The Juiced of 2005 is virtually unrecognisable from the Juiced of 2004, and quite frankly it puts "Need For Speed Underground" to shame.

The story mode is tough, but relatively short, and it becomes quite clear that Samurai Western is more of a blood soaked sprinter than a legendary long-distance athlete of a game.

The multiplayer is okay, with nine additional maps, but it's otherwise a fairly short adventure without much variety and, annoying as it is, you won't return too often.

Xbox owners will always be left with the bitter feeling that this game should have been so much more on their console.

Step aside, gaming connoisseurs and parents, because it's most definitely a kids' game.

Admittedly, it has a streak of good humour running through it and a few unlockable two-player mini-games, but they're unlikely to encourage completion.

The fact is, Cold Winter repeatedly enables the player to do things you just wouldn't expect to be able to do. Big guns even break crates more easily than small guns; such is the developer's level of consideration.

But the points at which Haunting Ground really begins to open up and offer something you can't get from other horror titles are the moments when you get to use Hewie to help you.

Menus aren't quite so easy to navigate as they were previously but then that's only because there's so much more to do now and as trade-offs go, this is one we're quite happy to abide. [JPN Import]

Perhaps the game wouldn't have been so mind-numbingly average if the developer had allowed the player a little freedom - perhaps by granting movement of the camera.

Sadly for Konami, Enthusia is here, slightly queer, and we just can't get used to it.

It may not be a "Halo"- or "Halo 2"-beater, but at the moment Pariah is the best alternative - and that alone is high praise indeed.

This is about as complete a racing experience as you could ask for from Xbox Live.

Aside from the fact that the concept isn't nearly as enjoyable as it sounds, the poor collision detection and generally cheap feel ensures that any potential excitement that could come from the game drains away after a few minutes like motor oil from a battered engine.

It looks the part and it has al the right elements. It's just cumbersome and rarely rewarding to play. So close to being amazing, yet so obviously not. Shame.

Despite the cool weapons the action can often be repetitive, with weak combos leading to some blade-swinging button-bashing, all within an average world marred by cameras of varying efficiency.

Every aspect of Area 51 is performed with quality, but with borrowed style that's familiar yet doesn't breed contempt.

While the game may be some distance from Bungie's massive shooter in terms of quality, it's well worth a look for anyone after a quick blast in a game that will remind us all that the "X-Files" was once a decent TV show.

Indeed, it's the guards that ruin it for everyone, by being remorselessly crap at their jobs, losing you when you run round two corners, shooting erratically and - worst of all - not recognising the significance of a vent shaft as something that "leads somewhere", and allowing you to escape every time you enter one.

We'd suggest you're somewhat dead inside if you didn't succumb to Psychonauts' attractive lure; the comedy ranges from sublime to outright hilarious, the visuals are delightfully detailed and the level design, while focused on collecting for the most part, is both devious and thought-provoking.

A quick, pointless Career mode and some extremely poor multiplayer options embarrassingly fail to justify the miniscule price tag. Swerve to avoid.

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.

The visual splendour of the whole land will undoubtedly entice Xbox owners to the shops - and quite rightly so - but it's the underlying quests that will keep them involved in the game until the bitter end.

Dead To Rights II is confused. It's an action title where you spend the majority of your time waiting. It's a videogame where you'll out-swear the gritty characters onscreen. It's a sequel that's not as good as its predecessor.

A boring and almost totally uninspiring game. The initial premise and use of cinematic pace is nothing but a drunken flirtation with a situation that could have been, and its not long before you find yourself playing the gaming equivalent of being a milk monitor in a class for the lactose intolerant. During a mild thunderstorm.

It's simplicity personified, and it will never be the classic that the original was, but Spy vs Spy still has that mischievous spirit to bring a childish smile to everyone's face.

Obscure is well worth playing all the way through, and if you can stomach the characters and their irritating forced American idiosyncrasies then this title could well be one of the best £20 price-tag games out there.

It's still decent shoot-'em-up entertainment, and adding snipers, airstrikes, and mortar attacks to your armoury is a nice touch, but perhaps too much time was spent talking tactics rather than delivering an original game that has true hands-on appeal.