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Magna Annihilatio Humanitis (MAH) is the name of the plan the Purifiers (a fanatical group plotting to wipe out Mankind - naturally) are about to unleash. The Purifiers have activated the 'Apocalypshield' to protect their doomsday weapon, and it is up to a lone hacker to stop them. The player can select from the Intro, Manual or Game on the initial screen; the Ending can be replayed once it has been reached.

Play is split into a number of layers, with each layer of the shield having one or more type of phase to defeat. Most layers start with the Bitwall phase. Your tracer collects symbols (white arrows and various power-ups) from the screen edges as the Guards roam; after a while the Comboss forms from the Guards and must be defeated by entering the password (at bottom right, collected by touching the letter icons in order with the tracer).

In Port phase, the Guardian must be shot from left, right and below to switch its display to match a random code (success is shown by the code getting brighter in colour). In the Channel phase, the tracer has to catch a number of keys and then defeat the Antivirus boss. In the Decryption phase, the tracer must collect the 'hand' icons to pause and then gradually erode the Zig-Zagger's tail.

Run out of power in any phase and you're sent to Quarantine. Here, shoot the Coberman guard so he drops the key for a short time. The bars can only be unlocked when the moving screen lock icon (which patrols the perimeter of the screen) is aligned vertically with the lock; get the timing right and you move on to the next phase.

The final Switch phase sees the tracer try to switch off the Apocalypser once for all. There is a clock continually counting down to the moment it will be unleashed, so hurry up and hack your way in before it's too late...

In essence MAH is a collection of simple mini-games, but it does them well and keeps the interest... once you understand the many rules (nigh on impossible). It flows quickly as you collect icons in a vaguely snake-like fashion to taking on evil heads in a variety of ways, with the ever-decreasing timer playing on your mind as you zip around the screen. It's a polished production with its hacker-style front end, graphical variety and decent soundtrack. The best thing is the occasional new-game style appearing as you progress, which adds variety.

I appreciate the stylish backgrounds and overlaid sprites, but there are some gameplay issues here. It takes several games to grasp the basic idea of each phase. The Quarantine phase in particular is very difficult to get right, and you see it a lot - very frustrating. In trying to be innovative, the MAH comes across as overly complex at times. Which is a shame, because it works hard to generate an intriguing atmosphere. I suggest watching a few YouTube videos to really understand what's going on before purchasing. Still, I found myself wanting to play more and get further, so if this hacking-inspired game grasps you, you might enjoy it.

I really tried to get into this, but it didn't happen. I do appreciate games that try to do something different, and MAH most certainly scores in that respect, but I feel that this has a cost where it really counts - gameplay. The instructions at the front end are extremely lengthy, and if you have the digital version you may struggle to remember everything and then find yourself in a position where nothing you do seems to have any effect!

I ended up playing with the game open in two separate windows on my PC just so I could constantly refer to the instructions. Obviously, for an arcade game that's nowhere near ideal. There are some interesting ideas and I like the concept but, for me, MAH is just MEH.

Presentation 72%
Glossy package, comprehensive yet confusing instructions.

Graphics 83%
Well-defined sprites and character backgrounds create a unique atmosphere.

Sound 81%
Changing, dynamic soundtrack really lifts the game's atmosphere.

Hookability 57%
Baffling at first and hard to grasp some of the phases.

Lastability 65%
Persistence pays off. Learn the objectives and you might find the task rewarding, but it is difficult to reach the ending.

Overall 59%
Much thought in the concept, but the whole is less than the sum of its parts - an acquired taste.