It can actually be quite a laugh in a very basic sense - but the fact remains that there are better example of both genres, albeit independently.

Sure, some of the textures could do with being of a higher resolution, there’s no multiplayer option and… nope, that’s pretty much all that’s wrong here.

Of course, if you put them in a dreary real-time strategy with wide-open environments that drains away all the tension and replace any hostile encounters between the species with tedious combat, then perhaps the game would fall short. But no developers would be daft enough to do that right? Right? Oh dear.

It's a good, solid adventure game with plenty of cool little touches along the way, but (and there's always a but) it's nothing worth getting frothy at the mouth for.

To make matters worse if this had been released back in the day when linear gameplay and generic platform problems were acceptable Twinsanity would've still been average. Today there is nothing redeeming.

It is fun, but certainly won't last for long and will soon crash and burn into the pile of games ready for trading in.

Suffers from a lack of any true excitement, and you really won’t care whether you win or lose. The narrative is dull, it looks like an old PC game in places, the FMV is juddery, the story a no-brainer and the controls fiddly.

If The Bouncer had been cast with a little more of the freedom associated with the RPGs it borrows its visual flair from then this would have been a defining moment for the PlayStation2.

It’s slow running, sluggish to control and there’s some horrific pop-up.

Though the feeling is epic and the ideas are there, the pace and quality is lacking.

Essentially SEGA Soccer Slam fails to hit all the marks a fun arcade football game should hit and indeed were hit by Midway’s superior RedCard. If it’s a solid and fun arcade kick-about you’re after then plump for Midway’s game as Soccer Slam is best avoided.

This is the very definition of a linear game. Ok, we can accept that. But if the game is going to be so particular, it would be helpful if it wasn't so restrictive and occasionally clumsy.

This is one of those infamous games that you'll pick up long after completion just for the fun of it.

The modification potential for the cars is a wafer-thin percentage of its competitors as well, but then who needs it, right?

Obscure is well worth playing all the way through, and if you can stomach the characters and their irritating forced American idiosyncrasies then this title could well be one of the best £20 price-tag games out there.

Lead characters aside, another element that makes Whiplash so amusing is Genron itself. Although animal testing is hardly a subject to be laughed at, the game gets away with making fun of it because it's the humans themselves that are portrayed as being dumb animals.

Far from terrible, this latest Dragonball offering may be among the best we've seen but it simply doesn't have either the widespread or lasting appeal to find the audience that the nature of the license means it once might have. C'mon guys - it may still be working for Pokemon...

On one hand the characters and art endear you towards it, but when it comes down to it, the fighting is just too shallow to recommend this over any other boxing game out there.

The music, sound effects, cool fight scenes, bullet time and being able to fight an Agent. It's all good. This is the very nature of a license – you love to hate them and hate to love them. They bring as many problems as they do solutions but every once in a while the good stuff outweighs the bad.

Looks, sounds and plays every bit as good as "Gran Turismo 3" while bringing some great new additions to the genre.

DragonBall Z: Budokai 2 isn't really a fighting game, well it is, it's just not a good one.

The digital controls are extremely precise and you won't find yourself falling to your death very often.

It isn't a bad game by any stretch of the imagination, and it's lovely to see some of the old Pitfall elements back after such a long hiatus. But some dodgy level design causing a multitude of unfair deaths means that we quickly became frustrated.

This game is indeed all we hoped for and a little bit more.

The multiplayer mode is where the real fun lies then, and this game can genuinely suck hours from your existence with the aid of a few bloodthirsty friends and an unhealthy obsession with scrap metal.

In a nutshell, Custom Robo is a vibrant and entertaining adventure game with more customisation options and robot combinations than you will ever actually see. [JPN Import]

Indeed, it seems as though very little thought has been put into the single player campaign full stop...What's worse is the fact that the computer cheats like fury in the single-player campaigns.

Get past the visuals, the levers, the stupid bloody water sections and you’ve got a game that doesn’t get anywhere near the high potential of the worlds greatest action hero, but still manages to provide some guilty pleasures.

You can happily blaze away all day were it not for those objectives, playing smart is the developer's desired way for you to play but its not as much fun.

There is just too much to think about whilst racing around the levels. Virtually every single part of the pad is used and some of the buttons are used twice! Add to this the multitude of power-ups and there’s just too much to handle.

Admittedly, this game is designed to be played in multiplayer and when done so is quite fun. For about ten minutes.

A sham, and doesn't stand fit to carry the logo of such a stunning film. Once past the multiple loading screens required to start the game, the real waiting begins, as the low-octane action jerks more than a shoe fetishist in Clarks, even in one-on-one combat.

The biggest problem with Batman Begins is that it tries to imitate both "Splinter Cell" and "Burnout," two fantastic games that ought to combine for a very successful title. Unfortunately, with Batman at the helm, they turn into parodies bordering on farce.

It is also, bizarrely, needlessly fiddly to walk in a straight line. Its almost as if the game is expecting you to strafe as your viewpoint veers to the left and right, causing you to correct the movement on a constant basis.

Enemy AI is minimal, weapon effects lack impact and, best of all, once you're in a fire fight all the beauty of the slickness drops to just enough to make aiming more annoying than fun and that can't be good.

Onimusha's stars aren't exactly in the same league as Dante, Jean Reno or Mr Viewtiful and B) The eccentricities of the series don't make for a beginner friendly combat game.

Just when it all sounds so promising it all falls apart as the boxing itself feels rigid and restrictive, while the punching animations don't feel nearly as convincing as the original Rocky game, with certain animations seemingly failing to connect for no reason.

'Is it as good as ISS?' We should say that no, it is not. On the other hand it is certainly a lot better than the majority of other footy fests that have tried to take on the big two.

There's plenty to discover and see, but because it's almost just as easy to button bash as it is to perform the moves properly: the longevity is seriously affected.

Half-baked at best, parts of the game appear only half-finished, with sections of polygons not actually meeting, despicable clipping and some truly stone-age AI.

The game simply cannot hold up in today's market and sadly its too frustrating even for Dirk the Daring's fans to stick with it for any time.

Like the billions of other platformers fighting for shelf space, it's just kind of... there. The lack of frustration means it's good for kids but for everyone else, why settle for Kimberly when you can have Cheryl?

Underneath the gloss and overblown script, behind the limited tactical use of the Legions, Chaos Legion is an old-fashioned hack ‘n’ slash adventure. Just like "Devil May Cry 2," the next-gen visual wizardry and slick character design hide a game that isn’t quite as original as it thinks it is.

Ultimately, Vampire Night lacks the sparkle that the best examples of this genre display. It looks good, sounds okay (apart from some cheesy voice-acting) and whilst it lasts (not very long as it happens) it is quite entertaining.

Looks fantastic, the cel-shaded style really helps to bring the classic Looney Tunes quirkiness to the game and all of the main characters are well animated and look as they should.

The attack patterns are pedestrian, the level designs confined and the environments repetitive. The third-person adventure side to the game fails to progress beyond ‘find-the-key/unlock-the-door’ business end of the genre.

It’s not going to keep you amused for a very long time.

Sure, there are some flaws but you can have some good fun edging your way through the missions and the Co-op mode is a godsend.

In essence (online play) transforms it from being a non-descript hockey title, to the hockey game to own. What more can we say?

Mischief Makers dropped some hints about what the N64 can do in 2-D, but Yoshi's Story pushes the boat out so far it''s run ashore on the other side ... but once you've got past the initial sense of ''ahh, isn''t that sweet'' it doesn''t take long before all that sugar rots your teeth and sets your stomach a-churning.

A boring and almost totally uninspiring game. The initial premise and use of cinematic pace is nothing but a drunken flirtation with a situation that could have been, and its not long before you find yourself playing the gaming equivalent of being a milk monitor in a class for the lactose intolerant. During a mild thunderstorm.

With little in the way of originality, and a bandwagon that left three years ago, Gladiator is a game out of time.

Nothing groundbreaking, but if its fun with guns you’re after then few current squad based titles provide it better than this.

The plot is in badly translated Japanese and makes little sense, but still the game is curiously 'unputdownable'.

But once you get past the amazing new backgrounds, funky tunes and endless different game options, the best thing on this cart is just the basic Tetris game, played the same as it’s always been.

Multiplayer mode is where Worms Blast really comes into its own. Against another player, any game can be completely turned around within a matter of seconds.

Still, while mindlessly hacking away at guards, the player can at least enjoy the neat visuals, which are brilliantly authentic and effectively designed.

This feels every bit a PSone game whose stretch outreaches its grasp in every aspect of its being.

A fine looking title which falls down by being massively frustrating, Tao Feng can consider itself a wasted opportunity to combine the better elements from the Mortal Kombat and Dead or Alive series.

The track design however is where Crash 'N' Burn gets let down. Visually it's a hit and miss affair but the actual track layout is about as basic as you can get.

Despite the obvious simplicity of such basic controls, Mad Maestro manages to play fairly convincingly.

Basically a vanity game made by Anime fans for Anime fans which sticks to its guns to create a shallow shoot-’em-up with an inspired styling.

A deeply unsatisfying experience, although younger players may have some fun just running around as Mike and laughing at his crazy antics.

While the balance between shoot-'em-up action, stealth and puzzle solving makes Rogue Ops a treat to play, what we love most about it is its openness. To every problem or obstacle encountered there's nearly always at least two solutions, sometimes even more (see panel for more detail).

No, what really annoys is the fact that the developer feels it doesn't need to make an effort because it's a game for kids.

It rapidly descends into an overly-linear memory test which, without the physical act of aiming or the genuinely engaging ducking mechanic of "Time Crisis," all too quickly becomes repetitive and dull.

To play Operation Surma is to walk a tightrope between excited gaming tension and an overwhelming urge for self-mutilation.

Throwing a fireball at Ken is still as much fun as ever, and it does look better than any other Street Fighter EX game. It won’t be the best Street Fighter game you ever play, but it’ll be fun nonetheless.

Sadly every single part of this game seems average and we can't help but feel that the fans are being let down.

If you fancy the idea of stealth games but have never quite got your head around the whole 'no running in and blowing heads off' ethos, then this would be a good starting point.

The game is not too big and in fact can be finished extremely quickly but there is always the option of racing again in a new car or just watching the models strut their stuff.

Considering the remarkably silly subject matter, Palmer’s does an excellent job of providing some seriously enjoyable gaming.

The main problem with Star Trek: Away Team, however, is the enemy AI. Whichever skill setting you play on (there are only two) you will find yourself confronted by some of the most stupid opposition ever found in a video game.

The camera is fine, the control system good and (like the film it follows) at no point does it patronise the audience. In other words there are no coins to collect here.

Some will find it frustrating, others irrelevant, while a small number of people will no doubt relish it for the very flaws we pointed out.

The story has been used to make a highly entertaining game and once you get involved in the action you only want to blast all the aliens and save the planet.

Though plagued by a number of problems, not least the average nature of the gameplay, Fur Fighters on PS2 does attempt to invest some new life into the game and does better last year''s Dreamcast original. If you want to play last year’s games today, then you can do no better than Fur Fighters.

Seven Studios has tried its best to offer a mix of gameplay elements with rescue operations and mini-games included but these aren't enough to break up the monotony of the copious smash and saunter sections.

Development time for this title has clearly been organized as follows: 10% on gameplay, 10% on graphics and sounds, 40% on Sydney's arse and another 40% on her breasts - 0% on enemy AI.

Sure, the bizarre and quirky style might not be to everyone's taste, but if it is possible to create a revolution in the pinball genre, then Flipnic is the game to do it and is certainly worthy of your attention.

Fireblade has some nice ideas, none of which are carried out with proficiency.

You have the instant playability of the Dreamcast classic ["Crazy Taxi"], but with television's favourite family stuck onto it. How can it go wrong?

The prison camps are all highly detailed and full of things for you to find, figuring out the breakout is fun, some of the scrapes you get into with the guards are a laugh and, if you can handle the sheer frustration of getting constantly caught, you’ll find an in-depth and interesting adventure. But we do rather feel it could have been much better.

A definite shoot first ask questions later exercise. Hell, you can't even shoot the good guys and they don't get pissed at you for trying so just shoot everything that moves.

The pairing of two characters works very well, with certain levels requiring you to position one before switching to the other in order to hit switches and open doors - yeah, we've seen this all before but it is rare for a licensed product to bother with such game mechanics.

For everything Sonic Heroes gets right there's a massive fault ready and willing to ruin the hard work - a less than stellar framerate, especially in two-player mode, numerous glitchy moments and - dare we say it? - graphics that are actually inferior to the Dreamcast Sonic iterations.

It’s not perfect, but Harry Potter is a sterling, fun play wrapped up in the magic of Hogwarts and it’s enchantments, making it a must have for muggles and wizarding folk alike!

A fast and fun arcade racer.

All Kemco appears to have done is taken Tetris and turned it upside down. Oh, and added a load of ‘cute’ egg characters too to brighten the whole thing up. Great.

Overall, pleasant is the best word to describe this. Musashi: Samurai Pleasant. Sounds far more apt.

Meritless in terms of taking their genre forward or, worse even, invoking the warm glow of nostalgia. Spend £15 on a NES and the original games instead.

The fairly simplistic gameplay mechanics may not appeal to rallying purists, but anyone looking for an accessible, if somewhat unorthodox, racing title will find much to enjoy here.

The one aspect of the presentation that does warrant attention, however, is the camera, which true to third-person shooter form, manages to make the game far less enjoyable than it really should be. Where action is concerned, this isn't such a problem, but when solving puzzles the camera can prove a greater enemy than Dracula and all his undead minions combined.

The space-flying gimmick surely doesn’t warrant a purchase on its own. This should’ve been a very decent shoot-‘em-up. What happened?

Feels like a rushed and unpolished version of a game that, while good, will never be able to hold a torch to the original N64 games.

That’s not to say X-Squad is hopelessly flawed – if taken as more of a no-brainer than intended, it provides a serviceable blast, and the well-spaced restart points do dampen the almost random battle outcomes fairly well.

Had the develop[ers] only thought about what it was doing a little bit more it could have made an astonishingly good game using the source material provided.

This game is quite good. It’s quite addictive, and takes more than an hour to complete, really marking it off from previous efforts.