Celebrities. Love 'em or hate 'em, they're an integral part of modern society, and mere mortals like us can only dream of becoming rich and famous and adorning the cover of Heat. They keep gossip columnists, rehab clinics and Avid Merrion in business, and there's no denying the general public has a somewhat unhealthy fascination with celebsville. This latent bloodlust was typified a few years ago by the hugely popular MTV claymation gorefest, Celebrity Deathmatch, where diva disputes and rock star run-ins were played out in an amusing, and totally immoral, wrestling fight to the death.

There was a unique (and dark) sense of humour running through the TV show, and this is translated surprisingly well into the game. The solid licence provides a rich source of adult humour, industry in-jokes and asides, and the end result is a very funny, blood-spattered pseudo-wrestling title. There are loads of diverse characters available, with all the favourites from the programme returning. Pick from a selection of alternative icons, including Marilyn Manson, Ron Jeremy, Carrot Top and Anna Nicole Smith.

The show placed a strong emphasis on gore and ever-imaginative ways of inflicting pain on opponents, and the same can be said for this game. Each character has individual combat moves, along with a unique finishing, or kill move. Watch Dennis Rodman rip a beaten foe's head off before slam-dunking it, or Mr T enlisting the help of the A-Team van to squash a dazed enemy. The original commentators Nick Diamond and Johnny Gomez (who are also unlockable characters) provide a humorous overview, and the two-player multiplayer is a right giggle.

The addition of the create-a-celebrity option could've made things even more so, but you can only load one at a time, so two players can't play custom characters against each other. A minor oversight you might say, but this is CD's most trivial problem. The combat, although funny, is very basic, and the complete absence of combos mean one-button-bashing all the way.

The single-player mode is woefully limited, with only a handful of new arenas and (very generic) characters to unlock. The fights can get very repetitive, and quickly become boring, and the graphics, too, are particularly bland. Come on, this is Xbox, not some last-gen console! It's fun for about 20 minutes, but you'll be hearing the Celebrity Deathmatch not long after. Disappointing.

1. Very funny!
2. Lots of gore!
3. Create characters...

1. ...that, sadly, have limited use!
2. Pathetically small single-player
3. Very repetitive

Power
Uninspired graphics and static crowds don't impress at all. Slight delay with button interaction too.

Style
Funny subject matter but basic fighting lets it down. Entertaining commentary at least.

Immersion
Loads of fun... until you quickly finish it. Moves are very basic and relatively easy to pull off.

Lifespan
The single-player aspect lasts about an hour, limited multiplayer value after that.

Overall A game based on a cult TV show is always going to have limited appeal, especially when it's done as badly as this.