GUN Showdown back with only-on-PSP sharp shots

In the one horse town that is the summer games scene, almost any news arriving the Pony Express is leapt on with the fervour of hitherto pious missionaries renouncing their vows at Madame Marge's Brothel during the Christmas sales.

And so it is that Activision is managing to garner a great deal of coverage for its PSP shooter GUN Showdown by dripping out new screens and movies over the months.

We've already had multiplayer; today it's the turn of the Quickplay modes, which are exclusive to the PSP version of the game. (Why they aren't the Quickdraw modes we don't know. Perhaps Activision's propensity-to-pun filter is set a lot lower than Pocket Gamer's?)

Here's what's on offer:

Bear Hunt sees you taking on the grizzlies with all the aplomb of Lara Croft. Which is to say, standing in the middle of a field and shooting at them. There doesn't seem to be much strategy here – certainly no Native American guide taking you into the mountains and feeding you beaver stew whilst you study bear poo. More Berserk with bears.

Suppress the Outlaws looks like pretty much the same thing, only with outlaws instead of bears and buildings instead of trees. Your strafing run will be useful here, with bullets flying from all directions.

Fire Fight turns up the heat – it's essentially a level for pyromaniacs. Run about town hurling Molotov cocktails at your enemies. There's a shot of our hero throwing one such incendiary device at a saloon door, but we're presuming you won't (alas) be able to do any real damage to the buildings.

Finally, Hollister's Dynamite Run sees you taking on a grumpy looking man with a load of dynamite strapped to his back. Shoot him before he's close enough to make it personal. (A bit too close to home, politically, for some tastes?)

Nothing obviously earth-shattering then, but quirky mini-games often only reveal their strengths in play. The video is also worth downloading (by clicking 'Watch It!', and piping it to the comfort of your desktop) for glimpses of close quarter knife attacks and a useful looking zoomed out camera view on the action.

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