Micro Machines - GBA

Codemasters' Micro Machines last graced a handheld platform in late 2000 when the miniature racers revisited the top-down, table-top mayhem first seen in the early nineties. That was over two years ago, and in that time the Game Boy hardware has undergone major overhaul. Game Boy Advance is now available for your playing pleasure, as is the new Micro Machines racer.

As before, there are no Donington Parks, Silverstones or Suzukas to be found here - racing takes place on small-scale, mock-up tracks set in largely domestic environments. Garden ponds, snooker tables, breakfast tables, class rooms and science labs are all available for a miniature tournament and they all come complete with strategically placed obstacles such as forks, reeds, cues, rulers and Bunsen burners.

As you may expect, there's an abundance of different game modes for both the single and, more importantly, multi-player experiences. The self-explanatory Time Trial and Single Race options are available in both cases but, as far as the lonesome player is concerned, Championship mode is where it's at, offering no less than four competitions to race through.

Anyone who is familiar with Micro Machines games will be aware that the multi-player mode is by far the best bit. Micro Machines GBA, like its 128-bit counterparts, is no exception, offering a host of different challenges in which up to four players can compete via a link cable. The only downside is that you're going to have so much fun playing this mode that you'll need an abundance of long-life batteries to keep it going.

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