I honestly tried to like this game... the premise was all there, the game ideas were also there, however where the game failed to make an impression was with the gameplay that unfortunately bombed out and to compound the situation, the annoying voice-overs and clichéd and sometimes downgrading commentary was a little too much, even for this seasoned Wii veteran.

Features: Arcade-style, time-based gameplay; Three different emergency teams to play as – police, fire and medical services; 12 different vehicles to control; More than 70 skill-based mini-games; Numerous party-modes for hilarious multiplayer fun.

Originally this game was to be released by the once great gaming company called Acclaim, however Codemasters came to the rescue and decided to release this title on the Wii which may have worked. The idea of Emergency Mayhem is pick one of three emergency people, a policeman, a fireman and an ambulance driver and patrol an almost Grand Theft-like city, ensuring that you cut down the mayhem of this city. By completing more missions, you unlock districts in the city and needless to say, this is quite a difficult task as you are timed.

Before starting, the player must first select their emergency person and then patrol the streets in order to reduce the mayhem, this is seen by various icons in the streets, a fire icon is obviously for a fireman and can only be attempted by him. Pedestrians are running around the streets, it's true chaos and also has a Crazy Taxi feel to it as you can even knock pedestrians over. While you're driving around the city and as soon as you drive over once of these icon, the mini-games come into play.

Once you have found a relevant icon, the game turns to one of 70 different mini-games where you must use the intuitive Wii control system to successfully complete the mission. For instant as an ambulance officer, you need to help the Boost Bar man look alike to remove a fly from his mouth, or as a fireman, you must rotate the wii controller around and around again to turn off a water leak. Some of the games are quite innovative but most of the time they are definitely frustrating due to the player being timed. The control system while driving around the city is perfect, it's the mini-games that unfortunately make this a totally frustrating and sometimes unplayable game.

The multiplayer aspect of the title is fun as you are not racing against a crazy stop watch while being abused by the female voice of how bad you are. And with that said, at least half of the games are quite entertaining but as a solo effort, it is 3extremley difficult to play... quite difficult. Needless to say, the multiplayer aspect of the title is the saving grace.

Graphically the title is rather impressive on the Nintendo Wii that has a Crazy Taxi like Grand Theft Auto feel to it with over the top animations and quite a colourful palette. Match that with some great lighting and special effects and this title is perfect in that department. The music suits the game perfectly as do the sound effects but female voice over is truly annoying.

In conclusion, Emergency Mayhem unfortunately misses the mark and is quite a frustrating title that I would only recommend if you are a patient person or a gun at the Nintendo Wii. Interesting and challenging are its best points. It should be called Crazy Emergency Mayhem!