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.

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.

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.

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.

Watch Dogs borrows a lot of tried and tested concepts, adds a healthy dose of unique uberhacking, and rounds out as an enjoyable game that's laid the foundations for a sequel to blow us away.

+ Action-heavy gameplay; + Hacking mechanics; + Multiplayer; + Chicago

- Driving mechanics; - Police/hired goon chases; - Most characters are boring; - Ideas noticeably held back by cross-gen

Watch Dogs is the first game of this new generation to break under the weight of its own hype. It has had a massive PR campaign from Ubisoft, and was subject to a six-month delay at the zero hour, which is usually not a good sign.

+ Hacking is as advertised + Multiplayer + Socially conscious

- Seems more like an almost-ready beta - Server issues

The parts of Watch Dogs that are terrible are the parts that make a good game great. Characters, theme, meaningful gameplay connected with meaningful storylines, clever self-aware writers working closely with game designers, internal consistency, vision.