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Apocalypse is the new strategic war game program for 2-4 players from Red Shift. The program comes in a sturdy box with a full sixteen page user manual. Tape side A loads the main program and the prompt to load one of the four available maps on side B (Europe, Great Britain, the Caribbean and London). Once the map is loaded, you must select the play date from 0 to 7999 AD, the number of players' names (and symbols for the map display), then select the empire centres (of the 24 names offered). Each centre (and all squares) is worth between 0 and 9 revenue points, depending on the location (desert: low, centre: high). These points are the currency of the game.

The scren shows the year and quarter currently being played, player number and decision information, main map plus symbols for each players' areas, the player's power points (sum total of all revenue points) and an exploded window of the current cursor position plus surrouding squares. At the start of each quarter the power points give each player a revenue which he can spend on troops, warships or nuclear missiles. There are four phases to each quarter:

1. Nukes Phase, where nukes can be seen on the map and launched if required. (If this is done, the target square is destroyed and all eight surrounding squares as well.)

2. Deployment Phase, where the player can build up armies or fleets on the squares he owns.

3. Movement Phase, where the player can move any army or fleet to occupy new territory (and so build up his total revenue points), or may attack another player's area. (Movement of each force is limited to a certain amount for each turn.) If an attack is made, the Combat phase occurs where both players can choose a number (from 1 to 9) without letting each other see the value chosen. This then determines who wins the conflict (alternatively, the computer can be left to make the decision).

4. End Turn Phase, where a player may challenge the next to concede.

During the main deployment/movement phases of the game, the exploded window is used to observe the strengths of each square (this is scrolled at a rate of 1 or 3 squares, in any direction, by the use of cursor keys). Victory can be decided by the number of names of the centres captured, or the total number of revenue points built-up, or the destruction of the opponent's forces.

The program is a complex war game that can last from a few hours to a few days, depending on how involved you get with it, as it is highly addictive. Luckily, a save game facility is included. It is also easy to break in and list the program with LIST 2; this is endorsed by Red Shift as they welcome any ideas on improvements to the program and will even supply a listing if you send an sae.

If you get tired of playing on one map there are three others to choose from, although every game will of course be different - unlie arcade games. Each map demands different tactics: the Caribbean needs warships and control of the ports, Great Britain relies more on the troop movements. Also, the Nukes option does not have to be used in a game.

If after many weeks of play you need other maps or you are getting too used to them, there are expansion tapes available. Volume 1 contains maps for USA, SE Asia, Africa, Arctic Circle, Star systems and Nether Earth. Volume 2 has historical scenarios such as the fall of Rome, Napoleon's campaigns, the Pacific War and 1984. Red Shift say that they will be altering the rules of play in these further expansions to add to the interest for seasoned players. Plus, if you need any help, there is a telephone number to ring for advice from Dr. Strangelove!

Overall, at £9.95, this is an excellent program which will give you many hours of enjoyment, especially as the game is constantly expanding and looking for ways in which to be improved. As such, it is highly recommended but it must be noted that some of the recent tapes will not load due to poor tape duplication processes. If you get one of these tapes (as I did) then just telephone Red Shift and they will very quickly replace the tape.