The Rats (Hodder & Stoughton)

A complex and brilliant game with above average graphics - if minimal sound. I can recommend it without reservation to those with strong stomachs.

Komplex City (Legend)

Legend has clearly put a lot more care into Komplex City than into recent products, and that attention to detail has paid off. You probably won't want another shoot-'em-up this side of Christmas.

Nightshade (Ultimate)

Looks a lot different from Knight Lore and Alien 8, but not so different as to stifle doubts that Ultimate may be running out of steam.

Yacht Race (Hill MacGibbon)

Yacht Race is great fun and gives a real insight into the world of sailing.

Red Arrows (Database)

Turns the dull area of flight simulation into fast and furious fun.

Tinderbox (Gremlin)

If you care about Ethiopia - and you should - then send a fiver to Bob Geldof. There's no point bothering with Tinderbox - it lights nobody's fire.

The Way Of The Exploding Fist (Melbourne House)

As a sports simulation, this is one of the finest and most realistic we have seen. As an arcade game, it's addictive and pacy. As a product, it's clearly destined for the top.

Talos (Silversoft)

It's fun the way the robot changes each time a new part is added.

Art Studio (OCP)

Operation Caretaker (Global)

As far as we could test it, the program seemed to work. Of course, the program is fairly useless if you haven't got a cassette recorder with a little hole in it for adjusting the tape heads.

Dam Busters (US Gold)

Monty On The Run (Gremlin)

The animated graphics are a great improvement on the early Monty games.

Run For Gold (Hill MacGibbon)

If you want the finger aching action found in Daley Thompson's Decathlon you will not find it here.

Pole Position (Datasoft)

If you like to play games where ten fingers are never enough you won't enjoy this one. So steer clear.

Valley Of The Dead (Central Solutions)

Okay, so the game is cheap. You might, nevertheless, be wiser to type in one of the listings in Sinclair User.

Codename Mat 2 (Domark)

Despite its creaky concept, the game is mightily addictive.

St. Crippens (Creative Sparks)

It is sold at the cheaper end of the market, but it could have done with a shot in the arm or a medical examination before release.

Bryan Robson's Super League (Paul Lamond)

If you don't mind clarifying the rules yourself and have plenty of dough then you can get a lot of fun out of Super League.

QL Match Point (Psion)

SuperBasic Extensions (HiSoft)

Expresso Coppee (Total Computability)

QL Monitor (Sinclair Research)

QL Touch 'n' Go (Sinclair Research)

Lettahead (Bradway)

Using logos created on a graphics package could produce acceptable results.

Plumbers' Price (J. Redman)

The whole package would also benefit from a clearer manual or at the very least an option to print out each page from the program.

Classic Bookkeeping (Manx Tapes)

This is an extremely complex and comprehensive package which will produce valuable records of your business, although, perhaps because of that complexity, it is not as user-friendly as it might have been.

Mordon's Quest (Melbourne House)

Don't think of the lack of graphics as a loss - just give three cheers for text compression and expect some good hunting!

Sorderon's Shadow (Beyond)

A healthy blend of text adventure and strategy... In some ways it is experimental, but definitely shows the way forward for mixed format games.

Robin Of Sherwood (Adventure International)

It is good to see one of our own home-grown heroes in adventure action, and I thoroughly recommend Robin Of Sherwood to all potential freedom-fighters.

The Secret Of St. Brides (Audiogenic/St. Bride's)

The Secret Of St Brides is humorous, well written and full of odd connections.

Crystal Quest (Pocket Money)

Terrific value for money, and compares very favourably with a lot of games costing five times as much.

Spectrum Shadow ROM Disassembly (Melbourne House)

The technicalities involved may easily put off a beginner, but the book could be regarded as a source of reference for machine code programmers.

Illustrating SuperBasic On The Sinclair QL (Cambridge University Press)

If the text had been printed in normal type and diagrams given more space, the book would be ideal for beginners. As it is, you should think twice before purchasing it.

The Family Computer Book (Century)

One poem here runs... 'Computer, Computer, how hateful that thing; One day in frustration I'll smash you right in'. How can you follow such a poem?