There's nothing special about Made Man's gun-happy action but it's responsive and vicious enough to keep the blood pumping, especially during the 'Nam flashbacks that Joey suffers. His first episode comes on strong during the redneck-blasting chase, when you trail the truck thieves back to a marshy wood, and soon you're having to blast your way out of a Vietcong infested warren of bunkers.
Joey's run-and-gun struggle through the underground tunnels creates some intensive cover-hugging battles, with the VC coming from all angles. But it also threw up a jarring moment when we triggered one of Joey's 'retort kills'. A dying soldier gave us a mouthful of abuse as we passed and a quick button tap saw Joey spit out an uninspired and foulmoutjhed retort, before blasting the enemy away.
Above: After Vietnam, Joey finds himself drawn into a life of crime with the Mafia
Against the subtle background of Made Man's plot, the retort kill seems unnecessary and disappointingly tacked-on - we're hoping it'll be tweaked before release to make Joey's responses more varied and interesting. But Made Man is still a solid and exciting, although totally unremarkable, Mafia blast that should slake any PS2 owner's action appetite when it hits shops in October.
