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Waste disposal is a very messy business - thus, it seems logical that any advanced civilization capable of space travel would find some nice clean way of avoiding this problem. The solution that Earth might find in the distant future is to take all noxious substances and dump them on some other planet. In Erebus, the problems attached to this solution are considered...

A chemical refinery has been set up on the distant world of Erebus in order to process the Earth's waste. A planet processing several million tons of rubbish per day is no place for any man, so the system has been automated. All was well, until marauding aliens took over the plant and used it to produce a deadly nerve gas.

The refinery is split into circular sections, interlinked by ducts. Underneath this horizontally scrolling landscape is an information panel which gives the score, number of lives remaining, and a level completion indicator.

The joystick is used to move your fighter around the playing area - pressing the fire button launches missiles at the waves of attacking enemy craft. Collision with raised ground features or enemy bullets proves fatal, although the fighter can pass under alien ships without hindrance.

The fighter has to complete a circuit of the entire circular section, and destroy enough enemy fighters to open a duct which allows access to the next level... after enduring a 30 second bonus section. Aliens appear from the right, and can be destroyed to gain extra points.

A direct hit does not result in death, but sends the fighter directly to the beginning of the next level.

This is a mainstream bi-directionally scrolling shoot-'em-up, which offers nothing innovative but is still fun to play. Both the graphics and sound are good, with some very pretty backdrops and sprites, and decent spot effects.

I do feel however that there is something missing in the action. Rolling backwards and forwards, blasting the hell out of the denizens is enjoyable at first, but it palls after a few games. It would have been nice if there was something to protect apart from yourself.

Still, if you're a shoot-'em-up fan then it might be worth your while, but there are plenty of other games on the market which offer more action and variety.

There seem to be a great many shoot-'em-ups around these days, but this one is far from extraordinary. The backgrounds are very well drawn with plenty of detail, and the alien ships look good and move in a satisfying manner.

There don't seem to be any bonus lives, so sooner or later you're going to kick the bucket - pity. I can't see many shoot-'em-up fans wanting to buy this, as it offers nothing special or new.

Erebus is yet another mediocre addition to the already saturated range of scrolling shoot-'em-ups. It's attractive - but it's far from original, and more often than not unexciting.

The sound has nothing to offer either, with an ordinary tune and bland spot effects. I've seen too many games of this type lately to be excited when a supposedly new one comes along.

Presentation 72%
Acceptable title screen and high-score table.

Graphics 82%
Pleasant backdrops and adequate sprites.

Sound 59%
Reasonable title tune and simple spot FX.

Hookability 68%
Mildly addictive but hardly compulsive.

Lastability 53%
Over 30 levels of blasting action, but it proves quite tedious remarkably quickly.

Value For Money 51%
Lacking enough variety to warrant its price.

Overall 56%
Another unoriginal, and on the whole, unexciting shoot-'em-up.