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Fairy stories usually talk about releasing genies from bottles but here you've got to bung a few back in their lamps. The action is a cross between a 3D flying-carpet version of Pole Position and the music and colours game Simon.

There are two types of quest and a practice mode. The quests are both composed of alternate sequences of flying your carpet through tunnels and then battling a genie in a test of memory, speed and ears. The practice mode allows you to fly any one of the 21 tunnels aboard your magical carpet.

The tunnels are comprised of diamond shapes which you have to fly through to avoid being knocked off your carpet. The early tunnels are fairly easy just bending up and down or left and right, but later on they zig-zag and twist all over the place making your job extremely tough. Each tunnel is accompanied by a great little tune that bops away as you fly. Combined with the cute little tilting carpet and movement effect it makes a very slick stage.

The quests are the seven trials and the throne quest. In the former you only have to collect the seven pieces of one lamp whereas in the latter you have to get three lamps and fly all 21 tunnels. In the seven trials once you have successfully completed a tunnel you appear on a screen with eight coloured gongs. You're now off your carpet and can walk around hitting gongs. Hitting one gong three times in a row summons a genie who releases several coloured notes into the air.

Once he has finished the notes will descend towards you one by one and you have to hit the right coloured gong to make them disappear. On each successful journey to the genie there are more notes to deal with until you've made seven trips. If you fall off the carpet or get caught by a note then you return to the beginning of the stage. You can have as many goes at a stage as you like but will always start at the flying carpet stage.

The throne quest is split into three sections of seven in which you take on three different genies. Everything is as for the seven trials except that when you get to the gong stage each of the three genies behaves differently. The first genie gives both the colour and tone of the notes he releases but the colour disappears as soon as the notes have all been released. The second game doesn't sound the notes so you can't be guided by ear but have to memorise all the notes' colours which again disappear very fast. The third genie is the toughest of the lot since he gives no colours at all - you have to pick out the notes purely by ear.

If you succeed in the throne quest you a re placed on a throne and rewarded with the Master Of The Lamps music itself. All of the tunnels are tough but a delight to watch and the gong stages in the throne quest will stretch your memory and ears to the limit.

This is a game with a lot of charm and musical appeal even if some of the notes do seem to have sneaked into the wrong tunes. The flying sequences start off fairly easily, but soon get hairy enough to induce a feeling of flying carpet sickness. There's enough of the mystery of the orient to make it well worth a look.

P. Terrific 3D flying carpet sequences.
P. The accompanying music is great.
P. Gong sequence is very testing.
P. The best flying carpet simulation on the market.

N. There are only two sections.
N. Flying through tunnels and bashing gongs may get uninteresting.