Some things remain inexplicable; consider UFOs, the Abominable Snowman, the Loch Ness Monster, why people watch Blind Date. And now, consider the mystery that is Mighty Hits.

As far as we can ascertain, Mighty Hits is comprised of twenty gun-based sub-games tied to a surreal Wild West sort of scenario. Complete a set number of games and you receive a score based on your reflexes, timing, memory and accuracy. Sounds like the ultimate party game, right? Hmm... not quite.

With twenty different challenges to try, it'll take a while to see everything in Mighty Hits. Some of the sub-games are very simple; for example, shoot a bottle as its cap flies off. Others are rather tough; lob balls into cups on the back of three rapidly rotating mice. A few are critually impossible; three clock faces are swinging on pendulums and you have to nail all three at once, with just one bullet in your gun!

This means a steady gun arm is required, but these stages can prove frustrating if you're after a decent score. The truth is that most of the sub-games require almost super-human feats of accuracy.

Mighty Hits has one of the weirdest intros we've ever seen. A lone horseman heads across the open prairie on his turbo-charged steed, enters a bar in the midst of a hold-up, his head falls off, he shoots someone, they shoot back and the whole saloon collapses. What does it all mean?

To choose which games to attempt, you are presented with three boards which rapidly flick through the available games. Shoot each board to stop it and so select your game. There is an element of chance here, as the games flip by so fast you can't always choose the stage you want.

However, if you manage to clear three stages in a row, you get to play a bonus game which lets you select your next three stages manually if you win. If you lose then you'll get nowt, I'm afraid.

At the end of each shoot out session, you're rated in five general areas; strength, speed, flexibility, memory and concentration. You are also awarded an overall grade somewhere between A and Z, but you'll need godlike reflexes to attain the higher grades.

Even after extended play we could only reach grade O, as you can see. The rating screen also offers handy tips on how to improve your score and get a better grade.

You wait for ages... and then two gun games turn up at once. Mighty Hits is a rather jolly idea, and coupled with a decidedly odd Wild West setting you would think that it would be a right laugh.

Sadly this is not the case, as although it's initially fun: Hits starts to drag very quickly and some of the games are so frustrating that you almost want to shoot your TV for real!

Perhaps inevitably Mighty Hits doesnt' stand a chance against the awesome Virtua Cop 2, and you'd be advised to spend your cash on that instead.

With not one but two shoot-'em-up titles receiving the review treatment this month, light gun owners might be fooled into thinking that they're actually going to get some use out of their trusty firearm at last.

While this is certainly the case with Virtua Cop 2, the runt of the litter is sadly Mighty Hits. There's really very little to recommend about this loose collection of second rate sub-games and Saturn owners will soon tire of the unexciting, repetitive gameplay.

Is this really the standard of quality we expect from our 32-bit wonder machine? I don't think so.

Graphics 72%
A combination of polygon characters and rendered back grounds provide a basic play environment. The surreal World West characters are amusing. For about five minutes.

Sound 68%
Inoffensive tnes tinker away in the background. The sound effects aren't exactly Earth-shattering either. The characters don't speak which is either a blessing or a disappointment, depending on how you look at it.

Playability 81%
Dead simple to get into and the gameplay is novel, as long as you're using the gun that is pad-bound players won't get much fun out of it. The grading system offers an incentive to continues playing.

Lastability 61%
Initially fun, but after a while you just can't be bothered. Some of the time limits on the harder levels are almost impossible which frustrates. Unless you have a gun, Mighty Hits offers little long-term enjoyment.

Overall 62%
Mighty Hits is an interesting idea, but it doesn't make for a compelling game. For parties only, but then who wants to play games at a party?