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Bored with megagalactic megadeaths and adenoidal aliens? Want a real challenge? How about preventing Armageddon?

The year is 2032. Between 1987 and now, things have got rather worse, nuke-wise. (You didn't expect them to get better, did you?) Instead of the five nuclear powers of then, there are some 16 nations with the requisite hardware to make things glow with a bang. Among them are numbered such old friends as Israel and the Islamic Alliance, the Black African Republic and South Africa, and Libya v The Rest, Well it makes the 9 O'Clock News more interesting than it used to be.

As a minor concession to sanity (hoho), these sixteen sovereign states have funded the UNN United Nuclear Nations. This organisation is autonomous, and with the backing of a sophisticated spy network can effectively control any country for a while. Its commander, the Armageddon Man (person?) holds the means to keep 16 disparate nations from wrecking the shop, both by deploying his conventional army or more normal diplomatic means. These include letters, food, and the laser satellites. Yes, those laser satellites.

Perched in your map-room, you can watch the world.

You have three Big Bird satellites to deploy (thats two more than the Americans had back in '87 - chortle) to watch everybody, and sophisticated radio equipment to intercept all the interesting stuff. The countries concerned can (and do) ask you to help, tell you to get lost and interact in a number of interesting and only occasionally radioactive ways.

You have to monitor their relationships, decide which ones could lead to war and do your best to stop that happening. In the end, the countries don't have to do what you tell them, so you have to win their trust by acting fairly.

And don't assume that all countries act fairly themselves. Your spy satellites might very well spot illegal weapons systems, troop movements or be jammed over an apparently friendly country.

There are a lot of things to do, Switching back to 1987, it's nice to see that the third annual Year of the Icon has been commemorated by Martech with a point and press interface of the finest quality over a map of the world. You also get another map on vinyl paper, with little re-usable maps to help you keep track of impending doom and imminent destruction. If you get it wrong you'll be sacked. That's if you don't irradicate the world first.

If this is Armageddon, armageddon out of here.

This is what I've been waiting for. The "diplomacy" style of game has been sighted on big computers (where it's called balance of power, or BOP), but this is the first world-juggling game I've seen on the CPC. It's good, almost superb.

It (necessarily) lacks some of the depth that BOP has, but it makes up for that by giving you slightly more things to do at once than is possible. In my first game I was congratulating myself on heading off a small but nasty war between Israel and Europe when Australia and Argentina wiped each other off the map. I take back that "almost". If you don't mind not sleeping at night, and have an ounce of intelligence, get this game.

This is a big game, it contains the kind of ingredients which ensure that you'll go back to it time and again. Martech has certainaly surprised me with this one. The window control is excellent and the game has a great addictive hold. The world has a safety valve in the form of your bosses. Try and blow the world up and you will get the sack. I know, I did it.

I used to think that being a diplomat meant wearing a white bow tie and sipping G and T's. I was wrong. You need to smile sweetly, keep an ear to the ground, eyes peeled and wave a big stick. Only contortionists need apply.

This is not a game to suit everyone's taste. It was a bit to cerebral for me, particularly since when I first got this for review I was in a real left/right fire mood. Fortunately the slick icon selection system reduced the graft necessary.