'Alien Hominid'

Looking for movie-quality cut scenes? Pick up "Spiderman 2" instead.

Expecting up-to-the-minute graphics or an intricate plot? Try "Halo 2," "Resident Evil 4," or a half-dozen other recent arrivals to retail shelves.

What you will get if you venture home with a copy of "Alien Hominid" (PS2, GameCube; O-3 Entertainment; $29.95; Rated T) is a snappy, offbeat shooter packed with visual appeal and a surprising level of difficulty. There's nothing complex or angst-inducing here, just an enormously entertaining side-scroller that promises to be a surefire antidote for stress-filled days.

"Alien Hominid" first cropped up a couple of years back in the form of a free, widely downloaded Web game. Publisher O-3 and developer The Behemoth picked up and adapted it for their debut console title, which pits an amoeba-like yellow alien against a horde of grumpy, gun-toting FBI agents.

Story is minimal, opening with you, the engaging, button-eyed alien, crash-landing your spaceship on Earth. When block-headed G-men swarm and cart away your conveyance, you must take them on to rescue your ride.

Shoot away at everyone that walks, runs or rappels from a chopper in the sky. Gleefully bowl them over with vehicles you commandeer. Take on various robotic bosses who spew bolts, candy or other items when attacked but can retaliate with vicious death rays.

2-D Graphics are bright, simple and cartoony in the best sense, reminding us of old "Underdog" or Cold War-spoofing "Rocky and Bullwinkle" episodes. Clashes with enemies are comical rather than gory, and vanquished foes emit silly squawks that are more likely to elicit giggles than groans.

More than once, whimsical touches on signs and businesses made us grin, starting with the "Nothing To See Here" sign trundled by the FBI agent who skulks at the rear of the spaceship-swiping squad. But don't let "Alien Hominid's" Saturday-morning look fool you into thinking that it's a game for kiddies.

It's anything but, thanks to its rapid-fire pace, clusters of enemies and collection of bosses that are truly tough to eliminate. Even veteran video marksmen will find themselves shouting at that "Iron Giant" clone who knocks out the alien again and again.

Stick with him, though -- he's vulnerable. Then summon friends for multiplayer challenges or unlock merry mini-games populated by flying pinatas and chickens, among other things.

Goofy, quirky and utterly endearing, "Alien Hominid" may not be the prettiest or most complex game out there. But its universe turns out to be one fun place to crash.

'The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap'

For what seems like the gazillionth time, Link must take on the mission of saving Princess Zelda as well as the land of Hyrule and its people from a threatening force. But instead of rising to this occasion, he must instead shrink himself down to the size of the Minish, a tribe of people so teensy they can't be seen by adult eyes.

Tiny they may be, but the good-hearted Minish help Link make use of new powers and abilities in "The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap" (Game Boy Advance SP; Capcom; $34.99; Rated Everyone), a handsome addition to Nintendo's long-running series. Blending folklore and mysteries from previous titles with new plot twists, "The Minish Cap" sends Link after the wicked sorcerer Vaati, who turned Zelda to stone before undertaking his own quest to commandeer a world-controlling power source.

As he treks through pretty, gumdrop-hued landscapes, Link encounters and acquires the Minish cap, a charmed hat that communicates and instructs him on his next steps. During his travels, he learns to shrink and grow when necessary and also to seek out and match up magic stones that aid him in solving various problems. He can even split himself into several copies to better complete tasks that lie before him.

"The Minish Cap" is such an appealing, well-developed extension of the "Zelda" saga that it can be forgiven its often annoying, tinny background music. And it's particularly gratifying to note the attention to detail that's been lavished on a game for Nintendo's Game Boy Advance handheld system. Nintendo may be shifting its emphasis to its newly released DS handheld, but there are still legions of GBA owners out there who will welcome a fresh adventure of this quality.