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It's 1988 and another one of those evil dictators has taken some hostages. Needless to say, Taito's solution isn't Operation Diplomat, nor even a couple of tank battalions, it's just one man and his gun to sort things out.

There are six horizontally scrolling levels in all, each packed with soldiers, tanks and helicopters. To deal with them you move a gunsight cursor across the screen - being careful not to hit nurses nor waste ammo (it's limited) - and using grenades for tanks and suchlike. You have only one life and one continue-play, but an energy bar means you can take plenty of hits. Occasionally you'll see useful items, such as a health potion, smart bomb, ammo and grenades. These are collected by being shot.

Each of the stages has its own theme: two boasts a river, five is the concentration camp, with six being the airport where an aircraft is stolen for a fast escape. In awarding it 91% (Issue 45), Matt said, "The frenetic quality is incredible: the adrenalin really gets pumping... It's incredible." Gordon Houghton agreed, "The graphics move brilliantly, and even though the larger ones are quite chunky, they don't lack detail.., another ace conversion."

Two years on, the graphics still look pretty good: fast and detailed with plenty of happening all the time. The cursor's a bit fast, though, and isn't as clear as it could be. Presentation is good for a single load, including progress reports. Sound is effective, various bangs basically, with a typical Jonathan Dunn intro tune. There's a Neo mouse option which is great, but no lightgun option. A simplistic game idea, very tough, but well done and if it appeals - buy it!