Shinobi
(Virgin, 1989)

Bwah Foo has captured all the children at a school for training ninjas, and as Joe Musashi, a former graduate of the school, you resolve to rescue all of them. The children are scattered over five levels which are split into three or four sections. It's a platform game, and a rather good one, with lots of enemy ninjas to slay with your shurikens. Different ninjas will require different techniques, though, and then there is the matter of defeating the end-of-level guardians. You do have magic powers to help you, although you can only use them once in each section. The graphics aren't all that good – they're rather messy – and the music on the menu is poor, although some better tunes play throughout the game, which is easy to get into and fun to play.

See also: Shadow Dancer.

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Shockway Rider
(FTL, 1986)

This is a rather silly game, and one which was also slightly controversial when it was first released. You know those long airport walkways? This game sees you jumping to and fro between them and killing gang members with whatever weapons you can find lying at the side of the walkways. You can also get extra lives if you can achieve certain targets which change on each level. The controversy arises when you lose a life; your blood-stained head gets cut off and rolls down the walkway! It's not that bad a game, but all the levels (apart from the first) are basically the same thing. The music is really cool, though!

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Short Circuit
(Ocean, 1987)
Reviewed by Guillaume Chalard

Struck by a lightning bolt, Robot 5 has come alive. He tries to escape from his creators who want to catch him in order to study what happened. This game was inspired by the movie of the same name by John Badham. You control Number 5 through the laboratories and must find the way out. You can download programs to enhance your abilities, search the rooms for keys and other items. That part is rather good, with good graphics and a cheerful music. The second part is an action sequence in which you must escape cops and various animals while jumping over ponds. It's difficult and rather stupid. In summary, this is an average game. It's a pity that the second half of the game could have been better.

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Welcome to Shufflepuck Café! If you've ever played a game on one of those air hockey machines you find in big amusement arcades (and boy, I loved playing them in my youth!), you'll recognise this. Air hockey is like ice hockey except that it's against two players, and you hit the ball with a bat rather than a stick. It's really easy to grasp. The café is filled with eight contestants, who each have their own ways of playing, which you will need to know in order to beat them. You can play a few games against any of them, or take part in a knockout tournament. Both the graphics and the music are stunning and the game is great fun, and you can customise it as well.

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A man known as Bozon wants to exterminate Earth, and his headquarters lies deep underwater. As Lieutenant Henry, you must swim through the sea to locate his headquarters. The game consists of one long level with lots of creatures to shoot, and several huge dragon-like monsters (which you must obviously shoot as well) help to break the action into distinct stages. Initially you can't move fast at all and your firepower is limited, but collecting the power-ups left behind by the creatures you shoot gives you more speed and weaponry – and you're going to need it! Without it, you'll lose lives very easily. If you keep hitting the fire button, you'll be OK. The graphics are all right, but they could be better, and so could the music, which is mediocre. The game itself is reasonably good once you get the hang of things.

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The Halson galaxy is under threat. You have been sent on a mission to destroy a thermonuclear planet. This is a standard horizontally scrolling shoot-'em-up in which you shoot lots of aliens and jump across craters and lakes. Every so often, a spaceship appears and you enter it, taking you into space, where you shoot and dodge spaceships instead. However, it's highly unlikely that you will ever get the chance to do this without cheating. This is a ridiculously difficult game from start to finish! Jumping over obstacles requires great precision, but while you're trying to position yourself, the aliens are swarming around you and draining your precious energy. The graphics are very good, albeit with too much purple used, but it's a shame that the gameplay is not up to the same standard.

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Known as Marche à l'Ombre in France, and based upon the songs and the suburban-Parisian universe of the famous French singer Renaud, this game is a strange attempt to merge two worlds (pop music and video game). The game in itself is rather dull. Though the graphics, in black and white, are rather good, they lack variety and the playing window is too small. Furthermore, it's quite impossible not to get lost because the point of view changes every time you enter a new place. The plot is original (you must find your motorcycle which has been stolen, and buy two tickets for Renaud's show), but the gameplay is awful. Time is limited, the game area is tiny – about 20 screens – and the fight scenes are a pity. One for fans of Renaud only.

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Sigma 7
(Durell, 1986)

I'm not sure what the story behind this game is, but the game itself consists of seven stages, each divided into three phases. In the first phase, you have to shoot and dodge alien attack formations; in the second, you have to clear a maze of dots and find the pattern of dots which you can't clear; and in the third, you have to reproduce this pattern by bouncing on tiles at the right time. This is all repeated seven times, and it gets harder each time. The graphics are reasonable and some of the animated sequences are nice, but the gameplay may get repetitive, especially when you get three extra lives on completing each phase.

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Silent Service
(Microprose, 1986)

You are in control of a fleet of American submarines based in the Pacific Ocean during World War II, and you must simply sink as many Japanese ships as you can. You can try some target practice or attempt various missions which recreate actual events in the Pacific, and depending on your experience, you can adjust the difficulty and realism levels. This is an extremely realistic game (in fact, the West German authorities banned it from general sale because of this) and it's clear that a lot of attention has been put into this. It's not exactly for action fans – it's very much a strategy game, and you must plan your actions carefully – but if you like these sorts of games, then this is a winner.

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An enormous bomber 'plane, equipped with the most advanced technology known, has just been launched – the Silent Shadow. Its mission is to fly to the outskirts of a city to destroy an enemy base. However, the Silent Shadow's sheer size makes it relatively vulnerable, so you (and perhaps a friend) must pilot a much smaller fighter and destroy enemy ground targets and 'planes to make way for the Silent Shadow. There are four levels, each one an unrelenting onslaught of enemy firepower. Your fighter can hold up to three bombs at a time, and many more can be collected along the way – and you'll need to use them regularly. The graphics are undoubtedly very nice, but it's difficult to make out the enemy's bullets, and there are so many enemies to face that you will probably never reach the end of the first level.

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