Heroes in a half-shell: Turtle power
The heroes in the half-shells don't seem to say "Cowabunga!" any more. Fortunately, Michaelangelo is still a party dude
Back in the good old days, as they like to call them at the Daily Mail, broadcasters were guardians of the nation's morality. In this spirit, the Teenage Mutant Turtles were not Ninjas (as in the original comics) but Heroes. But a new animated Turtles film -- and an accompanying game -- are nearly upon us, and in further evidence of the downfall of humanity, they're back to being Ninjas. I don't know how our children can cope.
Far more serious is that the heroes in the half-shells don't seem to say "Cowabunga!" any more. Fortunately, Michaelangelo is still a party dude. I've just downloaded the demo of TMNT from my handsome, generous friends at GameSpot and, unlike many licensed games, it's a fun, professionally produced piece of work.
The demo is a time-limited intro. I got about 15 minutes of play out of it, but you can go back and do it again as many times as you like. You control prissy two-sworded boy scout Leonardo, jumping across the dark roofs of New York, minding your own mutant business, when you're set upon by some armed hoodies. You can block, kick and hit them with your swords, and do combinations for special moves. You can also call on your terrapin frat brothers for some explosive team attacks.
It's not the most ambitious game this year, but TMNT should provide some nostalgic cartoony fun when it's released on all formats on 23 March. Just don't tell the Daily Mail.