Spanking good fun

GAME OF THE WEEK:DEATHSPANK ****

Xbox 360 (also PS3), EA/Hothead Games, 12 cert

DeathSpankis the latest creation from Ron Gilbert, the mind behind the first two Monkey Islandgames. That beloved franchise brought humour and irreverence to the adventure format, and Gilbert has taken the same approach with DeathSpank. A smack to the ass of a tired genre, DeathSpankhas removed the sombreness and pretension from role-playing games (RPGs).

DeathSpank, dispenser of justice, consumer of bacon, is a medieval warrior who defends the downtrodden. With a Buzz Lightyear jawline and a way with a weapon, he's searching for an artefact known as . . . the Artefact. Think of him as a cross between Robin Hood and Lt Frank Drebin from The Naked Gun.

RPGs have a bad rep among non-believers, and it’s easy to see why: they’re often dour and self-serious, often involve some frustrating puzzle- solving, lots of tedious traipsing around vast landscapes, and reams of expository dialogue.

DeathSpankkeeps all the best parts of an RPG (involving character and story, gratifying completion of tasks) and sidesteps many of the typical issues: it's bursting with wit, the voice work is spirited and it's very gamer-friendly.

Yes, there are the obligatory tasks and exploration, but those who don’t like spending hours looking for, say, a discarded dragon horn, can read their in-game “fortune cookie” for advice. The controls are tricky at first (buttons change their function during play, for example) and the vast menu of weapons, tasks, equipment and maps is initially overwhelming. But the information is drip-fed as you play, so it doesn’t feel like you have to swallow an instruction book before starting. Within a few minutes, toggling between action and item menus becomes second nature and the gameplay flows nicely.

Although it doesn't exactly stretch the limits of a modern console, DeathSpankis aesthetically pleasing: with endearingly goofy character animation and rendering, mixed with some attractive backgrounds (rolling hills, cute hamlets, primary colours), this is a rare pleasant-looking action game. The music is nice, too – a dollop of grandeur, a hint of surf, a dash of 1960s guitar. This quaintness is offset by regular combat tasks, an eccentric tone and the occasional double entendre ("I'll grab your tackle box, fisherman").

The combat scenes could be a little more sophisticated, and the leisurely pace will not be for all gamers, but DeathSpankis a funny, feisty little number.