Start the Party

Poppin' is less successful. The idea is a good one - use a virtual harpoon to pop coloured balloons of the same colour, avoiding bombs. In practice, it doesn't quite work. The balloons occupy the whole of the screen, making it hard to see the angle you're holding the harpoon at and whether it's in the right position to hit the correct colour.

There also seems to be a tiny bit of lag here - again, it's hard to tell with the balloons all over the place, but it doesn't feel like the game is recognising your movements or the angle of your arm quite as well as it should.

Still, it's not impossible to pop the balloons, and it's satisfying when you do. (Top tip: try holding the Move like an ice pick, and instead of pretending you're popping balloons, try pretending you're stabbing Dappy out of N-Dubz in the face again and again and again. Did I say that out loud.)

Other lowlights include Robo Rumble, where you face an army of angry robots marching towards you. On their bellies are TV screens displaying your image, and a red target which you must shoot to stop them in their tracks. It's a bit fiddly, a bit weird, and it prompted actual screaming from the four year-olds.

The real stinker is Parachute Panic. Here you must wave a giant fan to help parachutists float to safety. It's difficult to switch direction quickly, which is a problem as the parachutists are descending at a rapid rate. The result is a confusing, frustrating game, one you won't want to play more than a couple of times.

The good news is there are plenty of better mini-games in Start the Party. The bad news is there are no real gems. The more complex ones aren't complex enough to be the type of game you'd spend hours perfecting your high score on. The simpler ones are fun, and great if you've got a room full of young children to entertain, but don't offer much in the way of long-term value.

As a demonstration of how Move works, and how precise a controller it is, Start the Party is up to the task. The technology is impressive and there are some fun games to play. The problem is they're just not that entertaining once the novelty has worn off, and the game is lacking in areas where other party games have already succeeded.

For starters, it's just not funny enough. Even putting the rubbish commentary to one side, there's a lack of humour both within the games themselves and with regard to how you play them. Witnessing someone perform a Just Dance routine or mangle a SingStar track is often hilarious. Watching them wave a controller about like it's a fan isn't.

Start the Party also lacks the charm and appeal of games such as Wii Sports. There's something cold, hard and garish about the way it's all presented. There's no Guitar Hero-style sense of competition either, because the games are so basic it's hard to care much about the score.

That's not to say Start the Party isn't worth a look. Playing games with the Move controller feels fresh and fun, most of the mini-games are enjoyable and the turn-based aspect isn't a deal-breaker. It may not be the best party game out there, but it's decent, and if you're buying Move anyway it's a good way to show off your new toy to friends and family.

However, it's not worth picking up Move just to play Start the Party. The standalone game carries an RRP of £29.99. Throw in the cost of the Move camera bundle and you're looking at 80 quid. That's a lot to ask for nine unspectacular turn-based mini-games, none of which you're likely to play alone or on a long-term basis. No matter how much you've been drinking.