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With half the American army in the Gulf, sending a five-man team to take on Arab terrorists might seem a bit quaint. Surely there's a spare aircraft carrier to throw around! But these are no ordinary troops, these are Navy SEALs - SEa Air Land commandos - the cream of the US military. One of their helicopters has been shot down and the crew captured by Arab fanatics. Under torture the co-pilot has died, only the pilot remains alive. Then there's a consignment of Stinger ground-to-air missiles which has gone missing.

Perfectly capable of bringing down an airliner, the missiles must be found and destroyed. Then the SEALs must escape through the war-torn streets of Beirut.

The first part of the operation, mission one, is divided up into five distinct levels. These are all presented side-on, with multi-directional scrolling and plenty of platforms to leap between, and dangle from! You start off armed with a pistol, but can get extra weapons such as a machine gun, a grenade launcher and a flamethrower. These are hidden in special crates which can be opened by shooting them. Not very safe!

Worse, some creates are vital for jumping up to platforms - once shot they're useless! Tactical thought is vital on mission one, a single bullet will kill you, knocking off one of your five-man squad and sending you back to the start of the level or where you last planted a bomb.

Mission Two is a simplistic sideways-scrolling shoot-'em-up, a dash for the rendezvous with a helicopter which will take the SEALs to a waiting submarine. The streets of Beirut are packed with heavily armed Militia. Don't run or you'll end up in more trouble than you can handle, but don't dawdle either - there's a time limit. Just cautiously make your way forward, shoot anyone you see and duck under bullets.

The Untouchables was probably my favourite C64 game of last year, so I couldn't wait for the latest from John Meegan and Stephen Thomson. It looks like a conventional mix of platforms and gunplay, but after having my first squad wiped out in seconds, I realised this was far from the case.

Instead Navy SEALs forces you to think tactically, each terrorist has to be treated with the utmost respect. As soon as you see a glimpse of their shoes or whatever, their line of fire has to be worked out along with a means of killing them.

You could describe it as almost a puzzle game, and John has certainly put a lot of thought into it, but I prefer to think of it as a *realistic* game. No longer can you absorb enough lead to sink a battleship without slowing down, here just one bullet kills. The sense of being on a covert combat mission in a small team is brilliantly conveyed. The five levels of Mission One are going to keep me occupied for quite some time!

The other brilliant aspect of SEALs is the presentation, Stephen Thomson has actually got better. The background graphics are varied, clean and attractive. They're not always spectacular, Beirut isn't that glamorous!, but they look very good and suit the game. Sprites are superbly done, using The Untouchables-style overlays to pack in the detail.

But where Stephen really gets to shine is on the presentation screens. The SEALs logo is one of the best things I've seen on the C64, while numerous and varied inter-level screens are absolutely superb. This makes for a brilliant atmosphere which could only really be done on cartridge with the vital instant access.

For anyone tired of the silliness of most shoot-'em-ups, this brilliantly realistic and atmospheric game is the one to get.

Navy SEALs isn't a massive licence, but as with The Untouchables, that's more a bonus than anything else with Ocean giving themselves plenty of time to develop to top-notch game using their superb in-house approach.

Unlike more simplistic multi-format releases, the game style has been tailored for each machine. As with The Untouchables, it plays very tough, level one taking time to work out. But unlike that game, once you work out the enemy tactics the level becomes a lot easier, so you're not discouraged from coming back.

As you progress the terrorists get smarter, ranging from simple left/right/shoot opponents to full blown eight-way firing, fast-moving Arabs pursuing the SEALs all around the level.

And once you're an experienced commando, the promise of seeing yet more superlative inter-level screens, plus the varied levels and simplistic action of mission two will keep you coming back for more.

It may have the look of The Untouchables' level one but that's misleading; this is a brand new and quite sophisticated game-style. The way Meegan and Co. have set up kill zones on each level, with two or three Arabs covering passageways, has been thoughtfully done.

Very often a direct route to a nearby Stinger crate is fatal until you're disposed of an Arab via a long terb around the level (encountering other kill zones in the process). The unlikely combination of 'arcade puzzle game' springs to mind when pushed to describe Navy SEALs!

Gameplay variety might not seem immense, but the way each level tests a different area of player tactics/skills is admirable. Level two sees lifts coming into play, level three introduces the crates as elements vital to mission success, level four requires mastering shinning along underneath ledges.

As more platforms are brought in more accurate jumping is required, the Arab 'puzzles' expand dramatically in complexity and a rethink of tactics is required with the arrival of increasingly intelligent terrorists.

Alongside the excellent Matthew Cannon sonics (the inter-level map tune is my favourite) are the superlative graphics. The detail in level one is phenomenal and ranks among the best seen on the C64 yet, level two is graphically sparse but moody. The tunnels lead into baracks and the whole transition from one palette to another is expertly done, notably on the last level. Military installations aren't that original, but they vary significantly and establish a terrific atmosphere.

On the subject of presentation I can't enthuse enough. The cartridge is put to full use with presentation screens galore, while instantaneous loading makes for superb momentum. It gives a real coin-op feel and shows what cartridges really can do.

Presentation 96%
Unbelievable loading screen - the gorgeous SEALs logo - numerous and excellent inter-level screens, music/FX option and three continue-plays.

Graphics 91%
Super-detailed backgrounds look great, while SEALs and terrorists are superbly animated. Gorgeous inter-level screens.

Sound 92%
Matthew Cannon provides a first class soundtrack, with great FX and tunelets.

Hookability 89%
Starts off tough, but once you start taking your time the game opens up brilliantly, ensnaring you completely.

Lastability 93%
A formidable challenge, mixing arcade action and puzzles to keep you playing for ages.

Overall 92%
A superbly atmospheric and realistic mix of arcade action and tactics.