The real Delta Force boys are hard in, do the business and get out with a high body count and minimum fuss - which is, thank Christ, exactly what this game does too. The game isn't based on Ridley Scott's none-more-dusty war movie, although both share the same historical exit wound - a disastrous incident in 1993 that saw two US army choppers downed in the militia-infested streets of Somalia, and the massively outnumbered troops forced to fight for their survival until they could be rescued.

While tis bollixed-up mission comprises the tense, final third of the game's sixteen chapters, the first ten are far from just filler. Black Hawk Down impresses with fluid changes of pace and constant action from the start. Take the first mission, which sees you and your unit tasked with escorting a broken-down UN food transport back to base. First, you man a Humvee's fixed gun en route to the breakdown. Once you arrive, your unit deploys on-foot to neutralise a militia-held village, before a Black Hawk chopper lands and you're commanded to man its chain-gun to protect the UN transport from the air. No pausing. Just seamlessly cascading objectives. It's a template for much of the game.

Crucially, movement and the weaponry feel just right. And with stars awarded (based on your combat skills) that can be spent to either unlock new guns, buy additional equipment, or enhance core skills such as marksmanship, the game's feel only ever gets better.

The squad dynamic works well too. Partly this is down to smart simplicity - commands are few, but work well - but mainly it's because you never have to nanny your unit. Their AI is sharp, enabling you to relax and enjoy the combat.

Sadly, enemy AI is several rounds short of a full chip, with dumb mercenaries often arbitrarily triggered into action, usually relying on sheer numbers to defeat you rather than cover and tactics. And then there's the relentlessly sandy setting. It's atmospheric as hell, and we like it, but if you can't live without the usual spread of arctic, tropical, urban and space levels, then consider yourself warned: there's a lot of sand.

It's a testament to the solid feel of Black Hawk Down's combat that even the solo game's relative shortness (we completed it in a day's solid play) doesn't dent its appeal too much. With split-screen co-op and deathmatch multiplayer, plus 32-player online fragageddons, Black Hawk Down is very much our kind of no-brainer entertainer.

Graphics 70%
Some ropey textures let down solid visuals.

Sound 70%
Subtle score plus unsubtle gunfire. Top stuff.

Gameplay 70%
Despite stupid enemies, it's bags of fun.

Lifespan 60%
Brief solo game but co-op/online work well.

Overall 70%
Black Hawk Down does nothing new, but does it well and with an eye firmly fixed on playability. Undemanding, but totally enjoyable fragging fun.