Well, it's arrived, the Formula 1 version of Gordon Key's great E-Type race game. Perhaps that's a bit unfair, because Powerband is completely new.

I have it on good authority that it started out as an experiment to see just how fast 3D solid graphics could be on an Archimedes. So a 16 colour screen mode was chosen to reduce the number of bytes needed for plotting for each screen.

It was because this method is so blindingly fast, resulting in so much free time for calculations between each frame, that Powerband has become as complex as it is. And it is still very, very fast.

What you get for your money is a video-style box with two discs and a manual - the usual from 4th Dimension.

Booting up disc one produces a nice title screen followed by a digitised (but doctored) picture of a racing car accompanied by a quick burst of The Chain by Fleetwood Mac followed by cars racing round a circuit.

Teeny-weeny niggle here: You can't bypass this sequence to get on with the game.

Having inserted disc two, the tracks data is loaded up and you get to the menu screen. The centure of the screen contains a vector graphic of a formula one racing car moving round like the spaceships at the start of Elite - except the car doesn't turn upside down.

Here you can select the type of game you want to play, alter the track and change the parameters of your car. The race modes are Fun, Practice and Championship.

In Fun mode your car can survive any amount of damage and you can also drive backwards down the track. Also when you enter the garage certain special options are available: A super-powered engine and super-sticky tyres.

Practice mode allows you to race properly, but before each one you go round the track to get a lap time which affects your starting position on the grid. Each track has its own fastest-time records and if you make it your name will be added to the list.

When playing in a Championship you are presented with a new sub-menu page with just the garage and race options from the original screen available, but with the addition of load, save and quit icons.

Although you can save your position after a race, the saved file is deleted after you do a load to restart. This means you can't keep trying the same race until you get the result you want - you have to play the Championship straight through from start to finish.

After the qualifying lap for position on the grid comes the first race - there are 10 on circuits chosen at random from the 16 available.

As you prepare for each new race, you're given a brief rundown and map of the circuit you're about to tackle.

The other main options on the menu screen are the Airport and the Garage. The former is used to change your track selection: Some tracks are easier than others, for exampe Hockenheim in Germany has long straights and few tight corners, whereas Suzuka in Japan has lots of alternating turns and is a real pain. At Monte Carlo and Detroit there are tunnels too, which are exciting.

The garage lets you alter six aspects of your car's performance. There are seven types of gearbox, including an automatic for beginners, three engine tuning levels, three types of tyre, front and rear aerofoils, and steering ratio.

It's vital to understand that these really do affect the way the car behaves, and you should alter them to conform to your style of driving and the type of race. The steering ratio option actually alters the relationship between mouse and car movement.

The review game was Powerband "version 2" which has a number of extra options - mainly the chance to alter the other drivers' skill levels. The other drivers really do race, competing against each other and you, but drive within the preset limits of their skill.

Gameplay is fast. Fairly easy, though you do need to adjust the steering ratio carefully for your mouse. It's definitely worthwhile using timed mode to get the hang of driving first. It's so easy to spin off by too sudden a mouse movement or changing down a gear at the wrong moment.

Racing against the other cars is awful - I've so far managed to finish in seventh place on one of the easy tracks after getting fifth position on the starting grid due to a record lap time.

Cornering when you're surrounded by other cars is unbelievably nerve-wracking. I don't think I'll take up Formula One racing as a profession.

The graphics are excellent, but the sound could be a problem. The digitised engine effect is a persistent whine - just like the real thing.

You can turn the volume down, but you have to be able to hear enough in order to know when your car is revving at the right speed for gear changes. You certainly haven't time to look at the instruments.

You can hear the other cars too, complete with doppler effect as they scream past you.

I was a bit miffed that all the tracks are flat - I happen to know that Brands Hatch has a vicious dip on the turn at the end of the first straight - and I'd have preferred a first person view like Revs rather than looking at the car from behind.

Niggles aside, this is another outstanding piece of programming by the amazing Gordon Key and I am hooked.

Steve Turnbull