A mysterious and terrible 'Dark Power' is the leading force of the aliens that have invaded the planet Siros. You've called for help but, by the time reinforcements arrive, it'll be too late. Your task is to activate a huge power generator to destroy the power that literally erases the screens of the game as you play. To do this you control a huge robot, but you can also leave the robot in a spacecraft when necessary and even fight your way on foot in very narrow places. Despite it sounding quite interesting, this game isn't that funny. There are too many objects to collect, the time limit is too strict and your character is quite a good pilot, but just an average trooper. By the way, there is a nice intro sequence at the beginning of the game.

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You've just got to laugh at such a ridiculous concept, eh? The Pogostick Olympics consists of five events - balloon popping (in an Olympics!), hurdles, triple jump, target shooting, and the obstacle course - which you must complete while bouncing on your pogostick. You have three attempts at each to score some points, otherwise the game's over. They're all pretty easy, though, and I completed the game on my first go! Once you do that, all you can do is try and beat your previous score, which is pretty boring. The graphics are superb and very colourful, and the music is good, too, but they don't deserve to be used on a game like this.

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Remember Roland in the Caves, where you controlled a flea and had to escape from the cave and avoid the pterodactyl? Did anyone actually manage to reach the exit of the first cave? This is effectively the same game, except that the graphics are much better, and you can score bonus points by eating flies. As well as the pterodactyl, you must also avoid becoming entangled in spider's webs! So is it a good game? Absolutely not! Although it's a bit easier to judge the power of your jumps correct, it is an extremely frustrating game; the pterodactyl seems to have some sort of homing instinct for the flea. Mind you, the loading screen is gorgeous.

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The macho Bluto is wooing Olive Oyl again, and to win her back, Popeye has to collect 25 hearts and return them to her. Some of them are in difficult places, though, and to get to them, you'll need to find the right keys. You also have to avoid straying into Bluto's path, and there are large numbers of monsters to watch out for, including a giant fly, an exotic bird, a shark and a witch - this game really is strange, as are many of the locations! You'll need to keep some spinach handy as well. The chunky graphics will appeal to youngsters, but older people might well tire of the slowness of the game.

See also: Popeye 2, Popeye 3.

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Bluto has kidnapped Olive Oyl, and Popeye has to rescue her. No hearts need to be collected this time - the objective here is merely to reach the top of each level and beat up Bluto while eating those cans of spinach for which Popeye is famous. However, this is much easier said than done. Getting Popeye to climb ladders is awkward, and so is jumping across gaps. Barrels and flames also seem to appear without warning, making Popeye lose one of his three lives, and there's the added problem of bombs, which also have to be defused within a few seconds before they explode. There's a good rendition of the theme tune, but the graphics are badly drawn and very blocky, and the game is ridiculously difficult and frustrating.

See also: Popeye, Popeye 3.

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Popeye has been chosen to represent Earth in the 7th Intergalactic Olympiad, and he's taking part in a wrestling contest against five of the best wrestlers from across the galaxy. A lot of joystick (or keyboard) waggling is required here; when the two of you lock into battle with each other, you must waggle as much as you can to slam your opponent down to the floor and reduce his energy. When you've reduced it enough, you have to try and him him down for four seconds. This was an attempt to cash in on the wrestling craze of the early 90s, and younger players will like the colourful graphics (I think the aliens are cute as well!). Everyone else might well find it too easy, and I managed to complete it on my second go.

See also: Popeye, Popeye 2.

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There is quite a story behind this game, at least on the CPC. In 1989, Loriciels released an absolutely excellent game called Bumpy. They then handed over the game to Infogrames to convert it to 16-bit machines, which they did, under the name of Pop-Up. What Loriciels were not expecting was Infogrames re-releasing the game on the CPC as well! So what are the differences between Bumpy and Pop-Up, then? As far as I can tell, the loading screen has changed, and the graphics are also different, with nice background pictures and themes which change every five levels - but the music, sound effects, and the gameplay are exactly the same. I'll still give the game a high mark because it is very enjoyable, but one has to question why Infogrames chose to re-release it for the CPC at all.

See also: Bumpy.

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9

Hooray! It's Postman Pat and his black and white cat! You get to drive around the twisty lanes of Greendale and deliver letters and parcels to the village folk - but Pat has to do more than that. Along the way, you'll have to get Miss Hubbard's prescription and round up Peter Fogg's sheep. It's a tough life being a postman! This game has 'cute' written all over it - it's wonderful, albeit rather easy. The graphics are bright and jolly, and you have to play the game just to listen to the excellently rendered theme tune.

See also: Postman Pat 2, Postman Pat 3.

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Pat's van has broken down so he has to deliver his letters on foot. He's going to need some refreshment along the way, though, so you must make sure Pat doesn't run out of tea. He can get more tea by performing errands for the local people of Greendale and finding things they've lost. Some things may be broken, though, so you'll have to find Ted the farmer to fix it. Watch out for the birds who might steal your letters! It's unfortunate, then, that this game is nowhere near as good as the original. There's no tune and few sound effects, and the graphics give the impression that it's going to rain at any time.

See also: Postman Pat, Postman Pat 3.

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5

In the last of the Postman Pat series of games, Pat takes to his van again to deliver some letters. Mind you, he's got to dodge all those roadworks, not to mention reckless nutters driving at 60mph and on the wrong side of the road. You'll also need to stop at the garage to fill up the van with petrol. On the easy mode, all the hazards are in the same place and it's just a question of memorising when they occur. On the hard mode, things become more taxing. The graphics are colourful, but the tune isn't up to the same standard as the one in the original Postman Pat, and since the game moves as a rather slow pace, it's likely that interest will soon wane.

See also: Postman Pat, Postman Pat 2.

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