As a standalone game, Green Day Rock Band doesn't quite offer enough content to warrant a full price release for most people. While it is fun and a very polished game, it just needs that extra spark to make it a great game like The Beatles: Rock Band.

The only realistic emulation of the sport for home consoles. With its myriad of options and game modes there should be plenty to keep you occupied and, as long as you're prepared for the almost lethargic pacing, it is a joy to play.

For some reason Alpha Protocol grabbed me and kept me engaged. For me, the versatility of the story, the way the flow of the game can be altered and the fact it kept me interested enough to finish it and then play it again far outweighed any issues I had with the controls.

Impressive multiplayer functionality and social tools contrast with frequent loading screens and clunky main menus.

This is as close to perfect as any game.

The creation is as deep or as automatic as you want it, the online as time sapping or as casual as your heart desires – MNR is a game for everyone without ever making anyone feel left out, and in the days of hardcore first person shooters and single player epics, surely that's exactly what we all need just now?

There are quite a few single-stick shooters on the PSN store now. In my opinion, this is the best of the bunch. It has been well-designed, balanced and tuned to perfection, and is a big improvement on the original.

An unmissable game for any fan of the genre or great action adventures in general. We don’t often get masterpieces around here, but this is certainly one of those moments in time when gamers will look back more fondly on a dusty old six shooter than anything that involves jacking cars.

With this title Blackrock Studios have established themselves as a studio to watch out for, and in Split/Second they have delivered the most action packed racer this generation.

The Prince makes a triumphant return to his roots in The Forgotten Sands, and all of your fears of this being a rushed game to simply be released alongside the movie can be abolished; we'll put that one down to good timing.

It might not be original, but it's certainly good fun, and all credit to Southpeak for picking up the slightly esoteric title for a European release – spread the word, 3D Dot Game Heroes deserves a place in your PS3 this Spring.

The levels themselves are wonderfully varied, ranging from luscious jungles, deserts and even a rather intense battle on a train.

It was a great concept, but the third instalment has disappointed. There really isn’t much depth to be found with Skate 3, due to the short career mode and lacking extra features.

A triumph. A shining example of what the PSP can do in the right hands and is actually an improvement on the PS3 version.

There are no fancy graphics here or much customisation to help your characters advance, gain better weapons and before stronger – however, for the price this is certainly a neat, fun game and it will most definitely fill in my need for a cowboy related shooter until Red Dead Redemption comes strolling into town.

NIER is far from perfect – in fact, it's decidedly below average at times – but for every sloppy design decision or hackneyed rehash there are charming and often unique aspects that are worth the investment.

To me it seems that EA have learned their lesson from past games and have went all out to provide a game that anyone watching the World Cup will be proud of and you know what? They have succeeded.

I’m a big fan of the pure arcade experience, and AfterBurner Climax offers exactly that. It’s concise to the point of being a little too short, but there’s lots to unlock, a nice smattering of Trophies and a couple of extra secret levels too.

A wonderfully unique and well presented title, the presentation is wonderful, the action fast paced and the experience is an addictive one.

The Conspiracy might not appeal to fans but to a Prison Break virgin, it is surprisingly good. Yes, there are flaws and it won’t win any awards but it should definitely at least be rented. Even just for the simple trophies.

My opinion of Anarchy: Rush Hour was quite bleak until I took it online. That changed the game completely and I’ve upped my rating in consideration of that.

For fans of extreme sports it’s a confident, expansive game with lots of potential and if the developers can push out some DLC down the line the multiplayer side of things will be more than an afterthought.

A fun online experience but I can’t see this continuing to be played long into the future with so many other shooters available. The story may be a little lacklustre but if you simply treat it as a lengthy tutorial, you’ll have a great time online.

Avalanche have managed to make the game feel alive with improved AI, plenty of rounded characters and a smooth learning curve assuming you take early advantage of the flexibility of the game’s key element: the grappling hook. Do so, and you’ll have nothing but fun.

This is your only option if you love the sport and want a console version so it’s lucky that it’s an approachable, realistic and well-realised virtual representation.

The presentation’s nice and there’s certainly a lot of ‘game’ for your money.

The game has basically one trick up its sleeve, but a trick that it executes very smoothly.

With creative freedom, Kratos's latest adventure is staggering in scale, superbly visualised and, for the most part, an absolute joy to play through. And most importantly, where it counts – the action sequences – God of War III is utterly unmatched and unequaled, and therefore absolutely essential for action fans.

Resonance of Fate is definitely for hardcore RPG fans only, but at the same time the map and combat systems make it substantially different from anything you’ll have likely played before.

Visually the game is lovely; distinctly 16-bit era backgrounds with parallax scrolling to add some physicality, nice particle effects and trails when grinding and 3D polygonal ships atop everything.

For fans of traditional RPG games (and especially for fans of the Final Fantasy series) this should be unmissable. However, for those more casual players or newcomers to the genre it may be slightly overwhelming and the repetitive nature and sheer linearity of the early level design might be quite a disappointment for fans hoping for more from this generation’s first Final Fantasy RPG.

As an action game it holds up very well, as an RPG it will keep the average quest junkie enthralled, and as a fishing/karoke/arcade sim, it also manages to tick each of those apparently mutually exclusive boxes with a defiant stroke. As a whole, and, more importantly, as a game, it works.

It’s expertly produced, oozes charisma and energy and the characterisation is sublime.

Greed Corp is a wonderful little title which is highly addictive and quite original in its style of play. It is a tricky game to start with, however if you stick with it then you will begin to appreciate what a great little game it is.

Please bear in mind when considering this game that Echoshift is hard, and it is meant to be hard. If you have a rough time with earlier levels on the likes of Cuboid and Critter Crunch, this may not be for you; for everyone else who are fans of brain bending puzzle games, if you have the patience and stamina, this is an easy recommendation.

It’s flashy, technically stunning but ultimately slightly empty. Characters vary from vapid to engaging, the FBI agent a highlight but lead Ethan tends to look bored rather than desperate. If you’re looking for a decent story with minimal interactivity to occupy a wet weekend, one cut with mystery and suspense, Quantic Dream’s latest might be right up your street, but gamers looking for anything else will be left out in the rain.

There is no doubt that Sonic & SEGA All-Stars borrows from Mario Kart heavily, however in this case that is no bad thing because this game has depth, it works well and most important of all, it’s great fun.

SOCOM has finally opened out onto a new field of battle, with a more set piece designed gameplay which is just perfect for travelling. The only downside is that the game is short, clocking in at around 5 hours, you just start getting into it as the credits roll. But as an experiment, it works and feels so much better than previous titles in the franchise.

Aliens Vs Predator tries to stay faithful to the franchise but in turn creates a mediocre FPS that is over far too quickly. The multiplayer does add some excitement but rage quitters and bad losers will spoil your games until it is fixed. Movie fans will get a little buzz from playing their favourite monsters but the whole experience is dull overall.

A fantastic game and although the progression may be similar to the first, the action feels a lot fresher.

Yes, purists might not appreciate the changes made to the source (and Dante will be turning in his grave) but as a gamer I had a blast.

White Knight Chronicles is a very good game. What you get out of it really depends on what you’re going to put in. It’ll be over in a few days if you just plow through the story, but if you get into the meat of the game and start developing your town and binding new items together to take on those tricky online group quests and grind up your guild rank, this is going to suck up a lot of your time.

You’ll get more out of the game the more you put in, and there’s some challenge here for the dedicated, but if forced I’d rather stick to the iPhone version which is far cheaper.

The challenge of branding MAG with a number (much smaller than its trademarked 256 and between 1 and 10) to denote its quality is akin to rating World of Warcraft after a weekend of gold-farming, long before the full majesty of the game has blossomed and shown its true potential. The best we can do is rate our early impressions, undoubtedly influenced by the game’s prospects for the future.

If you’re interested in a solid, nerve-shredding jaunt through familiar territory with a few curve-balls thrown in to make the experience somewhat novel, however, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories delivers all the chills and uneasiness the series is renown for.

Ultimately, with so many games around at this time brimming with originality and quality, it is easy to overlook this game and the experience left me feeling a little hollow. But if you have time, then pop this in your rental queue and you might be pleasantly surprised.

If you’re a big fan of snow-based sports and don’t mind the dip-in and out feel, then give this a shot.

Like poker and chess, the rules of Aqua Panic are easy to learn, but the art of winning takes a long time to master.

You may have seen a lot of what Darksiders brings to the table elsewhere, but it’s all combined in such a way with sprinkles of new ideas that keeps the game fresh and innovative.

Sure, there’s a decent game here if you can’t wait for the big hitters just around the corner, but if patience isn’t a virtue of yours then perhaps Bayonetta isn’t the one for you anyway, at least unless you’re going for the 360 version. Shame, as Bayonetta has solid principles and a sequel could very well be amazing.

Van Halen deserved better, and so did Guitar Hero fans. Avoid.

Being a massive fan of the PixelJunk series I couldn’t help but wish there was a little more to Shooter. Sure, what there is is great fun, but the experience is over rather quickly and replaying the game is for purists only.

The Saboteur feels a little rushed and incomplete but has an unexplainably fun side to it. Frustrating and boring at times, it does give way to some great moments and conversation pieces.

It doesn’t have the polish or refinement of SingStar, but it does have heaps of potential, and the career mode will keep you busy for a while, especially when you consider a SingStar disk usually ships with 30 songs and a Lips disk with 40.

Minis are primarily designed to be fun in short blasts and for £3.99, Pinball Fantasies offer up doses of small fun to help reduce boredom on the train to work. Sure, it doesn’t look particularly good nowadays and lacks longevity, but that’s missing the point somewhat.

It ultimately lacks the shear addictiveness of other web-based games or minis titles, but proof that sometimes the best things in life are the simplest.

The graphics are basic, the load times are too long and the game needs a fair amount of balancing – an update could make it much better.

For what it is Gravity Crash is an exceptionally well-realised game in almost every way but whether or not it finds a home amongst modern gamers will be its sternest test. I only hope that it passes that test as it is definitely a title and a style of game-play which deserves attention.

Blast Off, then, plays on your desire to better yourself.

Despite the game playing most of its cards far too early (and never really going anywhere new in later levels) Halfbrick’s biggest issue is the copy for the game on the Store which doesn’t begin to describe the mechanics properly.

Tremendous fun, with literally endless potential if the online community picks up on the game – sure, there’s a few bugs with the bigger, more complicated levels and it’s a shame you can’t play locally with a mate, but this is brilliant stuff, and essential for fans of the genre.

God Of War Collection says you have to slay your way across Athens, cross a desert and climb half way down a mountain to get it.

A solid racing game. It fails to inspire or innovate, but anyone looking for a decent racing game on PSP will find something here. Its biggest issue though, however, is that both Gran Turismo and MotorStorm Arctic Edge offer up a better standard racing game (whether you’re looking for realism or thrills and spills) on PSP.

Every area of the game feels polished and complete.

Ultimately, this blockbuster is just another version in the Modern Warfare franchise and whilst failing to live up to the unreachable hype that was developed prior to release, Infinity Ward have produced a very impressive title. One good enough to even convince this sceptic.

If Konami can build upon 2010 and add a little innovation to the mix while fixing the online modes, then PES 2011 should be on to a winner. Better, but not the best.

A triumph of a game. It has depth and scale which will keep you interested for many, many hours.

There is nothing intrinsically wrong with Band Hero – it is a good game – however ultimately it is a tweaked version of more of the same. If you’ve never liked the series, there is no reason to buy Band Hero. If you are a fan of earlier games and have a preference for pop, you’ll probably love it.

LocoRoco Midnight Carnival is a fantastic addition to the ever increasing PSP library. It’s smart, well balanced, packed with content and a penny under twelve quid is actually pretty good value.

A great new way to play pool, a great way to play straight pool, and a great way to get friends playing together. It needs just a little more variety, but with no other faults it is an essential purchase from the Playstation Network Store and a demonstration of the quality we should now come to expect from Dark Energy Digital.

DJ Hero could easily have been perfect – there’s a huge amount of potential in the idea but I can’t help feeling that a little more time would have evened out the poor mixes and given more in the way of a creation mode.

Overall A Crack in Time is a brilliant addition to the Ratchet & Clank franchise and it manages to keep its charm and character despite the introduction of so many new features. The control issues, along with some repetitive content, do jar on occasions but they aren’t enough to distract you from your overall enjoyment of a game that is well worth the money.

Great presentation and plenty to unlock makes Vempire highly recommended.

The graphics are rather typical for a game of this style, the controls are a bit iffy when you’re trying to navigate towards a specific tile with just the d-pad, but it’s nice to have a mahjong game readily available on the XMB and this is as good as you’ll need.

The wow moments will come with the over-the-top gore but don’t expect system breaking visuals. However, do expect a unique style and a long adventure that will better cater for those that like to “grind” through a game.

Smackdown vs Raw 2010 is a fun, well presented title which will appeal to core fans of the genre but shouldn’t be overlooked by casual players.

FIFA 10 is currently the best footie game you can buy but not by as wide a margin as in previous years, and I’m left with the sense that EA should stop adding minor game modes that can surely only have limited appeal and get to grips with some of the oddities which stop a great game being even better.

More PSP exclusive content would have sealed the deal, but as it stands this is wonderful stuff.

But you’ll find that behind the bad animation and dodgy plot is a game that has sound ideas at its core.

For anyone that enjoys third person adventures Uncharted 2 represents a thrilling experience with some breathtaking set pieces and enough challenge to retain your interest far longer than most console games this generation, and it's almost worth buying just for the graphics which I don't think will be bettered for a good couple of years.

It’s a smart, humourous post-ironic dig at everything from Zelda to Final Fantasy which never takes itself too seriously.

Critter Crunch is a charming, funny and extremely well-presented game with solid and engaging gameplay mechanics. There are issues with the multiplayer but for fans of puzzle games this is a must-have which will amuse and entertain you without ever becoming frustrating.

Demon's Souls is a very good game. It's not a fabulous game. On the one hand, it's hard to recommend to anyone who isn't a hardcore RPG fan or who doesn't have a mountain of patience at their disposal. On the other hand, Demon's Souls rarely puts a foot wrong – the game mechanics are tough but fair.

I so wanted this to be much more than it ended up being: I’ll happily rewatch all of the Saw movies back to back each year, but probably won’t head back into the video game unless Konami patch in better combat.

A good, fun shooter that excels in multiplayer but fails to reach the heights it could have.

The sound is awful, the fighting is incredibly repetitive (no combos, just mash square and triangle) and worst of all, it’s very glitchy: on one occasion I got near the end of a level, only to actually get stuck in the graphics.

Absolutely the best of the launch titles in our opinion, and one that should be right at the top of the list for anyone wanting to see what all the fuss is about. Lets hope multiplayer gets patched in at some point, even if we have to pay for it.

There are only 20 levels, it can get repetitive repeating levels over and over again and because there are no save points it can be extremely challenging – still, great fun.

Extremely addictive it may be, but it doesn’t move the game on in terms of originality or push the limits of what can be achieved with PSP Minis, instead, Tetris just plays safe.

Brainpipe is difficult to grasp and will almost certainly not appeal to everyone, but it is completely and utterly original and unbelievable addictive.

With loads to do, decent music and high production values, the game’s an absolute bargain, and given the current licensing issues Q’s having with the digital format it’s as close to Lumines as Go owners are going to get. Great stuff.

Easily the PSP’s finest tuned racer so far with loads to do if you’re happy without the career mode. Online would have bolstered the score a notch, though.

More maps, local and online multiplayer and stacks of secrets to unlock make this undoubtably the definitive version. We're impressed.

Excellent stuff. For newbies this is a decent introduction to electronic music construction, and a brilliant little portable test bed for the experienced producer. It even exports MIDI.

Undead Knight offers an original take on the Dynasty engine, with plenty of huge battles to get through but it’s let down by finicky controls and a little repetitiveness.

A fun dual-stick shooter that does the zombie genre well. Great for multiplayer of any kind. Lack of originality and clear repetition does hinder the game though.

Fans of the genre will love what’s on offer here – leaderboards, multiplayer, it’s all present and correct. The rest of us will be left scratching our heads.

WET has taken the third person shooter genre and turned it completely on its head – not for everyone, but I loved every last second of it. Tarantino would be proud.