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The Simpsons, as you must be aware, were something of a phenomenon a couple of years ago. Their fame grew from the appearance of a few short cartoons in the middle of Tracy Ullman's American TV show. Before anyone could stop them, they were starring in their own prime time series and kids the world over were inviting each other to "eat my shorts", proclaiming themselves to be an "under-achiever and proud of it" and advising their parents "not to have a cow, man".

In this country they're still on satellite TV (and a million and one discarded keyrings) but it seems they're something of a spent force - yesterday's news. Loads of people still think they're funny (I do, for one!), but they're not the craze they once were. So it's against this background of fading glory that the Hit Squad have re-released Bart Vs. The Space Mutants.

So anyway, let's start with the plot. There always seems to be a plot, doesn't there? In a lot of cases the plot is just plain silly - like tn the shoot-'em-ups where some evil space creatures have decided to steal the Diamond Moon of Zak and your mission, as Space Cadet Billy-Bob McTucket is to... blah, blah, and all you need to know is that if it's moving, you should kill it.

In Space Mutants, the plot is bizarre, but necessary (sort of!). You have to understand, you see, that the Space Mutants have invaded the Earth and are collecting various objects with a view to creating the Ultimate Weapon. All young Bart has to do is to stop them.

It's important to know that otherwise you wouldn't understand that, in level one, for instance, you need to get rid of all the purple objects you find. Evidently the mutants need purple things for their weapon. I have to say that I thought this was a particularly amusing idea. On later levels, the mutants are after different things (balloons, exit signs - you know, regular 'ultimate weapon' stuff) and this bizarrely surreal humour adds quite a bit to the game.

This is a Good Thing. The sad truth, you see, is that there's precious little game in there to be added to. It's essentially a collect-stuff-and-use-it-arcade-adventure kind of affair with platforms thrown in (you know the sort of thing by now!). Each screen contains a couple of obstacles and maybe something to collect. Then every once in a while you get the chance to use some of the stuff you picked up or bought. There's nothing particularly bad about it but, then again, there's nothing there to make you say "Wow, what a great game!" either.

And then there's poor old Bart who looks nothing like the real Bart Simpson. Maybe it's just the limitations of the CPC. Yes, that must be it.

Bart Vs. The Space Mutants is nothing to write home about, that's for sure. If you don't own any other arcade adventures and you quite like the idea of being Bart for a bit, then you might want to take a look. But overall, Simpsons fans - and game fans - will probably be a bit disappointed.

Graphics 73%
Not bad, but Bart looks nothing like the real Bart. Big sprites are a hassle, but might have saved it.

Sonics 77%
Not too shabby. The effects are pretty together and the whole thing works quite well.

Grab Factor 68%
Unless you're absolutely determined to have a good time, you probably won't be grabbed.

Staying Power 79%
Although, surprisingly, if you do stick with it you'll probably keep coming back for a little bit more.

Overall 76%
Not, if you're honest, a bad game, just not a particularly good one, either.