BATMAN BEGINS, Publisher: Electronic Arts. Format: PS2. Price: £39.99. Family friendly? Yes: HOPES weren't high on this one.

Consider the evidence: with the exception of the first two films, all the movies starring the caped crusader have sucked like a Dyson and all the spin-off games have been equally bad.

Thankfully, this one does for the video game franchise what the movie has done for the films - restores some much needed credibility.

Just like the movie, Batman Begins explores the origins of the caped crusader and his emergence as a force for good on the mean streets of Gotham City.

Naturally, you play as Bruce Wayne as well as Batman, hunting evil-doers from the shadows, using stealth and strategy to bring the baddies to justice.

The classic comic book villains Batman gets to battle include the Scarecrow, Carmine Falcone and Ra's Al Ghul.

EA reckons Batman Begins "turns stealth-based gameplay upon its head" by allowing gamers to play as the hunter rather than the hunted but it still felt like Splinter Cell to me.

Batman beats the villains by first putting the fear of God into them - a new and impressive addition to the stealth-based gameplay. Thugs can be literally paralysed with fear before you slip out of the shadows and give them a good pasting. Alternatively, you can interrogate them for information. The cut scenes are plentiful and the game follows the plot of the film faithfully. Electronic Arts has even acquired the rights to replicate the likeness of the movie's cast and their vocal talents.

And just when you are starting to grow tired of all the sneaking around, Wham! Pow! Zap! Batman Begins suddenly turns into a Burnout clone when Brucie gets behind the wheel of a seriously cool new motor. If you haven't seen the movie, the shape of this new Batmobile will come as a big shock.

As a game of the film, Batman Begins does justice to a franchise that has largely redeemed itself at the box office.

Comic book fans, casual gamers and hard-core console lovers will all find Batman Begins something of a knockout.

MOTO GP 4, Publisher: Namco. Formats: PS2, Xbox. Price: £39.99. Family friendly? Certainly: IT'S almost criminal how boring Formula One has become these days.

When two thirds of the teams pulled out of the US Grand Prix in a row over safety last month, the race should have been a total turn off. It was, but what really shocked me was how it didn't really feel any different to watching so many other Grand Prix races run with a full grid.

Then I switched channels and watched Moto GP - the two-wheel equivalent of F1.

Here we have a series where half a dozen riders regularly contest the lead and the eventual winner is normally in doubt until the last corner on the last lap. These two-wheel daredevils go for gaps that don't exist, think nothing of clashing fairings and - in at least one notorious race so far this season - actually barge rivals off the track in order to win.

So which of these two pinnacles of motorsport should make the better video game?

The answer, of course, is Moto GP, but while the shelves of our games stores are positively groaning with F1 simulations, Namco has been left to plough a lonely furrow with it.

Not that this has been too much of a handicap. Over the years, this series has matured nicely and is now a pretty decent all round racing package.

A reputation for being too hard has led Namco to add arcade modes but this is still a hardcore racing simulation at heart, with a pretty realistic physics engine.

You can choose from the Moto GP class, 125cc tiddlers or the 250cc two-strokes that make up every Grand Prix. The full roster of riders is available for selection and competition over the 16 2004 championship circuits. Namco has also made available a great selection of past masters like Mick Doohan, Wayne Rainey, "Revin'" Kevin Schwantz and, my own favourite, Aussie hard man Wayne Gardner.

If you fancy a career in motorcycling, the game insists you create a new rider or choose an existing name with artificially depressed statistics. It isn't possible to become Valentino Rossi, the current champion, and roar away from the grid every race.

At the end of a season, you enter into contract negotiations or move to a (hopefully) better team.

Full simulation mode remains very, very hard. If you stray too far from the racing line, leave your braking too late or twist the power on too forcefully exiting a corner, you'll be kissing Tarmac in no time. It takes patience to master - and I've been riding bikes in real life for 20 years - and is probably too difficult for all but the most committed petrol-head.

The training mode offers bronze, silver and gold standards depending on your skill. Make the most of this because it saves grief in the races.

Between meetings, you are expected to test your machinery to refine new parts that will make it even better. Sadly, the menu for tweaking on-bike settings is childish and too crude but Namco probably thought the complexities of a Moto GP bike would be too much for most people.

There's also a basic four-player mode but no online option, which is an opportunity missed. I guess we will just have to wait for Moto GP 5 for that feature.

Published: 08/07/2005