Despite its hefty premium pricetag, it plays and feels like a second-string budget title, albeit with a coat of shiny graphical gloss.

You shouldn’t need double-jointed thumbs nor the kind of patience required to endure its faults. As it is, I can only recommend Mafia to those that for one reason or another cannot play the game on the PC. It isn’t a bad game, it’s just not all that it could be.

It manages to stay close to the tried-and-true formula while implementing features such as a co-op mode that survival horror fans have yearned for since their first screams of terror.

Approach it as a puzzle game, not a driving game and you should be fine.

In the end, the game really is just too human: flawed, ageing but with the potential to do great things.

A surprisingly solid movie-to-game effort, one that is quite refreshing given the usual level of substandard trash that usually gets trotted out to cash in on a popular film.

Quantum of Solace is a solid, above-average game that does the two new films justice without really pushing the envelope.

Like cinema coke, the gameplay has been watered down to the point where it almost feels like an occasionally-interactive movie, where you only need to pay attention during fight sequences.

If you liked the first Godfather title, there's enough here to keep you hooked for a good ten hours, and that's before you try and rob all the banks and crack all the safes.

In a year that has seen more than its fair share of outstanding titles in the action/shooter genre, Kane & Lynch manages to set itself apart with an outstanding compilation of levels that are a joy to play through. Therefore, it is all the more disheartening that at the same time, it manages to fumble some of the fundamentals, chief among them the broken hit detection.

Whilst this is Microsoft’s first venture onto the ice, it does quite a respectable job at recreating the action, speed and excitement of the game of hockey.

It's button-mashing at its best: not too simplistic, but not too complicated either. The RPG and adventure elements add a nice twist to things, though it isn't really enough to warrant returning for a second swing.

Choplifter HD is a worthy remake and a fun addition to the arcade library. Its pick up and play gameplay will make it easy for new and old players but difficult to master and complete the game. If you're looking for a quick game of something when time is short then Choplifter HD is the type of game for that situation.

It isn't an instant classic, and older games may be a little put off by the cheery brightness and colourful cartoon characters, but if you can get past the aesthetics you will find a rock-solid platformer.

In the end, I find it too hard to recommend this game to anybody that isn't either a fan of the Harry Potter franchise, or a parent in search of a simplistic experience to keep the little ankle-biters busy.

Poor game design has produced a very repetitive, unbalanced and lacklustre gaming experience.

It is an unsurpassed military simulator with the kind of refined controls and gameplay that only comes from years of productive development time.

Fans of the third person/action genre have seen everything that Alias has to offer before in the form of "Buffy" and "Indiana Jones" and except for the CIA/hi-tech storyline the game doesn’t really present gamers with anything new.

Disappointing.

Wheelman isn't going to win any awards at the end of the year, I wouldn't think. But it does the most important thing casual gamers look for, and that's ‘be fun'.

Soccer is a game about tactics, skill and precision, and this game shirks all of that for a quick bang, and it doesn't really work.

Alpha Protocol does many things right and succeeds where it count for an RPG but falls short elsewhere.

While Battlestar Galactica is incredibly difficult to master with unclear objectives, lethal enemies and challenging (read: long and unsaveable) missions, the game still manages to hit all the right notes.

Much like a fireworks display: it shines very brightly and provides a big hit of enjoyment, only to fizzle out all-too-quickly and leave you with little besides fond memories and a hole in your pocket.

"Spider-Man 2" was leaps and bounds ahead of the original, but the third outing tinkers with what made the second so great without improving on any of the things that sucked. This wouldn't be so bad if it didn't add a host of new suck in the form of dodgy camera control, frustrating combat and dull missions.

The game combines a tired formula of spawning wave after wave of mindless enemies in the same room with you with the clumsily-executed 'squad-based' combat, which is enough to stave off any fan of the genre aside from stout Barker fans in it for the intriguing but sadly unrealised plot.

The arcade version of Contra was never as well-loved as its NES counterpart, so the choice to port it to the Xbox Live Arcade seems questionable...but not nearly as much as the dodgy online co-op implementation.

Admittedly the name gives you fair warning, but the heavy reliance on the stunt events detracts from the rock-solid arcade racing experience at the heart of the game, and may turn off a lot of players.