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The Amstrad is finally coming out of its childhood years and has earned its long trousers.

Defend or Die from Alligata is a version of the famed Planetoid from Acornsoft, which itself is a version of the arcade game Defender.

The similarity between this version and Acornsoft's is so great that anyone who has played it on a BBC will be able to play it on the Amstrad (all sprites, scores, tactics and keyboard controls are the same).

Having said this, I still think it's a brilliant game and one which I have and will keep going back to on the BBC and now the Amstrad.

For the uninitiated, Defend or Die lets you take command of a ship equipped with a laser and some smart bombs. The scenario is a scrolling landscape inhabited by little men who bob around waiting for you to save them from the ubiquitous invading aliens.

On the first level all you have to do is shoot-'em-up, the aliens not the man, although the latter do deserve it at times. Later levels bring extras - such as Bombers, Swarmers and Pods - all of which must be cleared.

As a shoot-'em-up game this one is fast and furious and in some ways slightly more difficult than the Beeb version. The sprites sometimes leave a lot to be desired as they tend to disappear, especially when saving freed men from the dreaded invaders. The swarmers and mutants could have been a little faster. They were sometimes far too easy to kill and no competition for a seasoned planetoider.

Other problems were the acceleration, which isn't smooth, and the screen handling which occasionally leaves stray bits of junk around the screen. The explosions are great, though a few screen flashes could have been included.

Having seen this game on the Amstrad, I can't help but hope that Alligata will produce Meteors and Starcom.