"How many brains have you got left?" may seem like a strange question out of context, I mean, what are you referring to here? Are you getting at me because I've been hitting the Super Mushrooms too hard lately, or because I downed one too many Blue Shells after the Mario Kart Party last weekend? Give me a frame of reference here!

Ok, ok, just going crazy a little. Keep your focus. What my friend was asking me the other day was how close I had gotten to collecting all the Golden Brains on House of the Dead: Overkill. I have only 7 brains left but I just can't find them anywhere. Why would anyone ask this question even in context? Let me answer that for you.

Recently, what with the current credit calamity and the need to hoard as much lovely, lovely money as possible, my friend and I have been engaging in a two person activity we call "Keeping Your Focus". Salacious as it sounds, it's an effort by both of us to play only one game at a time until we have absolutely mastered every single detail of it. Money is becoming an issue for me as I prepare to marry, so the spare cash is drying up left right and centre, my friend is pretty much in the same position, so this little exercise is really helping us to stow the golden coins away.

And you know what? We are loving it.

Gamers have been moaning about consoles since time immemorial: the control pad is not as comfy as the last one, I don't like the colour of the game cartridges, it doesn't have online play, it's got online but I have to have friends to play online� and on and on it goes. The bugbear of Wii owners seems to be the lack of hardcore games on the system, but I don't think this is the real problem any more.

No, as games have changed, so have hardcore gamers. Time was, a hardcore gamer would get any game with an 8/10 or better and hammer it to death for a month until every corner of the game was mentally mapped. They'd dream about the next mission, twitch with anger as they failed to shave .0001 of a second off their best time or scream with elation as they finally beat that score they set last week.

Now it seems we live in a world where completing a game means that you play it from the beginning until the end and then never pick it up again. You go from the start to the finish in the quickest time possible and then moan about the lack of extras, or the sensation of disappointment at the denouement before the credits role.

We are now living in a society that is far too disposable in its concepts of completion and success, so that we are always seeking the next big thrill. It's like a rollercoaster or a movie. We are so hyped about the big moment that we lose our focus and forget to enjoy every part of the ride. We are so caught up in the movie that we only want to see the bad guy get his comeuppance and we fail to take in the subtle nuances of the actors' performances.

Keep your focus...

Well guess what, video games aren't movies. They're better than movies. They last longer, give more and do more. You can virtually make your own movie within a game - if you focus on the game. Work on every aspect of your play and enjoyment of the title. Did you get above 70% accuracy on that level? No? Well, make that your target for next time. Could you have gone faster on that third corner? Probably. So focus on improving your entry and exit so you cut vital seconds off your lap time.

Maybe the Wii is overloaded with party games and mini-game collections, but there are plenty of games like Mushroom Men, Deadly Creatures, House of the Dead, MadWorld and Animal Crossing to really grab and hold your attention. Even poorly reviewed titles like Wii Music have a lot to offer if you keep your focus on them. You can be forgiven for losing it a bit with the drumming parts, but like any difficulty, you can try hard and find a way around it. Only then can you call yourself a true hardcore gamer.

We are all excited at the prospect of titles on the horizon, just don't let your attention wander too far away from the here and now. Otherwise you will miss some diamonds in the rough and be cheating yourself out of some surprisingly rewarding gaming time.

Try Keeping Your Focus for a while, if it doesn't work for you, you're probably not as hardcore as you think.