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Spy Hunter comes to the BBC with a fair reputation. It's the licensed home micro version of Bally Midway's arcade hit. Micro Power are doing all the US Gold conversions for them and this one is excellent. Good programming, graphics, fast scrolling and original game elements all make for a very enjoyable game.

The game looks like any of the vertically scrolling games for the Beeb. Spy Hunter displays very fast and smooth action. You drive the spy car (turbo-charged naturally) on roads made extremely hazardous for us spies by the Enforcer, Road Lord, Switch Blade and other enemy agents. And, when your spy car becomes amphibious, the problems don't end. There are islands to dodge as well as the enemy agents firing off torpedoes and scratching your paintwork with barrels dumped over the side. So far it's like Grand Prix and Jet Boat rolled into one.

As a top class spy, you have plenty of backup on your side. Weapons Vans appear on the road to supply you with new weapons. You drive into the back of the truck which stops, load up and automatically back on the road. Oil slicks, smoke and missiles are at your disposal. A representative icon appears on the screen to show your current armoury. You can also ram some targets.

The enemy agents that you are out there to get are worth points, from 150 for the Road Lord and Switch Blade to 700 for the Copter (Mad Bomber), who drops bombs onto your cards. But don't destroy innocent bystanders. Points will be forfeited. Points are added for distance travelled. The first leg is 999 units on the counter. There's an extra car every 10,000.

Gameplay is fairly simple: drive it fast, outmanoeuvre your opponents, get used to the controls for releasing weapons. You can accelerate and brake, move left and right.

The documentation is of a high standard for a game. The sheet of instructions is folded inside the cassette box. Bit misleading to say that the Escape key *pauses* the game, however - it stops it entirely and takes you back to the beginning!! Read the on-screen instructions as the game is loading to be sure you've got the right keys too.

The graphics are colourful with constantly changing terrain and some nice detail, although the sprites aren't huge. A unique feature is the big screen. Hit function key 0 and the special track-shaped display expands to fill the screen. Not so easy to play or quite as attractive for me but a fun feature.

Sound is brilliant. The Spy Hunter theme tune hums along in the background, the music changing dramatically to coincide with an event on-screen. There are also sound effects for collision, explosion, etc. These too are excellent.

All told, a marvellous game. If you work with a BBC, spend your lunchtimes playing this one and pray that the boss doesn't walk in at 3 o'clock when you are still glued to the screen. A lively game visually and musically.

Dave Reeder