Interactive Entertainment's The Witcher 2 is to fantasy video games what Game of Thrones is to fantasy fiction and television.
There is nothing particularly wrong with this game - it's just that it has all been seen before.
The Resident Evil series is often recognised as having re-invented survival horror and brought it into the next generation, with its revolutionary Resident Evil 4.
Tower-defence games have grown so prevalent even the ones that mix in other genres and rewrite the rules of engagement are cropping up at a dangerous rate.
Street Fighter X Tekken
For: Xbox 360, PS3, PC
From: Capcom
Three stars (out of five)
Pronounced: Street Fighter CROSS Tekken.
Genre: Fighting, funnily enough.
I'll get this out of the way straight away - I am a Star Wars fan. Not a dress up in tin foil and go to conventions geek, but I have seen the films more times than I can remember. And by the films, I mean the original trilogy, not the sack of steaming poop that was parts 1, 2 and 3.
In so far as mixed martial arts games go, Supremacy MMA Unrestricted is the best in the PlayStation Vita's library.
On paper, The Splatters sounds familiar enough.
Your Shape: Fitness Evolved 2012 For: Xbox 360 (Kinect required) From: Ubisoft Billy O'Keefe That hissing sound you hear? That's your resolution to get in shape slowly seeping out of the room as the excitement of 2012's first week gives way to life as usual.
Wow. I was not expecting such an awesome game, but right from the start Deus Ex sucks you in.
Shadows of the Damned is not shy about its inspirations.
The conceptually brilliant (and arguably excessively cheerful) Quarrel is what happens when Boggle and RISK have a child.
Downloadable Game of the Week: > Kinect Fun Labs Xbox 360 (Kinect required) • From: Good Science/Microsoft • Rating: Everyone (comic mischief) • Price: Free When Microsoft...
> Dirt 3 4.5 stars (out of 5) For: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 Style: 1- or 2-player racing (8 players online) From: Codemasters The Dirt series ostensibly encompasses the large world...
> Dawn of War II: Retribution • For: PC • From: THQ • Price: $29.99 • Rating: Mature In Dawn of War II, a handful of brave Space Marine heroes saved sub-sector Aurelia from an...
The age-old game design truth remains true: If something you do isn't original, you'll be forgiven as long as you do it well.
In recent years the Madden franchise has fought an uphill battle of its own making.
Like many contemporary 2-D platformers, Outland takes a page from Metroid's playbook, sprawling its adventure across a large, open-ended landscape dotted with collectable abilities that gradually increase your ability to access the world's most far-reaching corners.
It seems a bit odd to commend an arcade racing game set among a crumbling city for its subtlety. But when the obscene amount of destruction taking place sneaks up and grows on you like it sometimes does here, that's the only word that works.
Shift 2 Unleashed
From: Electronic Arts
For: PlayStation 3 | Xbox 360 | PC
Rating: Everyone 10+
