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There are some things in life that puzzle me. Take the stuff about the birds and the bees, for instance. I haven't got a clue what that's all about. And why do people listen to all this so-called 'rave' music? I've no idea. But the thing that puzzles me the most is this: Why on earth do software companies insist on trying to convert popular boardgames to home computers? It's baffling to the point of being incomprehensible!

Surely they realise that, faced with a choice, most people would choose to sit cross-legged on the carpet playing on a real live board with a group of drunken friends and no-one paying much attention to the proceedings. Now we all know that computers are excellent things that can provide the lone gamer with many hours of entertainment and excitement but, unfortunately, they are rather crap at providing fun for a group.

A boardgame conversion is acceptable when the computer can actually improve upon the basic gameplay of the original. But apart from providing an electronic friend to play against, what enhancements are possible with games like Monopoly and Cluedo (to name but two) beyond the computer dealing a random set of cards and throwing the dice for you, all of which are an integral part of the game and tasks you can quite easily manage on your own without any help from your Amiga.

But, hey, all this is really besides the point - we're here to take a look at Pictionary (although I think that the more perceptive among you know what's coming). Why anybody attempted this conversion in the first place is beyond me! The only advantage the computer edition has over the ordinary game is that it is possible to play alone, something the original was never designed for. Assuming that you do have some friends, though, the limitations of the program soon become apparent.

The core of the program, the drawing bit, is presented as sort of poor man's Deluxe Paint and I cannot think of anybody who'd rather play Pictionary with a mouse when it is far easier (and more enjoyable) to use the old fashioned pencil and paper. Can't people just leave alone good old traditional values and stop trying to forcefeed all this technology down our throats? Whatever next - computerised origami?