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Perhaps we've been spoiled; perhaps there have been too many games recently that seemed to stretch the BBC. Perhaps.

Skyhawk takes a step back in time to when games were simpler, standards lower and expectations unfulfilled. This release does nothing for the reputation of Bug Byte or, to be fair, Margaret Stanger, whose knowledge of the machine is much greater than this game suggests.

The cassette pack says Skyhawk is "the ultimate flying machine"; well, perhaps in some totally alternative universe where ultimate flying machines have poor graphics, no instrumentation, apart from simple radar, weak handling and fly in a virtually featureless landscape.

The idea (!) of the game is to take off from a launch pad in your fully equipped plane, shoot down the invading enemy planes and make careful landings on undamaged landing pads to refuel; the reality is rather different.

The plane cannot fly fast enough to catch the enemy planes - which enter the screen at random heights so no pre-planning is possible, and landing at any landing pad is also impossible.

The verdict? A disappointment, even for a budget game.