1985 (Mastertronic)

Not exactly a thrilling plot: find a few nuclear pods on a few planets. I was hoping that the game itself would compensate for it, but it doesn't.

Ancient Quests (Mirrorsoft)

An immense amount of thought has obviously gone into Ancient Quests, and the range of options provided is quite impressive.

Barry McGuigan Championship Boxing (Activision)

With its masses of options and brilliant gameplay this has got to be the best boxing simulation on the market - get it.

Computer Wordsearch (Softfirm)

You can get much better value than this in almost every other game.

Death Wake (Quicksilva)

Death Wake is not very easy to get into. The first strategic stage is alright but the second, where your destroyer is under attack, proves to be very difficult to overcome.

Graham Gooch's Test Cricket (Audiogenic)

May not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's a must for cricket fans, a worthy buy for sports simulation collectors and probably well worth a look at for everyone else.

Gunfright (Ultimate)

The people in the town point in the direction of the baddies, so tracking them down is pretty easy. Shooting them however is another matter. Excellent graphics.

Just Imagine (Central Solutions)

I'm afraid that this game is unsatisfying to play despite some of its more interesting features.

Learn To Read 1-5 (Sinclair/Macmillan)

The popular animal characters featured in the Gay Way reading books are also prominent in the programs, and are illustrated on the attractive packaging.

Mikie (Imagine)

If you like arcade games then you should have a look at this one. The big characters and bright, jolly backgrounds create an excellent atmosphere and make what is basically a very simple game something special.

Mindshadow (Activision)

This is adventuring at its best and if you don't see this one you will be the loser.

Soul Of A Robot (Mastertronic)

Soul Of A Robot is quite an improvement over its predecessor. Graphically the game is quite good but not superb.

Robin Of Sherlock (Silversoft)

Will appeal to that age group which can play adventures and comprehend zany humour.

Romper Room (Beyond)

Press the appropriate letter key to match the letter on the screen. Good graphics.

Runestone (Firebird)

Runestone was a Crash Smash in June. This new version has had its chief deficiency, its slow speed, corrected. When you take a very good program and improve on it you get something that is well worth buying.

Squirt (David F Todd)

The graphics are bearable but lack any real body - once you manage to escape the first screen you're faced with new aliens on the same backdrop.

Sweevo's World (Gargoyle Games)

A graphically superb game which is immense fun to play.

Time Quest (Scorpio)

It would be better to leave graphics out if they are going to be as poor as this.

The Trading Game (Reelax Games)

Some good ideas are let down by simplistic programming and the game's few good points are lost in the malaise as a result.

Type-Rope (Mastertronic)

It may have a use in teaching the layout of the QWERTY keyboard, but there are other games which do this better. Marketing programs like this under an educational banner is a bit dubious.

West Bank (Gremlin)

The whole game has a great atmosphere as you wait to see what is revealed when the door opens... will it be someone who draws a gun or just a harmless li'l lady?

Yie Ar Kung Fu (Imagine)

The energy bar idea is a great one, and makes the game really nailbiting, especially when you get in a fast and furious scrap with both bars diminishing rapidly.

Zoids (Martech)

The best game ever... Recommended to anyone who likes a good challenge, because it's not a '10 minutes play and it's finished' job.