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The game Mikie, set in an American high school, stars an all-American schoolboy who is trying desperately to get a message to his sweetheart. You have just volunteered to help him.

The first screen provides an aerial view of a classroom. There are nine desks with pupils sat at each one, and beneath five of their stools are little red hearts. As you collect each one, they change into letters to form a message to his girlfriend. When you collect the fifth heart, the classroom door opens, allowing you on to the next level.

Collecting the hearts isn't quite as easy as it could be as your fellow pupils won't stand up to let you at them so you have to bump them off their seats using your hip-zap technique. On top of this you receive a great deal of hassle from the teacher who doesn't like you disturbing the class. If things begin to get too hairy you can always find yourself a vacant stool and sit down for a while - but not for too long, otherwise the teacher's false teeth will fly towards you.

Having escaped the classroom you must negotiate the hallway to reach the next room. The hall is patrolled by a teacher and a mad janitor, so nimble footwork is required.

Screen two is set in the locker room with several lockers containing three hearts. You stand in front of the locker and press the "shout" key three times to release the hearts. This time you are being chased by the teacher, janitor and chef. The same sort of thing is repeated in the canteen, gymnasium and schoolyard.

I found survival has a high random factor. Sometimes the teacher will plod around in a corner and you sail through the screen. On other occasions he will be hot on your heels and you will lose all three lives on the first screen.

The graphics are crude and the animation not much better. Mikie was never destined to be a blockbuster, but a little more care on the graphics side would have been greatly appreciated.

Jon Revis