Ninja Town

Nintendo DS
Honor, stealth & cookies above all else... 
I've used this column before to highlight the hard time ninjas get – It's tough work being a super assassin and the pay isn't good. This time however, the Ninjas are getting hassled on their home turf, and most likely at the weekend too. There's no rest for the wicked ninjutsu skills it would seem, and it just isn't fair.
Brought to you by the people behind Shawnimals (purveyors of fine plushies and toys), Ninja Town is in its most basic sense, a re-creation of the classic Tower Defence game. 
Originally seen as a Warcraft III mod, and recently, addictively, as a kajillion flash games like Desktop Tower Defense and also Pixel Junk: Monsters on the PS3, the idea is to destroy wave after wave of oppressive enemies wandering through your base/town/table, by building towers that can shoot, or in this case, houses that generate ninjas. Stopping the enemy from reaching the exit point is goal to the game. How it is done, is where your own strategies come into play.
Translating the Tower Defense genre to a cute, pastel coloured world of ninjas obsessed by cookies works a charm, infusing the gameplay with far more character than is usual for the abstract strategy genre.
Differing towers are replaced by differing ninjas – some are strong, some can shoot, some can freeze, all have different cookie costs. Managing these costs, and the network of upgradable houses throughout the town is key to surviving, especially when the enemies become more capable of fighting back.
The DS' touchscreen works a treat for games of this ilk, ensuring quick and intuitive controls, and there are unique DS style powers like being able to blow into the microphone to knock enemies back, in the guise of an overseeing Master Ninja.
Admittedly, the game starts off at quite a sedentary pace, probably aimed at easing in those new to the genre, but its worth sticking with as the gameplay gets more rewarding (unfortunately not through real cookies) and those ninjas could really do with some help for a change.
7.5/10

Fable II

Xbox 360
Legendary
From surviving a nuclear wasteland in Fallout 3 to sacrificing yourself for love in Shadow of the Colossus, there are many facets of escapism and expression within video games. Committing bigamy, farting until you accidentally follow-through, and becoming a renowned Lute player are just a few you can add to that repertoire, by way of the sublimely cheeky Fable II.
At its heart, Fable II is an RPG – an adventure game full of dungeons, magic and derogatory Scottish gargoyles, yet beneath the trolls and swords exterior lies a complex, accessible game that reacts to your every action, be it good, bad or somewhere in between.
The original Fable did a similar thing but it was a world of black and white – concise and clear actions of good or evil. It was also a failure in many ways, an overly ambitious title that still remained entertaining despite its flaws.
Fable II is by no means a perfect game but this time round it delivers on all those original broken promises, crafting a living, breathing world that is visibly sculpted by your actions. It is also a world of greys, where sometimes there isn't a right or wrong choice, where sacrifices have to be made for the greater good at personal cost.
From your humble beginnings as an orphaned street urchin to famous monster slayer, your adventures earn you reputation throughout the land. People become to admire or fear you, and as you interact with them, you can charm them or scare them, entertain them or disgust them.
You can also woo them, marry them, have children, become a property magnate, a champion, a villain, a thief and a beggar. The world is your oyster and it and your character's ever changing appearance are distinct representations of your own behaviour.
Throughout the game, one thing is a constant, and one thing is an undisputed success – your best friend, a dog. With you from childhood, your companion not only mimics your actions through appearance and behaviour, he also guides you and fights for you, providing a constant emotional link that ultimately ties you to Fable II's powerful conclusion.
9/10