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A cold and frosty-breathed graveyard called me to my misty senselessness. I was weightless. Drifting. Trapped in another social circle where men were ghosts and women were ghosts too, and earthly problems were all too real for a brain that didn't exist. My only option was the CPC. A quiet, unassuming creature which has the ability to run my essential medicine... Scapeghost! Scapeghost, from Level 9 Adventures, offers the willing adventurer a chilling romp through acres of nostalgic turf. Alan Chance, a one-time, over-sized, trilby headed, undercover detective, witnesses his own funeral and realises from the careless talk of his so-called mourners that he is being falsely blamed for his own death. The pain. Needlesharp and gallow-frenzied. Bewildering bursts of probing anxiety. The frustration of being a rooky spook becomes second nature to the player of Scapeghost. It is the ghost's destiny to clear his name, gain revenge and trackdown the gangsters' new hideout. Alan Chance has just three ghostly days.

For those who are familiar with adventure games, the format is not new. For those who have never entered an adventure world, commands are written onto the screen and the answers and ensuing situations are relayed before your eyes by the computer. The first stage of the game is in the graveyard, immediately following the burial of Alan Chance. The swanky detective, weak from a lack of substance, drifts about the place until darkness when he encounters the ghost of Joe Danby, the once merry landlord of The Pig and Whistle. Joe familiarises Alan with the graveyard (that is if you follow him) and introduces a number of the ghostly neighbours. Each neighbour seems to have a problem. The Willmots mouset rapped in marriage, to have and to hold onto their worldly bitterness and constant bickering, reunited in the world of spirits. Colonel Rycroft, troubled in uniform, despairing at the noise and arrogance of the youth of today. Tormented by the whisky-swigging, vociferous yobbishness of the local vandals, the Colonel needs your help, as do all the other ghosts.

By continually picking up increasingly large items, Alan's spiritual powers develop and enable him to solve his neighbours' anxieties using objects that are found along the way. With the successful completion of the first stage, Alan Chance, our trusty hero, has the strength and experience to tackle the outside world.

Stage two, the second day, involves a house in the village which in turn brings certain complications to our stubble-faced detective. The ghost of Luke, the ruffian that Chance accidentally killed, bright lights from cars and buildings and heavy items are just some of the waiting obstacles the old households. The aim is to gather clues from the old hideout and scene of Chance's death in an attempt to rectify the inexcusable position in which he has found himself. To discover the location of the gangsters' new abode is also high on the list of things to do.

The third stage/day begins with two of the gangsters forcing a priest to exorcise Chalice's grave with holy water and mouthfuls of mumbo jumbo. By moving quickly and carefully, Chance can avoid the exorcism and eventually follow the gangsters by getting into their van as they drive from the graveyard.

There is however, no need for alarm as being a ghost means that Chance is not subject to the tortuous discomfort of a long journey in the back of a stranger's van. What is to be done?

Where is there to turn and what can you do to stop the gangsters and make them pay? These are all questions that can only be answered by using the detective skills and organic intuition of Alan Chance or the cheat/hint sheet that is provided.

The game disc provides the graphics program on the reverse side. The graphics are clear and well drawn although at times a little repetitive. One has to account though, for the limitations of the CPC and not expect graphics of a more diverse and powerful quality.

This is well recommended. My angst has been eased by the karma the game provided and I have now found my Nirvana. I hope you find yours. Farewell 'til next month.