There can be a few less rewarding jobs than being a crash dummy. You get strapped in, some idiot in an overall sticks a brick on the accelerator pedal and before long you're shooting through the windscreen of a Mini Metro at 90 miles an hour.
Incredible Crash Dummies gives the auto industry's unsung heroes their own (surprise, surprise) platform game. Dummies Spin and Slick are roused to action when the evil Junkman steals the plans of a T9000 bionic dummy and kidnaps Dr Zub, a top scientist. Bravely, Spin volunteers to stay behind, while you - as Slick - head off in search of Dr Zub.
It's different from most platform games in that the aim is to survive and complete a series of levels against a time limit. Each level is filled with hazards - crash cars, mad dummies on bikes, pits of fire - and each time Slick collides with one he loses a part of his anatomy.
Once both arms and legs are gone, it only takes one more hit to lose a life, but Slick can hop round a level however badly damaged he is, and there are plenty of medicinal screwdrivers dotted around to bring him back to health. He can also pick up spanners to throw at baddies, as well as a host of other power-ups.
The novelty of hopping around on one leg or losing your arms keeps you amused for a while, but that apart, the game does more or less exactly what you would expect. The collision and edge detection is fairly accurate, and the puzzles and level meanies are mildly diverting.
And in actual act, that's Crash Dummies, problem. It does everything reasonably well, but nothing exceptional. The graphics are OK, the gameplay's OK, the concept's OK and, even if it gets its hooks into you for a while, your interest is unlikely to be sustained. Your kid brother would love it... probably.