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What's this? Asteroids? Yes, but a very good version of the arcade classic and, what's more, it's cheap.

I know that £9.95 is a lot of money, but it's cheaper than most Amiga and ST games, which normally retail at around £24.95.

Space Battle is a version of that old classic Asteroids, but it has colour, solid graphics, and some neat twists, all of which were missing from the original. And, as a special bonus, you can have two players on screen at the same time.

That's right, and Anco have even mucked about with this option allowing different kinds of two player mode, you can play Competition or Team.

Competition has you playing against your partner, blasting her/him as well as those nasty rocks which try to end your game quickly. Team mode puts you in action together, and bother players go for one big score.

If you are playing on your own (sigh) then the usual one-player mode is available.

When you're launched into the action after mode selection, you'll notice the difference between this one and the arcade straight away. The rocks are nicely shaded in various greys, they move fast, and in a slightly alarming way, towards you!

Your ship is placed in the centre of all this, and it is coloured red or green, depending on the playing mode selected. It can fire laser beams (small pixels) in rapid bursts and really moves fast.

Your speed can lead to really flashy performance. You can whizz after a small rock, do a quick 360 degrees, and then blast the sucker with one amazingly accurate pixel. This takes time to perfect, but it's worth it just to show off.

It can also hyperspace, which will transfer you to another part of the screen. In the original, you usually ended up right in front of a large asteroid, but it seems this ship has been fitted with a new version.

Overall, Space Battle is a nice game at the right price, which should appeal to lots of gamesters. Even the loading picture, a death-blossom lookalike, is nicely done, and is complemented by a short but adequate musical score. Be careful with the Two-Player modes, one wrong shot and fists fly. A great little game.