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The war in the Middle East isn't going too well. Enemy helicopter gunships are attacking in droves, and the only thing standing between them and victory is you and a squadron of five Harrier jump-jets. There are no more pilots left, so it's up to you to take the jets up one by one and battle the enemy fleet, shooting down as many of them as you can.

The action takes place over a two-way horizontally scrolling landscape, beneath which a radar is situated. There are three types of enemy helicopter: solo, gunship and unarmed transporter. The former pair track the Harrier under is that these platforms can be destroyed if you accidentally shoot them twice. Correct identification of targets is therefore imperative, as re-fuelling is impossible when all of your bases are destroyed.

The enemy attack in squadrons - the first five consisting of eight helicopters, those thereafter consisting of twelve. The enemy progressively increases in speed and 'intelligence', making their squadrons more difficult to destroy. There is one consolatin though - an extra Harrier is awarded for shooting down five squadrons.

Falcon Patrol II is a welcome blast from the past. It's aurally competent and graphically reasonable - the landscape is quite coarse, but the helicopters look okay and move well enough.

Falcon Patrol II isn't outstanding and doesn't offer anything new, but it is rather addictive (frustrating at times, but very playable) - and sensibly priced for what it offers.

This might be a bit old, but it's just as much fun to play now as it was when it first came out. There are some very frustrating points howver, like the length of time it takes to re-arm and re-fuel and the lack of a restart option.

Also, the graphics are a bit on the naff side, and the title tune is great fun to play. The action does get a mite repetitive after a while, but it's sensibly priced at three quid and well worth looking up - especially if you're into shoot-'em-ups.

Falcon Patrol II never received the honour of a Zzap! review during its heyday for the simple reason that we weren't around. In its time, it was well above average in most respects - now however it doesn't really look or play quite so well.

The gameplay is mildly compulsive, but things get a bit irritating if you foul up your first couple of lives. The graphics are not too hot - the characters are badly drawn and the scrolling is awful.

The sound is average, the title screen tune is tedious and the effects are bearable - but far from excellent. Generally this isn't a great piece of programming, but it does play well and offers excellent value at only three quid.

Presentation 80%
Slick attract mode and in-game instructions.

Graphics 64%
Wobbly scrolling and single colour sprites, but they depict the action well enough.

Sound 63%
Rather 'tinny' title tune, but the spot effects are good.

Hookability 79%
Instantly enjoyable blasting action.

Lastability 54%
Repetitive but quite playable.

Value For Money 78%
Plenty of action for three quid.

Overall 63%
A cheap, limited, but enjoyable, shoot-'em-up.