Movies and computer games have always had a close tie, but only a handful of games have lived up to more than half the promise of the film originals. The Star Wars franchise in particular has spawned hordes of games of mixed quality and the latest animated offering, The Clone Wars, has now produced two games for the DS and the Wii.

Lightsaber Duels is in many ways the answer to the most fervent prayer of Star Wars diehards: the chance to wield the Jedi's weapon in direct combat with your Dark Side foes. In terms of the space saga's timeline, the action is set between Episodes 2 and 3, with Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi joined by Anakin's new padawan Ahsoka Tano in the fight against the mighty Droid Army. Familiar villains you'll be up against include Sith lord Count Dooku, the chief droid General Grievous and the Sith apprentice Asajj Ventress.

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You have four play modes to choose from, beginning with the Campaign mode that broadly follows the events in the movie and TV series and sees the Jedi warriors trying to foil a Separatist plot that includes kidnapping Jabba the Hutt's child. Completing each level unlocks other characters and in Challenge mode you unlock further costumes, characters and extras as you pursue specialist combats.

In addition, you can enter Battle mode and try to be the finest Lightsaber wielder in the galaxy, or you can play one-on-one with a friend on the same console. Unfortunately there's no online fighting available but you do have four difficulty levels to choose from.

Each episode is prefaced with some animated footage that sets the scene and the individual rounds of combat are interspersed with taunting lines of dialogue in close-up, all of which succeeds in involving you in the Star Wars universe. Which is all well and good, but what about the nitty gritty, the gameplay itself?

All the actions spring from joint use of the Remote and the Nunchuk, with the Remote responsible for the movement of the Lightsaber itself and the Nunchuk control stroke for character movement and implementing Force powers. Disappointingly, all battles are conducted in the third person and the clearest way to victory is to perform a number of combo moves successfully, which in turn will charge up your Force meter. Objects can be thrown at your opponent as well but that uses up a lot of Force power.

In reality you'll find your arm taking a severe beating, as each combat lasts several minutes and it takes considerable practice to master the timing for combos, parrying and wresting control in Lightsaber locks.

Normally the best way to vanquish your foe is to execute a number of perfect combos and keep blasting your enemy with unblockable Force strikes. There's more variation when you start fighting in the larger arenas (which look impressive) but by that stage you may require medical attention.

The good news is that Star Wars fans can finally engage in one-on-one Jedi combat and almost feel like you're part of the movie/TV series. The less good news is the (literally) painful time it takes to perfect your technique while beating your opponent into submission.