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Sometimes, I wonder whether anybody takes much notice of the reviews that my colleagues and I write. Time and time again I have read or indeed written that just because software is labelled "budget" it does not mean that software companies can get away with releasing substandard material.

Atlantis Software obviously haven't applied the above maxim to their latest release for the Amstrad. Vagan Attack is a sort of Star Trek game where you wander from quadrant to quadrant ridding the galaxy of Klingons, Zargs or whatever the malevolent enemy is called.

This sort of game is essentially a management game with you planning your journeys, refuelling at starbases, keeping a close eye on energy, weapons and so on. Code Name MAT, which is available for the Amstrad and many other computers, added great arcade action to the basic plot, while Salamander Software's Star Trek was so detailed and graphically excellent that it was a joy to play. These were both programs released some time ago.

This new product has neither the graphical quality nor the combat action to keep you playing. Commands have to be clumsily entered by two letter codes and the response time is pretty slow. I couldn't find a way to break into it at first but could see that the whole program was written in BASIC. There is nothing actually wrong in this but it is not even particularly well-written.

I suppose one could purchase it under the pretence of buying a traditional computer game, Star Trek being one of the earliest, but you may be just as well advised to scour the computer magazines for a "free" listing.

C.G.