For all its flaws though, Scrapland's immersive gameplay, enjoyable storyline and quirky, unique atmosphere are more than enough to keep you hooked until the very end.

Great for hardcore Forgotten Realms fans as well as a tasty prospect for those of us who would rather read real books and have never played a single game of Dungeons & Dragons, but still want a decent dabble into an agreeable world where numbers aren't as important as your ability to slay hordes of evil monsters and find keys.

A massive improvement over the previous Mat Hoffman title on the PSone. It’s nothing too original and it does have its flaws.

A highly playable and very fast arcade racer.

Easily the best game in the series to date. We can, at last, put the mess that was "Conflict: Vietnam" behind us and continue down this far brighter path.

OK so it's not exactly packed with originality neither will it take you weeks to complete but it's loads of fun and after all isn't that what's important? Put simply, it's quite possibly the best Bond game yet as far as its overall 'Bondness' goes.

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.

Quite involving after a while with some excellent puzzles for you to solve and many strange people to talk to, but it does take quite a while to get into.

Yeah, this is what videogames should be all about -- indiscriminate carnage on a massive scale without a trace of cuteness, "nurturing and trading" or thought.

Wisely staying away from being a full on sim, NBA 2K5 features incredibly slick gameplay, intuitive action and - most importantly - delivers a fantastic game of Basketball that dumps on EA's recent effort from a great height.

There's a lot in Warioland to wow you but, at the end of the day, it's just a GBC adventure with nice graphics. Which is REAL daylight robbery.

That said, there is no doubt that this is a fantastic game that contains believable characters (surely a rarity in the world of RPGs) and although occasionally stuttering in a fit of lost focus, manages to both charm and delight with its fresh locales and gung-ho attitude.

The missions vary between furious dogfights, bombing runs and escort duties, there's even a spot of stealth. The sound is stunning, and visually the game is equal to the best of the genre.

The same easy scoring from 'sweet spots' plague the game and for some reason it's nigh on impossible to score from five yards out, one-on-one with the keeper. And because of the reliance on motion captured animation and pre-set special moves, you still never feel in complete control of the player. This aside, the improvements outweigh the old problems.

Although it could have been improved even further — the graphics and vaguely cumbersome feel of the movement still need more refinement — as a tactical squad based shooter, this is easily the GameCube’s best.

Its shallow atmosphere aside, there is little wrong with Smuggler’s Run. The graphics will stun even the deepest of cynics, whilst the array of sub-games and variety of missions highlight "Driver’s" limitations.

A few flashy new moves hardly compensate for the lack of subtlety and polish that was so evident in the original title.

The speed, responses, combination moves and array of fighting styles intertwine to present a tactical beat-’em-up with enough edge to coax even the most-hardened arcade junkies out of their smoke-caked games dens.

It's a solid enough game that will test your RTS skills and relies on something more than churning and burning units. It could be a match made in heaven, it could be your idea of hell...

With up to four players racing together, Downhill Domination offers plenty of adrenalin- pumping action and if you are looking for a different and rewarding racer then this is one mountain worth climbing.

Whereas other shooters may have a 'just one more go' factor to them, the careful build-up to events in Ghost Recon 2 can crush the will of the less-dedicated gamer when it comes to repeating the same level for the fifth time. Even the addition of a save anywhere feature doesn't quite remove the teeth-grindingly annoying aspect of playing certain levels.

Getting golds across the board certainly ain't easy, but decimating your mates/siblings/granny (shame on you!) is what'll keep you coming back to Ronald long after the snow has thawed.

It has personality, it has clever puzzles, it has things to collect and above all, it's an absolute blast to play. It's only the dream sections that let this down and repetition does creep in towards the end but even so, it doesn't take the sheen off a sparkling sequel.

Those seeking a new challenge to rival "Tekken Tag" should steer clear, but for fans of the series and players just looking for a quick fix of frenzied and fantastical fighting should sign up now.

A refreshingly original take on a notoriously starchy genre; tongue in cheek, sword in hand and pants around ankles. Hail to the king.

Like "SSX Tricky," ATV2 relies on tight playability to keep your mind off the averageness of the visuals. The only real moan is that crashes lack any sort of bone-jarring impact.

The multiplayer mode is where the real fun lies then, and this game can genuinely suck hours from your existence with the aid of a few bloodthirsty friends and an unhealthy obsession with scrap metal.

The control system (using the right stick for punches) is an inspired idea and has been well balanced with the stamina meter. However, it only seems to work smoothly half of the time.