VIDEO GAMES REVIEW / AARON CURTISS : Dynamic Trio : Three offerings let you get your kicks as Batman, Bugs Bunny or a TV-loving gecko.

SEGA GAME GEAR

The Adventures of Batman & Robin

Riddle me this, riddle me that, who’s making money off the big, black bat? Just about everyone, it seems. The Caped Crusader is as hot as ever, and by the look of things, players never get bored by the slew of games starring Batman.

In the Adventures of Batman & Robin for Game Gear, that pasty-faced nemesis, the Joker, has kidnaped the Boy Wonder and it is up to Batman to take up the gauntlet and rescue his sidekick from the clutches of evil.

Along the way, Batman runs into the henchmen of a pantheon of baddies--including the Mad Hatter, Mr. Freeze and the Scarecrow. In the Genesis version--which has a different story and allows two players to fight simultaneously as the Dynamic Duo--Harvey Two Face also makes an appearance.

In both versions, the graphics are exceptionally well-done, making a game that is otherwise fairly standard nice to look at if nothing else. Some of the controls on Game Gear are not as responsive as they should be, though, and I found myself wasting a lot of time trying to jump from ledge to ledge on the skyscrapers of Gotham City.

For Batman aficionados, the Adventures of Batman & Robin is based more on the older comic books and the cartoon series than on the more recent, more moody portrayals of the Dark Knight.

Never fear, though, the Batmania continues in the fall as the game version of Batman Forever hits all platforms utilizing Acclaim’s motion capture technology. I saw early copies a few months ago, and it looks fantastic.

In the meantime, these adventures will keep most Batfans happy. Given the choice, I prefer the Game Gear version over Genesis, although I am not entirely sure why. Over the week I played it, I just tended to choose it more often. Go figure.

PLATFORMS: Sega Game Gear, Sega Genesis

RATING: Cool

SUPER NINTENDO

Looney Tunes B-Ball

Talk about a Dream Team. Forget the high-powered lawyers defending O.J. Simpson or the pro basketball players passing themselves off as Olympic athletes. My Dream Team is Wile E. Coyote and the Tasmanian Devil going two-on-two against Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck.

Looney Tunes B-Ball is a hilarious spin on those ubiquitous sports games, but allows players to match up any combination of Warner Bros. cartoon characters for a pickup game of street basketball.

Purists might scoff at the mockery these toons make of basketball, but the fact remains that the game is a hoot. With various Acme-style tricks up their sleeves, the characters turn basketball into a whole new game.

Yosemite Sam, for instance, pulls out his six-shooters and blasts away at an opponent’s feet to steal possession of the ball. And Marvin the Martian employs his disintegrator ray to vaporize opponents. Lest anyone think the violence makes the game more like hockey than basketball, good old Bugs simply distracts his opponent into dropping the ball.

Controls are extremely easy to use and the graphics are crystal clear. Unlike a lot of strait-laced sports games, the players are big enough and distinct enough not to get lost in a full-court press.

After several games, I got enough of a feel for the different characters to beat the computerized team of Elmer and Daffy--no small feat since I generally suck at video sports games.

PLATFORM: Super Nintendo

RATING: Cool

3DO

Gex

By their very nature, most video games are weird. Where else but in the video game universe would blaster-toting earthworms and sneaker-wearing hedgehogs be considered normal? Even by those standards, though, few are as odd--or as fun--as Gex.

Gex is a television-worshiping gecko whose life turns upside-down when his father dies in a bizarre experiment involving zero gravity and tapioca pudding. Grief-stricken, the Gex family ends up in Encino. Over time, though, our hero returns to Hawaii and his beloved television, but is ultimately sucked into the ether by an evil media mogul--is there any other kind?--who wants to use Gex as a corporate mascot, a la the NBC peacock.

All of this is a long way of getting into what would be a boilerplate platform game were it not for the beautiful graphics and side-splitting remarks from Gex, whose voice is supplied by comedian Dana Gould.

Over the course of the game, Gex navigates a series of alternate universes with themes that range from B-grade horror movies to even cheesier martial arts flicks. Gex must collect remote controls to pass through television portals that connect the diverse realms of the Media Dimension.

If all this sounds overwhelming, it isn’t. The game is surprisingly easy to play but nonetheless challenging. The moves are simple and straightforward, allowing players to concentrate on strategy rather than mastering the interface.

After a few hours, I was hooked. I even gave up watching TV for a few days as I was drawn deeper into the game.

PLATFORM: 3DO

RATING: Cool

Ratings: Insane, the very best; cool, are, of course, cool; mediocre, games better borrowed than bought; suck, games at the bottom of the barrel.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)