CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
PC, £19.99 Alliance Atlantis/Ubi Soft ****
Being Channel 5's top-rated show is not necessarily a cause for celebration, but in the case of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, a certain respect is due. The big question is, does the painstaking detail and careful plotting of the series transfer to CD-Rom? The answer is indubitably "yes".

As the title suggests, your job is to solve crimes, with five cases of increasing complexity on offer. You can either solve them one at a time, or concurrently - seeking help from William Peterson (playing your boss) and other team-members when you run out of ideas.

CSI is all about gathering evidence and inevitably involves a deal of toing and fro-ing between locations - all rendered in a simple pan-and-scan 3D effect. At each location you have dozens of tools at your disposal, then it's off to the labs to explore the results or run police checks. To make an arrest you need to provide at least two pieces of hard evidence, so rushing off to your boss half-cocked will only waste your time.

So far, so good. However, there are some niggling problems. Interrogations, for instance, are of the tedious "click every topic one by one" variety, and having to re-question the same suspects as new clues become available only rubs it in. Nevertheless, this is a well-constructed and thoughtful game involving hours of distinctive gameplay.
Mike Anderiesz

The Hulk
PS2, Xbox, GameCube, PC, £39.99 Vivendi Universal ****
This year Hollywood appears to have adopted an official policy of preceding its blockbusting films with associated videogames - the Hulk game follows X-Men 2: Wolverine's Revenge and Enter The Matrix. Happily, The Hulk is a classier beast than its peers - indeed, if the trailer for the Hulk movie is at all representative, the game may well outshine the film. Staggeringly, considering it is an example of movie merchandising, some deep thought has been expended on the Hulk videogame.

Vivendi Universal has turned the Hulk's finest qualities into rather innovative gameplay. The Hulk is very arcade-style: at first, you must smash your way through levels in which you are beset by hundreds of tiny soldiers shooting guns and rockets and, gratifyingly, you learn to pick them up and chuck them at their colleagues, or smash up the environment, releasing huge iron girders that can be used to take out hordes of enemies at once. Cleverly, monotony has been avoided by including stealth levels, in which you play as Bruce Banner, and in which your efforts will come to nothing if you are caught, become angry and transform into the Hulk. Throw in some magnificently tricky bosses, gloriously crisp graphics and a storyline which, although fairly minimal, is very much in keeping with the original comic strip, and you have (unexpectedly) one of the best action games to arrive this year.

The rest of Hollywood should take a long look at The Hulk and learn how it is possible for films-of-games to harbour ambitions beyond mere me-too merchandising. Please note: you will not have to wait until the film opens in July to play the game - it will be released on June 13.
Steve Boxer

Enter the Matrix
PS2, Xbox, PC, £39.99 Shiny/Atari, ***
Despite the incessant psychobabble and sixth-form philosophy, the gravity-defying stunts made the Matrix movie a real hoot. Sensibly the videogame of the sequel keeps the action level pumped up and the conspiracy theories muted. With a plot conceived by the Wachowski brothers - the team behind the films - ETM will certainly appeal to Matrix fans. Especially as there is an hour of extra footage shot for the game.

You don't actually play as Keanu. Instead, players can choose between two additional characters, each with differing plot strands. The simple controls let you kick, punch and shoot with ease. The slow-motion effects work particularly well, allowing you to dodge bullets and pirouette gracefully before clouting your opponent in the chops.

But no matter how impressive the visuals and soundtrack, the repetitive combat gets tiresome. The difficulty curve veers from ridiculously easy to frustratingly hard within minutes. Some depth is added by the hacking element, which lets you uncover secrets and movie sequences.

There's no denying that ETM is highly polished and a great franchise product that will satisfy fans of the film. But connoisseurs of great games will be disappointed, as the slick visuals can't disguise a lack of depth and longevity.
Greg Howson