Pub Fight

You can say what you like about globalisation and the demise of nationalism in a modern technocratic multicultural society, but there are some things that make us proud to be British. Things like the honest pound sterling, our famous fighting spirit in the wars or like our wonderful Queen - gawd bless her! Yet even these institutions pale in comparison with that most wondrous of British inventions, the good old fashioned boozer. The pub is quite simply a cornerstone of our society, which is no why Infospace has created a whole series of games celebrating the theme from pub darts to pub pool. But the latest recreates another classic cultural event - the pub fight. Ahh, what evening would be complete without a bit of a ruck down at the old dog and duck, or as Pub Fight would have it, the old Arse & Elbow?

Cast as the landlord of said establishment, your task is to fend off a succession of lairy undesirables who come at you from both sides of a 2D screen using either your right and left feet or fists which are unleashed by the buttons 1, 3, 4 and 6. Each level has two types of opponent to overcome, which can only be sent packing by either a timely kick or a right hook. Hence a frantic display of fast reactions and co-ordination is required (making it unlike any pub fight we've ever seen!) if you are to proceed to the next wave of drunkards.

While this may sound quite basic, extra variation is thrown in by rapidly changing combinations of boozers, enemies that move at different speeds and the occasional regular getting in the way. There's also a neat scoring system which rates your performance on each wave, awarding top marks only for perfectly timed attacks. A bonus round breaks up the levels, using a similar mechanic but placing you behind the bar firing out drinks to on-rushing regulars (presumably to fuel them up for future fisticuffs) plus there's also a 'survival' mode in which you have to simply stay alive as long as you can to rack up a score.

Whilst this variation adds a little longevity, by far the most compelling reason to keep playing is to discover what lies in store for you on the next level. Each is themed according to a decade and sees both your barmen character and his opponents styled accordingly, hence mods and hippies of the 60s, give way to spiky haired punks, disco dancers complete with medallions, knuckle dragging Goths and menacing rastas as the levels role on. Couple this with some jaunty music, nifty animations and you've got a refreshing and, dare we say it, uniquely British tongue-in-cheek tone to the whole thing. Okay, this definitely isn't one you'll be playing this for hours, but for the price of a couple of pins, Pub Fight is a perfect filler between rounds or when you're waiting for the last bus home and it sure as hell beats the real thing!