Burton's Bytes: A false start, but it's sneakily good

DON'T you just hate it when your carefully-laid plans go wrong? Ubisoft must have felt the same way when its video game The Sums of All Fears failed to make the same release date as the Hollywood movie on which it was based last August.

But sometimes fate has a way of making things right. For while the movie sank without trace, the video game looks set to clean up this Christmas.

For starters, the game has an excellent pedigree. It's based (albeit loosely) on a Tom Clancy novel, is developed by the widely acclaimed Red Storm Entertainment group and uses tried-and-tested technology.

You play as the elite FBI Hostage Rescue Team whose job it is to try to thwart the plans of a renegade militia turned terrorist group.

In a nod to the movie, there are some dark rumblings about a nuclear bomb that has been smuggled into America - and all too frightening proposition in these uncertain times - but, as you have probably already guessed, The Sum of All Fears is pretty much a standard-issue stealth 'em up.

If you are new to this genre, don't worry. Red Storm has designed this game as a gentle introduction to the art of cyber counterterrorism.

There are plenty of training operations where a red line along the floor guides you around the mission area and disembodied voices offer hints and tips on how to succeed. If you don't get it right first time, the game allows you to go back and replay a scenario until you are satisfied. On to the campaign itself and you can choose a difficulty rating to suit your prowess. Easy offers unlimited ammo for key weapons and opponents who are just plain dumb. Normal is the skill level most gamers will want to begin with; offering just the right kind of challenge and Hard makes it very difficult indeed to come out with your team in one piece.

The PS2 version also gives you the option of saving a scenario mid-mission - perfect for those times when you just have to go to the loo or you're not sure what lies around the corner.

There's also a selection of quick missions - one-off scenarios with no continuous story - that can also be played through on three different difficulty levels.

Red Storm's earlier shooter, Rainbow Six, is widely regarded as a classic of the genre. Gamers will be reassured to know that this title follows its predecessor very closely indeed.

Don't be thinking that just because the game parameters can be tinkered with to stack the odds in your favour that your characters can waltz through the game like some kind of cyber Terminators. One well aimed head shot can still take out the unwary.

That feeling of sudden death waiting around every corner makes The Sum Of All Fears unbearably tense at times. You soon learn the rudiments of counter-terrorism and have to rely on flashbangs (which disorientate your enemy and induce panic among the more inexperienced terrorist) much of the time. If you don't, well you'll be playing through from the beginning faster than you can say: "Where the hell did that shot come from?"

Still, as with Rainbow Six and Metal Gear Solid, 90 per cent of the fun is to be had sneaking around scooping out the opposition before the shooting begins.

In some ways this game improves on Rainbow Six. The tedious set-up screens have been ditched, making weapons and squad selection a much more straightforward process. After all, this is just a game and not a military simulator. It's meant to be fun not anally accurate.

Newbies will appreciate the automatic targeting system that takes the sweat out of a multiple target firefight by doing all the hard work

The levels are also easier and I didn't get bogged down in a stalemate half as much as I did with Sum's predecessor where I sometimes found myself restarting a level in sheer frustration.

Nor has Red Storm gone over the top on blood and gore. If you want virtual carnage may I suggest you search out Hitman or a Soldier of Fortune title.

The PS2 game doesn't have a multiplayer option. Gamers who enjoy this sort of title with a mate should opt for the PC version instead which has the usual variations - although you ideally need a broadband Internet connection to make the most of them.

The graphics are neat without setting the world on fire. Both versions are stylish and the PS2 variant runs as smoothly as its computer-based cousin. Some of the textures are a bit bland but, generally, the possibility of getting shot at any moment distracts from any shortcomings - a great example of gameplay overcoming graphics.

If you missed the movie - and let's face it, most of us did - don't worry. Sum of All Fears is worthy enough to stand comparison with any other stealth-based shoot 'em up currently on the market without the need for a mega-buck movie advertising campaign or big star endorsements.

WIN A COPY

You can win a copy of The Sum of All Fears and a Sony PS2 to play it on thanks to The Northern Echo and Ubisoft. For more details of the game surf along to www.ubisoft.co.uk and to win this great prize, worth more than £200, just answer this easy question: What is the name of the Tom Clancy character as played by Harrison Ford in Patriot Games? Answers to: Burton's Byte PS2 Comp, The Northern Echo, Priestgate, Darlington DL1 1NF no later than December 10.