Whether you know it or not, the Xbox Live Arcade could really be renamed the Old Coin-Op & PopCap Games Arcade, given that the two combined utterly dominate the list of released titles. This isn't a bad thing: retro nostalgia has its place, and PopCap is renowned for creating addictive flash-based games. If you've played Astropop, Bejewelled, Feeding Frenzy or Zuma on the Arcade, then you've already experienced the compelling nature of these simplistic titles. And now PopCap's Arcade assault continues with its atomic tank extravaganza, Heavy Weapon.

There's been a bunch of Arcade shooters released both recently and in the past that utilised a dual-thumbstick control system that sees the left stick control movement and the right aim and fire your weapon. So what makes Heavy Weapon unique? Well, nothing really! The premise is absurdly simple, though it gets bonus points for using crass cold war Communist consternation: it is 1984, the world is at war, and for some reason, the only thing that can stem the flow of invading Bolshevik baddies is America's secret weapon and great white hope: Atomic Tank! It's a tank, and, er, it has nukes on it. That's about all you need to know. So Atomic Tank must trundle through 19 side-scrolling, soviet-squashing missions and take the fight to the Red Star's freedom-barren homeland and strike a blow for truth, justice, and the nuclear way!

Heavy Weapon is all about straightforward shooting action. The levels are entirely flat and devoid of obstacles or puzzles, so you can focus on the business of gunning down thousands of planes, tanks, blimps, jeeps, helicopter gunships and robot apes. You'll start with a simple but respectable single-shot automatic weapon with a decent rate of fire. As you progress friendly flyers will drop down power-ups that can increase your speed or rate of fire, give you a shield, or enable spread-shot fire to take down more enemies at a time. But more importantly, they'll occasionally drop genuine, Made in the USA nuclear warheads, which can clear the screen in an instant flash of blinding hellfire. As if this wasn't enough, enemy vehicles can drop one of the four components required for the super-powerful and cunningly named Mega-Laser. This white-hot death-ray is a constant stream of instant-kill energy and it can be a real godsend, although its duration is very limited and it activates as soon as you collect the 4th piece, so you can't save it for a rainy day.

At the end of every mission is a boss battle, and compared to the quality confrontations presented in the recent Assault Heroes, Heavy Weapon's boss battles are insultingly simple and require little skill to overcome. But once you're done you'll get to spend an upgrade point on your Atomic Tank that grants or enhances one of a half dozen unique abilities. These include an extra flak-cannon, an electro-shock beam or additional defensive abilities. By the later stages of the game you'll have enough additional weaponry to blanket the sky with withering fire, which is probably a good thing given that the amount of resistance increases every level. It's an age-old arcade formula really, one made simpler by a generous allocation of lives and unlimited continues.

Aside from the Mission Mode, there's also Survival Mode and a Boss Blitz to keep you busy. Survival Mode is exactly how it sounds, and involves you fending off the red menace for as long as possible. Boss Blitz, unlocked upon completion of the Mission Mode, challenges you to beat as many bosses in a row as you can without dying.

These are nice additions, but multiplayer is really where it's at. Trying to survive for as long as possible with a bunch of mates is hilarious, and the carnage on the screen can be overwhelming. There's War Party and Arms Race, the main difference being that each player only has 3 lives in Arms Race, while the War Party continues until everyone manages to be dead at the same time. You can also battle your way through the mission mode with friends in co-operative play, which is a nice inclusion.

Unlike many ports on the Xbox Live Arcade, Heavy Weapon features a full high-def visual upgrade into widescreen mode, with new or enhanced graphics and assets. There's lots of nice little touches – unleash a nuke and watch a mushroom cloud go off in the background and char livestock – and the game never drops a frame no matter how much is going on on-screen. The game sounds great too, with a catchy theme-song and rockin' soundtrack. In fact the whole package just shines with the polish PopCap have lovingly applied.