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If ever a company could be accused of milking an idea dry, it would have to be Accolade. By simply changing the graphics they've come up with: Test Drive 1, Test Drive 2, Grand Prix Circuit and now Cycles. S'true! Just take a look at the front end, and the way the road moves. Interesting, huh?

Based (loosely) upon the same idea as RVF, Cycles mounts you on the saddle of a tournament motorcycle racer and lets you burn rubber around twenty of the world's most famous tracks, as well as competing against some of the most devious computer riders ever conceived. Well, not quite.

What Cycles actually does is exactly the same thing as Grand Prix Circuit, only now with motorbike handlebars at the bottom of the screen rather than a car dashboard. You race around twenty identical looking stretches of grey track and try to do it as fast as possible.

Racing against other bikes isn't that spectacular at all. The bikes all look identical, and each one has five frames of 'animation': upright, leaning slightly left/right and leaning heavily left/right.

One of the most disturbing things I noticed about the other cyclists is that they don't really exist. You can actually race hell bent for leather through a tight pack of them and come out on the other side completely unscathed. Strange but true.

But on the other side of the coin, there are lots of nice things I can say about Cycles. Erm. Well. The road has hills and bridges across it. They're nice. And there are half a dozen or so skill levels, ranging from very easy automatic gearbox against simple riders through to the most delicate gear changes against hell on wheels.

Much as I like racing/driving simulations, I don't think I can recommend Cycles. There just isn't enough in there to make it worthwhile, especially when RVF Honda exists on the market. Sorry Accolade, but this has to get a thumbs down.