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At first sight, Paranoid Pete looks rather insignificant, packaged in a normal cassette case with a bright yellow inlay card, but it's an amusing, simple, addictive and original game.

Due to a worldwide shortage of wheat. Pete the space-farmer has taken his ship into orbit around the planet Owwayondah. He is beamed down onto the planet's surface, then at a random interval a hatch opens and a seed falls out. Pete must dig a hole for this to fall into, then bury it. Meanwhile, the Mega-wibblies are trying to have him for their breakfast!

Once sown, the wheat starts growing into a plant, which must be protected from the enemy, but luckily our paranoid friend can defend himself with a nifty bit of sword fighting with his trowel. The Mega-wibbly victim of such a spade-bashing instantly de-materialises.

When Pete's plant is fully grown, the arm of the UBIK 'droid comes down and takes the wheat up into the ship to be processed, but the wibblies are at it again, so it's up into the Harvester to sort them out. There are only two screens on Paranoid Pete, but both are inventive and well drawn. In sheet two you actually see the plant being taken up and made into the finished product which must be protected.

When you've completed this, Pete is beamed back down with more wibblies and two plants to grow. After that, playing gets really hectic, but it can't deter you from hitting the space bar for another game!

The title page is good and the colours alternate while loading. Pete himself is dressed in a colourful suit, complete with scarf and braces, and the programmer has even taken the trouble to put a shine on his shoes.

Kids will love this game, and I would certainly add it to my collection.