In a complete reversal of modern trends, these are games whose visuals play second fiddle to the sheer wealth, diversity and involvement of tasks on offer, all the while playing on some very tongue in cheek moments and dark humour that even Hollywood's finest would have a tough time trying to rival.

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]

Looking, sounding and playing as brilliantly as ever, it's such a relief to know that the hype behind this game can be believed. [Import]

The masterpiece that is Splinter Cell gets under your skin and stays there for a very long time... The kind of game you do want to go through over and over simply because it is a delight to play around with... A true work of art.

It's about being in one long and deeply worthwhile experience that manages to do the impossible and improve on what has gone before, and then has the confidence to expand itself to a size that defies belief. Pack some sandwiches, it's going to be a long trip.

When it comes to what people will now demand of a top videogame, Nintendo has moved the goalposts off the pitch, into a lorry, down the road, into the airport, onto a plane and halfway round the world to a different continent entirely.

This is the single most impressive piece of software the PS2 has seen since "GTA3." Where the Rockstar game innovated in its style of play Frontline innovates in the perfection of its execution. We’ve seen first-person shooters before, but nothing like this. Nothing as superbly crafted as this.

To have a game this amazingly good on day one brings tears of joy to our eyes. Everything in Halo is going to make you praise the day you were born.

These games are massive, easily rivalling any recent console release in terms of size, scale and re-playability.

A breath-taking game. It's majestic in scale, beautifully realised and virtually flawless in execution. Scary, shocking, captivating and, in every sense, brilliant.

A remarkable achievement of proportions we never imagined possible. It has single-handedly changed the way we see all videogame entertainment and the repercussions it should have for the industry are staggering. In one fell swoop your entire games collection has become obsolete, all other games seeming pathetic attempts to waste your time.

There are wow factors on top of wow factors here. Everything from the gorgeous visuals to the way the game plays scream one hundred per cent cool...The multiplayer mode is nothing short of bloody amazing.

To accompany the breathtaking graphics is a soundtrack of pure extravagance, and it does wonders to heighten the action and suspense, we can tell you.

Everything about Vice City positively reeks of genius.

It could be argued that Halo 2 multiplayer is not only leagues ahead of any other broadband enabled game, but it may even leave the single-player experience in the shadows. The options for online play are far more varied than even Ubisoft's Clancy titles, and the interface and lobby systems represent everything that Xbox Live is truly capable of. [XBM]

Half-Life is brilliant in every respect with huge monsters appearing later on, Half-Life gets so spooky it hurts, so frightening people simply watching jump!

Nothing comes close to the feeling you get when the Eznite shuts down your systems for the first time and you have to reboot.

A thoroughbred that out-strikes the opposition as if it were high on steroids. Put bluntly, we're not gonna get a better beat-'em-up. Tekken 3 is a killer app that is close to perfection.

We've been floored.

The biggest, best and sexiest racing game ever. What we have here is a gigantic car game that's such enormous fun to play because of three main elements: unparalleled realism, ground-breaking graphics and the chance to spend a lot of money.

Goldeneye is even better than "Mario 64." Even Oddjob could figure out what that means! A Nintendo 64 without Goldeneye is like James Bond without a vodka martini.

Every moment spent in the game world, from the ramshackle village to the far-from-abandoned military installation, is pure, adrenaline-fuelled fun. The game doesn't want to be big or clever - it wants to take you on a roller-coaster ride that leaves you breathless. And it does.

This is by far the most impressive extreme sports game that we have played on the GBA. It truly is a remarkable piece of handheld programming.

THIS IS THE BEST ADVENTURE ON THE GAME BOY ADVANCE!

Every minute of the adventure is packed with excitement and intrigue as you set out to discover exactly who's behind the mysterious 'accident' that destroyed the station and killed everyone aboard.

Burnout 3 is as pure a gaming experience as we have had the pleasure of kneeling before for longer than we can remember and we've been doing this for a long time.

A work of Tolkeinesque proportions and not only the greatest RPG of our times, but one of the greatest games of all time. Wholeheartedly recommended.

If you feel that your love for games is diminishing, play this and be welcomed back to a Technicolor world of total obsession. If this game was a person, we’d stalk it, search its bins and collect snippets of its hair. [Import]