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Sentinel, from US Gold, comes close to that all-time Atari classic Star Raiders.

It's your job to defend the planet Jaraloba which lies at the centre of a sixty quadrant stellar grid. Your screen serves as a window from your spacecraft's command deck. Two impressive laser cannons serve as your main weaponry, supplemented by protective shields and powerful proton helix charges. The latter are capable of blowing everything out of the immediate heavens.

At your command, the stellar grid comes up as an overlay showing the position of enemy forces and friendly bases. A simple movement of the joystick causes you to warp off to any of the sectors.

While travelling through hyperspace, you must try to dodge meteor showers which otherwise damage your shields. They can be destroyed but it places huge demands on your precious energy banks.

Once through hyperspace, you're into battle with any alien forces in the vicinity. The short range scanner and tracking system are vital aids in the chase, the idea being to blast the enemy before they get too close to Jaraloba.

The three-dimensional perspective is effective enough but the enemy crafts are nothing sensational. The speed and responsiveness of the game are excellent and there are plenty of sirens, explosions and whooshing noises to flavour the battle.

Although it doesn't have the depth, variety or complexity of Star Raiders, Sentinel provides an enjoyable and noisy space shoot-out.