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Time Splitters: Future Project
Publisher: Eletronic Arts
Platform: PS2 and X-Box
Taiwan release: Already available
If it's ridiculous shooter action you crave, then Time Splitters: Future Project and its hilarious run-and-gun fun is a necessary addition to your gaming library.

The storyline, which revolves around time travel, is basic and certainly not as riveting as Oddworld or as fast and furious as Half Life, but as inane as it gets, it still makes for very amusing play. In the campaign mode, players take on the role of Cortez, who, once he's gotten hold of the special crystals that power a time machine, is sent bouncing back through time.

Along the way, players get to use weaponry dating from pre-WWI handguns to state-of-the-art laser guns and get to wander through some graphically rich and entertaining environments, from frozen wastelands to underground labyrinths.

As players travel through time they meet up with an interesting bunch of allies that includes an Austin Powers-like swinger from the 1960s and a 1990s babe in a very, very short skirt. Villains range from evil geniuses that could be straight out of a James Bond movie to the walking dead. The game's campaign mode may not be as intense as it could be, but it still has a lot of charm and is certainly a lot funnier than most.

When gamers aren't trying to save the world in the campaign mode they get to try their luck in a couple of arcade modes. Featuring a league option and a challenge mode, the quick-play arcade modes might be pointless in regard to completing the game, but when you get to drive robot cars, throw bricks through windows and lay waste to all it doesn't really matter, as mindless gun-toting fun has never been more enjoyable.

FIFA Street
Publisher: EA Sports
Platform: X-Box and PS2
Taiwan release: Already available
Considering the huge success of EA Sports' other urban sporting title, NBA Street, FIFA Street might seem like a good idea. Sadly, however, when you bring the world's most popular sport into graffiti-covered urban basketball court-like environments in which players battle it out in fast four-a-side games it doesn't quite work.

Sure, the graphics are first-class, the playing environments look great, the all-star cast of players would make Roman Abramovich jealous and the "custom-player creator" mode is one of most detailed on the market, but FIFA Street is simply not soccer! The game instead resembles an over stylized star-studded television commercial for leading sportswear manufacturing giants rather than "the beautiful game."

It's pretty safe to say that FIFA Street is not going to appeal to any true fan of armchair footy more in tune with the roar of the crowd than the clatter of traffic.

For non-soccer gaming purists -- who are probably the only ones who will enjoy what EA has done to the great game -- Street offers non-stop end-to-end action. Matches are played until either the clock runs out or until one team has scored a designated amount of goals. There's no offsides, corners or throw-ins, and the only time gamers get a break from play is after a goal has been scored.

Instead of employing the fluid AI from the latest edition of EA's long-running FIFA Soccer series, Street uses some awful hybrid form of AI that bears little, if any resemblance to the tried and tested model. Players can pull off all sorts of trick shots, but ask them to do something as basic as pass the ball or tackle and they are next to useless. And as for the goalkeepers, well, if the four sitters scored against this reviewer are any indication of their ineptness, they might as well not be there at all.

Brother in Arms: Road to Hill 30
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PC, X-Box and PS2
Taiwan release: Mid-April
While there's certainly no shortage of WWII squad-based first-person shooters on the market, Ubisoft's breathtaking Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 has taken the popular format to the next level.

Instead of aimlessly wandering through the hedgerows of Northern France and rooting out German machine nests, snipers and the odd King Tiger or two as a fictional character, Brothers is based on the real-life exploits of Sgt Matt Baker's company, which parachuted into France on the eve of D-Day with the US' 101st Airborne Division.

The action takes place over a one-week period beginning with the drop and ending with the capture of the town of Carentan. Each mission is based on actual events and the addition of cut screens that boast the cinematic brilliance of the HBO series, Band of Brothers, make this game a must for any gamer looking for a hefty dose of realism.

Unlike other WWII first-person shooters, the action is not non-stop. Like real war, there are brief moments when the bullets are flying, but then there are others when Baker's squad is simply roaming brocage country trying to avoid any and all contact with the German forces.

Graphically the game rocks. There's plenty of blood and guts and the uniforms and equipment are all designed to look like the real thing. The environments in which Baker's boys fight are equally stunning. Whether you're seeking out nasty 88mm guns hidden among the hedgerows or clearing towns of lone snipers, Ubisoft's attention to detail makes each mission as absorbing as the last.

By using the same game engine as Full Spectrum Warrior, Brothers allows players to control each individual squad member as they see fit. Covering fire can be laid down at the press of a button and assault squad members move in to outflank enemy positions.

Fight Night Round 2
Publisher: EA Sports
Platform: X-Box, PS2 and PC
Taiwan release: Already available
When Fight Night took over from the long-serving, yet slow and annoying Knockout Kings last year, it looked as if the beleaguered boxing-game world had finally found a contender worth cheering for. Great graphics, fantastic game play and an intense career mode propelled it to the top of the gaming charts and it looked too good to be beaten.

But beat it has been, as Fight Night Round 2 packs an even mightier punch. Released last month the game has not only graphically surpassed its predecessor, but it has also managed to knock its rival to the floor thanks to EA eradicating the control glitches and doing away with the annoying hip-hop theme.

While the game comes with an arcade mode, which allows players to dive straight into the ring, most gamers will, no doubt, be spending most of their time in the career mode. Like that found in previous boxing games, the career mode allows gamers to go from unknown to world champion. Win a match and gain prestige points and cash, both of which enable fighters to improve their training regime and fighting ability, but loose a few bouts and you'll find yourself back at square one.

Along with being able to create your own boxer and control his routine, players are also able to purchase extras such as a "cut man," who sits ringside and clears away any blood from cuts and gashes, and busty ring girls, who, decked out in rather risque swimwear are guaranteed crowd-pleasers. It's not all glamour, however, as the career mode comes complete with dodgy refereeing decisions and the occasional controversial call by the ringside judges.

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