Xbox

Mashed: Drive to Survive

Good party games on this generation of consoles have been few and far between. Certainly Nintendo keeps the flame lit with games like Super Monkey Ball and Mario Party, but the PS2 and Xbox tend to be neglected in this area. So for the owners of either of these console's, Mashed is a breathe of fresh air. Exhilarating, fun and beautifully simple, it's an essential party game. Perfect after pub entertainment. Or before the pub. Or when you have your mates round. Or.... look, its good anytime, just go buy it.

I'm not saying that this should jump to the top of anyone's must-buy list, but I am totally comfortable with the statement that Drive to Survive taps into something almost primal in appeal - blowing your friends' cars up is always fun.

Pas vraiment original, pas spécialement accrocheur ni immersif, Mashed rate un tant soit peu la route qui aurait pu le conduire vers le statut de renouveau du jeu multijoueur sauce Micromachines. Se basant trop sur des acquis et ne proposant pas un univers suffisamment personnel et détenteur d'un caractère, ce titre estampillé Empire Interactive joue admirablement bien son rôle, celui d'un petit divertissement sans grandes prétentions, mais idéal pour des soirées entre amis, si tant est que l'on passe outre une certaine monotonie. Pas du tout indispensable mais à essayer à l'occasion devant un verre de jus de fruit (pas de marque) et du Savane (mince, une marque). Dommage, vraiment.

At first glance, Drive to Survive looks like a Micro Machines-inspired, top-down battle racer with cool weapons, lots of tracks and cars, and a dueling gameplay style where knocking out opponents is all that matters.