Just when arcade games had started to get in a rut, and the only way to liven up a shoot-'em-up was to bolt an Uzi on to the front or put it in a huge static cabinet, Sega took the humble blaster into a new direction using a hydraulically-moved cabinet and state-of-the-art sprite-moving techniques.

The first game to utilise such a system was Space Harrier which dropped a red-sweatered sprite into an alien-infested planet within no means of protection bar a large bazooka tucked under his arm.

As the assorted chequered planet surfaces whizz beneath your feet, wave after wave of aliens come with it, spitting forth streams of oval laser bolts. At the end of every stage lurks a boss of some sort, and the usual method of shooting them loads of times comes into effect. But you probably knew that.

When a path has been blown through the many stone heads, flying insects and gun-toting droids which inhabit each stage, one of several boss sprites makes an appearance. The first is a snake-like dragon which weaves in and out of the screen, whilst others are a selection of stone heads or a larger version of the mid-level robots. These fly in and out of the screen until they are blown out of existence. At which point the next named level is revealed.

This is the biggest mistake Sega could possibly make. With the 32X they should be taking things forward, not bringing attention to decade-old games. So what if the conversion is spot on? Panorama Cotton looks more impressive. Space Harrier was okay, but today okay in its day, but today it has the same appeal as the Gary Glitter Gang Show.

The truth is that this is all Sega have for 32X owners in January. Talk about 'in the bleak mid-winter'.

I used to really like the Space Harrier coin-op but, without the thrill of a moving machine and some nine years after its release it isn't half as impressive these days. When you consider how we take the likes of Virtua Fighter for granted, and enjoy sprite-based blasters far more complex than Space Harrier, it makes you wonder why Sega bothered with this conversion - it's not as if it offers varied gameplay!

As with After Burner, this is a pointless conversion, and isn't likely to endear the 32X to the buying public.

Graphics 81%
Large sprites, and the bosses are just as good as they were all that time ago.

Sound 67%
Horrible in-game music. But at least it's authentic.

Playability 77%
More skill than After Burner, but the sprite detection often seems a little hit or miss.

Lastability 51%
Once you've seen a couple of bosses, it all starts getting a little samey.

Value For Money 42%
You probably own the Megadrive version (but never bother playing it). Best to stick at it.

Overall 49%
Another 32X non-starter. Why this was considered for release is beyond us.