Virtual Athlete 2k Sega Dreamcast, £44.99
Let the games begin. The Olympics are already under way and the launch of Olympic-related video games is to be expected. The official video game of the Olympics, Sydney 2000, wasn't a gold medallist, but then games of this nature rarely are.
Unlike Sydney 2000, Virtual Athlete 2k, as its name suggest, concentrates on track and field events. There are only seven events featured - Sydeny 2000 has 12 - the 100m sprint, long jump, 110m hurdles, shot putt, high jump, javelin and the 1500m. All are for male competitors only.
Most of these events are quite enjoyable. The tried-and-trusted format of tapping your console buttons as fast as you can is used in almost all the events. The action button is also used to make your athlete dive for the tape, make the final leap and so on.
The most comical event is undoubtedly the 1500 metres. In this race, tapping the buttons repeatedly will make you fire off into an early lead, but then your stamina bar falls and you start to falter. That is realistic enough, but then you can simply position yourself in front of a faster runner coming behind you and he will "bump" you along nicely.
The final indignity is that the whole game lasts about 10 minutes, with the risible 1500m the last event. Then the game credits roll and roll. You couldn't be sure which is longer: the credits or the actual game.
Although it is fun in parts, Virtual Athlete 2k has all the hallmarks of a game that was rushed out in time for the real games. It should be disqualified for jumping out of the blocks too early.
Nightmare Creatures II Sony PlayStation, £34.99
The demonic scientist Dr Adam Crowley - defeated by Ignatius Blackward in the original Night- mare Creatures - is back. It's 1934, and Crowley comes back from the dead after 100 years in the grave. And surprise, surprise he is even more powerful than in his first incarnation.
Like the original game, this is a combination of a Resident Eviltype game and a beat-'em-up such as Mortal Kombat. Your character can even "kill" enemies when you use a combination of buttons.
There is not a lot of substance to Nightmare Creatures II and that is deliberate, as it's strictly a hash-and-slash affair that keeps you amused for a half-hour or so - at the most. The game-world is 10 times bigger than in the original, but I'm not sure that's a good thing.