Triple word score for Scrabble

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There's always been one problem with Scrabble - you need someone to play against. Leisure Genius has solved that problem with this game and it's got me hooked!

On entering the game you can choose up to four players and indicate whether these are played by the computer or not. There are four levels of play and these determine how long the micro thinks about each move.

The colour of either the board or its squares can be changed by pressing the function keys (f1/f2). If you need reminding of the distribution of letters or their values, this information can be obtained from the options menu. The screen displays the rack of letters and allows the user to enter his word. To help you form a word, the letters on the rack can be juggled around by pressing the f0 function key.

When playing the micro as an opponent, you're given the opportunity to view the machine's rack if you want while it thinks out its move. Entering a word on the board is straightforward - you just place the cursor (using the cursor keys) on the square where the word begins and indicate whether the word is placed across or down the board. The micro then informs you how many points the word scores and gives the choice of either accepting or rejecting that word.

The machine has a wide vocabulary and will only question your move when the word isn't in its dictionary. If that happens you have to inform the machine whether it is to accept the word or not - an opportunity for cheats!

Overall I was delighted with Scrabble and the software is more than competent. Full marks and a triple word score to Leisure Genius for this implementation.

Jeremy Vine