The reviews are in the paper this week with Mario Strikers Charged Football (Wii), Shadowrun (360, PC) and Halo 2 (PC) all failing to really excite. Mario is the most interesting of the bunch, though it is hardly essential. Actually, none of them are bad games - even Shadowrun should be applauded for some innovative elements - but it's hard to get excited by Halo 2. Would you really want to upgrade to Vista and then splash out a further 40 quid for Live membership just to play an elderly Xbox game? No, me neither.
Elsewhere Aleks talks voice communication in Second Life and there is a look at the relationship between controversy and games development - with particular focus on the Chernobyl background of mediocre first person shooter STALKER.