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Radical group the Purifiers have activated the Apocalypse shield and the clock is ticking down until they unleash Magna Annihilatio Humanitis – their plan to wipe out humanity.

Fate rests on a lone hacker attempting to break through the shield's many layers. On the title screen the player can select the INTRO, the digital MANUAL, start the GAME or watch the ENDING again (if it has been reached before). Each shield layer has one or more gameplay phases. Most layers start with Bitwall, where the tracer must collect symbols and power-ups while avoiding the Guards; after a while the Guards form the Comboss that is defeated by collecting the password. (Shown at the bottom right of the screen, the letter icons must be collected in order with the tracer). Port phase sees the Guardian displaying a random code. It must be shot from left, right and below so its display matches the hidden code; the code gets brighter when each segment matches, until the exit is unlocked. (Making this phase tougher are the moving backgrounds and the data Ghost; hitting the border or Guardian changes the hidden code.)

In Channel phase, the tracer must catch falling keys among the hordes of enemies and then defeat the Antivirus boss. Decryption requires the tracer to collect "hand" icons to freeze the Zig-Zagger, allowing its "tail" to be eroded. Running out of power in any phase sends the tracer to Quarantine. The Coberman guard homes in on the player and is shot to release the key. The Coberman returns to its initial form after a few seconds and tries to grab the key back. While holding the key, the player must undo the lock – when the rotating key icon is lined up vertically (on the top or bottom edge of the screen). The final Switch phase sees the tracer try and turn off the Apocalypser once and for all.

The presentation and graphics combine with the changing moods of the soundtrack to give a dark and interesting atmosphere. The overlaid sprites and character backgrounds work well at adding to that mood. The different styles of gameplay certainly make the player think hard. Long-term there is a real challenge here to master the different phases and reach the ending. The cartridge version comes with a printed manual, while the disk version has a set of quick reference cards (included as digital files with all downloads).

This can be a very confusing and obscure game at times, even with repeated readings of the manual. Some of the phases – especially the Quarantine phase – are tricky to grasp and play well, leading to a lot of frustration. There are videos on YouTube that will help, but it is not an easy game to get into.

A game that takes time to master and will not appeal to everyone.