I have played COD3 which I thought was good (especially the medic whereby you could heal people), COD4 which improved the graphics, story line and online gameplay, and now this. This is an improvement over COD4 as the graphics appear sharper and more realistic. There are more scenery objects to take cover behind and the AI seems to have been tweaked. At the moment I am about half way through the single player campaign and have also played some hours on the multiplayer (xbox live).

The single player campaign has a good story mode, not brilliant, but it is enjoyable playing as the characters. There appears to be a lot more enemy soldiers on the screen at the same time than previous versions I have played, and you have to keep an eye on the ammo you have as you can tend to stay put firing and taking them down, rather than pushing forward. At times in certain chapters, things can get a little confusing, e.g. going through the side streets you were being fired at from the front, sides, behind cars, from the rooftops and from planks between rooftops. At times I id not know where I was being attacked from and ended up dead al lot of the time. But persevere, and you will find it rewarding that you completed the level.

In multiplayer there are all new weapons to get accustomed to and totally new maps. The first time online is a little confusing as you do not know where you are, but after several goes, you get to know where you are and where to go. As with Modern Warfare 1, as you play online you get experience points, which enable you to get a higher rank as you progress. This in turn unlocks new weapons, weapon attachments, perks and challenges. This is brilliant as it does keep you going back to play online to get all the perks/weapons. The only downside is that the noisy pesky nuisance kids are all playing this at the moment, and you may get some abuse if you are not up to their standard or if you kick the c**p out of them. Just mute for a better online gaming experience.

Overall, a great game and seeing as the last one got me playing for days/weeks/months, overall the value for money in playing is amazing. A great buy and well worth the money.

Assassins Creed II {ps3}

Some people are saying that both these games lacked a plot, well clearly it was a lack of explosions and car chases that bored their simple minds but for people who have brain you will appreciate the twists within the worlds history, that creates an intriguing story that i have so far enjoyed playing. Graphics are excellent as they always have been, gameplay is smooth and easy and the fight sequences are a great improvement on its sibling. Overall this game is well worth the buy, but not for feeble minds who just want explosions and gunfire.

New Super Mario Brothers (Wii)

If you collect all the star coins (3 in each sub-world), then you can unlock something special, don't ask me what that is, as I have yet to achieve this. Ath the moment I have collected all but 2 of the star coins in the first world.

If you are a Mario fanboy or girl I would recommend this title, you wont be dissapointed, and you wont find it too easy or too hard either. For less experienced players I would only recommend this game if you can team up with friends and family who can give you help along your adventure in the mushroom kingdom.

You can't save the game at any point you want to, only after completing and defeating and end of level boss, do you get the option of saving, but this is one of a very few negatives about this game.

The music score is very catchy, and some koopalings even dance to the tune in the game! There are all the usual sound effects in Mario, and there are some very familiar sounds from the original Mario, namely when Mario has fire ability you can hear the sound of him spitting fire (just like the NES version).

Overall, I have given this game 4/5, as some younger gamers used to 3D mario adventures like Mario 64 and Galaxy may find this old fashioned. But I have given it 5/5 for sheer fun, as all Mario fans will know.

If you still aren't convinced to get this game, then I would recommend waiting a few months for the price to come down. A second hand copy would be worth the wait, if you are still unsure whether to purchase at the moment.

New Super Mario Brothers (Wii)

This game is blatantly aimed at old skool gamers - this game starts off fairly easy but expect the challenge to increase throughout the game! It never gets frustrating and due it's simple design never feels unfair. No glitches, unfair deaths or alike here... it's all your own doing!

While this game looks superb, it doesn't push the hardware to the max. While some people may frown upon this, I think it is refreshing that this game revolves around gameplay rather than graphics. A lot of modern games are certainly guilty of this. Having said that, this game does look very nicely presented - and Nintendo have pushed the graphics as far as a game of this stature will allow.

Finishing note - I haven't felt this inclined to play through a game for a long time. Quite often I can only play a game for a short while before I want a break - this game makes me want to come back for more and I'm having to prevent myself from playing it in order to be more constructive with my time! All I have to say is that if you're an old skool game fan, a Mario fan or just want something more traditional and less complex (but certainly no less deeper) look no further than this game!