BANJO PILOT: Format: Game Boy Advance. Publisher: THQ. Family friendly? Yes.

DO you remember when Nintendo took a certain moustachioed plumber and dumped him on a power go-kart for some racing fun with his friends? We all thought the company had lost its mind. Yet when Mario Kart arrived it turned out to be one of the most addictive racing games you could buy for your SNES console.

Guess what? Nintendo has done it again, only this time it has chosen Banjo and his feathered pal Kazooie and planes instead of karts for Banjo Pilot on the Game Boy Advance.

The last time we saw our heroes on the GBA was in the traditional platform adventure Grunty's Revenge, so Banjo Pilot marks a noteworthy change of gear for the characters.

This may be a small cartridge but it's packed with gaming goodies - Grand Prix, Time Trial, Championship and Quick races are all available, plus something called the Jiggy Challenge where you must race against another character and collect pieces of a jigsaw puzzle at the same time.

Incredibly, there's even a multi-player mode where you and three friends can race head-to-head (provided they all have the requisite link cables).

Each race last for three intense laps and the circuits are packed with power inducing pop-ups and weapons just perfect for crippling that plane ahead of you. Your plane packs a machine gun but you'll need some of the weapons power-ups if you are to really do some damage.

In typical Nintendo style, the "weapons" are more Wacky Races than Medal of Honour. My favourite was the flying saucer that, when launched, takes out the lead plane in spectacular style.

The controls are spot on. Your planes turn nicely and can even roll out of the way when fired upon to dodge enemy incoming bullets.

It all looks good on the small GBA screen and your characters are big enough not to get lost in the melee. Afterwards you even get a replay of how the race went. This is all topped off with a nifty soundtrack and a handful of comic quips from your favourite characters.

Banjo Pilot takes an established formula for fun, polishes it up with some nice new circuits and improved sound effects, then lets rip with some of the most addictive game play currently available for any system, let alone Nintendo's ageing handheld. If you want some racing excitement on a portable platform then Banjo Pilot is the game to look out for.

UEFA: Champions league 2004-05: Publisher: EA Sports. Platforms: PS2, PC, Xbox. Family friendly? Yes.

DO we really need another EA football game? In the last 12 months, we've had two so what could UEFA Champions League possibly offer that's new? A surprising amount, actually.

Despite EA's financial clout, the rights to Europe's premier club competition have been vested with another games company until now.

Initially, it looks like another FIFA game, certainly the on-pitch element feels very familiar if you have played either of the early season EA footie titles, but UEFA attempts to go further by mixing a bit of management into the usual game of two halves. Don't get me wrong, this is no Championship Manager, but the need to keep the board and the fans happy does add an extra thrill that's so far been missing from the normal FIFA fare.

If you elect to play a full campaign you are asked to create your virtual manager and given a set number of objectives before the cup run begins. These are updated as the season progresses, sometimes on a match-by-match basis.

You certainly have to put up with an interfering chairman. The game regularly demands that your team must win by a set number of goals in order to reach your objective. Even worse, the chairman sometimes picks the team or even demands that a certain star player has to score.

Failure to reach these targets has serious repercussions. If you have a string of bad luck, the chairman may force you to sell players in order to balance the books. Worse still, the game normally chooses who stays and who gets the boot.

When your star men go through the doors you have to send the money they brought in to replenish the squad. In other words, you have to buy players you don't want to replace members of the team you didn't want to leave. It's so crazy it could be real life!

Once your team gets on the field of play, anyone who has become familiar with the FIFA passing style will feel instantly at home.

There are one or two improvements, though. The corner-taking system has been overhauled this time so taking a spot kick feels less of a lottery than it did before.

And fans who support teams that aren't in the Champions League need have no worries, either. EA has thrown in a full Premiership roster as well as the ability to play as teams from all the other big European leagues, so if you fancy taking Middlesbrough into the competition then this is the game to buy.

As ever, the cut scenes, commentary and general ambience of the game are top notch. EA really does pay attention to the little details, even down to the Champions League logos on players' shirts.

The last time EA decided to do something different from the general FIFA formula we ended up with Premiership STARS. This title is a better bet all round than that abortive attempt to create a more challenging footie sim, even if you do sometimes feel like telling the chairman to take a hike.

Published: 25/02/2005