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Remember the time a few years ago, when kids could be seen in the streets hurtling along on planks of wood with wheels attached [And then there was the skateboard craze as well! - Ed]. Yes, the craze of skateboarding, which swept across the Atlantic, is back with a vengeance. Several software houses have produced games featuring this sport of speed, skill and a heavily-padded body. Players, not wanting to be left out, have produced Kickturn, using the Skateboard Construction System on the other site of the tape.

You play the part of a streetwise kid (not unlike Phil Roberts!) who has taken up the challenge to become the Skateboarding Champion. So, donning your pads and crash helmet, you set about tackling the courses. These include back alleys, building sites and dockyards, none of which offer an easy ride with bollards, pipes and bottles messily left in your way.

To make a difficult situation even worse, an imposed time limit has to be beaten to qualify for the next part of the course.

I found the timer difficult to beat - mainly because of the tricky controls. Game after game my little character piled into either the scenery, or the obstacles, and after not very long my patience had almost gone. Before I decided to hurl the computer out of the window, I flipped the tape and had a look at the game editor.

The editor has ten options on the main menu, including a title designer, a sound designer, a sprite designer, and a course designer. Obviously at first you have to keep referring to the instructions, but it's enjoyable enough and, after much trial and error, I managed to construct a course that even I could complete. But although the editing facility did provide me with more amusement than the actual game, I still doubt whether Players could have marketed this at a higher price because of the weak gameplay.

Joysticks: Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair
Sound: Squeaky spot effects
Options: Editor allows you to alter all aspects of the game

Skateboard Construction System gives you the rare chance to virtually design a game of your own. Even the sprites can be changed to whatever you like, and even if you're no Mark 'Picasso' Caswell, much fun can be had creating new ones.

The trouble is, that once you've redesigned everything, the game itself is nothing to write home about - just a simple "dodge the obstacles"-type affair. Worse still, sometimes when the skateboarder falls off, the program stupidly puts him back on the screen right in front of another obstacle, so he's bound to hit it.

With such a great designer, it's a great pity you can't actually produce anything better with it.

Graphics 50%
A solitary monochromatic sprite skates around dull obstacles

Playability 48%
Too frustrating to provide much amusement

Addicitve Qualities 52%
The course editor should prolong the appeal slightly

Overall 49%