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Oh No! The evil Reptilons, those bastions of baddieness, have kidnapped the gorgeous, pouting Professor Sarah Bellum and taken a number of hostages who they have enslaved.

What's all this to do with you? Well, as one half of the meanest, intergalactic SWAT team this side of the Yoursole Slime worms from Pongo 10, it's up to you (and your partner) to rescue the terrified terrans and give the Reptilons and their base on Planet X a damn good slapping.

You play either Jake or Duke and you must make your way onward and upward - you must activate escalators on some levels using the switch and go up ladders on others. At the end of each level there is a Reptilon Guard who you must defeat before advancing to the next stage. Each player is armed with a laser gun and you begin with 5 bombs which when detonated wipe out all hostile robots within a certain radius. Some of these mechanised morons leave behind crystals - collect these and your Ray Power will increase to devastating proportions.

Escape From the Planet of the Robot Monsters has already appeared in the arcades where it has been no small success story. This could also prove to be way of the game.

The graphics are good - they're clear, well defined and funny. The hostages are rescued by standing near them when they are working at a computer which looks suspiciously like a Mac, or are in glass cylinder-like prisons which are opened by destroying the computer or hardware nearest them. What sound there is, is fine and complements what is an enjoyable and also highly addictive game.

The only small problem is with the controls themselves, Domark having opted for the quirky Ultimate directional and rotational control which means left and right have your hero pirouette on the spot and up moves him forward. This particular form of control was never a favourite of mine but it does mean that all actions are at your fingertips.

Having said that, once you get used to the controls, EFTPOTRM provides excellent blasting fun for up to two players simultaneously, and quite frankly is a must for anyone's blasting library. Excellent.

Fun, compulsive and fast action with more than its fair share of humour. Fab.