. Plays March 15, 2013

Tom Orry, Editor - God of War: Ascension, PS3

Right, so I had a bit of a dip in my enjoyment of Ascension, but things are looking up again in the last third. There have been some great puzzles and the combat is improving thanks to an increase in Kratos' power and new unlocked combos. I've also kind of got used to the parry system, so it's now a useful tool even if it's still not as good as it was in previous games.

And the game still looks amazing. I've just completed an area set inside a massive furnace room and when the place lit up with flames the visuals were a treat for the eyes. I'm really looking forward to the final moments as I've read that it's pretty spectacular.

David Scammell, Deputy News Editor - Tomb Raider, Xbox 360

Okay, Wido, jeffyboy40 and GamingWithLC, you were right: Tomb Raider is excellent. I still stand by what I said in last week's VG Plays about the game's poor opening, but ten hours into it, Tomb Raider has been an absolute joy to play. The Uncharted influences are pretty prevalent, of course, but what I hadn't been prepared for were the hints of Resident Evil 4 and Batman: Arkham Asylum. And those aren't bad ingredients to have.

It isn't just mechanically great, either. Technically speaking, Tomb Raider has to be one of the greatest achievements on the current generation. I was convinced that the blood pit sequence (you'll know the bit I mean when you get there) was rendered in CG, and left utterly confused when control was quickly handed back to me. Either that's an incredibly well-done CG/engine switcheroo, or Crystal Dynamics has achieved things with the Xbox 360 that I didn't think were possible. A marvel.

Steve Burns, Reviews and Features Editor - Sniper: Ghost Warrior 2, Xbox 360, PS3, and PC

This week I finished Sniper Ghost Warrior 2, something that the developers themselves were incapable of. It is buggy, poorly designed, and worst of all for a game about shooting people's faces off, boring. From what we've played the multiplayer mode improves things, but this is a) poor and b) destined to sell loads of copies anyway. Oh well.