Nintendogs shows its attention to detail in the main game modes in so many different ways. [JPN Import]

To be quite frank, TOCA Race Driver 3 is a great game - one of the best on the Playstation 2 - and certainly does compare to Gran Turismo 4 in specific areas.

All in all, I’m very impressed so far – City of Villains is fun, there’s consentual PvP and there’s base construction, but the best bit is that if you already have "City of Heroes," the monthly fee will also cover you for City of Villains.

This game may be worth playing in about a year’s time when Obsidian has finished patching this clunky monstrosity, but right now, it’s a strictly average affair.

Quite simply put; this is the finest horizontal shooter on the PlayStation 2. In fact, it’s the finest horizontal shooter on any of the next-generation systems to emerge in some time - a game that can sit proudly in the upper echelons of gaming excellence.

Online, SOCOM 3 is better than ever, packed full of new locations and genuinely exciting. This latest edition will do nothing to dent the massive popularity of the SOCOM series.

You played the original Sonic games for the eye-numbing speed, the best-in-class platforming action, the wonderfully detailed backgrounds and of course, the challenge. With Sonic Rush, Sega have managed to cram in all of that with improvements, although some may not like the way in which the difficulty level is achieved.

One of the few games that have glaring holes in the gameplay, and gets away with it scot-free. Why? Atmosphere.

The only thing you pretty much can’t do as a pirate is getting your own parrot, which is a shame but we’re willing to overlook it just this once.

Nothing short of stunning – for the greater part. Depth, longevity, looks and some fantastically booming old-school sound schemes (complete with satisfyingly throaty engine tones) are all accounted for here.

It’s like being thrown into a top quality thriller movie; you’ll feel incredibly on edge and at times have second thoughts on venturing into the darkened trail of the killer.

Put it this way, I must have clocked up around 30 hours of play so far and I'm still not tired of simply moseying about town, popping a few grinds and flip tricks, trying to get an astronomical high combo score to unlock an achievement. It just feels so right and ultimately therapeutic.

To call this game pointless would be trite, but it’s unrelentingly shallow and really nothing more than mental chewing gum. Nothing else tastes quite like it, though, and if you have any sense of fun about you, you’re bound to enjoy the goods.

If you like ice hockey, then NHL 2k6 delivers the goods – and how. The franchise mode will suck you in for the long haul, and the party games are easy enough to pick up for some multiplayer action.

The missions to the story are extremely well designed, and the tasks are considerably varied. The shooting missions are joy to behold too, set out in true 3rd person shooter style with no automatic lock on. But once all the razzmatazz of the story has gone, and the dust has settled on “the Row”, there isn’t enough variety to keep you coming back.

But if you are tempted by it’s smooth retro, isometric 16-bit leanings and complex combat-mechanics, then it’s as good as a starting point as any in the Nippon Ichi catalogue.

The epitome of a sound investment. Exciting gameplay, some very innovative uses for the stylus and graphically passable, this is one title that really hits the spot.

The greens play far too slowly, even on the desert courses, and despite the greens being covered in a nicely implemented undulation marker when you come to putt, they are incredibly difficult to judge.

Its well put together, well finished and is lifelike.

A fine selection of courses, a smooth graphical performance, intuitive controls and some of the most addictive gameplay available for your PSP mean that Everybody's Golf really is a challenger for the title of "Best European PSP Launch Title."

While it is playable – Onimusha enthusiasts will still probably enjoy it – there isn’t a huge amount here that you won’t find in previous instalments. And that’s it; ultimately there just isn’t anything here that hasn’t been done better by another game.

Savage karnivores may still enjoy this bloody-rare slab of fighting beef, but genre gourmets should look elsewhere.

I implore you to give this a go if you’re a wrestling fan, and even if you aren’t – it might well be worth a play. I like the improvements that have been made, and I’ll be playing this long into 2007.

Despite the superb presentation which, as usual, is currently unmatched by any other game, the players still feel like they are sliding about the pitch, rather than running. When kicking the ball, the contact between ball and boot is more realistic than in previous iterations of the game, but the trajectory of the ball is still very strange.

A very simple idea, brilliantly put together: a high speed nostalgia trip that, unlike other games you remember from your youth, won’t leave you thinking: ‘Surely it was better than that’.

Graphically stunning and sonically amazing, the gameplay lets it down for me. In multiplayer, there is fun to be had, but the single player challenge is a long, hard slog that is pitted with dodgy AI and too many anomalies.

The season mode will last you a fair old while and if you decide to create a character, you won't even play a match for the first two hours, thanks to the depth and breadth of CAW options available to you.

It’s well put together, a joy to behold and a marvel to look at, but it’s just a lot of never ending sameness.