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You can't help liking a game whose manual says things like: "A few well-placed sausages will have the ghosts taking the next train to Spook City." Or can you?

Rolling Ronny is, unashamedly, a platform game. The less-than-static character himself is a would-be errand boy who's been set the task of recovering the jewel boxes that were stolen by a gang during a bank robbery. Strangely, the gang scattered these boxes around the streets of Fieldington - Ronny's town.

Errand boys aren't welcome around these parts and he constantly gets hassled by the town's inhabitants. Cars run him over with no compunction whatsoever and strange two-faced doobries, floating balls and, er, deadly angle-poise lamps try to sap his energy, but it can be restored by collecting bits of food. Some of the foes can be dispatched by slinging lead-weighted salami at them, and other more powerful weapons, like a MegaHonk or a Power Sneeze, can be collected.

Along the way, Ronny's offered errands, such as delivering parcels to a certain address. He's not obliged to take these, but they come in handy for bumping up his bus fare. To finish the level, not only does Ronny have to collect every jewel box, but he has to have enough money to be able to afford to catch the bus. Money can also be collected from vanquished nasties.

Bright, bouncy and blatant is the order of the day graphically. Everything is drawn with slapstick thoughtfulness and colour is used to the max, sometimes too well - the things you're trying to collect often get lost in the background, though this is doubtless intentional. There's not a heck of a lot of animation and the audio effects must have been put together by someone who is cheerfully insane.

Rolling Ronny is daft. As a brush. But it's enjoyable daft. There are nine looong levels, loads of bonuses and much to keep you amused, but nothing too taxing in the way of brainpower usage. It presents quite a stiff challenge though, which platform aficionados should welcome. Others might find yet another round of jumping and dodging a little trying. But a game that's a little trying is better than a game that tries little (Oscar Wilde once said).

1. There's nothing new under the sun. For Ronny, see under Magic Pockets, Flood, Elf and so on and so on...
2. Bright 'n breezy graphics may put you in mind of Elf (again).