Burton's Bytes

Format: PS2

Price: £39.99

Out:now

I BLAME Bruce Willis. Ever since he appeared as a character in a video game (his likeness appeared in Apocalypse on the PlayStation) other Hollywood stars have fallen over themselves to lend their talents to games.

Sadly, all this trend has done is to serve notice that there's still a long way to go before Hollywood can bridge the gap between a movie that's essentially a passive experience and a game that relies on player interaction.

Rise To Honour stars action man Jet Li - not an actor usually known for his acting depth - and, to be honest, I wasn't expecting much.

Things start promisingly enough though. The movie-style credits sequence shows Jet performing the stunts you'll be expected to accomplish in the game - and darn exciting they look too.

The fast cutting technique intermingled with slow motion shots of Jet drop kicking a bad guy off his motorcycle, shooting two heavies as he speeds down a hospital corridor on a stretcher or just diving to safety ahead of a helicopter gunship, certainly gets your adrenaline pumping.

After a brief cut scene you are pitched straight into the action - chasing a mysterious bad guy who has grabbed a crucial slip of paper.

This training level is a terrific way to introduce the game dynamics as Jet Li chases the fleeing baddie through densely populated Cantonese streets and thence across the rooftops.

Control is pretty simple. To make Jet perform an action (jump, climb, etc) just press the R1 button on the pad. He runs or walks depending on how hard you press the left analogue stick; punches and kicks are performed by twirling the right hand stick.

You'll probably have guessed by now that Rise To Honour is no Metal Gear. There's a modicum of stealth thrown in but really this is just Streets Of Rage up-dated for the 21st century.

It maybe simple but it looks - and crucially - plays great. I found myself pulling off jaw-dropping martial arts moves after a 15-minute familiarisation with the controls.

Even better, when you do something particularly tricky the game goes into slow motion Matrix-style so you can admire your work before switching back to real time.

After starting Rise To Honour with something of a heavy heart I have to say it's actually a pretty good game. The only downside is the inability to do anything about the sometimes wayward camera - a button press to centre the picture behind Li's head would have made some of the boss battles less frustrating.

Still, the camera never gets so bad as to interfere with the fun you will be having playing this game and when you are done there are some neat extras.

Drop into the options menu and you'll find a full soundtrack - just like a movie tie-in - with a playlist of 16 tracks to select. There are also some conceptual drawings and early digitisation pictures in a virtual gallery.

Apparently Li himself did the motion capture for this game; that explains why the character animations are spot on and why it feels for all the world like one of his popular but brainless movies.

Rise To Honour isn't going to define a new beginning for the sometimes uneasy relationship between film and video game but it's definitely a very positive step in the right direction.

EA FIGHT NIGHT 2004

Publisher: Electronic Arts Format: PS2

Price: £39.99

EA Sports has been in the boxing business longer than Don King. I remember buying a pugilistic piece of electronic action for my Sega Mega Drive more than ten years ago.

The company really hit its stride with the little-seen but well regarded Foes Of Ali on the Panasonic 3DO system in 1994. Since then it has been knocking out new boxing up-dates at regular intervals.

So what's new about Fight Night 2004? Truth be told, it's not a radical shift away from the previous series known as Knockout Kings (where do they get these titles?) just a general polishing exercise.

Lennox Lewis has retired now so, although he can be found as a playable character, EA have paid Roy Jones Jr for permission to use his likeness on the box. It's a sad reflection on how far the sport has fallen in the public conscience that only true boxing fans will know who the heck he is.

As usual with EA titles, the front end before the game starts is terrific. The rap music owes more than a passing nod to Bill Conti's Rocky soundtrack (oh how EA must have kicked itself for letting that franchise get away) and the shots of Lewis et al handing out a pasting to lesser opponents are bone-crunchingly realistic.

I was disappointed to see EA's attention to detail doesn't go so far as to prevent middleweights fighting heavyweights in the instant action mode but the career option is a big improvement - allowing players to create their own characters.

The control method is similar to the Jet Li game above - you punch with the right analogue stick and move with the left.

As well as uncannily accurate boxers, the game offers realistic facial damage although the explosions of sweat off each protagonist's head when they get hit is a bit over the top.

Still there's gouts of blood when your man is getting beaten up and realistic sound effects of leather on flesh and bone when you fight back.

All the stars are present and correct (including historical figures like Ali and Smokin' Joe Frazier) with the exception of one Mike Tyson (he had his own boxing series at one time).

EA Fight Night 2004 represents everything that EA has learnt about boxing sims in the last two decades. Unlike boxers, video games, it seems, get better as they grow older.

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