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First there was Biggles, then there was 007, now there is Hardest... Freddy Hardest. Skilfully posing as an astral playboy, our hero is in fact a counterespionage agent in this humorous arcade game written by Spanish software house Dinamic. On leaving a party, Hardest crashes his spaceship on an enemy planet. To escape this hostile world he'll have to hijack a spacecraft, but first he must find the spacebase.

Freddy trudges across the planet's horizontally-scrolling landscape, doing his best to avoid a flock of attacking aliens and human reptile mutants. To get him through this maelstrom of malevolence, Freddy is equipped with a laser and a devastating repertoire of high kicks.

He can also leap over the frothing lava mouths which obstruct his path.

When our titanium-tough hero has reached the spacebase he can't escape to freedom straight away - first he has to decipher the Captain's code. Then comes Freddy's final task: he must fuel the ship by shifting nuclear energy cells, using the base's lift, and prepare for blastoff.

Joystick: Kempston
Graphics: in both sections, mostly divided into monochrome areas to avoid colour clash; detailed backgrounds
Sound: delightful title tune and spot effects
Options: definable keys

'The graphics aren't as good as they might be and there's a little colour clash, but after the first few attempts you get the feel of Freddy Hardest and it 's very addictive.'

'It's good to see the Dinamic programmers improving with every game they bring out. Freddy Hardest is much more playable and enjoyable than their previous work for the Ocean/Imagine group (Army Moves (Issue 41), Game Over (Issue 44) - 54% and 55% Overall respectively). Freddy bears an unbelievable likeness to the cartoon character Desperate Dan, but he makes the game. The first two levels differ enough to add addictiveness; the second level is very similar to Ocean's V (Issue 29), though it's more playable. It's also more attractive than the first and the action is more intense. It's Just as well Nick Roberts is promising the access code for the second level in the Christmas Special Playing Tips.'

'At the start of all the best games you'll find fantastic graphics and a great tune, arranged like the beginning of a film. Freddy Hardest is no exception, and here you get Freddy doing an impression of the roaring MGM lion! Freddy is quite well-defined and his hunky stance gives him the 007 look. The second stage, in the spacebase, is full of surprises, and though it's very like Ocean's V you'll get loads of fun out of this excellent game.'