Bright, addictive and fun - Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker is a great addition to the DS adventure line-up.

About as mind-numbing as brain surgery, Lifesigns: Hospital Affairs concerns itself too much with gossip rather than gameplay. It's an utterly dull game that's better left on the operating table.

A brilliant game for Star Wars fans and DS fans alike, The Complete Saga combines childlike simplicity with fiendishly hidden depth, providing an involving experience you'll find difficult to beat.

An intuitive and absorbing puzzle game with a solid central concept. It just needs to branch out a little in order to join the puzzling elite.

Like a sniper taking aim from out of nowhere, SOCOM: Tactical Strike sets sights on PSP and emerges as one of the year's best. Phenomenal visuals, tight tactical gameplay, and unparalleled multiplayer make this a must-have title.

While it doesn't quite measure up to the best of the virtual pet breed, Shrek: Ogres and Dronkeys is an almost satisfying game that younger Shrek fans will enjoy.

Fantastically funny and an unwavering faithfulness to the source material help make this rather average 3D action adventure worth a furtive glance – it's just a shame that it's over so quickly.

While Call of Duty: Modern Warfare isn't likely to bring a unanimous verdict when it comes to FPS on DS, it makes the most compelling case so far.

A polished tie-in for pre-teens but it's singularly lacking in ideas, imagination or depth.

An unlikely classic, Disgaea is one of the most perfect expressions of freeform strategy gaming it's possible to imagine.

It's relatively entertaining but more as a result of its set-pieces, one-liners and occasional clever detail than its gameplay, which is uninspired.

Controversy aside, Manhunt 2 doesn't deliver gameplay entertaining enough to justify its sophomoric sense of humour. A lack of technical polish and censored elements prevent it from being anything more than a fleeting talking point.

A disappointingly half-baked piece of video game entertainment that should be returned to the chef immediately.

Dementium: The Ward comes in a pretty wrapper, offering an entertaining first-person adventure light on fright. Not the best candy in the basket, then, but it's certainly still worth a bite.

A decent mix of action and platform gameplay, but despite an interesting new feature, Crash of the Titans simply doesn't do enough to stand out in a sea of Nintendo DS titles.

A good-looking, deep and engaging package that should be in any self-respecting gamer's collection, save for the fact that many who lack the skill, talent and time to succeed in it won't be able to access at least half of what's on offer.

The third game in the much-loved lawyer-sim series makes a watertight case for classic status.

Naruto: Path of the Ninja may star a sprightly yellow-haired youth, but its gameplay is old and tired. Even fans of the manga are going to have a hard time choking down this stale piece of gaming.

A decent enough experience for younger players, the nine mini-games of EA Playground provide plenty of addictive – if not hugely challenging – fun.

Front Mission may not pack a full house of tactical depth, but that doesn't prevent it from dealing an easy and enjoyable introduction to the genre.

The Sims gets a survival game. A neat package of exploration and item-finding, but one that does get a bit tedious for all but the keenest of collectors.

Instead of setting its sights on liberty, the game should have perhaps concerned itself with offering a more engaging experience. Still, decent multiplayer and great graphics prevent this from being simply ordinary.

With clean graphics and fun mini-games, Music Jam is a good composition let down by slow pacing and poor music.

It's not original, but Tony Hawk's Proving Ground contains more stunts and features than you'll ever manage to roll your way through, and one of the most comprehensive multiplayer modes around.

A brave effort to bring vision training to the masses, Sight Training won't appeal to most and is undone by the blind spot of dullness.

It's been a long time coming but DS owners finally have a decent brawler to enjoy - Bleach: Blade of Fate offers peerless scrapping action.

Combining a colourful cartoon world with the pinball table, Flipper Critters provides an interesting – if unspectacular – mixture of gameplay.

Great action and excellent multiplayer modes make Renegade Squadron an enjoyable experience, even if the short single-player mode and substandard visuals keep it from reaching its full potential.