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His name's Zup. Serf Zup. And he's all that stands between you and the Hall of Fame. Unfortunately he's the International Pan Galactic Universal Champion of the Hoverboard circuit.

In a cross between Big Wednesday and Back To The Future II, Wipe-Out lets you join the futuristic sport of hoverboarding. Starting out as a lowly inhabitant of a backwater planet, your task is to ride the electromagnetic wave on countless planets in a search for fame, fortune and a presenter's job on Grandstand.

Playing hoverboard is easy in theory. You face an opponent in a small area, each starting from different positions, and the aim is to stay on your board longer than him/her/it. This is difficult because a hoverboard leaves a crystalline wall behind it. Tactics vary but the aim's the same: get your opposite number to crash either into your trail or the arena wall. If it sounds like a scene from that cinematic flop Tron, that's because it is.

Playing on a split screen, you have the eye-bending task of controlling your player, watching what the other guy's up to, and keeping an eye on the pitch radar which shows where you've been and what you're about to hit. Luckily the crashes which look terminal aren't.

A match is made up of three sets of three bouts, with the final set being won by two clear bouts. You just have to boogie out there, hang ten (or more if your rider's an alien), and get mean. Winning games earns you cash with which to buy bigger, better boards, go-faster stripes and fluffy dice. A series of victories earns you the right for a promotion play off. These pit you against the worst player in a higher league, take place on a much, much, much smaller arena and are decided in only three bouts - so there's no room for mistakes. A win promotes you to the next division.

To begin with you're only got a poxy 500 credit overdraft limit, although this grows as you start to win. Riders have a choice of waiting for the league to arrange matches or going out and paying for the privilege of picking their own victim. Interstellar matches, when you arrange a board duel with a thing from another planet, require plenty of wonga, so it's advisable to start slowly and build up your cash before you begin star hopping. As the rewards get greater so does the danger; the foes you meet having the very latest in board technology.

Hoverboarding is a game of skill. Once you get over the initial "I wonder what happens if I hit that green wall?" mode, it allows the chance for some real self expression. And if you want to get seriously cocky you can use the practice section to pack some kickin' little tricks into the armoury. How does the chance to "slime", "coffin", "blip" or "swiss roll" an opponent grab you?

While it's clear the Gonzo gang have imagination and humour by the bucketload, this doesn't make up for the lack of stunning effects in Wipe-Out. The graphics are hampered by jerky scrolling and less than distinct backgrounds. Seeing you're straining desperately to avoid hitting that wall, it would be nice if it had the decency to stand still!

The soundtrack is a far from thrilling musical experience, and not the sort of music you leave playing loud while taking a bath. The effects are solid workhorses fulfilling their purpose, but doing little to enhance the game.

Wipe-Out, despite technical limitations, is fun to play, especially against a friend. Sliming those you know is infinitely more satisfying than doing it to some computer generated enemy - possibly because they're easier to beat!

Once you start the competition you appreciate the sheer scale of the project. To become champion takes weeks of careful playing, because every time you take to the hoverboard your league rating is affected.

The scope for skill development gives the game a much longer life span than yuo'd expect from such a well-worn game format, but there's nothing in this imaginary universe that screams "Play me!". It's not so much an off-the-wall gaming revolution, as an into-the-wall game from a classic genre.