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This excellent ROM cartridge from Epyx gives you the chance to compete in a series of seven exciting winter sports. Designed to be played by up to eight people it can be turned into a truly international contest with each individual representing a different nation, but no two people can choose the same nationality.

You can compete in pure speed events like skating or in speed-and-control events like the slalom, bobsled and luge. If these don't appeal you can test your digital dexterity on the ski jump or hot dog skiing. The nation that scores the highest points will take home the coveted gold medal.

Once you have selected the number of players and their nationality you choose the event you want to compete in: Slalom, bobsled, ski jump, biathlon, speed skating, hot dog or luge.

The object of the slalom is to make the best time down a course while weaving in and out of a set of gates marked by a pair of flags. Pressing the fire button starts your skier down the slope and you control his motion by moving the joystick left or right; this turning action can also help slow him down.

Each time you miss one of the 36 gates you insur a three second time penalty. Avoid hitting any objects or persons - especially the trees, which hurt - or you will be slowed down considerably. All time penalties are added at the end of a run.

As with the slalom, the two-man bobsled is a speed game. The idea is to negotiate a winding, twisty course in the fastest time possible. Don't go too fast though or you will end up crashing.

You can control your sled round the tight, banked corners by moving left and right. To speed up the sled you have to bob the joystick up and down in a constant rhythem. You can monitor your sled speed by the speed indicator at the bottom of the screen - the wider the bar the faster you are going.

The ski jump will demand your fullest concentration if you don't want to break your skier's legs. A split-screen shows your position and the hill below.

You will cover the greatest distance during your flight if you maintain a stable diagonal position - and don't forget to extend your skis when it comes to the landing.

The biathlon requires a combination of speed and accuracy in an event mixing cross-country skiing and shooting. When you finish the course it will be replaced by a firing range.

There are five targets which you must shoot as quickly as possible. A five second penalty is added for each target missed.

Speed skating is the simplest of the seven events. Rattle your joystick from left to right in rhythm to build up speed and the first across the line wins.

Hot dog is the ski acrobatics event and points are awarded for the most original and complicated jump made. I rattled the joystick like a madman in order to perform several somersaults in a matter of seconds.

The final event is the luge, basically a one man bobbed event. You have three tries to make it quickly and safely down the chute.

The graphics and sound effects are - for a 2600 game - very good. What makes this cartridge great value for money is its playability. If you like sport simulations, give this one a try.