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Hulk is somewhat different from the average super-hero. Icons like Superman, Spiderman, and the X-Men share common characteristics which make them super-beings: handsome, seemingly impregnable, inspiring. By contrast, the Hulk has always inspired pity. He's a freak; a Jekyll and Hyde mistake. He possesses power, but it cannot be controlled.

You might expect the most poignant character in the comic canon to be approached with care when a video game goes into production. After all, it's not all storming and superpowers with the Hulk. Which is perhaps why US Gold have taken so long to produce their licensed game. So, just what have they done?

The Hulk was the second Marvel comic creation of Stan Lee, after The Fantastic Four.

Defeat each of Hulk's five foes, who await him at the end of platform levels.

In the Hulk stories, the transformation to the Hulk occurs when scientist Bruce Banner is enraged. In the game you spend most of your time in the green-skinned role, helpfully allowing you to beat up the robotic legions standing in your way. You only become Banner again when your energy level falls to a certain amount, and death nearly always follows a few seconds later. Becoming the Hulk again depends on collecting the necessary transformation pods.

Being Bruce Banner has one advantge. You can fit into some narrow pipes and passages, often leading to bonus rooms. Hulk also has to use his head later on, as progress is linked to secret doors and switches.

Hull uses a selection of combat moves: headbutts, throws and punches. Previously, one strike from the big green monster was enough to silence most opposition, but these robots can withstand anything up to three hits.

This has so little in common with Marvel's green-skinned anti-hero it defies belief. Since when did the Hulk require several hits to smash something? And why did Banner need special pods to become the Hulk? Any why should he want to since he was always searching for a cure?

Granted, we could let such laxity to character detail go by if the game was any cop, but this is yet another dull platformer with crap beat-'em-up bits thrown in for good measure.

This is no better than Data East's Dragon Ninja coin-op released four years back, and in this day and age this is unforgiveable.

The Hulk has been in development for over a year now - surely something a little better than this should have emerged. If I was Marvel, I'd be well ticked off...!

Another chilling episode. Not for the Hulk, but for video gaming. This has been in the hands of developers, Probe, for over a year and a half.

They even received advice from a senior figure in game journalism (his anonymity is respected here), but the end result is a complete non-event. All the rage, action and brute power the Hulk represents has been lost in this pathetic, production-line platform beat-'em-up.

It's not even a good example of the genre. Just like Virgin's Superman debacle, console programmers have an unerring ability to make superheroes into super dorks.

Excitement? My heart barely skipped a beat.

Graphics 80%
P. The Hulk sprite is magnificently drawn: very green.
N. But not quite big enough. The backgrounds are bland.

Sound 88%
P. Excellent swing-beat style soundtrack, just like the cartoon would feature.
N. Very standard FX.

Playability 70%
P. A modicum of gratification, short-term.
N. There's no real sense of either achievement or purpose.

Lastability 59%
P. It will be difficult to tromp through all five stages with one credit.
N. Hulk's main problem is that it's very forgettable.

Value For Money 68%
N. There are more ingenious platform games for the price. Just read the comics.

Overall 66%
The epithet 'missed opportunity' is a cliche, but just so applicable in Hulk's case.