Review: PAIN

I venture to guess that the first thought pretty much everyone has when they first try Pain is "this is very, very stupid".

The basic idea is that you load up a little man onto a big catapult and launch him into a variety of object rich environments - from Space Stations to Fun Fairs - with the aim of creating as much chaos as possible (in fact, some would say that that's the only idea).

If that sounds limited that's because it is. Sophistication is added in the form of a number of flying manoeuvres, the ability to grab things and the 'ooch' function, which allows you to use the directional buttons to get your little chappie to crawl another yard or two in search of yet another bit of, you guessed it, pain. But really, it's all about 'load, launch and laugh'.

Does it work? Well, yes and no. There are more diverse experiences out there. It's one of those games you will switch on to just see if it really is as stupid as you thought it was and find yourself sitting there two hours later gleefully launching your little man just one more time.

The game does reach another level in the various multiplayer options - with the latest version allowing users to test their pain inflicting ingenuity online. Playing HORSE (or TRAUMA, if you prefer) with your little dude against a like minded fellow contestant has a more community feel than the wasterly fun on offer in single player mode.

I'm not sure why, but I suspect that the people who just liked to drive around Grand Theft Auto getting a chase off as many coppers as possible for as long as possible will particularly enjoy this; those who just skated aimlessly around Tony Hawk-land without ever achieving much will also find it quite the thrill.

All in all, its knockabout fun that lets you shut off that troublesome pre-frontal cortex (or whatever the clever bit of the brain is) for a while.

Ideal target audience: Beavis and Butthead. Huh. Huh. Huh. Huh. Huhuhu.....Huh. .

Verdict: 65%

Brendan Cole