We can highly recommend having a crack at finishing it on the hardest difficulty setting with the lights turned down low and the surround sound up high. Especially since, on the hardest difficulty setting, your health is constantly ticking down to a base level of 25 points. For this challenge only the hardcore first-person gamer need apply. Forget "Halo 2" on Legendary - that's for whiny pussies.

It’s hard not to enjoy FIFA 2003 and, though not in the same league as "Pro Evolution Soccer" in terms of gameplay, for the gamer who wants the most atmospheric and authentic football experience there is no equal on PS2.

This might not be the most detailed of F1 simulators but for now it looks, sounds and plays the business!

If you never buy another title for your Game Boy Advance, then at least get this one – it’s worth the cost of the console, all on its own!

Quite simply the new Mack Daddy of extreme sports games. Think what might happen if "Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3," "Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX 2" and "Jet Set Radio Future" all settled down and had a baby together… that’s Aggressive Inline.

It feels so alive, so believable, and so utterly charming that the end credits will fill you with a sense of loss and longing rather than one of total relief, leaving you with little doubt that a sequel is begging to be made. More than anything, it sets a new benchmark in gaming.

These bugs, alongside the simplistic taverns, swordfights, trading arrangements, one-screen locations and Benny Hill-style beach skirmishes, make Pirates! feel like Treasure Island in a Pirates of the Caribbean world.

A superior product.

Every silver lining has a cloud and for Crimson Skies this cumulus comes in the puffy form of some occasionally-forgetful frame rates and geographical detail that really doesn't want you to get too close.

Pure undiluted fun. After an hour or so of play any grudges with the control system or the textures are soon forgotten.

It looks a hell of a lot better, runs smoother and feels faster. So there’s no confusion here then: this is not a straight port. Got that? Good.

Probably the most accurate sport-to-videogame conversion around.

And they're the meanest bunch of cops you'll find outside of America's deep south.

A magical adventure in every sense, Abe's Exoddus stands oversized head and boney green shoulders above any competing title. Yes, it's a lot like "Oddysee," but it's ingeniously more complicated and so long they had to put it on two discs!

A slapdash port of a PlayStation 2 game ported across simply to cash in on a total cow of a licence.

If you don't have your PlayStation2 online you're going to be missing out on a large slice of the gaming fun to be had with SOCOM II.

Rallisport Challenge 2 is bigger and better than any other rally game, leaving one simple equation - play this game or miss out on what could be the finest racer of 2004. [XBM]

And there's Dark Alliance's core problem in a nutshell – it plonks you in one of the most painstakingly created gaming universes to ever emerge, and yet you're more than happy to be kept within this episode's central, linear plot-path.

The sound is probably as good as anything we have seen yet (or should that be anything we have heard yet?) with some marvellous dialogue and superb effects.

Fundamentally it’s the same game as "Tony Hawk’s 2," only it chugs along like a broken steam train! It stutters, splutters and jerks around like a breakdancer with broken legs and it feels like the batteries are running low on your PlayStation.

SEGA has gone the whole way with this one.

Although battles and conversations make up a big part of the gameplay, aimless wondering makes up even more.

The feeling of satisfaction when everything locks together like a giant jigsaw puzzle is enormous. Despite its flaws, this is a fantastic slice of gaming.

The game’s coup de grace, however, lies in the intelligence of the other characters you encounter.

A finely honed beat-'em-up that reveals an exceptional amount of depth after prolonged play. Sadly, however, even the most ardent Xbox fans in the office struggled to argue that this is anything more than "DOA2" with big brass knobs on.

This is the evolution of platform games that we've waited nearly ten years for, which is great news for everyone.

By having multiple game styles - many of which are only additional to the main ones, as opposed to overpowering - helping enhance the overall experience rather than weaken it, Beyond Good & Evil is all the better for it.

But what strikes us the most is how polished it feels. It's pointless going on about the gameplay because by now you know it's flawless. [JPN Import]

Easily one of the best multiplayer racers ever made.

Hardcore driving fans may argue that this doesn't offer enough options in the way of car upgrades, but you won't find another rally game that's this much fun to play.

A refreshing experience that reminds us what gaming is all about. Right from the start, the levels just beg to be explored and the vibrant graphics and quirky sense of humour make you smile.

Other mech shooters like "Steel Battalion," "Phantom Crash," "Gun Metal" and even "Robotech" featured a new approach to the genre. Sadly, this isnít the case here. But if you're after some mindless action then this is the place to come.

Unlike most developers Nintendo can take an ingenious and unusual idea and turn it into an inventive game of discovery and fun. This, you might say, is the Nintendo difference.

Few adventures out there give you a world as detailed and lush as Beyond Good & Evil.

Far from what its name might suggest but as trigger happy fun goes, you won't get much better. Serious Sam? Rubbish name, great game.

The trouble is (and we can’t really expect anything different) that it doesn’t do anything above and beyond the call of duty.

Pre "Splinter Cell" this was undoubtedly the benchmark in stealthy gameplay and innovation within this genre, but post SC it’s a solid game that, despite having a wealth of engaging modes outside of the main game, must content itself with second place behind Ubi Soft’s outstanding sneak-’em-up title.

It’s to the developer’s credit that this does not feel at all like "Pharaoh" with a Greek touch, but has its own feel and style to it.

Prepare to be dazzled, gob-smacked and taken for the wildest ride of your life. And that's guaranteed... a masterpiece. The best game we've played for ages and absolutely recommended.

Put simply, this is certainly worth giving a go if you’re looking for some high-speed thrills, death-defying leaps and gorgeous eye candy.

Depth is a rarity in sports games with an enjoyable single player mode even rarer but Fight Night Round 2 has managed to come up with both.

If you’re even remotely interested in RPGs, you have to bury yourself in this – it takes a bit of time to grow on you, but once Dark Cloud 2 has you, it won’t let go for a very long time.

There's no denying the marked improvements which make Pandora Tomorrow a far more amicable gaming experience, unfortunately it's the similarities that keep it from greatness. This plays how the original should have.

Exceptionally well designed, plays on a greater scale and requires more thought than Volition’s pretty baby ["Red Faction"] and so comes highly recommended.

It’s all very “out-there”. It’s all very stylish. And apart from the addition of some new and fairly self-explanatory mode updates and some stylishly presented menus this is really what makes Guilty Gear X2 stand out from the crowd.

It's refreshing to see a development team add so much to a sequel while maintaining the spirit of the original.

One thing that really needed attention in the Japanese version of Tenchu was the over active camera that follows your character. Skipping around with stomach-turning irregularity during fights and wandering off to give a confusing partial view of you or your opponent because it couldn't deal with nearby walls, this spoiled an otherwise very enjoyable game.

Hit top speed on a lengthy straight and the world slips into a stylised flat-out blur that offers an impression of unblinkable speed almost unparalleled since the original "WipEout" on PlayStation.

An absolute must buy for basketball enthusiasts (football fans think of "Pro Evoultion Soccer 3," with a license and Live capabilities). For anyone else: this is as good as console basketball gets, so try it.

There is nothing here that will convince flight sim haters to reconsider their approach, but invest time in this game and you will be rewarded with a fine gameplaying experience.

Flawed, yes, ambitious definitely - Silent Hill is a whole new experience adding to the challenge of "Resident Evil 2," while maintaining what it set out to do... drain you psychologically and scare you shitless!

Add in multi-player action over won.net and you have a truly excellent game that puts "Force Commander" well and truly to shame.

The biggest letdown of this game is just how short it is, though to open up everything does take a couple of runs through and you will want to play it again after that for sheer fun value alone! A truly gorgeous game, Onimusha Warlords is a must-buy for fans of the genre.

If the game world wasn't so big and the developer wasn't trying to push the limits of the machine then Mercenaries wouldn't be anywhere near as playable. As it is the sense of immersion in this huge war is inspiring.

A no-frills tank sim that has a very solid base but not a great deal in terms of extras or window-dressing. Tank sim fans will find this a pleasing and detailed addition to their collection but anyone who is looking for the latest graphics, frantic shooting or options by the bucketload will not find them here.

Though I never though I'd say it, Total Annihilation rises above every strategy game there has ever been. To put it bluntly, it is the best.

Bigger, more intricate and rather more absorbing that the first half of the story, The Lost Age is not only a great continuation of the Golden Sun saga but also a deeply satisfying game in its own right.

A definite improvement on last year’s version and while it’s still some way from perfection, it is the best and only proper offering this Xmas.

The Midas touch that has served so many Rockstar games has found its way into Midnight Club II, and although the game is by no means perfect, it is the breath of fresh air that should lift it above the glut of average racers that have wormed their way onto the console recently.

Below the surface insanity though, is a much deeper fighter.

The game delivers an all important experience that harks back to the elements that made the films great when they were originally released, and even from the start it becomes obvious that a phial full of that authentic LucasArts MagicTM has been sprinkled throughout the game.

We're in this dream of a game right now and we don't want to wake up and start again- it has to continue and any interruption is akin to a fire alarm going off in a cinema during your favourite fantasy movie. Lovely stuff.

Despite being essentially the same ride as before, the improvements make this as good - if not a little better - than the original.

Cooper is without doubt the best character we’ve had the pleasure of meeting on the PS2 so far. If only the rascal would stay around for longer so we could get to grips with him better.

It might take some getting into and it’ll all but certainly fry your brain after extended play but trust us… Amplitude is well worth the mental and physical torment and you won’t play a better music game this year.

It's fluid action all the way, absolutely no problem to pick up and learn for even the most novice of gamers, striking to look at and lengthy enough to keep you going for months. And we've still not played it in English. [JPN Import]

The battle system is light years ahead of anything else in the RPG world - remarkably, it actually makes dungeon crawling fun - and the sheer amount of options you have with it means that you'll never get bored. [JPN Import]

This is one of the fastest, most intense racing games we’ve played on any system and makes rival games look absolutely sedate by comparison.

In what has to be a first for rally titles, much of the scenery, which should be breakable... is! No more bouncing off seemingly solid tape barriers - they now snap and even flap in the wind.

NBA Live 2004 has to get the nod over "NBA Jam" due to the deeper gameplay, sexier looks and fresher soundtrack.

If there was an award for best grenade launcher sound effect in a game, Rainbow Six 3 would win. The bass-filled 'thwooomp' as it launches (and the room-shaking explosion that follows) make up just one of many Guns-N-Ammo-erotic moments. [XBM]

If you are a rally fan then the addictive gameplay coupled with the sight of the perfectly recreated cars racing around official tracks should be enough to overlook any rough edges.

Very few games today are so brazenly simplistic yet still so huge in scale so this really is a rare treat.

Skirmishes themselves are also still painfully primitive in their nature. Trying to introduce any kind of superior tactical operations into proceedings is nigh on impossible, with the two sides generally showing all the tactical nous of bar-room brawlers.

In the history of PS2 platformers, there has never been an example that positively drips character like Psychonauts does. In fact, you'd be hard pushed to find an example in any genre.

As you can probably tell from this review, we at TotalGames.net were just slightly impressed by F-Zero. If you've got yourself a GBA, you really have to buy this.

Turok 2: Seeds Of Evil has -- as a one-player game -- turned out to be good, but not the world-shaker everyone was expecting. It's Doom, basically -- a glorious-looking update of Doom, but Doom nevertheless. What saves Turok 2 is the multiplayer game, which is faster and smoother than Goldeneye.

A title that really has to be played to be believed and if you want to get the most out of the game, see everything and take advantage of the unlockables you'll be playing and believing for a long, long while.

Sure it’s not massively original but it is a new sport, there are some very nice ideas in there and it’s great fun to play.

Combine all your assassination fantasies together, illuminate them with the cinematography of "The Godfather" and this is what you get. Pure class.

The customary mid-game fighting seems a little pointless, but for a game with such a wealth of strengths, this isn’t really a problem. Prepare to be pleasantly surprised by this title.

Not much fun in single-player. Sure, it might make for good practice before taking your warrior online, but no-one is going to be buying it for Anubis' fight for corporate and religious ownership.

Don't expect the in-depth tour de force of other MMORPGs out there, but rather a relaxed experience which is good, wholesome fun that won't see you lose weeks of your life in the process of play.

EverQuest is certainly the more immediate of the two online role playing games but it still has a lifetimes worth of enjoyment in it.

It’s a good looking game – without being stunning – it handles well and offers a refreshing alternative to the usual racing fare. Some of the races do get frustrating, but on the whole, Midnight Club II is an enjoyable experience – particularly in multiplayer mode.

It’s got more longevity than a lot of games out there today and offers a style of gameplay that we’ve loved ever since the original Tony Hawk’s game. Acclaim, we salute you.

A little more innovation would have been appreciated, but this is one case where a more or less straight update of the SNES original was all that was needed to produce a great game.

Far Cry Instincts not only equals its PC cousin but actually manages to better it.

The depth within blows the likes of "Street Fighter EX3" and "Dead Or Alive 2" out of the picture.

It also looks immensely cool to see Jacques swinging through the air. Later, his whip is upgraded to a segmented sword-cum-whip combo - as brandished by Ivy in Soul Calibur - once again demonstrating the disparate influences that have gone into his design. [JPN Import]

As for the FFX initiates, you're going to like this a lot. Some parts may disappoint, some parts may even annoy you, but the experience as a whole is a good one, and you'll never question your purchase.

All at once. Astro boy is challenging, beautiful and in these days, utterly unique in its simplicity. Action fans will want to snap this up at the very first opportunity. [JPN Import]

The best arcade racer we’ve played so far and EA certainly seems to be developing quite a respectable name for its ‘Big’ games.

The most entertaining, instantly involving and technically innovative PC game of the year so far.

By offering something that is not only new but extremely challenging PopTop have done the strategy gaming fraternity a real service and hopefully the legacy of Tropico will be that more games developers are prepared to attempt political simulations in the future.

An enthralling giant of a game, packed with countless delights (not forgetting the superb dramatic music) and a mammoth challenge to keep you playing for weeks on end, at the least.

If you want the most comprehensive and thorough hockey game/management sim, then NHL 2004 is the place to turn.

Anyone put off by the steep learning curve will be missing out on some exhilarating racing action both on- and offline. The Live modes are impeccable.