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If you like watching The Simpsons or WWF Wrestling, 2014 is not the year for you. Many of Earth's communication satellites have mysteriously started to disappear. The global flow of information (and home shopping channels) has been disrupted and much of western civilisation has been thrown into chaos.

All is not lost yet, however, as one Government organisation still has its secret satellites operational and therefore has enough information to solve the mystery. That organisation is the Special Assignments Division, and they've dispatched their top agents Albatross (hero of the original Rolling Thunder) and Leila to find out what's going on. The news is bad however. Alby's old nemesis, the terrorist organisation GELDRA, has risen anew and is destroying satellites like there's no tomorrow so they can take over the world and make sure there is no tomorrow!

Albatross and Leila have jsut two game days to get through the eleven platform levels that make up the entire GELDRA organisation and destroy the nerve centre. Failure will result in the planet being doomed...

The plot of Rolling Thunder 2 might sound like a movie, but there's one element of the game which is firmly based on real life. Each agent has only a limited supply of bullets with which to shoot people. More bullets can be found behind foors, but should you run out, you must resort to your taser. This fires slow-moving, feeble jolts of energy which aren't much use against more than a couple of GELDRANS at once.

In Rolling Thunder 2, men are men and doors are doors. Proper doors that you can open, leaving you free to search the room concealed behind them. A few of these rooms are host to some topper goodies, such as extra bullets, extra time, bonus points and special weapons, but the vast majority are empty. To make life easier for you, those helpful GELDRA chappies have signposted the most useful rooms.

At certain points during the game, a special weapon is made available to you. These are often vital to allow you to progress, such as level two's flamethrower. Without it, it's virtually impossible to defeat the end-of-level guardian. These weapons come with a limited supply of ammo, which cannot be replenished, so you must be careful not to waste it.

The import version of Rolling Thunder 2 will not work on any UK or American Megadrives, even with a converter or on a converted machine. Furthermore, if you have a Japanese Megadrive configured to work with UK PAL TV sets, it also will not work.

Rolling Thunder 2 only works on Japanese SCART Megadrives. So unless you're running a Japanese SCART machine, wait for the official version of the game.

Doors have more than one purpose. If you're about to get massacred by an army of GELDRANS, dodge into a doorway and watch their bullets whizz harmlessly past you. Doors aren't the only scenery which allow you to do this either. There are alcoves in caves, and much of the Egyptian level is taken up dodging in and out of netting under the high walkways.

Well, if it isn't a platform shoot-'em-up. There aren't many of those on the Megadrive, I'm sure. Luckily for Rolling Thunder 2, it's one of the best examples of the genre yet seen.

The formula may look a bit dated and simplistic nowadays, but it's so much fun to play that it doesn't really matter. The graphics are very good, the animation on the sprites is great and the backgrounds are excellent.

The sound is of a high standard too, including a selection of top-notch tunes. Rolling Thunder 2 also packs a real challenge, there are eleven long levels and they get very difficult. A password system is used instead of continues, so you never have to play the earlier levels you've completed again (unless you want to).

Rolling Thunder 2 is a top quality game packed with action and excitement, although it doesn't quite have that grab factor to make it a Megagame. Highly recommended to those looking for a proper challenge.

If you've played the arcade version of Rolling Thunder 2, you'll be instantly amazed by how close this Megadrive conversion is! The backdrops, sprites, tunes and effects are all nigh on identical to the original coin-op!

What's more, the Megadrive version goes one better by actually improving on the coin-op by adding levels - now that's value! The gameplay itself is fast, fun and instantly addictive - especially in two-player mode, where you almost have to fight each other to get hold of the extra weapons and ammo!

The game is seriously challenging too, as later levels produce hundreds of evil GELDRA agents to blow away. Although the action is slightly repetitive, there's no denying that it's great fun to play.

Give it a whirl and you'll see what I mean.

Presentation 90%
Great intro, end-of-level and intermission screens, plus fab sound test and heaps of options.

Graphics 87%
Large and detailed sprites with funky animation and neat backgrounds.

Sound 88%
Groovy tunes and violent-sounding effects top off the Bond-esque atmosphere.

Playability 90%
Very fast and responsive. There's a lot to do and it's a lot of fun doing it.

Lastability 82%
The large number of levels and high difficulty mean this should keep you going for weeks.

Overall 85%
A brilliant and exciting game which is well worth the money! Check it out - but don't forget what we've said about official and import versions!