No doubts about it - the best way to buy games is to pop off down the town, and tuck into a beefy compilation. Unfortunately, there are so many of the blighters, that some are bound to be dodgy. So, tune into Neil West's guide to all the best bundles around...

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The majority of compilation packs bundle together games of a similar type but Ocean's Too Hot To Handle proves to be an exception to the rule. This is an introductory package, ideal for any proud new C64 owner or for someone who just fancies trying a bit of everything. So let's look at it first.

Kicking off is Golden Axe. This is probably the definitive hack 'n slash carve-'em-up. The Sega coin-op was one of the all-time greats, pioneering a whole new style of fighting games. But somehow, none of the clones captured the same gameplay hook that made the original such a huge success.

The great thing for C64 owners however, is that this conversion is as near perfect as possible and has lost none of the original's atmosphere. Even most of the superb graphics have made it across. There are a few gameplay tweaks (unfortunately, there's no simultaneous two-player option) but essentially this remains the same game that put fantasy beat-'em-up action into the arcades.

Tons of baddies face the chop, to the accompaniment of sampled sounds and dreamy animation. And with a choice of three characters to play and a corking soundtrack, what more could you ask for?

Too Hot To Handle is almost worth buying for Golden Axe alone. But if you fancy giving your chopper a rest, then the other three games are certainly worth a look.

Super Off-Road Racer gives you the chance to get your motor running and churn up some fields - like Badlands but with buckets more mud. The action is seen from above, as you put pedal to the metal. Not the best ever driving game by any means but well worth a look and fun to play.

Alternatively, you could adopt the pixilated form of everyone's bulging buddy, the one and only Arnold Schwarzenegger. In Total Recall, Arnie battles his way through two platform adventure levels and two driving levels, in a quest to recover his stolen memory. Whether this is worth finding is a different argument completely (he's not exactly the most clever of chaps!). But suffice to say that great graphics complement a challenge tough enough to humble even the big man himself. In fact that's the only real gripe - it really is quite a difficult game. But you wouldn't want to finish it overnight now, would you?

Last, and pretty much least, is Shadow Warrior. A mediocre beat-'em-up that lacked polish when it was originally released (yonks ago) and now looks tired and dated.

But hey, every compilation needs to include the poorest of the pack and anyway, there's still some goodly fun to be gleaned, even if it's only to relieve the frustration of consistently and abysmally failing at Total Recall. Moving swiftly on...

Overall, a sound collection of four varied games. OK, Golden Axe is the only real bona fide classic here, but there's still bags of fun to be had.

Overall 83%

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Now here's one for all you bloodthirsty hack-addicts. Seven slashing, chopping, slaying and attacking beat-'em-ups all in the one package - and then an excellent racing game thrown in as the welcome odd one out. If Creatures and Rodland had you dashing to the toilet with over-cute sickness, then US Gold's Capcom Collection could be just the cure you're looking for. Not so much niceness here as hardcore brutality.

First off is the truly excellent Ghouls 'N Ghosts. You've lost energy bars, you've lost lives and in your time I'm sure you've lost some epic battles. Now prepare to lose your trousers. Yes, this game is the reason for many cries of "Hey, that bloke's got no strides on", you may have heard down your local arcade.

This is a classic coin-op that really captured the public's imagination, following in the footsteps of its predecessor Ghosts 'N Goblins. The action is fast and furious, with your hero scuttling and often streaking (let me explain, if Sir Arthur takes a hit, he loses his armour and is left in his Y-fronts) his frantic way through level after level of zombies, vultures and magical baddies of all shapes and sizes. Smooth graphics and addictive gameplay - a great title.

LED Storm is the sole pacifistic offering to be found in the Capcom Collection but it's an excellent game all the same. Based on the ancient arcade game Burnin' Rubber, this one has you sprinting through nine levels of hugely playable game. The unadventurous from-above perspective works superbly, making this an oldie, but a real goldie.

Strider and Strider II completely fail to emulate the atmosphere of the classic coin-ops, but it's unfair to write them off completely. These two solid arcade beat-'em-ups offer slick graphics but only limited depth. (That said, they are extremely popular!)

Still, there's always Forgotten Worlds (a competent beat-'em-up coin-op conversion), Dynasty Wars (take on eight levels of enemy infantry on horseback!) and Last Duel (a bog-standard but entertaining two-player shoot-'em-up romp) to explore. OK, so none of them particularly shine. But at least one out of the five should light up your fire.

Lastly, there's UN Squadron. A standard shoot-'em-up, flawed by uninspired design.

There's some mediocre stuffing in here, but enough evidence of quality to warrant a high rating. It's definitely set to be a big hit with the huge legions of gore-loving action-fiends.

Overall 79%

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The original Turrican was a great game but Turrican II surprised everyone and pushed the C64 even further. Morgul (the baddie) is back so there's only one man to call. The result? An absolute cracker. Everyone knows that old Andy Dyer was a bit on the - well, 'thicky' side - but he was spot-on when he gave this game 96% almost a year ago.

Turrican II demands a lot from the player. This is a tough game. At some points it's a puzzler - mapping your route takes time and concentration. And at times it's a pure reflex-straining, adrenaline-pumping blast-'em-up. There's a neat surprise around every corner, and it never gets boring.

A whole Argos catalogue full of power-ups, some of the baddest baddies you ever did see and a slick control mechanism are all chucked in. And these are spread over twelve gigantic levels of some of the best multi-layer parallax graphics ever. MAX is all the more worthwhile for this corker's inclusion. But what about the other three?

As I've said, there's always one poor game in a bundle and, although St. Dragon is a reasonable game, it's definitely the ugly sister of this collection. The best thing I can say is that it's a standard shoot-'em-up with mediocre graphics. So let's quickly move onto...

SWIV - because it's one of the best blasters ever, though a lot of people still haven't even tried it. Now's your chance to sample the gorgeous graphics and enough explosive action to make bonfire night look like a couple of burning embers by comparison. You control either a buddy or a chopper (a simultaneous two-player option allows both on-screen at once).

A groovy soundtrack accompanies the non-stop action as more and more baddies learn of your heroic dash through enemy territory the hard way. There are only four levels but, not only are they big (each one is 41 screens long), they are chocked to the brim with cannon-fodder. Mindless, violent and not at all in tune with the spirit of the 1990s' - SWIV is one of the best baddie-blasting romps you'll ever play. If, however, you fancy something to test the braincells as well as the trigger finger then check out Night Shift.

This is another huge game, set over 30 levels of action. Play either Fred or Fiona and get to work. There's a factory to keep running and you're the chap (or chapess) who's been lumbered with the job. It's now your job to dash around various corners of the factory keeping the works trouble-free.

It's a dirty job, of course. The password system is essential for getting you through the levels because there's no way you'll finish this in one sitting. One for the pros.

There's a lot of gameplay crammed into four games. If you reckon yourself as a good gamer, get stuck in.

Overall 89%

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On the starting line we have Super Monaco GP. Forget the coin-op and just think of this as a perfectly reasonable driving game. Yes, the glorious graphics of Sega's fab money-swallower have practically been abandoned, leaving just plane single-layer parallax horizons.

But this is no bad thing, the memory saved has been put to good use in creating a very smooth 3D driving effect, with lots of cars to race against and bags of gameplay extras. It's tough to master, but a few hours getting to grips with Super Monaco GP proves to be rewarding - not to say great fun. So give it a try. Now that Nigel Mansell's blown it, someone's got to keep the waggon rolling for Britain.

OK, so you've burnt some serious rubber and fancy a different challenge. Enhanced Special Weapons And Tactics - that's what you need when a city's under siege, and you're just the man to deal 'em out in ESWAT. To look at, ESWAT is a pretty standard platform shoot-'em-up. But despite the mediocre appearances (fans of the coin-op will recognise the levels, but only just), Sega's clever game design still provides an addictive hook to keep you coming back for more. Two players can take on the baddies simultaneously through all fifteen levels.

Another nice touch is the progressive difficulty tuning - blast through the early levels with pleasure but it gets very tricky later on. Collect different weapons and take time out to explore. There's a lot to be discovered.

Next up is Golden Axe, a great game if ever there was one - a real classic. You can also find Gillius Thunderhead and Co. in Ocean's Too Hot To Handle compilation. Check out the details there but it's worth saying again - single player hack 'n slashers don't come much better than this brilliant Sega coin-op conversion.

Another coin-op great comes with this collection, in the form of martial arts game Shinobi. It's a "as near to flawless arcade-to-C64" conversion as you're ever going to get. And then there's Crack Down. A viewed-from-above shooting and exploration game that's competent enough but easily overshadowed by its four companions. Still, don't let this one poop spoil your party.

Make like your C64 is an arcade machine and enter the glorious world of mayhem. Sega at their coin-op-ish best all in one box. Hurrah and all that, eh?!

Overall 86%

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Ghouls 'N Ghosts is a fantastic game, and is also available on US Gold's Capcom Collection. But here we also have Super Cards and Lotus Esprit Challenge, two of the best driving games ever.

Super Cars is a racing game with superb animation and glorious graphics, viewed from overhead. It's got huge depth - loads of add-ons, loads of opponents and nine different tracks. There's not much more to say, except play it and you'll be hooked.

Lotus Esprit Challenge is a corking 3D driving sim putting you at the (expensive) wheel of a (you guessed it!) Lotus Esprit Turbo. Soup up your car as you progress through the levels and race head-to-head with player two. Graphics you could frame and dreamy control make this game simply superb.

Cloud Kingdoms is a respectable arcade puzzler, a nice contrast to the rest of the games in this compilation, whilst Impossamole continues the adventures of Monty Mole. OK, so perhaps it's not as original as its predecessor, but it's still a fun platform-exploration game nevertheless.

A fantastic compilation that really offers something for everyone. Three of the best C64 games bundled with two respectable titles. A real peach.

Overall 90%