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It may be the last mission, and a classic arcade game, but this game still has some addictive power to it.

You've been driven from your home planet and the only way to get back from your exile is to defeat the invading forces that hover and spin across the planet surface. Your ship is equipped with a standard laser attack system but, as the game progresses, you can collect more defences and attack modules from the planet's surface.

First, though, you've got to get a grip on the control of your ship. It moves forward at a constant, fairly slow speed. To change course move the joystick left to right and the nose of the ship turns clockwise or anti-clockwise - just like that other oldie Asteroids. It takes a bit of getting used to because you expect to speed up and slow down when you push or pull the joystick up and down, but the only way you can avoid oncoming enemy craft is to quickly turn the nose of your ship.

That's not so easy when you're caught between three of four fighters.

When you hit some of the enemy craft they explode and let off pieces of debris which drift in a straight line. If any of those pieces hit you you'll lose one of your lives. In the latter stages of the game these debris bombs gang up and often protect mother ships which you need to shoot repeatedly to destroy.

There are compensations for all this death and despondency - no, really. The planet's surface is studded with strange, flower shaped pods. When you shoot them the casing falls apart and a small square, embossed with a letter of the alphabet, beams out at you. Fly through the square and you add to your weapons or defences.

When you take on a new weapon you lose the benefit of the previous one. For instance, you may have picked up a fast firing, continuous stream laser then hit another square and it changes to a blast gun which sends energy bolts out at the four corners of your ship. That may change to a wall of energy blasts which comes out of your ship's nose and get bigger as you pass through other squares, or a force field bubble which allows you to float through obstructions without damage. There's just so much in the game that's not documented in the instructions!

Okay, I've told that it's old, but it's also one kill after another and enough skill techniques to master to keep you going well into the autumn months.

It's addictive, compulsive and real lasting appeal. If you liked Uridium then this is the next game for you!