In the mood for . . . pugilistic perfection
Fight Night Round 4 (EA; PS3 and Xbox 360, $99.95)
The reason? You're going to be giving that digit a punishing workout as you use the analogue button to land jabs, fashion uppercuts and pound your opponent's body. And that's going to be the case whether you're building a fighter from the ground up or jumping straight in to the challenge mode to pit your skills against the greats of the ring.
Quite simply, this is the fastest, most accurate, best-looking and most brutal Fight Night yet, and that thumb of yours had better toughen up pretty damn quick if you're going to successfully mix it in this company.
The all-new physics engine delivers hugely impressive action - boxers' fight styles are realistically reproduced, punches can land cleanly or glance off. And when you land that knockout blow - boy, will you be cheering as your opponent's jaw crumples and they plant themselves on the canvas.
If you're the type of guy who likes to earn his rewards, you're going to plump for the new legacy mode and build up your very own bad boy from scratch - master attack, build a mighty defence, work your way up the rankings and weight classes. Hand out more punishment than you take and you might just become the Greatest. But be warned: this is a long (and sometimes frustrating) slog.
Prefer your kicks a bit quicker? Jump straight in and match up ring greats for a quick one-two or - and this is where Fight Night Round 4 perhaps offers it greatest thrills - battle against a real-life opponent, either online or right next to you. That way you can stage your very own Fight Club and still go to work without looking like you've been in a car crash! - JS
MH rating 4.5 out of 5
In the mood for . . . the sweet crack of bat on ball
Ashes Cricket 2009 (Codemasters; PS3 and Xbox 360, $99.95; PC, $69.95)
By the time you read this, Australia's fate in the Ashes may have been decided - either glorious victory or ignominious defeat. Either way, should you be inspired to (metaphorically) strap on the pads then Ashes 2009 offers everything you could want in a game of cricket, short of putting your actual body on the line.
Previous cricket sims have been (if you'll pardon the pun) a bit hit and miss. It's clear that a lot of time and effort has gone into making this effort a deeper, more rewarding experience. For pete's sake, it's even got Hawk-Eye replays.
All in, there are 12 Test-playing nations and 18 stadia to choose from. Gameswise, pick from 20-over, one-day, Test and, of course, the Ashes series. Player kits, stadium atmospheres and match pace all change, depending on your choice. As do pitch conditions.
Before you step up to the crease, you'd better spend time practising bowling and batting - with the helpful (and sarcastic) assistance of Beefy Botham and Warnie. MH thought we'd give this a miss and spent the next hour watching the ball soar over our head or walking back to the pavillion.
Once we got over our male pride and put in a few practice sessions, we were able to appreciate the new physics engine that actually delivers on its promise of a highly dynamic and intuitive bowling and batting experience. The key to mastering both is timing, timing and, yup, timing. Get it wrong and you'll pay a high price. Don't believe us? In our first 20-over game, MH had eight men down for 32 runs. Only a decent showing by our tailenders as we got to grips with the timing of our batting saved us from total humiliation.
The quickest thrills here come in the 20-over format, but for true cricketing tragics, MH reckons the lure of playing an entire Ashes series might be hard to resist. Okay, your girlfriend will leave you, your boss will sack you and your friends will assume you've died, but just think of the thrill when you raise that little urn. Priceless! - JS
MH rating 4 out of 5
In the mood for . . . an all-action holiday without leaving the lounge
Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo; Wii, $99.95 including Wii Motion Plus)
One island, 12 sports. Welcome to Wuhu - home of the latest incarnation of the Wii Sports franchise, Wii Resort. And just like sporting franchises the world over, there's a mix of star attractions and also-rans.
Thankfully, there are more LA Lakers than LA Clippers on offer here. With that anology in mind, it's ironic that the basketball game here is one of the less appealing of the 12 games. Similarly, the swordplay and frisbee challenges are quick to run their course (especially when your missus wallops the crap out of you in sword fighting).
Offering much more fun are the games where you're head to head against mates. I'm thinking cycling, canoeing, power cruising and wakeboarding. There's something very satisfying (and surprisingly addictive) about standing in front of the telly frantically manipulating your Wii remote in an effort to cross the line first. And while none of the sports here are going to turn you into a buffed muscleman, more than a few will see you work up a sweat.
Also great for a spot of friendly (or not) competition are archery, table tennis and bowling. In particular, firing arrows at ever-more difficult targets quickly brings out the must-win monster in everybody. Add the amusing golf and air sports games on top of the aforementioned and you've got a great value-for-money package (particularly as it comes with the Motion Plus dongle).
Put it this way: the sun and fun of Wuhu continues the recent run of games that play to the Wii's strengths - in this case, kicking back with mates and a few beers on a wet Sunday afternoon and still getting a healthy dose of manly competition. - JS
MH rating 3.5 out of 5
In the mood for . . . post-apocalyptic driving fun
Fuel (Codemasters; PS3 and Xbox 360, $109.95; PC, $89.95)
''' Gridlock, speed limits, traffic cops, speed cameras, one-way streets, no-entry signs, drive-time DJs . . . it's as if a bunch of men in badly fitting grey suits took one look at the car and thought (MH adopts nerdy nasal voice), "Hmmm, this looks like the kind of thing people could have far too much fun in; we must stop them."
Thankfully, the little grey men have gone the way of pretty much the rest of civilisation in this epic-scale driving game, leaving you free to put pedal to metal and go have some open-road fun.And Fuel gives you plenty of acreage to do just that - 14,000 satellite-mapped square kilometres of a global-warming-ravaged America. The aim? Pretty simple, really. Pit your driving skills against your fellow hard-core racers through this nature-ravaged no-go zone, winning a share of the dwindling fuel reserves when you finish first.
These challenges include checkpoint attacks, circuit races, pursuits and short and long open-territory duels. Or you can simply explore the 100,000km of road, track and trail. Along the way, you'll unlock 70 vehicles from six different classes while facing nature's fury - bush fires, floods, storms and tornadoes.
Success, as well as winning you fuel, unlocks vast new areas to explore - an airplane graveyard, nuclear wasteland, scorched desert and toxic lake are just some of the locations to open up.
Sounds great, right? In theory, yes. But this vastness is actually the game's weakness - there's just so much empty space without enough going on . . . you can drive for a long, long time without seeing another vehicle you're able to take on. A somewhat uninvolved driving experience and sometimes "eccentric" AI (opponents who defy the laws of physics being one example) also stop Fuel from truly catching fire.
MH rating 3.5 out of 5
In the mood for . . . the next generation of a real-time strategy legend
StarCraft II (Blizzard Entertainment; PC and Mac, $tbc)
A preview more than a review here, but given that the planned release early next year of the long-awaited StarCraft II is going to be so huge they'll probably have to invent a new word to describe exactly how huge, it's probably best to get in early. (Don't believe us when we say it's going to be huge? Well think about this: despite being 11 years old, the original StarCraft is still one of the most played online games in the world and is so big in South Korea, it has its own professional league that attracts tens of thousands of spectators to its tournaments. Oh, and did we mention the 11 million sales?)
Anyway, enough context. What about gameplay? Well in the five intro levels MH worked its way through, everything that made the original game such a hit looks to be in place - only bigger, better-looking and more ferocious. You'll need to think tactically to meet the challenges, then build your resources smartly, marshall your troops quickly and lead them into battle expertly. Outside of the gameplay, the end-of-mission cutaways are near cinematic in scale and beauty, and do a fine job of adding atmosphere while moving the game along.
The original's three races - the Terrans, the Zerg and the Protoss - are still in place, and each has their strengths and weaknesses to be exploited, plus new units and game mechanics to further distinguish them. This time round, there's a single-player campaign that picks up where StarCraft: Brood War left off. Of course, on top of that is the online play that sits at the heart of the StarCraft experience and which will surely be its greatest strength.
Given MH had only a few hours and a few levels to experience this new incarnation, we'll dispense with a rating, but we will stick out our necks and say that StarCraft II is going to be MEGAHUGEMONGOUS! - JS
For more entertainment reviews check out the Compass Entertainment section in the latest MH!More game reviews - click here.
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