A vitamin injection of originality, putting the sheer joy of flying back into combat flight simulation. It's an experience you do not want to miss.

Planet Moon set out to create a game that was pure, visceral fun and it did just that. You can sit down and play for ten minutes or ten hours and still be enthralled.

The spaced out save points create a wonderfully rare sense of dread. You'll want to stock up on inventory and weapons before attempting a particularly difficult passage. And you're not always secure whether you're going to make it. This is where Dead Rising's sandbox zombie killing comes into its own.

An adventure masterpiece...the best adventure game I've ever played.

Treyarch has done a masterful job with this game, satisfying the needs of serious hockey fans without losing sight of the fact that a sports game has to be fun.

Even with combos and grinds at your disposal, the jumps and turns come so fast and thick that intelligently managing the course is a huge necessity...The game feels far less like a dog and pony show as a result, and is more challenging and rewarding, too.

Under the surface lies something of a bionic game - they have rebuilt it, and the new product is better, stronger, faster - well, probably not faster (unless daddy has bought you a silky P133), but it's one hell of a game all the same.

Possibly one of the best puzzlers ever to grace consoles.

Control is perfect and, once mastered, you get a sense of the timing.

Ridiculously addictive. A hallmark of a good game is that it makes what would be mundane interesting. In EQ you can happily play for hours just trying to gain enough experience to get to the next level.

Metroid Prime Hunters is simply amazing: It lives up to the pedigree of the series, the graphics are unbelievable, and it's the first truly excellent portable first-person shooter. It delivers in both single- and multiplayer in a way few games ever have.

A near-flawless fusion of solid gameplay and excellent presentation, filled with little details that make it a kill-the-light-and-unplug-the-phone experience.

Compelling and addictive, and far more fun that we'd have expected after slogging through the confounding Jak 2. This is the action platformer refined to perfection.

Every brilliant little detail of N4 serves to remind you, over and over again, that this is a sim of real class.

This is a jaw-dropping, exhilarating game. It's the game you'll remember for years.

The development team deserves special praise for once again for guns with a sense of heft and kick. The weapon models look great, and they're particularly impressive in action. With immersive effects for iron sights and muzzle flash, and with hearty Hollywood gunshot sounds, there's a powerful you-are-there feeling.

Super Mario Galaxy is a reminder that games don't have to be ultra-violent, make clever social statements or ride the marketing machine to succeed. They simply have to be fun, and you'd be hard pressed to find one as genuinely enjoyable as Mario's latest.

Packed with atmosphere, accessible gameplay and sweet visuals, Beyond Good & Evil has most definitely reached beyond our expectations. Don't miss it.

It's hard to fathom, but what it really boils down to is the fact that gamers may never really have grasped just how faithful an adaptation of the D&D ruleset we are looking at. It is totally accurate in every, single detail.

The PS2 version is the weakest graphically, with a forgettable bonus character, but the Dual Shock controller is nearly as good as a joystick... "Virtua Fighter 4" might hold the top spot among hand-to-hand fighters, but when it comes to weapons-based combat, Soul Calibur II is the undisputed champion.

While many courses here are modeled from past runs, most are barely recognizable, at best. They're like the ugly kid from high school who turns out to be a model ten years later.

Everything in the game reeks of excellence. The characters are good, the story is intriguing and the Land of the Dead is a wonderful place.

Those who take a quick look at the game may not see what the fuss is about, but spend some time looking at the incredible detail and you're sure to be floored.

The objective of Far Cry 2 as a game is to get out of the way and let you experience the game world. And there is no other game world quite like this one: haunting, spectacular, meditative, explosive, violent, and serene, all at once, and all in a mere shooter.

Even with the amazing achievements in other areas of the game, one of the most under-appreciated, but ultimately useful, components of SS2 is its interface.

In a game that plays this hard -- 2K3 is probably the most challenging football game out this year -- timing is crucial.

The Xbox version is the prettiest of the bunch, sporting HDTV support with a 720p display mode, yet it also suffers from the worst default control layout... "Virtua Fighter 4" might hold the top spot among hand-to-hand fighters, but when it comes to weapons-based combat, Soul Calibur II is the undisputed champion.

The Orange Box can't stop giving. It's a sci-fi masterpiece, a clever puzzler and a multiplayer monster wrapped into one, making this a landmark achievement in gaming value and one of the easiest buying decisions you'll make all year. Color us impressed.