Mass Effect 3

GAME OF THE WEEK: 1 5 cert, EA, Xbox (also PlayStation 3)****

The latest version of Bioware’s hit game means an end to Commander Shepard’s story arc, and possibly the end of the galaxy. After blazing a trail of destruction across the galaxy, the alien Reapers have finally brought the fight to Earth, and they’re willing (and able) to eliminate everything in their path.

As the game begins, you see just how destructive the Reapers are, with buildings being pummelled and, in one particularly depressing moment, ships carrying security troops and survivors of the initial attack, including a child, blasted out of the sky.

It’s intense, and by the time the action gets started, you’re almost shell-shocked. But that’s where the fun really starts.

As is its speciality, Bioware has given players exactly what they want. Choose Action mode to throw yourself headlong into an adrenaline- fuelled rush to destroy the Reapers and save what’s left of the planet. A more story- focused mode, where responses are manual and choices have consequences, makes combat far easier. For the best of both worlds, there’s an RPG mode, where you choose the replies to conversations, and combat difficulty is at a normal level.

The Reapers are relentless, so Shepard and the crew must be too. Combat has been tweaked, so you can melee attack more successfully. You’ll also use that “run and roll” as you try to escape from hazardous combat situations.

The Xbox version of Mass Effect 3cleverly uses the Kinect controller to bring voice integration to the game. It has hours of complex gameplay in its single player mode. And although the campaign is absorbing, Bioware has also built in multiplayer that shouldn't be missed.