The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back! But hang on; they were teenagers a decade ago, now they must be in their mid-twenties. So are they trying to hold down regular jobs? Have they all gone and got married and had little turtlets? Thankfully no, they're still the same green mean fighting machines as before, out to stop the evil Shredder. And funnily enough, they're still teenaged.

This new game from Konami comes at a time that TV channel Fox are trying to resurrect the popularity of Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo and Raphael, with a new cartoon series. No doubt there will be merchandise aplenty to go with it, and by the time this game sees a release, slated for October 2003 in the US, the world could be well and truly back under the spell of turtle power.

The game is said to be a 3D action/fighting game, which brings back good memories of the classic Konami Turtles arcade game. This was a scrolling beat 'em up, with all four turtles able to play along at once, taking on wave after wave of foot soldiers, and other famous villains from the world of TMNT. If Konami can recapture an ounce of the pace and excitement of this earlier arcade title, this game could be a real must have.

Of course, Konami first have to take the game into 3D, and this could be the real point at which the game succeeds or fails. Many an old classic has failed to impress when it comes to turning it into a game for this generation of consoles.

The fighting in the game could well be something special, with each turtle having different weapons; Leonardo with his swords, Donatello and his staff, Michelangelo's nunchakus and Raphael's sais'. Each of these are quite different, so if that means that you have to use different tactics in battle, depending upon your choice of turtle, it will add more variety to the game.

Although it seems likely that co-operative play will be a part of the game, this has yet to be confirmed. It would be a great game to play with friends if all four of you could play together, in a split screen mode. Given that the game is to also appear on PS2, which I fear may be the lead console for development of the game, there may only be a 2 player mode, as four player gaming hasn't taken off on the PS2, given that you need an extra peripheral. It would be crazy of Konami not to make the GC version four player though, and I shan't be pleased if they fail to include it.

Also included in the game is a 'VS' mode, though what this entails has yet to be revealed. The most likely scenario would be an all out brawl, using your chosen Turtles weapon to inflict damage on your mates, which could be a great deal of fun.

The turtles franchise has always had a great deal of potential, and Konami have used it remarkably well in the past. If they can again recapture the old spirit of things, and throw in some of the wacky characters from the turtles universe in there too (I demand Bebop and Rock Steady) this could be great.