They thought the mild mannered Englishman could never be pushed over the edge. But as the queues filled out with hundreds of OAPs, their hands holding carrier bags packed with tatty lime green crockery, Hugh Scully realised that he simply couldn't take another series of the Antiques Roadshow. The mocking and self-satisfied laughter of Lovejoy echoed in his ears. The good old days were over...

So, picking up a couple of 17th century French muskets, he turned to his fellow experts and said triumphantly "In the memory of Arthur Negus I am leaving this place, and going in search of real antiquities from exotic lands!" Opening his briefcase he took out a hat and a whip, put them on and sprinted dramatically out of Chiswick sports centre. He was last seen being dragged behind a rusty Marina on its way to Baghdad!

We join Hugh as his alter-ego, Indiana Jones, in this multi-style adventure game that incorporates exhilarating action from all three blockbuster movies, beginning with the cave in South America where Indy's attempt to secure the golden idol is hindered by a rather large boulder!

Those who know our adventuring archeologist know that he is rarely without his whip. It plays a big part in the game, too, with Indy using it to lash at foes and to swing across chasms too wide to jump. Likewise, a pistol becomes readily available and anyone who remembers the scene with the sword slashing Arabian knight in Raiders Of The Lost Ark will laugh when the scene is recreated for one of the game's bosses! When Indy finds himself without a weapon, he is forced to rely on his trusty fists to pummel enemies into oblivion.

Indiana Jones is just about the most athletic antiques dealer on the planet and the game incorporates a few of his characteristic talents. The body roll for example enables him to dodge oncoming dangers or roll under the tiniest of gaps. Another of Indy's specialities is hanging on to platforms by no more than his finger tips. Indy also finds himself doing a lot of running, from trundling boulders or speeding hay carts.

Besides the familiar platform bits, there are intermission sections that change in style completely to spice things up a bit. Take the infamous mine cart scene in Temple Of Doom - this is translated in the game into a hair-raising head-on 3D extravaganza. Or how about Indy and pop trying to escape the Nazis in a biplane in a slick 3D dogfight!

Indiana Jones is based around all three block-buster movies, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Temple Of Doom and The Last Crusade.

Guide Indy through levels of platform action whipping and shooting Nazis, and generally getting into sticky situations.

On the whole, platformers are a pretty average breed - the all too familiar cry of "not another movie to platform conversion" too frequently ringing in reviews. But as they have demonstrated on the Super NES in the case of the Star Wars trilogy, LucasArts know how to deliver the goods - and Indiana Jones is no exception. The levels are long, varied, and stuffed to the brim with spectacular power-ups, and even though some of the situations are a case of trial and error, the restart points are never far away. If you're as much of an Indy fan as young Osmond Browne, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

More than anything, it is the attraction of the legendary movies themselves that succeed in giving this game a head start. The programmers have remained largely faithful to the atmosphere of the films, even if they've taken liberties in order to turn it into an exciting game. The film stills that appear between levels and the infamous map travelling sequences that pop up at the end of stages ensure that the flavour of the heroic adventurer's various struggles is reflected in the gameplay.

Indy moves with that hectic finesse he's famous for and his versatility is impressively rendered in the animation. The game does have its faults, though. The abrupt changes in difficulty sometimes lead to frustrating deaths that are only avoided once you're more than familiar with the territory.

This niggle aside, Indiana Jones is ultimately satisfying to play and damn long, too, spread out over loads of action-packed levels. Fans of the films, of which there are more than a few, won't be disappointed.

Graphics 76%
P. Impressively recreated atmosphere of the film and the Indy sprite moves with the agility of the man himself!

Animation 76%
P. The sprite leaps, runs, rolls and punches every bit as well as Harrison Ford (and his stunt double) did.

Music 84%
P. The tunes are faithful to those well known and loved movie airs.z

Effects 57%
P. The effects are suitably up to scratch, and vary throughout the game.

Playability 82%
P. Loads of action to keep you on your toes.
N. Some parts in the game have a habit of getting furiously frustrating.

Lastability 84%
P. It isn't an overly easy game and the 28 levels should keep even an accomplished player well occupied.

Overall 84%
It doesn't break any new ground but is fast, exciting and full of variety. The films have been done justice.