Bringing your very own creation up from nothing and turning them into a successful member of the gaming society can prove to be curiously addictive.

What the game could have done with is more content and a darned sight more polish – both of which it severely lacks.

There are games out there that are five and six years old that do point and clicking better than this. That’s not to say that it’s distinctly flawed, because it runs along just nicely. It’s just not very good.

An average game that looks like the characters were developed first, with the gameplay being filled in as the coders went along.

The game has been released many years too late and ultimately feels like a severely out-of-date RPG than one that’s just come off the shelves.

A solid game idea realised with some weak online play and a mixed graphical performance means that there are many titles that are more deserving of your money for the 360 right now.

Magna Carta has the look of a deep, impressive, addictive RPG. This is all unravelled by some ridiculously (even for an RPG) slowly-paced gameplay, some bad camera work, and some innovations that simply do not work.

Graphical improvements are minor, the gameplay enhancements are built to match and the AI is still as awful as it ever was.

Unique in that it is the only war strategy game available for the Xbox. It isn't unique in joining the stacks and stacks of mediocre games that take a good idea and turn it into a hollow and somewhat tedious experience.

So limited in multiplayer, fairly pointless in single player and far from anything that could be termed as “technically excellent”, Onimusha: Blade Warriors is a missed opportunity. What could have been a fantastic multiplayer game has ended up as a bit of a lame duck.

It’s probably the most depressingly average game I’ve ever encountered. It doesn’t even try to be good, because it can’t be bothered. It just plods along, at it’s own pace, chucking enemies at you every now and again.

Technically a poor game, but this is one time when the overall value is greater than the sum of the parts – just.

A missed opportunity. Dynasty Warriors was a poor attempt at a launch title, and whilst this second title in the Warriors series is a fair bit better, it still leaves a great deal to be desired.

Do you feel like hacking the living hell out of a thousand-plus enemy factions that you can easily defeat? Do you want to just repeatedly press the square button until you grow a blister? If so, then Devil Kings will be superb for you. If not, then you’re likely to be somewhat bored.

It is fair to say that I was completely amazed when I booted the PSP up for a quick go, and then realised that I was still playing the damned game four hours later. I can’t reiterate enough, that I never thought that a handheld FPS could work as well as this.

It does fail in attempting to create an identity of it’s own. Instead, choosing to plagiarise bits and pieces from successful titles within the genre that have come before it.

Good, clean fun. A solid concept, great execution and a ton of reasons to play again and again mean that this is a title that no PS2 owner could easily pass up.

Despite some putting issues that can be worked around and the fact that the “spin” system just doesn’t seem to work 90% of the time, the game holds up well and provides an involving experience that suits the system down to the ground.

If you can get past the delinquent, fiddly menus, then you can play a pretty decent third person stealth ‘em up, which has some ingenious little gimmicks and a decent storyline.

Basically more of the same, albeit with a little more freedom to roam.

As a Suikoden game, its lacking something - that sparkle, which could be found in the first two in the series. Suikoden IV may not be quite the Suikoden game we were hoping for, but a decent role-playing adventure none-the-less.

If you're after a genuinely funny game that features a massive challenge, then if you can overlook its obvious faults, Worms Forts: Under Siege will serve you well. The exploding refrigerators are just a bonus.

The touch screen – in short – just does not work for Touch & Roll.

Some high points aren’t enough to counteract the amount of confusion that reigns on the too-small screen, though, and we’re left with a somewhat average title.

Rating this game has never been easier. Stay the hell away from Gothic III. The amount of glitches in this game instantly ruins whatever experience it aimed to achieve. There are not enough patches in PC gaming history to sort this one out.

To be brutally honest, the flaws in the putting system kill the game almost completely dead.

A tiny map exists in the top right hand corner, but in a full race, it only indicates your position – which renders it useless when you need to know how far in front the leader is.

There are genuinely funny moments and the soundtrack and voiceovers are some of the best I've heard in a game for a long time, but that doesn't stop the action from being hackneyed and predictable.

Nothing comes across as 24 except for the plot and the cut scenes which is only a small part of it. I’m now off to get a Happy Meal and to watch Judy Garland sing with a bunch of midgets with funny hats.

Online play is fairly lag free and will add some longevity to the game, but the only thing that would really save Rumble Roses XX would be a whole new set of moves for each of the characters on offer. There are only so many times you can punch and kick your opponent until they’re vulnerable to a pinfall before you start looking elsewhere for your thrills.

I don't think I've ever been more bored when playing a game. Punch, kick, throw into wall, throw into wall, punch, throw into wall, “Godzilla 2000 wins!”, next round...ad infinitum.

Prudish I am not, but some of the in-game "action" can be fairly shocking simply because you don't expect it of a videogame.

One for multiplayer action mainly then, but still much, much better than the last few Olympic attempts.

The customary mix of strategy and swordplay leaves both elements under-developed and a game so unremittingly dull it will, while failing to even poke about somewhere near the limits of the Xbox 360, quickly stretch your patience to breaking point.

Like long car journeys, rainy days or when there's nothing on TV, playing Trapt is one of those times when you have to make your own fun. The only real puzzle here is who but the most ardent strategy fans and death fetishists will bother.

If I was to offer you a game that freezes up, crashes, clips graphics all day long, slows down to sub-10fps frequently, can corrupt your save game file and wipe out hours of play at random, and then ask you for £40 for the pleasure – you’d either laugh at me or hit me. I don’t particularly see the difference in what’s happening here.

If you’ve seen the TV show, don’t play poker but fancy having a go yourself, then it’s a perfect initiation to the game – complete with some of the crazy calls and raises that go on from inexperienced and tilting players. For the hardcore poker fanatic though, there’s a massive, massive amount of room for improvement.

Strangely addicting and fun for the first thirty minutes, that feeling soon wears off as the flaws in the gameplay slowly reveal themselves until you’re so frustrated that you will probably not be in the best frame of mind to complete game or play it for any length of time again.

Any sort of challenge or replayability would have turned Asphalt Urban GT into an absolute godsend for Nintendo and their new console. As it stands, the gameplay is hollow and lifeless, and bears little resemblance to an essential title.

The ability to build your own weapons and suchlike with things that you’ve found is a nice inclusion which – while limited – works out to be cheaper than going to ye olde item shoppe to pick up a new blade every time your favourite one decides that it’s going to break.

If you’re a die-hard Rayman fan (they exist, believe me), then even you will probably be a little disappointed with Rayman DS. The game as a whole doesn’t even come close to the high points of the series.

Surprisingly solid for the greater part, don’t get me wrong here. Unfortunately, it’s let down by a lack of any real challenge and fails to really inspire or capture the player in any way at all.

Not a terrible game by any means, but a bit more time in the testing tank would have surely turned it into a masterpiece to stand alongside the Conflict series.

Although Kao the Kangaroo: Round 2 seems to constantly offer up a new genre at every point the action might otherwise become dull and lifeless, there is a persistent feeling during play that the game never seems to stand on its own feet.

The AI is so basic that it is possible to rush through many areas without fear of getting hurt or even getting noticed. Even if you do decide you’re going to take it slow, it is a lottery as to whether some enemies will detect you or not.

You’re impressed by the graphics, and then the sound comes along and kicks you in the head with some of the most appalling suicide-inducing midi tunes that have ever been part of a finished game.

The point of the fact is that this game is identical to all the other instalments of the series. So, if you already have an older version, keep it, or if you do not have any version and were looking to buy one, forget this latest one, buy an older version and save your pennies.

Armored Core: Nine Breaker was destined to be a poor game from the moment the developer said "I know, let’s take the story mode out!"

We didn't expect that once we had been given our orders by the Sergeant, we would find so many bugs, glitches and plain annoyances to hinder our progress through the seedy underbelly of old London Town.

Xtreme Legends is – quite simply – the game that Dynasty Warriors 5 should have been. Some real improvements have been made, and the game is much deeper than it ever has been before.

The fact of the matter is that for the majority of Vietcong: Purple Haze, I was just plain bored. "Shellshock" at least provided a hint of tension and atmosphere during the first few missions to make you want to play on. Purple Haze doesn't. Enough said.

An above average game. Most people will love the intense action and gunplay that features so prominently, whilst putting up with the control issues, occasional camera problems and sometimes downright annoying fact at you can complete a mission and feel very proud of yourself, before being told that you failed and that you have to do it all again.

Genuinely funny in places, groan-making in others – Under The Skin is a bizarre concept that could have been really good fun. Unfortunately, it needs a few more strings to its bow, as the final package feels very much like it could have been named "One Trick Pony."

With a powerful brand behind it, it could sell a truckload of copies. If the game mechanic was worked on a little bit more, then it could have sold several truckloads.

Technically, the game could be classed as above-average, but no matter how many times you make use of the more-than-adequate control system and your far-too-limited selection of moves to grind your opponent down, they always seem to pop back up and have the amazing ability to pin you without really doing any work beforehand.

This game could have been so much better than it is, but I didn't think it would ever turn out as distinctly average as it has.

Petrolheads and tuning fans will probably get a kick out of it for a short while, but the lack of any sense of speed, the monotony of doing the same thing time after time from the beginning of the game to the end and the fact that the development team have forgotten to add the slightest bit of personality means that you probably shouldn’t bother.

The frontend system looks like it has been pulled from a PSone title and the loading times are about as quick, whilst in the octagon, the fighters seem to have lost a little definition and gained a few of the dreaded “jaggies”.

Sometimes, try as you might, you can’t put your finger on what makes a game fun to play, and this is one of those occasions.

One minute you’re watching a badly rendered cutscene telling you about the different forces, the next you’re looking at a live-action portion of the movie that doesn’t serve to improve your comprehension of the story whatsoever.

Despite the slight visual upgrades, the engine is essentially the same as it was five or six years ago, as is the gameplay, as is the general plot, as is the method of reaching your goal. The tactical advancements are welcome and really do add to the game, but when the game is so bland, that isn’t saying much.

The main aim of the game is to create smooth combinations and do it with enough rhythm to win more medals" than your opponent - but that isn’t particularly difficult, even later on in the game.

On the one hand, Spy vs. Spy is a fun, engaging, throwaway platform game that comes in at the right price. The addition of the multiplayer modes and classic game are just a bonus. On the other hand, you've got a fairly buggy and technically inferior platform game that contains just enough inventiveness to get by.

I desperately wanted to like this game. Really. But the terrible gameplay, boring mission structure and pathetic mini-games just make me pity it.

The repetition of the combat means that sore thumbs – and an underused brain – are the main enemy of Dead Man’s Chest.

X-Men: The Official Game isn’t all bad, and I’ve probably made it sound a lot worse than it actually is, it’s just that if you’re looking for a yardstick for middle-of-the-road gameplay and average execution, you’ve found it.

An average package by anyone’s standards, especially given that most people’s mobile phones can play a mean version of most of the games on the cartridge for a similar cost per title.

What they've actually done is take that terrible idea, and throw it into a game engine that just isn't capable of performing the task that they've asked it to. The result? Jaws Unleashed is – in a word - appalling.

If ever there was a game that needed to sort the wheat from the chaff, and then add a mammoth box of wheat to the resulting tiny pile, Fuzion Frenzy 2 was it.

The graphics are poor, the game play is old fashioned, the music is just plain annoying, but it has character. This attribute alone elevates it above the rest of the samey RPGs out there, but it still manages to be just that – samey.

Sprung: The Dating Game has a bit of a cheek to include the word “game” in its title. The guys behind it could have at least been honest and included at least one of the words “awful”, “pointless” or “tedious” too.

Beat Down fails to inspire, excite and-most importantly of all - it fails to entertain.

If asked to sum it up in one word, Pokémon Dash would be termed as “interesting”, rather than “essential”.

A rushed mess of a game that doesn't follow up on its promises.

Final Fight veterans hoping for a class act, steer clear of this title completely. In fact if you like any type of game, steer so clear that your car comes off the road if need be. It’s that bad.

To me, I wouldn’t even leave this game in the basement, as you never know who may find it.

I expected Torino 2006 to use its licence to present a confident and solid portrayal of the Olympic experience. It does neither – to be quite frank – and feels like an incredibly rushed affair.