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During a trip across hostile jungle territory, an aircraft carrying a team of crack commandos crashes and comes to rest in the thick undergrowth. All the passengers perish, with the exception of two dazed troopers who are now faced with a long trek to safety. Readying their weapons, they grit their teeth and embark upon what may possibly be their last mission...

The lone commandos are controlled as a solo game or with two players acting as a team. Armed only with their machine guns and a supply of hand grenades, the comrades yomp across road and river in an attempt to reach friendly territory before they meet a bullet with their name on it.

As play progresses, the pathway through the trees scrolls vertically, with enemy men appearing from the surrounding vegetation. Decimation of these is rewarded with points and an occasional token, which is collected to replenish the player's limited ammunition levels.

As well as gun-toting commandos, there are also gun emplacements, helicopters and tanks to avoid. All are invulnerable to mere bullets, but can be eliminated with an accurately thrown grenade.

The enemy routes are also littered with land mines, which only become visible when a commando is about to step on one, making it just possible for him to avoid an untimely death.

There have been many Commando-style games over the last few years, but, after being "missing in action" for over eighteen months, Ikari Warriors arrives to show that the genre is alive and kicking.

The game is generally pleasing on the eye, and although the backdrops and characters are a little blocky, the overall effect is smooth, polished and glitch-free.

The action is helped along by the slightly weedy but stirring soundtrack which joyfully accompanies the carnage. Single-player mode is occasionally frustrating and the large amount of enemies seems to be designed with a two-player game in mind, but both are very addictive, constantly tempting one to get just that bit farther.

Ikari Warriors can hardly be said to be pushing back the frontiers - but it's a very good game and one hell of a blast.

I never liked this in the arcades, but it has been translated to the Commodore extremely well, with the emphasis on playability rather than fancy graphics or sound. The action is very enjoyable indeed, and there's a huge army of sprites to mow down, blow up and drive over!

At first, the odds seem heavily stacked against you, but with practice and perseverance, headway is soon made. What I particularly like is that you can work out where to stage ambushes, and there's nothing more satisfying than decimating an entire platoon of sprites!

The two-player mode is great fun, and I like the way you can shoot and grenade your ally - it means you have to concentrate even more!

The difficulty level is balanced just right, and you're able to progress a little further with every game - which makes the action very more-ish.

Ikari Warriors is very challenging and addictive, and is definitely worth looking out for.

You might be forgiven for thinking that a Commando-type game released such a long time after the genre had petered out has missed the troopship.

Any thoughts of this nature are disproved, however, by Ikari Warriors. Although the gameplay isn't as sophisticated as some of the more recent shoot-'em-ups, and the graphics look slightly aged, it still has enormous blasting appeal - particularly in demolition partnership mode.

The one player mode proves very difficult, but this adds to the challenge rather than detracts from playability and you just keep coming back for more and more action.

Sound is used superbly with an excellent film-style soundtrack backing the destruction. As I said, the style is getting on, but it has taken until now to produce a game that reigns supreme over the old soldiers.

Presentation 80%
Friendly control method plus a one or two player option.

Graphics 76%
Sometimes lacking in detail, but colourful and smooth in operation.

Sound 74%
Rousing war movie-style soundtrack.

Hookability 92%
Difficult, but incredibly addictive.

Lastability 87%
Each game sees you progress just a little bit farther, tempting another go. It should be some time before it loses its challenge.

Overall 89%
A tremendously enjoyable shoot-'em-up which comes into its own in the two-player mode.