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Psygnosis games have historically always been visual treats held back by some less-than-excellent games design. However, with Lemmings, that all changed and the company justly earned themselves a reputation for being able to turn out top-notch software of both high visual standard and demanding gameplay.

And for a moment it looks as if Barbarian II may be another title in the Lemmings vein. Unfortunately, this is patently not the case, since once the player has got through the obligatory loading sequence (a whole disk's worth) it becomes clear that Barbarian II is neither a vista of beauty for the eyes, or a particularly great place to explore with a joystick.

With left-to-right scrolling with paths leading into and out of the screen, objects to collect, weapons to horde and monsters to despatch, Barbarian really doesn't offer the player anything new, and has been carried off to much better effect in both Gods and Torvak The Warrior. Shame.