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Besides keeping the 21st century population distracted and amused, the Killing Game Show deals with dissidents by using them as contestants - no-one has survived it yet!

For the squeamish, simply being prepared for the show is bad enough. Radical surgery amputates the legs, strips away the skin, then wraps the raw remains in armour. The arms are turned into multi-purpose limbs used to walk with, climb walls and pick up objects. Two massive guns are also grafted onto the cyborg.

Killing Game Show consists of eight artificial moons designed as the ultimate killing grounds, each containing two Pits Of Death in which the contestant starts at the bottom and must get to the top. Various platforms are often divided up by barriers which need keys to be opened. Further spice is added by mines, booby-traps and HALFs; Hostile Artificial Life Forms which attack in long swirling formation is destroyed a winged heart is released - catch it for extra energy. But the most critical hazard is the DOLL, a shimmering Deadly to Organic Life Liquid which begins rising as soon as the game starts. Contact with DOLL is completely fatal.

In the spirit of fairness - well, entertainment - there are some helpful objects concealed

For my money, Killing Game Show's thundering intro beats Beast II, and you can even buy a £9.99 T-shirt to go with it. But more importantly this is a superb return to form in gameplay. Like Blood Money the basic format is a familiar one, here platforms and ladders crossed with mega-blasting, but it's all been done with such panache as to seem brand new.

In play, the great variety of weapons and creatures make the early levels a great blast, but by Moon Three simply being adept with weapons is no longer enough. Numerous switches and new tools broaden the game out, forming tough, interlocking puzzles. The video feature is extremely useful here, allowing you to review past mistakes. This saves time and means mapping isn't crucial.

Clearly Psygnosis have put a lot of thought into this one and it works well, with attractive, varied graphics intermeshing perfectly with the game-style. My only slight reservation is that completing a Pit is extremely tough, and the only reward is going onto a harder one! Still, the new graphics are worth working for and there's an end-of-game sequence. Overall, a must for arcade-puzzle maniacs, and one of the best Amiga games in recent months.

Phew, this is tough! Even so, the 'continue on the same level' option and brilliant replay facility tempt you into having 'just one more go' - we played it continuously for a whole day!

The continuously rising liquid makes you sweat as you try to climb up, hindered by locked doors and, on one of the levels, a hundred gems which all have to be collected!

Things get even more complicated on later levels with teleports to use and switches to activate, often in combination. There seems to be something new (usually nasty!) on each level, as well as some very different graphics - I love the shimmering liquid effect with the parallax scrolling cleverly reflected in it. Sonics are also slick with a choice of thudding heavy metal music or sampled FX.

The only thing missing from this game show is a slimy host - I'd just love to chuck Bob Monkhouse into that liquid!

Presentation 94%
Explosively cinematic intro. Unique video-replay feature, unlimited continue-plays, stylish save-to-disk score table.

Graphics 90%
A well animated main sprite, eight very different worlds and shimmering DOLL.

Sound 94% Great intro FX, choice of superb FX or rock music.

Hookability 91%
Instantly and completely addictive, continue-plays will ensure your first sessions last hours.

Lastability 89%
Sixteen Pits Of Death provide a formidable challenge, while graphic variety provides a strong incentive to persist.

Overall 89%
Psygnosis are back on form!