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American Football is a minority interest in the U.K. to say the least. Can there be more than a handful of joystick-sportsmen to whom this ball game will have more than curiosity value? Clearly Activision think so.

It has been described as brutalised chess, or thuggery for the thinking man. Despite whatever happens on the grid, by the look of the crowd there certainly won't be any spectator violence because they're just a mess of colour, present just to fill up the edges of the screen. The music is also on the pathetic side. But that's the end of the bad news.

The nitty-gritty area is well-presented with an aerial "end-to-end" view giving good perspective awareness. To unclutter the action zone only four players constitute each team (The cyans and the yellows) making passing and blocking a viable proposition. Various players, each with their own capabilities may be selected but that facility is only of use to dab hands.

The accompanying mini-booklet outlines offensive/defensive positioning and the basic moves which sprint from the continuous scrimmages (alas, not a bit like Rugby Union). All this takes some time to grasp as the play options are manifold. Failing that, you can relax and watch the demo. Once you really know your way around the many joystick-directed commands you had better collar a friend because the computer possesses variable response so if you're on top, the C64 steps up a gear. If you enjoy gridiron football then this game is a faithful rendition.