The Art Studio (Rainbird)

At £14.95, this is an excellent buy.

Austerlitz (Lothlorien)

Austerlitz plays well and makes an excellent addition to Waterloo... As with all good wargames, the subtleties of the game are vastly different.

Beach Head II (US Gold)

Some good animation, three skill levels, a tune and some effects. Above average.

Block-Buster (Argus Press)

Another useful and flexible game.

Cargo (Sinclair/Macmiillan)

The program is good value, but liked by boys more than girls. I'd sure they would be happy to get it for Christmas.

Chimera (Firebird)

While the graphics are very good, there is hardly any significant animation, which is a bit of a let down. It will mainly appeal to people who don't like complex arcade adventures.

Commando (Elite)

A great game for those into fast-moving violence; it requires fine tuned reactions and a fair bit of daring.

Endurance (CRL)

If you liked Football Manager for the strategic elements, you'll love Endurance.

The Evil Crown (Mind Games)

If you can handle the initial ambiguities, this could provide a stimulating and entertaining change from the conventional wargame.

Geoff Capes Strongman (Martech)

Geoff Capes is definitely one of those games worth getting if you know you like the type.

Gladiator (Domark)

Gladiator is trying to enter an area where Exploding Fist rules supreme. For me this comes nowhere near it.

Gilder (Sinclair/Macmillan)

The picture on the box makes the game look much more exciting that it really is. We certainly wouldn't want it for Christmas.

International Karate (System 3)

I wasn't really grabbed by this... The graphics are a bit below average and the characters are badly drawn and very jerky.

Ludoids (Bug-Byte)

It is hard to see what attraction the game would offer to hardened adventurers but it may offer some entertainment for the adventure dabbler or the young at heart.

Panzadrome (Ariolasoft)

At times the game is really wicked - if you don't watch out it's easy to get trapped, and a fair bit of strategy is involved in playing successfully.

The Quest For The Holy Grail (Mastertronic)

What the game lacks in technical competence it compensates with super text and funny goings-on.

Quiz-Timer (Macmillan)

You could play it for ages without getting bored, and it was quite easy to put in you own questions. This is the best of all!

Robin Of The Wood (Odin)

A great step forward for Odin - it's even better than the excellent Nodes Of Yesod.

Robot Messiah (Alphabatim)

At first look a pleasing game, but after a few games you notice lots of problems with it.

Rockman (Mastertronic)

A nice platform game, that brings the old lateral thinking skills into play again.

Roller Coaster (Elite)

Big wheels, cafes, bumper cars and log flumes are all found in abundance on the many screens of this, the best from Elite for a long time.

Saboteur (Durell)

Durell Software really have pulled their act together this year. After a couple of years of mundane releases they're now producing classics like this.

Screenplay (Macmillan)

I can't really see that there is all that much point to this. The creation of film or TV programmes using this computer software seems to me to be stretching the point further than it wants to go.

Seas Of Blood (US Gold)

Seas Of Blood is a very entertaining game but will not automatically attract those adventurers, both experienced and novice, who delighted in the sheer slickness of Robin Of Sherwood.

Shadow Of The Unicorn (Mikro-Gen)

A very good game by any standards. It is complex, has a storyline which is worth the considerable effort getting to know and yet is instantly and enjoyably playable.

Souls Of Darkon (Taskset)

Souls Of Darkon is a very well presented adventure and a welcome change at a time when just about every mainstream adventure is "Quilled".

Spellbound (Mastertronic)

Fab sound and mega-brill windowing with the odd bit of great graphics...!

Survival (Sinclair/Macmillan)

As the game progresses, the child will be building up a profile of each creature, based on the knowledge acquired about its energy requirements, predators, life span and so on.

Swords And Sorcery (PSS)

Rare for this type of game are the impressive graphics and brilliant animation showing in the best way possible the excitement of exploring monster-filled dungeons.

Vectron (Insight)

I greatly enjoyed playing Vectron, although I'm not sure it would offer much to the games player who likes to use his brains as well as his quick reactions.