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In line with Imagine's new policy of detailed inlay cards, comes a new super-low price. The inlay gives detailed instructions on how to play the game, as well as details on the author and his host of helpers which include some other professional musicians Imagine have hired to improve the sound on their games.

Pedro is a sad little Mexican. At least, if he's not sad, he should be. Trying to scratch a bare existence from.the dry soil is hard enough without having to cope with hordes of predators. He has a box of seeds, with which he can replace those plants eaten by the nasties, but a local tramp is likely to stroll in and take them if Pedro doesn't stop him in time and frighten him off. Actually the inlay states that Pedro has the most beautiful flower garden South of the Border, and that's what attracts all the animals to come and eat the plants.

These include ants, rabbits and cats, among others. To stop them Pedro may jump up and down on them, or he may take bricks from the pile, or compost, and block up the entrances to the garden. The game is over when all the plants have been eaten. The action is played out on a screen which suggests a 3D perspective, and this is accentuated by the fact that up and down are in reality diagonals.

Control keys: left /right alternate keys bottom row, down - any key on 2nd row, up - any key on third row. Jump, pick, put - any key on top row or SPACE
Joystick: Fuller, 2 x 2, Kempston, AGF, Protek
Keyboard play: very responsive. but finicky in movement
Use of colour: average, although plenty used
Graphics: detailed, reasonably smooth
Sound; game sound, poor, tunes very good
Skill levels: 1
Lives: 1

'Pedro is a rather odd game from Imagine. The screen is in semi-3D perspective view, which makes Pedro move about rather oddly. The destroying of animals by stomping on them is hard due to the con- trols being difficult to manage. The graphics are good but not exceptional, and there are a few attribute problems with colour. This is not one of Imagine's best games, although what is poor from Imagine still rates average due to their usual high standards, which I hope aren't slipping. However, the more I played the game the better it seemed, and it did grow on me in a way.'

'The game has been designed to be quite hard to play, with so many animals eating the plants. Pedro can only carry one thing at a time so he must decide whether it's to be seeds to plant, bricks or compost to try and block off the garden entrances. But some animals seem to eat bricks as well. It would have been more manageable if the keys had been kinder. Placing seeds (you only have a limited number which is shown at the top of the screen) tended to be difficult because of the perspective angle chosen. meat tunes, but only average attempt overall, with rather distressing use of colour.'