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If you thought that those General Election games were boring, then at least you could count yourself lucky that you never had to play a game based on the American system.

Now Braingames have remedied that, with the launch of Election Trail. It's similar to those politics games which have a habit of appearing just before a General Election in this country. This one, though, is neatly timed to coincide with the probable re-election of Bonzo... Sorry, Ronald Reagan in November.

The American electoral system is totally different to ours, but I'll not bore you by explaining it.

Suffice to say that Election Trail is either a one- or two-player game. If you choose two players then the computer merely acts as a playing board and doesn't take part in the game. If you select the single player option then it's you against the computer.

You take the role of the Republican party and the computer plays for the Democrats. You can't change this set-up. You start by selecting a home state for your candidate. Then you can start to get the votes in.

You do this by selecting from various menus which have four choices. For example, you can hold a public meeting, have a debate, try to get support from a film start and anything else which would increase your popularity with the nation.

Of course, all those crackers and balloons cost money, so you'll have to keep an eye on your campaign budget.

The computer keeps a record of scores and shows a map of the USA which tells you which states are the strongest to aim for and which will get you the most votes.

The graphics are readable but nothing to write home about. Sound is non-existent except for a couple of American tunes which play during rallies. All control is from the keyboard, so you won't need a joystick.

After twenty turns, the election takes place and your success can finally be measured. Providing, that is, that you can actually wait that long.

While this game may go down well in a politics lesson, I wouldn't actually buy it unless I was interested in the subject. It's certainly not a game that you'd buy for its entertainment value. Sorry, Ronnie.