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"Reckless" Rufus? They should've called him "extremely thick" Rufus! Stowing away on a space-faring mining vessel is all very well, but getting caught scrounging Liquorice Allsorts from a deactivated android.. "just say no, kids", it'll save more than your teeth!

Rufus soon regretted his indiscretion - Admiral Greave, not a man to be trifled with, cast him adrift on the planet Killey to collect rare and valuable crystals found on the surface. Only then would he decide whether or not to take him back to our glorious green Earth.

Easy, eh? Well it would be if it wasn't for the tricky traps, perplexing puzzles, tantalising time limit and crafty creatures with an appetite for raw Rufus! To add insult to injury, his faithful laser blazer has limited power, so to keep the aliens at bay he has to make every shot count.

If by now you're expecting a Manic Miner-esque run-round-platforms-collecting-things game, you're absolutely... wrong! Reckless Rufus is an arcade puzzler par excellence. Viewed from an overhead perspective, Rufus can stomp from block to block with impunity but falls to his death if he makes a wrong move.

Most crystals are initially unreachable, but luckily there are several numbered blocks on each level which allow you to build a bridge across the void - if you stand on a block marked '4' and move off the platform you create a block marked '3', the original turning into a standard unmarked jobbie. Walk off that, and you create one marked '2'... I'm sure you get the idea. You can double back on yourself or move from a numbered block to a normal one without penalty - the numbered one remains if you need to return to it (and you will).

Naturally the game gets more complicated on later levels. You're soon driven round the bend by slippery blocks that won't let you stand still on them, electrical blocks that can only be crossed when the current's off, blocks that crumble when you stand on them, others with gaping holes which you must fix by flicking a switch before you can cross... Make no mistake, you're in for a really hard time, and it's not made any easier by the baddies who wander across the screen. They each travel in their own set pattern, but don't assume they're easy to avoid!

Reckless Rufus is a brilliantly designed game. At every turn there's a tempting bridge to be made, but build thoughtlessly and you'll render one of the level's five crystals unreachable. If this happens, you can make a suicidal leap and start the level again - you're never permanently trapped on a screen that can't be completed. Although each screen is deceptively complicated and takes a fair few attempts to solve, the solution is found through brain-power and not trial and error - once you've solved a screen, you'll never forget how to do it.

The execution's great too. The sprites are amazing, especially of Rufus himself, who looks like a cross between Berk from The Trap Door and Phil after a large meal. The controls are well laid out and become instinctive after a few plays, though you have to let go of the joystick pretty smartish or you'll move one bock further than you intended.

One or two minor niggles. The pass-codes are a boon, but a game this tricky needs them after every level, not every ten. The difficulty curve could be gentler too - a lot gentler! Even the first screen's a real killer to get through. Slowing the aliens would help; the game's evil enough as a puzzler.

Moaning aside, Reckless Rufus is a cracker of a game that no self-respecting C64 owner should be without. With 130 fiendishly addictive levels to complete, you certainly won't be finishing it in a hurry! Worth £3.99 of anyone's dosh.

Now here's a weird one. Like all the best puzzlers, it's simple enough to get into without a struggle, so addictive you'll always want "just one more go" and, you guessed it, frustrating in the extreme!

For such a straightforward concept, the game manages to turn up surprises galore by ensuring that different approaches are adopted for each particular screen. Some are slow, sedate affairs where the player must hesitate and ponder after every move, while others see you hurtling along with little time to catch your head! Drawbacks are few, but typically niggling all the same. Pausing the game, for example, is only half useful when you want to work out which direction is best to take... as the word "PAUSED" obliterates half the screen!

Similarly annoying is the fact that nasties are able to appear seemingly on top of you, prematurely terminating your turn. Bah! These gripes aside, though, Reckless Rufus remains one of the most innovative game designs we've seen since, oooh, last issue's Cool Croc Twins?

Presentation 70%
Good password system, but it could be better.

Graphics 80%
Rufus looks great, couldn't done more with the aliens.

Sound 75%
As much as you need, but nothing spectacular.

Hookability 91%
Grabs you by the throat and refuses to let go.

Lastability 89%
You'll be playing this one for ages and ages.

Overall 84%