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Here at CF we try to uphold the belief that all our readers carefully peruse the magazine all the way through before ripping off the cover tape and shoving it in their datassettes. We are, we admit, deluding ourselves. We know that not-so-deep down most of you lot are normal, impatient people just like us, and rip the Power Pack off as soon as you get the issue and read the mag later on the loo.

So you've probably played through the demo of Snare on this month's Power Pack already.

But that's just one sixth of the full game! The full game consists of thirty similar, but increasingly tougher levels; thirty levels of bombing, collecting gems and figuring out the logic behind each screen's particular puzzle. You can usually find a couple of ways to collect all the gems on a screen, but there are a few levels that can only be solved in one way.

"Look before you leap" seems to be the moral in this game - don't get trapped between a pin and a sharp thing if you can help it. What looks to be the easiest route is often a dead end.

On some levels losing a life or two is almost inevitable the first time you play. Y'see, there are objects lying that will either do you some good, or have a seriously detrimental effect.

Unfortunately, you can't tell which is which until you activate them. For example, a clock may add valuable seconds to the time limit, but it may also take the clock down to zero and release hordes of hero-munching monsters.

This initial element of luck, though, rapidly turns into a test of memory, because the good and bad thingies stay in the same positions each time you play. So what at first appears to be a basic puzzle game eventually develops into a complex logic test.

There have been so many puzzle games in the C64's history that something has to have an amazingly original twist to stand out from the crowd. Snare doesn't. It's an enjoyable romp and should keep you occupied long enough to make your £3.99 worthwhile, but the label on the cassette is in no great danger of wearing off.

1. Thirty levels of increasingly tricky puzzles.
2. Bold, know-what-you're-doing graphics.
3. Tight time limits on some levels can make the action pretty hectic.

1. Too much guesswork involved to be a make it classic puzzler.
2. It's not varied enough.