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Considering that you had never heard of Mr Hiram Perkins Primm, you are more than a little surprised to find that you have been named as beneficiary in his will. The letter from his solicitors does go some of the way to explaining though.

Mr Primm lived Africa - the dark continent - and had some pretty unusual theories about some of the things that went on there. One in particular caught his imagination more than most. His life work has been spent searching for the lost tomb of an ancient Egyptian pharaoh called Ahnk Ahnk. The fact that most experts did not believe him and his family just thought him plain daft did not deter him, the only effect being that he cut all his relatives out of his will. The money should go instead to someone who knows little or nothing about Africa but who is prepared to take up the challenge and try and discover the tomb with its supposed riches within a time span of five years.

Thus it is that in January 1890, you find yourself in Cairo with $250 in your pocket and the promise of more to come as you discover various things. The game is one of exploration. You must wander round the entire continent, trading with natives for both supplies and clues.

The display consists of a scrolling map of your surroundings complete with four icons. These allow you to check your status and bearings, manipulate objects and keep a diary of your travels, together with any clues that you may have discovered. The diary part is very well done and most authentic.

Should you wander into a village, the picture changes to a close up of the huts. Hold a gift in your hand and 'bump' into a native and he will give you a map of the huts. There are different types of shop available to you where you can buy weapons, medicine, supplies and gifts. Some of the larger cities even have a pub which you can use to save your current position. Not every town will have everything that you need and so careful planning is required. If you dig up treasure, you will have to find merchants to sell the stuff to in order to buy more supplies and it may be a good tactical manoeuvre to leave caches of goods buried for later use.

As you get further into the wilderness, so the amount of supplies available drops right off. Instead though, you can go and talk to the village chief. Offer him a suitable bribe and he may offer a helpful clue in return. Offer the wrong sort of treasure and you are likely to get banished instantly.

Although graphically simplistic, Heart Of Africa is historically and geographically accurate and for anyone interested in this type of strategy/exploration game, it plays very well indeed. Well worth considering if you're a thinker rather than a blaster.