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As you clamber into your Fighter Sphere, you think just how stupid the Colonel-in-Chief had been to enter the training arena, after being chained to his desk for so long.

Totally out of practice, Matt Ridley, climbed into his Sphere and set the controls. Guiding the ball t o the entrance he took a deep breath and advanced the fighter craft into the arena, so called the Death-Run.

Once inside his fear and lack of experience got the better of him, and whilst looking for the exit, he run into a group of Assassin Spheres. These hostile objects attacked the alien craft who hod invaded their privacy and in their bombardment, managed t o disable the colonel's sphere.

Silly old dodder, fancy thinking you actually survive in the Death-Run after so long! Oh well, you had better get inside and rescue the silly old fool before the Assassin Spheres break through his shield and injure him.

Donning your helmet, you wave your good-byes to the already formed welcoming committee and advance through the gate. The game play is viewed in the great old style of corner-down 3D, and the play area scrolls, albeit jerkily, in the direction in which you ore currently moving in.

The objective of the game is to progress through the four plates of the Death-Run in search of Matt Ridley's stranded craft, fight off the enemy and summon the automatic rescue shuttle to get the damn fool out and back to the safety of his desk. You should be highly commended for your gallant and brave endeavours, but get it right. Each plate has a maze to be negotiated, and getting through some of the gaps is less than easy, especially if you are at your maximum size.

The Incredible Shrinking Sphere is made of a special molecular material which wnables it to change in size, mass, volume, and velocity. The pilot can achieve this by guiding his sphere over certain Tectonic Tiles. There are many of these tiles, each perform different functions, and you will need to manipulate your craft in various ways if you are to get anywhere near the colonel.

Various other hazards have been littered around the maze plates, the most common of these are the Ismo Assassin Generators which throw out mutant spheres. It was a group of these which disabled your colonel. These nasty shapes ore lethal to touch, unless you have been protected by a shield, in which case they burn up upon brushing you. If you have no protection, your best bet is to take aim and blow the scum off the face of the plate.

The Incredible Shrinking Sphere is a very good game concept, although the game is let down slightly by the jerky scrolling. The graphics are, otherwise, good. The sound effects ore enjoyable and the game is fun to play, even if it is pretty difficult. ISS certainly gets my vote.