Over two years ago, the premise of Watch Dogs sounded like a fresh take on the open world genre. A blend of a single player sandbox game with concurrent online multiplayer infrastructure, set in a fictitious, hackable version of Chicago, seemed like the shot in the arm that we needed.

Ever since its eye-opening debut at E3 a mere two years ago, Watch Dogs has been heralded as the true arrival of next-generation gaming. Ubisoft itself has done little to discourage this notion, barrelling full steam ahead on an unrelenting hype train.

Watch Dogs is a solid open-world game that doesn't do enough to set itself apart from the pack.

This game is ok. The main character is very contrived and uninteresting. The story is about the same. Kinda feels like a cheap GTA. I enjoyed it but man, it did NOT deserve the pre-game hype it got. It's ok at best. Looks like a PS3 game. Nothing really next gen about it. Underwhelmed.

I don't see myself finishing this game. Played it twice and gave up and quit on it both times. Sure it's not bad for a first attempt at an open world game, but it is far from a great game, and far from a next gen game.

A great disappointment, I had high hopes for a real hacking game but the hacking mechanics very quickly turn into rather standard, boring superpowers-at-the-click-of-a-button. This is Hollywood Hacking at its worst, with characters pressing a single button to make all the lights in a city go out.

What the hell happened to this game? So much potential, so much promised and it all added up to nothing. A very very poor game, terrible story and hacking mechanics. Even worse combat and character development. Didn't feel entertained once from start to finish.

If Watch Dogs is to be believed, then a shocking number of Chicago residents are delinquents. As you roam the city looking to both right what is wrong and make wrong what is right, you hack into its citizens' smartphones and listen in on their conversations, and even tap into their computers and...

Hacking gives car chases and combat encounters an additional element of freedom; Fantastic online modes provide rip-roaring fun; Digital trips are highly entertaining; the spider-bot in particular; Loaded with varied things to do; each of which is beautifully executed; Some clever mission design...

Inconsistent tone; inconsistent lead character; Successful online invasions are boring; Neither money nor reputation are all that valuable