Handhelds mix plankton and players

By Neil McGreevey

American football, soccer and plankton are the subjects of some of the latest, and oddest, handheld games.

MADDEN NFL 06 (EA) PSP

It might look good but Madden takes too long to load

If you don't know who John Madden is, then this game probably isn't for you.

The one-time NFL coach has been lending his name and voice to the EA cash-cow since it first drew air on the Megadrive in 1991.

While we've seen portable pig-skinnery before - most recently on the DS - the sheer grunt of Sony's powerhouse makes this the most successful handheld effort to date.

EA has gone the whole nine yards here, with PS2 connectivity, sharp visuals, 18 mini-games and solid gameplay making this the definitive American football experience short of watching Channel Four at 3am.

The franchise side of Madden is far more entertaining than playing the actual game, and players can now import and play an entire week of games from their PS2.

With its intuitive controls and deep, engrossing gameplay, Madden will softly slip inside you and wear you like a glove, so to speak.

And while portable games are often the deformed cousin of the console version, Madden on PSP sports the look, sound and feel of its house-bound peers. Dripping in visual razzle-dazzle, it perfectly captures the atmosphere of the sport - you can almost smell the freedom fries.

Likewise, the sound effects are a satisfying array of colour commentary and manly grunts. If you happen to find manly grunts satisfying.

The only fly in the ointment is that PSP bugbear of loading times, which really are atrocious here. Handheld games should be fast and instantly accessible - just play any of Nintendo's DS titles to see what I mean. Loading frustrations aside, Madden on PSP is as accurate a portable game of Yank football as any fan could wish for.

CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER (EIDOS) PSP

Championship Manager does not give the PSP graphics a work out

Although actual sport is like Kryptonite to the hardcore gamer, football management - where you get to play the brains and not the brawn - has gone down a storm with the joystick set.

Now the Championship Manager series is squeezed onto a tiny PSP disc for a sports sim experience like no other, as players get to play nanny to a squad of overpaid stars who can, occasionally, kick a ball.

On top of 55 playable leagues and 25,000 players, exclusive PSP events such as challenge and quick-play three-season modes mean the best-selling PC football management game gets a well-deserved kick-off on Sony's portable machine.

Addictive as ever and featuring the sort of dip-in gameplay that suits handhelds so well, taking on the camel-coated gaffer's role has never been easier with Championship Manager on PSP - guaranteed to make meetings or bus journeys fly by.

ELEKTROPLANKTON (NINTENDO) DS

A game or "touchable media art"?

Only Nintendo could turn microscopic whale food into a blissed-out musical odyssey and the ultimate DS show-off title.

Using the console's touch-screen, players can play around with the cellular oddities of the title to create unique sound and light shows.

Billed as "touchable media art", the game serves up soothing music and chilled-out graphics on the DS's two screens with 10 different plankton that respond to your touch or voice.

These friendly funsters respond by wiggling about making unique sounds that can be linked together for your own sub-aquatic symphony.

Some plankton emit light and play bizarre sounds while others sample whatever you can throw at them.

And for retro-nerds, there are plenty of tunes from Nintendo's illustrious past to milk your nostalgia gland.

With no levels or anything to win, the result is a mesmerising trip. Far more than the short-lived novelty it could have been, you'll return to your musical micro-organisms again and again.

As bizarre as it is brilliant, Electroplankton begs to be experienced.