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It's four years since plucky Jason defeated the Plutonium Boss and the radioactive mutants under the Earth. Since then our superhero has relegated his trusty super-vehicle SOPHIA, to the garage, has taken to wearing shocking-pink hot-pants, dyed his hair blonde and become a hairdresser.

But right in the middle of administering a Number Two to Lionel Blair a ferocious electrical storm heralds the end of his snipping days as a freak lightning bolt strikes one of his hairdryers transforming it into a horrible being. Jason is knocked unconscious by a particularly vicious pair of curling tongs and, on awakening, discovers SOPHIA is in pieces and the lightning beings are burrowing to the centre of the Earth to knock it off its axis. Jason has to stop them, so after rebuilding his trusty machine...

This is the follow-up to a Nintendo game which was originally based on a book. Apparently.

Fight through eight levels of radioactive mutants, find and kill the miniboss and main boss, using the tool/weapon they leave behind to access the next level.

The inventory menu screen indicates how many weapons have been collected and used. Choose from here the special weapons for Jason or the vehicle to use. These may be represented en route as well as red hearts to bump up the energy meter and gold stars for an extra life. The driller allows the player to bore through tough walls, the hover allows SOPHIA to fly and the jet-pack, Jason to fly alone.

Jason and his crate are seen from different perspectives depending on the section of the game. At times, Jason is inside the vehicle, seen from a side or overhead view. Small ladders and passageways indicate where Jason must leave the vehicle, whereupon he is seen on foot from a side-view. When he enters the lair of a boss, he's seen in a larger side-view. In the overview view, there may be hidden passages which the vehicle can pass through. However, there are power-ups to collect. These are:

> - Vehicle speeds up
< - Vehicle slows down
+ - Increases fire power
B - Bomb - detonates everything on the screen
I - Limited invincibility
E - Energy addition
? - Icon selection at random
‐ - Decreases firepower

On every massive level, Jason must locate the lair of the mini-boss and batter it into submission. Once defeated, the beast hands over a special weapon that Jason needs to find the main boss. Once located, more battering ensues until the main boss hands over a weapon or object which allows our hero to enter the next level.

These range from insulated armour that protects Jason through an impregnable electrical field, polarised shades to stop him going blind in volcanic caverns, drillers to bore through soft earth and dives that allow the vehicle to move through water.

Blaster Master 2 starts off as a singularly ugly piece of software. The box looks horrible, as do the first few screens, with bland sprites and chunkesque backdrops. It's not until you're right into the second stage that you realise it's a lot of fun. Cleverly, there's a wide range of gameplay, with overhead maze sections, platforms, puzzles and boss-fighting.

Even better, the graphics improve considerably as you progress, with some neat effects (check out the fire level). Although the concept looked bland when I started, all the features such as power-ups, special weapons and secret passages got me really involved. You do need to get hooked, because as you traverse later levels, that pile of continues shrinks ever rapidly.

Personally, I wouldn't quite call Blaster Master 2 a Mega Game, but it's not far off it.

Although simplistic looking and, at first, uninspiring graphically, this is one of the best Megadrive games I've played for a very long time.

There's so much to it! The levels are huge, varied and extremely challenging - there's no way you're going to finish this in a hurry. It's great to have lots of different kinds of gameplay - with the overhead view where you race around like a go cart, the side-view of Jason or his vehicle with a plethora of weapons at your disposal or the one-on-one combat against the bosses.

The music and sound effects are great too. Quite simply, for shoot-'em-up fans who are a little tired of pretty graphics and limited gameplay, get Blaster Master 2 for a fun game that'll keep you hooked for ages.

Presentation 85%
P. Nothing inspiring on the intro screens but they serve their purpose. You can bump up the credits.
N. A two-player option would have been smart.

Graphics 87%
P. Clear, colourful with some huge sprites - they get ever better as the game goes on.
N. The graphics are basic when compared with the likes of Cool Spot or Rocket Knight Adventures.

Sound 89%
P. Some great sound effects on the weapons front, and the music fits the mood quite well.

Playability 91%
P. Loads of variety and fun in the gameplay. The game's fast, the controls are responsive and the levels are huge.
N. It does get frustrating being dragged right back to the beginning of the level when you die.

Lastability 90%
P. Eight huge levels to explore and tough gameplay means you won't get through this in a hurry... and enjoy coming back for more.

Overall 90%
It's not a world beater on the graphics front, but for challenge and addictive value, Blaster Master 2 is a sure-fire winner.