Cheap, bland, and pretty much tasteless, like that value-brand white block that claims its chicken. [Issue#43, p.94]

It sucks! [Issue#37, p.116]

While you may enjoy the combat and beasts, the whole game is just far too tedious and it’s missing everything that made the original great.

A very pleasant surprise. Accomplished way beyond our expectations and some of the best fun we’ve had inside a videogame this year, Saints Row 2 says nay to the naysayers.

There’s very little to denounce Dead Space with. It captures you completely with chilling suspense and leaves you feeling thoroughly thrilled. What can we say? Bring on a sequel!

While the campaign is really good fun and the brutal tackles are definitely a highlight, the graphics are really poor and the gameplay is too shallow to make a lasting impact.

In truth, FIFA was pushing an eight last time around, so to award this significant jump anything other than a nine would be absolute cruelty. As they say, bravo.

Trouble is, it all controls a little too crisply for our liking. [Issue#37, p.117]

Just another bemani game with horrible music that you're supposed to play with seven big buttons but instead you play it with wee buttons on the pad. [Issue#35]

Most of Fracture’s bad points are overshadowed by how much fun changing the terrain can be. Masses of action, huge explosions and a competent shooter with a fantastic gimmick.

Platforming doesn't get more generic than this. [Issue#40, p.102]

Too close to call between NBA Live, do you prefer gameplay or visuals? Stats or modes? Ah, the age-old question for sports fans. It really depends on what you prefer and how you play.

Big improvement over previous games and the new features add masses of depth. This offers basketball fans the best way of following and playing the game. [Issue#37, p.85]

Sadly, War World holds your attention about as long as a paperclip and a Post-It note. [Issue#39]

Without doubt, this is a download for the true hardcore, but anyone who dares will be treated to one of the greatest games yet on Live Arcade. [Issue#38, p.114]

Guaranteed to make you jump at least once. [Issue#40, p.78]

There's no denying thta Duke's level design was pioneering at the time, however, its humour is just as open to chauvinistic interpretation as it always was. [Issue#39]

Sadly, Brothers In Arms: Hell’s Highway looks destined to become yet another also-ran in the great yuletide arms race of 2008. It may hold your attention for a while but don’t get your hopes up.

Pure takes racing all the way back to basics and emphasizes fun over complexity yet still incorporates enough depth to have some serious longevity. Excellent stuff. [Issue#37, p.86]

Warriors Orochi is exactly what its mentally ill fans anticipated – more of the same. This is appropriate fare for them, but technically incompetent and repetitive for everyone else.

It’s diminishing returns for the Lego series anyway, now amplified by an uninspiring Batman get-up. After this we can’t really get excited about any future Lego games short of one called Lego: Your Childhood.

While not doing anything completely wrong, Baja fails to inspire and races tend to descend into lonely, boring slogs to the finish line. Realism doesn’t always make exciting gameplay.

This was a terrible, terrible idea. [Issue#35]

The combat is fun and visually rewarding, if a little glitchy, but at the end of the day it's Star Wars, you probably already know if you're going to enjoy this game. [Issue#37, p.80]

We accept that there’s some who’ll like this. You know who you are and you know you’re not the majority. Listen up majority, it is you to whom we speak.

With its unique art style, eclectic characters and accessible gameplay it's an easy and fun little way to get back into beat-'em-ups. [Issue#43, p.99]

Rock Band 2 includes substantial improvements and a better setlist over its predecessor, making it the must-own music game for the 360. [Issue#39]

Does Microsft not realise how insulting it is to release past free flash games as pay-to-download XBLA content? [Issue#37, p.116]

Truly a cult classic. [Issue#38, p.115]

Jolly good show! [Issue#38, p.115]

A commendable first effort from Midway and one that should be the starting point of a seriously good franchise as the years go on. The war has truly begun again!

The biggest surprise of EA’s 2009 American sports round-up, and the most likely to appeal to non-fans.

Only slightly worse than EA's recent offering, but when there's a choice of two, why would anyone plump for second place? [Issue#38, p.102]

FaceBreaker is one of those typical EA test games which will no doubt be improved upon next time around but for now needs major improvements. It would help if it was like boxing, for a start.

Just a competent exploratory shooter spoiled by interaction with the pad. [Issue#38, p.115]

Another low-grade offering. [Issue#34, p.117]

If you’re a battle-strategy addict, prepare to not leave the house for a week. If you’re a graphics whore, though, you’ll probably chuck.

Reasonably deep and enjoyable for fans, but it’s no looker. Not as accomplished as Lost Odyssey. Or Eternal Sonata. But fun... if you like that sort of thing.

Attempts to open up Viva Pinata kind of miss the point. Whether this is a failure in marketing or development is anyone’s guess, but adults will still have fun.

Mercenaries 2 doesn’t quite live up to all the good work done by the original and makes a bunch of new mistakes, but still proves entertaining enough to warrant a look.

It's essentially "Golden Axe" for the 'more pixels, more joy' age. [Issue#38, p.115]

Ultimately feels stale. [Issue#47, p.84]

Still brilliant, but the amount that’s gone in to please noobs is grossly disproportionate to that which aims to please fans. Nonetheless, Tiger keeps up his impressive run.

Epic seizure-inducing madness that is the graphics. [Issue#37, p.117]

Too Human is by no means a bad videogame, it’s just very repetitive and highly disappointing. With ten years development time, you’d think it would be a bit more impressive than this.

Falls short of grand slam quality. [Issue#35, p.94]

It's the kind of old-school outing that will frustrate and satisfy in equal measure, above control issues proving the major reason behind such frustration. [Issue#38, p.115]

Obviously, if "Fable II" bores you to tears, steer clear, but if there's a chance you'll chase Molyneux's dream, by all means play on. [Issue#37, p.116]

In truth, we’re in distraction territory – beyond (admittedly quite a few) graphical changes, its only substantial addition will feel to football veterans like throw-in training might feel to, er, football veterans.

You can't put a price on innovation. [Issue#34, p.116]

The daddy is back. [Issue#37, p.116]

The really great thing, however, is the character creation mode. Honestly, it’s brilliant, and about as close to a real character creation as we’ve ever seen.

Very few redeeming features can pull SA back from the brink of feeling more like a half finished game with unforgiving controls. It will leave you with blisters, but not the good kind.

The game employs some brilliant animaitons for dying enemy units. [Issue#33, p.116]

What really makes this game stand out is its b-boy stylings. [Issue#36, p.115]

It's reassuringly simple fare. [Issue#36, p.115]

Playing it singularly, the computer AI works well in controlling the other ship, but this is best played with two easily amused people. [Issue#34, p.117]

A game with such subtleties and fine detail as Civilization IV would never have worked on a console, and so while purists might carp at Revolution’s necessarily stripped-down feel, its injection of pace makes for a more exciting – if marginally less cerebral – strategy game. And more importantly, it’s still as life-suckingly addictive as ever. [Issue#34]

The problem is, once you’ve played each event a few times they become drained of any further interest. It’s great for a quick laugh, but there’s a serious lack of charm that fails to motivate in coming back for more.

Incomparable to the pure fear that accompanies "Rainbow Six Vegas 2" and more akin to taking part in a sport than a war, Unreal Tournament III is the most accessible and technical shooter available, and it’s near impossible to fault it.

Quite simply, this would have been struggling for a decent mark on Live Arcade. One strong concept does not a game make.

It should have been released months before "Soulcalibur IV" comes out, not the Wednesday before. [Issue#35, p.114]

There’s a lot here that fans will love but they’ll also be the first to complain about the few omissions. Non-fans, ask yourself how much you really love Guitar Hero.

It's basically four buttons, used in the same way each time. Fun. [Issue#36, p.115]

The vertical scrolling and relentless shooting become tired and boring very quickly. [Issue#35, p.114]

This actually proves pretty deep. [Issue#36, p.114]

It’s no surprise that a movie-licensed game has turned out rubbish, again. There is no excuse for gameplay this dated. Avoid, unless you’re feeling very nostalgic.

Small kids might like it, but will need supervision to solve some of hte later puzzles. Adults beware. [Issue#36, p.96]

We so wanted to like this game but it kept slapping us in the face with bad controls, repetitive puzzles and the annoying inventory. [Issue#34]

It has destruction, character and ambience by the truckload, but it should have learned to walk before it started running.

It's just finally captured the skill and fortitude that comes with playing a real game of tennis, an achievement we sense it's always been working towards. [Issue#34, p.90]

It’s a tenner cheaper than C&C 3 (good on yer EA) on account of the fact that it didn’t cost as much to make, being an extension of the first game. If you liked C&C 3, Kane’s Wrath comes highly recommended.

Supreme Commander could have been great, but the wait for the console translation leaves an overriding sense of disappointment. Plus the technical flaws leave it almost unplayable.

A soothing distraction. [Issue#34, p.116]

It's a novel concept but lack of control variation, plus the obvious graphical deficiencies, make it a dulled thrill. [Issue#36, p.114]

This is about as fun as chiselling 'hate' into your other eye, and completing a set. [Issue#36, p.114]

Definitely worth your time if your'e a boxing fan, but not quite the game to wrestle away "Fight Night's" crown. [Issue#35, p.96]

It’s not that Burst Limit is a bad game, it’s just painfully average. [Issue#34, p.96]

Bizarrely this Hulk game isn’t as much fun as Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, and it wasn’t exactly brilliant anyway. You’re best off just watching the film and leaving this alone.

At least you don't use the right analogue stick to aim. [Issue#36, p.114]

It has enough cutesy charm to just about justify the admission price. [Issue#34, p.117]

A fast and entertaining take on the most exhilarating spy movies in decades. The Bourne Conspiracy eventually begins to slip into repetition, but you’ll be having far too much fun to care.

Beyond being easier and ‘more accessible’ Ninja Gaiden hasn’t really evolved these last few years. Not the game we had hoped for. [Issue#34]

Flashbacks make this a thrilling racer, but they wear thin after a while and take their toll on the racing. As a result, we love Race Driver: GRID as much as we hate it, which is quite a lot! [Issue#33]

Easily the best children's title of the year. [Issue#36, p.7]

There’s so much to like here and so much to hate that it’s just a matter of personal preference. We like it, we don’t love it, but we also know there’s plenty of folk out there who definitely will. [Issue#33]

It's just dull and not really what your console was created for. [Issue#34, p.117]

Shame there's no paddle, though. [Issue#36, p.114]

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars tries to inject something new and interesting into a popular genre but completely forgets to fix the things which really do need work. [Issue#33]

It's the same game as before, but better. Lost Planet isn't perfect, but it looks good and is certainly different from the other third-person shooters out there. [Issue#34, p.97]

The humour is as good as anything you'll see on their website. [Issue#35, p.115]

Be A Pro's sideshow trumps the main event, which itself is largely unchanged. [Issue#32, p.86]

Two-player drop-in co-op plus some fun and undemanding levels. The kids will love this and adults could easily kill an hour or so. [Issue#36, p.96]

This game is so rammed full of air-punching testosterone and screen-shaking explosions we're surprised it wasn't developed by Sylvester Stallone. [Issue#34, p.117]

If the answer to "who considers themselves up for a quiz?" is you, check this out. [Issue#34, p.116]

He's rubbish at flying and all his weapons are completely unbalanced. [Issue#33, p.92]

A fantastic, life-affirming piece of software that has set a new standard for what the medium can achieve, with a magnificent multiplayer mode to boot. If all games were this good, no one would ever leave the house. [Issue#33, p.84]

Put simply, there are deeper tactical outings, more sociable games of skill, and many Live Arcade titles more enjoyable than this. Go and buy one of htose instead. [Issue#34, p.116]