No - this game didn't fall off the back of a lorry

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Have you ever stopped to consider the everyday hazards and difficulties that the driver of a delivery van encounters?

To be perfectly honest neither had I. At least, at the risk of sounding like part of some glittery TV commercial, that was until I came across Paean System's latest game.

Joking apart, I was at least initially attracted by the comparitively obscure nature of the game.

The screen is divided into sections comprising a map, a compass, a road junction layout and fuel and distance indicators.

Your job, as a newly-appointed driver, is to deliver various goods to different locations, using a road network constructed by the computer. You are assisted on your travels by a display of your position and the possible directions in which you may continue as well as the status of the roads. There are one-way streets, bad roads which cause accidents and even speed restrictions.

Being allowed an initial commission bonus of £1,000, you can increase this figure by successful delivery of goods. It may also be decreased, however, by fines, endorsements and bad deliveries.

A score of more than £2,000 could win you a holiday, but return with a score of less than £10 and you join the ranks of the unemployed once more.

The game is not exactly an action-packed thriller. It does, however, have a few pleasing touches. You are personally selected for the job in hand and are accompanied in your errors to the tune of rather embarrassing sirens as well as unconstructive advice from your co-driver.

I found myself on more than one occasion tip-toeing away from the accusing alarms, denying all knowledge of a game they called Delivery.

For those of you, like me, who welcome any game that does not involve spaceships, man-to-man combat or rescuing the damsel in distress. Delivery provides a reasonably entertaining and original alternative.

Karen Torevell