Midway's GC-Line-Up

Fighting for real is rarely fun, even if it is for your right to party. You get all sweaty, your knuckles get scuffed and, in most cases, all that's thrown is a few harsh words, a shove or two and a couple of half-hearted body punches.

That's because for the average person, fighting isn't an option we want to employ. And nor should we need to when we could settle our differences virtually in Fatal Fury.

OK, so you're likely to get an extra slap for suggesting it (it isn't terribly macho, is it?) but you'll get a more entertaining scrap.

Featuring eight combatants, each of whom is a master in a different martial art, it's up to you to pull on the baggy white pyjamas and get into the ring in order to defeat all comers.

A basic one-on-one beat 'em up, Fatal Fury sticks to a tried and tested formula: two fighters, best of three rounds, anything goes. So, once you've picked your fighter you're dropped onto the mean streets of various countries to face off against other pugilists from around the world.

Because each nation's fighter is supposed to mirror their national identity, the eight fighters on offer should all have recognisably different fighting styles. And while this is indeed touted in the character select screen, it's somewhat lacking when it comes to the actual fisticuffs.

This is because Fatal Fury's biggest flaw is the same one that dogs almost all mobile phone fighting games: control. It's simply not intuitive enough and, in a game that relies on you being as quick on your feet as a startled ferret, that's a major downside.

This is manifested in part by a lack of variation in the moves your character can perform. You can do a strong or weak kick or punch, a low punch and a leaping kick, and each character's attacks look almost identical. Consequently there's little capacity for learning a character's nuances and employing these subtle differences to your benefit.

Each character's special moves are pulled off in the same manner – by pressing '0', '4' and then '7', or '0', '6' and '9', so there's not even the option for advanced players to practice and master advanced combos and moves that would leave the casual fighter flabbergasted. Instead, whoever you play as, you encounter the same experience time and time again.

With each attack assigned to a different number key, this is a game that's nigh-on impossible to play using your handset's thumbpad, and not much easier when you stick to the keys.

Every button apart from '5' is used for a different action, and unless you keep looking at the keypad to see where your fingers are, you'll find that your first hour or two of Fatal Fury is incredibly frustrating. You'll press the wrong buttons, get into a tizzy and then just adopt the tactic of hammering away with one attack until you've worn down your opponent.

You won't lose straightaway (the difficulty level is one of the few things that Fatal Fury gets right) but you'll end up considering the controls to be a sterner challenge than the game itself.

Which is annoying, for two reasons: one, the game looks very good with its anime-style visuals and arcade overtones. Two, as imperfect as it is, it's still among the cream of the beat 'em up genre on mobile phone.

What we're crying out for is a fighting game that offers a control system that's easily accessible but at the same time flexible enough to enable an individual to evolve their own fighting style.

In the meantime, this is as good a stop-gap as you'll come across. Not high praise, certainly, but considering the competition more than fair, and it shouldn't earn you an extra wedgie from the local bully.