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Just lately I've been dreading the arrival of each new game in the Firebird budget range because they've come up with some right duds recently, but with titles like Thrust and now Bombscare, Firebird can start to hold their head up again (though without getting too big-headed since Mastertronic are still out in front when it comes to budget games).

Bombscare is a sort of budget version of Alien 8, employing the Ultimate style of 3D graphics that just about everyone's using these days. You control a bomb disposal robot called ARNOLD in an attempt to defuse the time bomb planeted on a space station in orbit around the planet Neptune. To do this you'll have to search the station for the tools and equipment that's needed, and work out how best to use all these things.

Arnold can carry up to five objects at a time, and there's a teleport system that can be used to move around the station quickly (if you can work out the passwords required to activate it).

Along the way there are lots of 'absorbing devices' which pop out of thin air and drain Arnold's energy supply. You can survive several contacts with these before losing a life, at whcih point you turn into a pile of dust and get swept away with a brush. You can fire your own missiles at these devices in order to get them out of the way, though your supply is limited so it's best to get used to controlling Arnold's rotating style of movement in order to avoid collisions.

The main challenge in the game is exploration and locating objects, but as there isn't much in the way of obstacles or problem-solving to deal with and to lend a bit of spice to the business of exploration, Bombscare is unlikely to offer the same challenge over a period of time that Alien 8 might. On the other hand, Bombscare only costs about a fifth of what Alien 8 would set you back, and it's still good enough to keep you occupied for a few evenings now that winter's on its way.