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This is yet another release from Imagine/Konami range which seems to pump out a game a month currently. Though not viewed as a biggie, it doesn't deserve to be overshadowed by its more illustrious stablemates like Green Beret and Hyper Sports.

To begin with, it's one of those load-and-play games which don't entail you sitting down with a dictionary and magnifying glass to decipher a lot of ridiculous scene setting and instructions. Ping Pong loads quickly and as soon as it's up and running, you can get stuck in.

Controls are simple and the game can be quickly learnt. Learnt, note, not mastered. The computer turns into a Desmond Douglas (you try and think of another table tennis player) and starts swiping balls all over the shop.

It took me nearly an hour to beat the thing on level one. No soon had I started dancing round the room than I was plunged onto the next level and rapidly trounced eleven nil. A quick play at the fourth level and I was stabbing the joystick button continually in a blur of action. Nevertheless, once you learn to adjust for the change in speed at each level Ping Pong isn't unbeatable, though level five still eludes me.

Little has changed from the arcade original. On loading you are presented with a typical Ocean scoring table and Martin Galway music. A quick choice of level and you're straight into the action. Graphically it's very nice if somewhat sparse. Two hands hold bats which shift from forehand to backhand and strike the ball very stylishly. It's the movement of the ball and the shadowing which really make this game so thoroughly enjoyable to play, though.

The gameplay itself is good fast stuff though there could have been perhaps another shot or two in there. Basically you can strike the ball in three ways: the drive, the cut and the smash, and you need to learn that you cannot just play any shot at random. Smashing indiscriminately will result in a rapid defeat. Direction change is mostly done for you, but by switching from forehand to backhand and changing the timing of the stroke (plenty of practice needed for that) you can influence the angle of stroke.

The game is filled throughout with bleeping noises and smart little sound effects. The sound of a ping pong ball tapping lightly on the ground is particularly effective. Less effective though is the crowd cheering which sounds like a flock of seagulls.

Ping Pong is a very classy little game. If you want a good head-to-head ball game you won't want to go looking around for anything else.