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In Obsidian, the latest arcade adventure from Artic, you are minding your own business, eating your Shredded Wheat when the captain of the spaceship sends for you.

He tells you that the space station has been hit by a freak radiation storm which has deactivated all of its power systems. The space station has been built inside a large asteroid and was on course for a black hole, the gateway to another universe, when the storm hit.

You are ordered to teleport to the station, re-activate the power systems, initialise the engines and reset the flight plan. When the engines are activated, a gravity field will then protect the station from the forces of the black hole.

On completion of the mission, you only have a little time to teleport to your ship before Obsidian's engines carry you unshielded into the void.

Once onboard you have to collect objects from the gravity containers hanging from the ceiling. These objects open various doors, initialise power plants and turn off some of the protection devices. Guess what you don't know? Which object does what, and you can carry one object at a time...

Whilst exploring Obsidian's fifty or so rooms you have to negotiate a variety of security systems; these include different types of robot and lasers, which will soon use up your five lives.

The basic idea behind the game is not original. Obsidian is enjoyable. Artic have made full use of the Amstrad's colour graphics facilities and the smooth movement of objects and characters makes this game a pleasure to watch and play.

There are no catchy tunes to listen to, but sound effects fit nicely and add to the feel of the game without being overdone. As with most games of this type, it can take a considerable amount of time and effort to sort out which objects do what. But that's part of the fun, isn't it?