Demon's Souls PS3

Demon's Souls PS3 hits you like steam train before crushing you in its wake - daring you to try again. And as slave to the thrill of its experience you will indeed plough in hours here. Without save points, steady progression, a pause button or anything one might reasonably expect, Demon's Souls creates one of the strongest connections to a videogame role I've experiences for many years.

Demon's Souls PS3

Demon's Souls contains captivating and atmospheric microcosms. I willingly became absorbed in the harsh fantasy setting - needing to surrender and accept the game's own philosophy, rather than clinging to old expectations, fascinated me. It was a harsh but honest experience, something I'd been unknowingly craving.

Crackdown 2 360

Crackdown 2 360 takes Agents back to a ruined Pacific City, but while super-powered crime fighting is as irresponsibly fun as ever, this sequel fails to advance either the series or its story.

Killer 7 Gamecube

Killer 7 is strange, unexpected and unique. Presentation may be marred by pretentious storytelling and simple mechanics - but it still sent my mind reeling with its thought-provoking narrative and highly charged ending.

Batman: Arkham Asylum PS3

Batman: Arkham Asylum PS3 is a brilliantly realised action adventure providing an experience as close to being a super hero as you can get without pulling on some tights. Although not previously a fan, Arkham delivers such a convincing a portrayal of Batman's super-vigilante role that I was soon won over.

Batman Arkham Asylum 360

In Today's Scripted Gamer Fred and Bob discuss heroes, villains and really bad jokes

3D Dot Game Heroes PS3

Rather than giving me an original miniature world to explore, 3D Dot Game Heroes borrows from pre-loved creations. It's heavily inspired by classic Legend of Zelda, although to the point of being derivative. Underneath the retro nostalgia and blocky graphics lies a shallow experience, lacking significant appeal in its own right.

Fable 2 360

Fable 2 is a different game each time you play it, we get three writers at different stages to talk through their experience on the podcast.

Red Faction Armageddon 360

Red Faction Armageddon expands the original's fully destructible world. New ways to cause architectural chaos and build political capital take us back to the caves of Mars.

Mass Effect 2 360

Mass Effect 2 cut much of what I loved from the first game. But with this much majesty and mystery on offer, who cares. Mustering the cultural sensibilities of a Mos Eisley space Bar, I could do little but jump in with both feet and explore.

Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City PS3

Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City PS3 provides two different but equally compelling stories well worth returning to the metropolis for. Whether you want to dress up or dress down, you'll find great writing, tonnes of brilliant new missions and a host of returning characters to make it worth your while.

Star Ocean The Last Hope International PS3

Star Ocean: The Last Hope has a great combat but fails to compensate for disturbing characters, awkward story and restrictive exploration. I found very little in its miniature worlds worth reflecting on.

Legend of Kay DS

Legend of Kay DS has a strong central premise in 'The Way', a philosophy of non-violence that means combat is a no-no, but while avoiding violence the game fails to find anything entertaining to replace it with and instead resorts to endless, tedious cut scenes.

SMT: Strange Journey DS

Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey is a claustrophobic RPG that constantly feels oppressive and dark. Mixing demonic battles with more adult themes this balances atmosphere with the traditional role-play mechanics. This is the kind of soulful experience that's all too rare on the DS.

Okami Wii

Here is my musical review of Okami on the Wii, I've called it 'I'm a Wolf'.

No More Heroes Wii

No More Heroes is clever, different and arty. But eventually I realised that its parody of bad game design is impossible to enjoy. As someone's who missed out on a lot of games, I can only spend so much time trying to like games like this.

Crackdown 2 360

Crackdown 2's wonderfully distracting world offers a rich place to play and hunt. Although, in the absence of split-screen multiplayer, we were restricted to turn-taking the playground spirit kept us going long into the night.

Heavy Rain PS3

Heavy Rain PS3 is a remarkable achievement, although one that could have been so much more convincing. Dwarfed by its own expectations, there needed to be more humanity and acting going on for this to work. But in spite it all this is a very special game.

Heavy Rain PS3

Heavy Rain PS3 shoots for the moon, but while the filmic nature is impressive it doesn't distract from the juvenile game play. In parts scary, while in others unbelievable. A game I enjoyed watching more than I enjoyed playing.

Heavy Rain PS3

On progressive and artistic grounds Heavy Rain falls at every hurdle with clumsy delivery of story and characters. Visually strong but without the script to back it up. Contrived emotional moments left me feeling cold and unaffected. The vision of an interactive film may have been achieved but its lack of soul made all those technical achievements meaningless.