NecroVisioN

Weird Undead Germans (not Nazis, this World War I here) with barbed wire whirling around their bodies sounds like a recipe for a great game. Sadly, an original idea and some bizarre creatures aren't enough to lift this Painkiller-esque shooter above the most basic of levels.

NecroVisioN is a pure shooter, with a sad lack of shooter sophistication. This doesn't mean that a shooter has to be bad - Painkiller wasn't, and Bulletstorm looks like it'll be a hell of a laugh - but NecroVisioN is put together with a real lack of slickness that makes it a chore to play.

There is a full-on prequel called Lost Company which features more of the same sort of action, but with more weapons, characters and drivable vehicles, so if your boxes do happen to be ticked by this kind of thing, there's more to punish yourself with. Loyal players will be up for a fight in the multiplayer, as it isn't that old a game, but there's far better things to be spending your money on Painkiller: Black Edition for example. It may be old, but it has the stake gun, which NecroVisioN never manages to top.