It's hard to think of a more varied compilation than this one, featuring two arcade games, three simulations and one adventure. The best of the bunch is undoubtedly MicroStyle's Stunt Car Racer, one of the best racers the C64 has seen.

The basic idea is simple enough; there's five divisions each with three drivers and two tracks, six races per season decide who gets promoted and relegated. What makes the game so good is the display; fast, filled-in 3D with really dramatic roller-coaster tracks. To being with, simply keeping on the track is tough enough, so fortunately there's a save/load to keep you playing for ages. Earning 94% in Issue 56, this is great fun.

Ubisoft's Pro Tennis Tour is one of the best tennis sims around with a one- or two-player mode and lots of tournaments complete with a save/load. It's a fast-moving game and initially just hitting the ball is tough, but with practice this is a real winner which got 82% in Issue 61.

A rather more bizarre sports sim is Skate Wars, also from Ubisoft, but this time the sport is entirely fictional. The horizontally scrolling pitch has a goal at either end with automatic goalies. Between them are various bizarre traps, ranging from holes to spikes to suction pits!

Apart from the goalie you can only have one player on the pitch, but there are two subs. You can win either by scoring the most goals or killing all the opposing team's players! Originally called Skateball, the game got 45% in Issue 54, the main problem being simplistic graphics and gameplay. Nevertheless, it's a fun two-player game and is certainly welcome on a compilation.

Ubisoft's Zombi is a novel, icon-controlled adventure with a smallish monochromatic window showing a view of the building you're exploring. Graphics aren't too bad and there's quite a good, scary atmosphere to a program clearly inspired by George A. Romero's Dawn Of The Dead horror film. Although rather dated, it got 72% in Issue 67 and adds an adventure element usually completely absent from these compilations.

The last two games are more typical compilation fodder - simplistic arcade games with lots of violence. Unfortunately Dinamic have never really managed to put together anything with the originality and playability to be a real hit. AMC and After The War are both split into two big loads, complete the first load and you get a password for the next. In AMC, you stomp forever rightwards, dodging traps and blasting enemies with your very big gun. After The War (43%, Issue 60) is remarkably different in that you start off without a gun!

The graphics are interesting in both products, big and bold (although Spectrumesque in AMC), but repetitive gameplay makes them ultimately dull.

Ultimate takes the two best games from the Challengers pack and replaces Fighter Bomber, Kick Off and Superski with an only slightly better collection of mediocre games.

Once again, those two games, Stunt Car Racer and Pro Tennis Tour, make this a worthwhile compilation if you haven't already got them.