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The Commodore 64 is very strong on sound, high-resolution graphics and colour. It deserves to have programs which will exploit these qualities. Car-driving games are sufficiently testing to be a challenge while not being as frustrating as aircraft simulations.

Choosing one of nine levels of difficulty, you steer you car around a track which includes motorway sections, ordinary roads and dirt track tests.

You will meet hazards - including slick patches and avalanches of boulders - on the way. You have to pass other road users, and the local ambulance crosses your path. There are realistic engine noises as you drive, and a constantly changing speedometer.

You also have to keep an eye on a gauge which tells you if you are driving too slowly to keep your battery charged and on a fuel gauge that warns you to call in at a garage before you run out of petrol.

All this is complicated by hazards such as logs in the middle of the road - hitting one will cause your engine to overheat, signified by a flashing light followed by an oil warning light. If you fail to get to a garage in time, your engine dies. And there are potholes to make your steering go haywire.

Each map section completed earns an extra 1,000 miles. If you clock up 5,000 miles you get an extra car to add to the five you start with. If you still have four cars in the garage at this time, you score a massive 10,000 miles.

Motor Mania is a first-class arcade game of absorbing interest, and requiring considerable skill. It is a pity that it comes on cassette, even if a cartridge would be more expensive.

This is because this is a game likely to be in great demand in the home, and waiting for the cassette to load will prove frustrating.