, it burns bright, if not long. [Oct 2017, p.93]

An assured, confident outing with barrels of both quantity and quality. Physical play is more rewarding than last year; attacking play's more excitingly incisive, and The Journey's a great experiment. [Dec 2016, p.74]

This sequel's main addition is that you can now play co-op online as well as locally. If you manage to get a good trio together the game is best enjoyed in threes, so it's definitely a good addition – although snapping between the characters (using the trigger buttons) is so instant that nothing gets lost if you choose to go solo. Beyond that it's an extension of the old formula, but when that formula involves some challenging gameplay and this much prettiness, that's no bad thing.

The combat's deep and spectacular, the climbing is slick and intuitive, and the story's got enough depth behind the flashy hero/villain hook to fully merit that all-important second playthrough. There's genuinely nothing else like inFamous on PS3. [June 2009, p.82]

Finishing a race carries as much emotional punch as entire other games. [Aug 2017, p.94]

Makes the sport feel like it should: sometimes laconic, often dangerous and always, really, really hard. Which, of course, is what makes it such fun. [Nov 2007, p.96]

Precise platforming and readable challenge delivers on the Crash 4 promise. There’s heaps of challenge, but some new additions are a bit of a letdown.[Issue#181, p.81]

A brilliantly put together game, ambitious but not over-extended, lovingly crafted and devilishly designed. [June 2007, p.96]

An essential play if you've never had the chance, Gone Home is an engrossing journey through a universal tale and has a personality unlike anything else on PS4. [March 2016, p.92]

As you can jump around the timeline easily, the game never feels punishing. If you’re curious about visual novels, this is where to start. At times, this is one of the funniest games you’ll ever play as you follow these quirky characters through this stressful day, but thanks to their humanity, the emotional moments hit home all the harder. [Issue#155, p.82]

Personality, guns and destruction are Bad Company's strongest cards and it plays them hard. [Aug 2008, p.98]

The spirit if Studio Ghibli lingers, mostly thanks to Joe Hisaishi's score. But this sequel isn't as charming or bold as its new features would have you believe. [May 2018, p.71]

This disconcerting gem is a stimulating puzzler, and a well-judged use of PS VR, with a richly ambiguous story. It's not the longest game around, but it'll linger in your memory for weeks. [July 2016, p.80]

Not a lot has changed, but then not a lot had to. The characters remain the best reason to get stuck into some dastardly tactical combat. [July 2016, p.91]

While classic content and damage still feel underwhelming and the formula has been tweaked rather than reworked, this has the best career mode in any racing game. [Issue#154, p.91]

Combine this game with imported levels from the past two, as well as everything being playable in PS VR, and Hitman 3 is a must-play stealth masterclass. Even the least favourite levels in this new selection are full of memorable moments. The weaknesses seem to lie in limited variety, but you’ll still spend hours unravelling even those. You can spend as much time on an individual destination as you would any Triple-A action game. Dartmoor’s atmosphere and family conspiracy is a highlight; Mendoza’s another, with a fancy party held in a winery fronting some intense security and a guarded villa above. It’s interesting that both feel very much inspired by Hitman: Contracts’ Beldingford Manor and Blood Money’s A Vintage Year, but it’s a testament to the design that they manage to feel so distinct, highlighting just how impressive the near flawless execution of social stealth is here. [Issue#185, p.76]

The only real letdown is that you're not really under any serious pressure - the threat of imminent death is an illusion. The spectacle is there: huge explosions, last-minute rescues and desperate stand-offs against impossible odds. But the enemy AI lacks aggression. [Sept 2007, p.100]

It could do with a little more polish, but Mordor is still one of this year's better surprises. [Dec 2014, p.88]

Like LittleBigPlanet the scope is there to make just about anything, and you can fully expect to see some amazing versions of familiar songs, but you'll need to put the hours in. [Christmas 2008, p.108]

Tekken fans will wait for Namco's own Tekken X Street Fighter to really sink their teeth into, but for the SF devout and series agnostic fighting fans, SFKT offers finely tuned and emergent action and a positively regal rumble of the genre's celebrated a-listers.

A breath of fresh air, full of smart thinking and new ideas - and it looks incredible. [Aug 2015, p.91]

Far deeper than it first appears - though its extended loading times do leave a bitter aftertaste. [June 2011, p.109]

The pounding beats and explosions of colour that used to punch you square in the brain fade into the background as time slows and TxK arrests every second of your attention the way few games ever can.

F1 2010 is fantastic. You'll feel cheated at times, but no other racer makes one overtake seem like popping champagne corks on the podium, or makes you feel like Stirling Moss when you cross the line in seventh. Sure, it's cruel: but it's one of the most terrifying and intense racers ever made as a direct result. [Oct 2010, p.96]

Everything that's good about Fight Night Champion is the stuff that's been least fiddled with from Round 4. [Apr 2011, p.100]

In too many ways this is identical to the last game. That's not necessarily a bad thing - "RE4" is one of the greatest games ever made because it rewrote the rules for action games, setting a template for everything from "Dead Space" to "Dark Sector." Because of that this is still a damn near essential purchase. It's just a shame that the lack of evolution means it occasionally feels like it's lagging behind the very competitors it inspired. [Mar 2009, p.80]

Both games include 3D for the first time in the franchise. [Nov 2011, p.116]

More than merely a 20 copy of Dark Souls, Salt And Sanctuary has some of the most multidimensional, exquisite gaming torture you'll ever endure. A must-buy. [May 2016, p.88]

Dark Souls Remastered is more or less the same game from back in 2011, but what's remarkable is just how incredible it still is to play, despite all the later imitators. An essential RPG. [Issue#151, p.86]

Parts of the script are, sadly, not as timeless as I'd imagined in the '90s, but in all other areas this deserves its classic status. Keep the remasters coming, Double Fine. [May 2016, p.93]

For a couple of pounds more than the cost of a burrito, it’s a tasty morsel of personality – but prepare yourself for a technically demanding challenge.

Translating the series’ brawling to turn-based fights with modern twists, this walks the line between laugh-out-loud comedy and gripping crime drama with ease. More Kasuga, please. [Issue#182, p.144]

If you’ve already sampled the delights of this series one way or another, rebuying content you already own is understandably a hard sell.But if you’ve never embraced the heat of the kitchen, allowed it to burn bridges between you and your loved ones, on the couch or online: you owe it to yourself to add this tasty treat to your PS5 library. [Issue#183, p.81]

The return of designed, not generated, tracks is massively welcome, and the visual upgrade is superb. A masterclass in consequence-tempered driving, this is simply the best rally sim yet. [Issue#160, p.94]

Satisfying in parts in a way that only kicking a supernatural wolf can be, but it doesn't quite recreate the satisfying ebb and flow of other beat-'em-ups. [Spring 2011, p.106]

It's achieved a vicious racing experience that thrills so much more than it frustrates, and it's pushed vehicular multiplayer forward significantly, setting the bar so high it's hard to imagine who can better it.

A focused and nuanced game that addresses the majority of Human Revolution's flaws without feeling like a retread. There's a real experimental thrill, but niggles with the story and engine weaken the experience. [Oct 2016, p.88]

A great solo experience; an extraordinary multiplayer one. [Dec 2014, p.95]

This set new standards in creating exhilarating set-pieces and pacing. [Nov 2011, p.96]

From a purely technical perspective, there's no question that it merits full marks. But for all of the things it does right, and there are many of them, Killzone 3 doesn't revolutionize or advance its genre in gameplay terms. [Feb 2011, p.91]

The only thing counting against all this is the overall size of the package. [Sept 2009, p.102]

Own PS VR? Then Thumper needs to be part of your gaming collection. Don't own a PS VR? Thumper still needs to be part of your gaming collection. It's that simple. [Dec 2016, p.88]

A punishing, defiantly old-school adventure. [May 2015, p.94]

From the cinematics to the script to the sound design, Chicken Police delivers. If you’re a lover of film noir aesthetics and solid witty dialogue, peck it up. [Issue#183, p.67]

A solid, nostalgic fighter, but lack of depth in the core combat means it's unlikely to hold you attention for long in a crowded genre - and Street Fighter still pummels it into the dirt. [June 2011, p.102]

From one angle, you've seen much of it before, but it's never looked so searingly brilliant, or felt so surging. [Mar 2008, p.94]

A decent enough start blossoms into a rush of "greatest hits" set-pieces that will leave Uncharted fans eager for more from the lead duo, and send newcomers hunting eagerly for the original games. [Nov 2017, p.88]

Without a doubt, Wargroove has captured the genre on PS4. [Issue#166, p.84]

As a package Soulcalibur VI lacks the polish of recent fighters, especially in the story mode, but the core gameplay, honed over many years, offers some of the sharpest duels on PS4. [Issue#156, p.88]

A better game than the original, but also a less even one. [Feb 2009, p.94]

Leaves the majority of its competitors languishing in its slipstream - with a glorious pile of fresh debris raining down around them. [June 2010, p.100]

The dialogue's sharp and well-acted, and the puzzles never stray into the ridiculous or contrived. It simply feels like playing the comic, and that's as strong an endorsement for a season pass as you'll hear. Roll on episode two.

It's the best footy game on PSP, but isn't a big step up from last time out - and therefore stops short of a 9/10. [Christmas 2008, p.96]

The first twin-stick shooter of the next generation has a good chance of being PS4’s dark-horse killer app at the console’s launch. It’s hard to remember ever having quite this much fun whizzing around blowing up things in space. Resogun showcases how stunning arcade games can look with PS4 tech.

Shift is the racer NFS could've only dreamed of evolving into last year. [Nov 2009, p.132]

An unusually complex driving game that demands real dedication and only fully reveals its true power once you've put the mileage in. [Jan 2011, p.108]

It's also more predictable, with fewer affecting decisions than the first part, but that's not to say that you won't umm and ahh over what to do on multiple occasions. This is still an excellent piece of narrative-driven gaming, where you grow attached to the cast and enjoy/endure the consequences of your actions. It's where Heavy Rain meets the zombie apocalypse, and that should be enough to sell anybody.

In a year of shining PSN goodness, Guardian of Light draws its guns against DeathSpank, Shank and Scott Pilgrim and shoots them like endagered animals. [Issue#51, p.102]

It could easily be tedious, and it's certainly templated. But the diversions are good enough, the hero personalised enough, and the ability to move around the world quick enough via your immediately available horse and map-skipping fast travel, that it feels like an adventure all the same. Plus, leaning down to slice enemies with a scythe from a horse makes it feel like you're playing demon polo, which is awesome.

This type of game is exactly what PSP needs more of. [May 2010, p.111]

Simply the best-ever reproduction of this high-speed, high-tech motorsport. It’s very familiar, but nonetheless noticeably superior to the 2018 game. Essential. [Issue#165, p.85]

A short but sweet turn-based nod to the original games that ends up celebrating Lara's heritage even better than Rise of The Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration. [Feb 2017, p.97]

Remains faithful to the original at all costs. [Sept 2014, p.108]

A clever mix of real-time and turn-based battling keps combat fresh and there's real tactical depth. [Nov 2007, p.112]

The constant pressure of combat, fuelled by rapid five-second respawns, keeps the action ripping along at a formidable pace. [Oct 2007, p.94]

It's a great example of how sports games should be done - both as a simulation that teases ever greater skill from all comers, and as a service to fans. [June 2009, p.88]

Monsters has a humble ambition, and succeeds in it without making too much fuss.

For a dark, cerebral and genuinely unique journey on Vita, this is peerless. [Jan 2013, p.108]

Agent 47's chrome dome has been polished until it positively squeaks. [July 2016, p.88]

Hitman's developed better than expected - but the onus is now on IO to keep adding content throughout the next year. [Issue#130, p.93]

Sam’s learned new tricks, gained an almighty toybox and feels righteously superhuman to control, but spreads himself thin in an effort to impress.

No huge changes have been made on the pitch, but thanks to improvements to The Journey and Ultimate Team, this is the most comprehensive and beautiful game of football on PS4. [December 2017, p.84]

What counts is that, once mastered, Vanquish has arguably the best example of third-person gunplay yet committed to Blu-ray. [Issue#51, p.112]

It's gently hypnotic stuff, but fight a dozen super-intelligent skeletons and you'll soon be yearning for the simple pleasures of "Lumines." [Mar 2007, p.111]

For once, it's a brilliant update of a genuine classic. [Sept 2008, p.104]

NHL 13's a hockey fan's dream in many ways, pursuing realism and depth at the expense of newcomer accessibility. It's still a few good ideas away from the elite sports franchises, but I'll be tweaking tactics, refining rosters and racing against icing calls right up until 14 laces its skates.

The platforming gameplay itself is simple, but in conjunction with the lovely art style and excellent soundtrack, there are times when Sound Shapes becomes a genuine joy. [Oct 2012, p.119]

A supremely confident blaster that's delicious like a midnight Domino's [Jan 2013, p.115]

A playground of destruction like nothing else you can buy. [Apr 2011, p.108]

A confident reimagining of a reimagining. [Apr 2015, p.86]

It's as good as PES has ever been, but with enough tweaks to feel different with the ball at your feet. As always, give yourself time to get used to the new iteration. [Nov 2017, p.83]

With no campaign to test your trigger finger, the trio of a safe (albeit polished) battle royale, waning multiplayer, and rotting Zombies make BLOPS4 feel like a relic next to a post-Forsaken Destiny 2. [Issue#156, p.94]

A nostalgia trip for Castlevania fans, a flawed but enjoyable adventure for others. Prepare to look up a guide every now and then to find your way, though. [Issue#165, p.87]

A surprising, raucous, lovingly updated loot-fest. [Aug 2013, p.93]

A very enjoyable mix of activities set in one of the most elegant open worlds on PS4. Ghost Of Tsushima does nothing particularly new but it does it all to a high standard. [Issue#178, p.71]