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American Football is getting more and more popular these days. British fans saw a London-based team take on the world and win earlier this year when the London Monarchs beat the Barcelona Dragons in the World Bowl football tournament.

However, if you're completely new to the sport and haven't got a clue about the rules of American Football, here's a quick run-down of the action. Points are scored by taking the ball to the opponent's end of the pitch and thus scoring a touchdown. However, should the ball hit the ground before the touchline is reached, play is stopped and the offensive team regroups to try again.

Their short-term objective is to reach the next ten yard line, which once crossed, gives them four more chances ("downs"). If they don't make it after the four attempts, the defensive team adopt the offensive. After a touchdown, an extra point is earned by kicking the ball over the opposition's crossbar. The winning team, unsurprisingly, is the team that scores the most points after four quarters of play.

There are a lot of defensive and offensive strategies available in this game, and choosing the right one at the right time may be instrumental to winning the game.

The wrong choice on the other hand might spell disaster and yard-losing doom. It's these strategies that dictate the positioning of the players, along with where they move once play has begun.

The play you choose also determines the player you control when you switch back to the action. Defensve on the other hand is more a case of trying to anticipate the offense team's actions and act accordingly, thus foiling their yard gaining plans.

If you get sick of a player's complete incompetence, there is a big selection of substitutes at your disposal. Some of your players are real dweebs and fall down injured if the wind is too strong, whereas a strong substitute could help revive your team's fortunes.

Fortunately, there's an option which makes all your players impervious to pain. No injuries!

Just like Joe Montana and John Madden's, Mike Ditka Power Football has a two-player mode included to maximise enjoyment of the game.

Just like John Madden's, three possible plays appear on screen and players choose their strategy by using the corresponding buttons on the control pad.

Since your opposing player doesn't know which button you pressed, your strategy plans remain secret!

The obvious question is how does this compare to John Madden's Football? Well, it doesn't fare too well - but that doesn't make it a disaster area.

The sounds are terrific and the graphics, although not as realistic as Madden's, are better than those used in Joe Montana's Football.

Gameplay-wise, it's fun, but sadly it just doesn't have the sheer depth and variety of Madden's, and this is that lets it down in the end. I know it's annoying to keep talking about Madden's, but if you want to experience the best on the Megadrive, Madden's is the one to go for.

Mike Ditka's Power Football has been heavily influenced by its peers. In terms of appearance it looks spookily similar to John Madden's. The graphics however, are quite rough around the edges and the scrolling's not as sweet, or the animation as smooth as it could have been.

The sound on the other hand is great, bordering on spectacular. There are a variety of thumping, rumping theme tunes to choose from and more sampled speech than you can shake a stick at, and if you don't like the music, there's an option to turn it off.

So, all in all, a bit of an aural feast. Gameplay is as you would expect, the standard strategic layout a la Madden's, and there's a very comprehensive list of possible plays.

Putting these into practice is a doddle and the menus are actually a little friendlier than in Madden's. Sadly however, the game has a rough, unfinished feel to it. The response from your players while actually running or passing is a little poor.

The golf-like system used when kicking for extra points is unnecessarily fiddly and the overall effect is a little lacklustre. At the end of the day, why buy this when you could have John Madden's?

Presentation 83%
A pretty ropey, unpolished feel to the game, but the mass of possible plays is quite impressive.

Graphics 81%
A bizarre cross between Joe Montana and John Madden's in style, and the scrolling is pretty jerky too.

Sound 86%
Plenty of excellent tunes and decent effects.

Playability 78%
Easy to get into and good fun to play.

Lastability 76%
Not quite as enjoyable as John Madden's, and the scope for extended play is also limited compared to the EA game.

Overall 78%
A decent American Football game unfortunately eclipsed by the classic John Madden's Football.