Sword of the Stars: Born of Blood

Loved by its fans and missed by almost everyone else, Sword Of The Stars was perhaps the best RT4X game of the last year. The RT4X genre is 'real-time Civilization in space'. Take charge of a race, lead them through space to glory, to the detriment of all other races.

But first, the bad news: Born Of Blood still looks like it's been created using the 3D digital equivalent of poster paint and potato shapes. Whether you'd find the graphics charming or infantile is a matter of taste, but SOTS made a far greater impact on the gelatinous blob that lies behind the retina.

As standalone expansions go, BOB is cheap enough, but unless you really loved the original like a first-born child, you're hardly going to be that bothered with what is a new race, some added units and ship sections, along with a tweaked user interface.

Sure, there's more to it than that, but the single-player still lacks any narrative progression. In fact, it isn't until you spend some time in-game that you notice the changes. And when you do, about 70 turns in, they explode like a firework.

BOB also features turn-based pondering - now with trade and diplomacy too - interspersed with short, sharp real-time battles that almost rival the best of what Total War has to offer. In multiplayer though, it beats it hands-down.