What is it about the post-apocalyptic lifestyle? In practically every book or film where civilisation has been decimated by nuclear war/mystery virus/natural disaster, the surviving members of society descend into a mob rule way of life, where it's every man for himself as gangs govern the streets following a total breakdown of law and order. Whatever happened to rebuilding the human race?

Things are no different in Roadkill where, after a worldwide plague has wiped out all the decent citizens, things have (quite literally) gone to hell. A mysterious stranger (that's you, that is) rolls into town, all mean and moody with a chip on his shoulder and a score to settle. Use these movie clichés to your advantage by befriending a local gang lord and carrying out his dirty work over 30 mission-based driving games.

And so begins, what appears on first impression, a relatively entertaining driving blaster. From the expletive-laden opening cutscenes, and after five minutes of gore-splattered civilian-killing, it's clear this title is definitely not one for the kids. Get behind the wheel of 30 customisable vehicles, and undertake assassination, collection and property-destruction missions around the three towns of Hell County. Collect power-ups, blow up opponents and win races to earn extra cash, then buy armour, weapons and speed upgrades from the local KwikFit Fitters to make an indestructible death machine. And unusually for this type of game, multiplayer deathmatch actually works surprisingly well too.

All generic stuff, and this is where Roadkill stutters and stalls. Now we're all for a decent level of difficulty in games, but when the enemy AI is downright unfair, the whole experience is ruined. To be accepted for a (quickly repetitive) mission, you drive to the mission centre. Several different gangs are against you, fair enough, but when every vehicle in the entire town is firing on you, this proves artificially difficult.

Next, you must drive to the other side of town, after replenishing your health, to begin the mission with half-energy. You'll frequently come close to completing the mission, only to explode because every man and his dog is shooting at you. Very frustrating. The vehicle handling too, is terrible, with most cars having the turning circle of an articulated lorry, which is not particularly helpful when escaping a tight spot under fire.

It's a shame, because a potentially very good title has gone to waste here, and the foul language and extreme violence can't cover that up. Alarm bells should start ringing when the best thing about the whole game is Foreigner on the in-car stereo. Roadkill? This title's about as flat as its namesake.

1. Extremely violent, if that's your bag.
2. Foreigner on the in-car radio!

1. Repetitive missions
2. Unfair opponents
3. Terrible vehicle handling

Power
Fairly bland graphics and small environments don't really impress. Cars aren't that quick either.

Style
Gore aplenty, with a surprisingly decent '80s rock soundirack. Dodgy voiceovers though.

Immersion
Easy accessible missions but can get repetitive very quickly, and let down by an uninvolving storyline.

Lifespan
Lots of vehicles and upgrades to unlock, if you can stomach the high frustration factor.

Overall Think what a triple-X rated version of Twisted Metal could've béen like. This game's unfortunately not it.