Star Wars Force Commander, published by LucasArts for PC

Specs: 266MHz CPU, 64MB Ram, 454MB hard disk space, 4x CD, 8MB PCI video (3D Graphics Accelerator)

The latest real-time strategy game from LucasArts moves away from the Episode One tie-in, reverting back to the original Star Wars timeline.

Force Commander sets the scene beautifully as you take the role of a newly-commissioned officer beginning a training mission on the desert planet of Tatooine. As you conduct your mission, an escape pod is jettisoned from a rebel cruiser in the skies above. You are sent to investigate the pod and discover droid tracks, which you follow through the desert. Sound familiar?

Each mission allows you to carry over some of your experienced troops from the last battle and gives you a set squad to begin the assault. You can call new units during the mission by getting Command Points for destroying enemy units or completing sub-missions, however you only get 60 units per mission, so you must select reinforcements very wisely.

As you progress, you get to destroy the rebel base on Yavin IV and lead the assault on Hoth (from the Empire Strikes Back) as well as lots of new missions.

The visual effects of this game are excellent with realistic-looking graphics that you can view and zoom from almost any angle. Unfortunately, this versatility has meant that the user controls are somewhat awkward and very difficult to master. Having said this, the learning curve is fairly well balanced and you can get away with a few mistakes on most of the missions.

Lots of your favourite Star Wars vehicles and craft to control and you can play as either the Empire or as the Rebel Forces. This should be a huge hit with Star Wars fans and is a great real-time strategy game for those of you with your head in the sand who are asking Star What?

Graphics 4/5

Sound 5/5

Gameplay 4/5

Gamespan 4/5

Overall 4/5

SEAN HARTE

Star Trek: Armada, published by Activision for PC

SPECS: P200 with 3d accelerator, P266 without, 32MB RAM, 685MB hard disk space, 4xCD-ROM

ARMADA is, sadly, a by-the-numbers game that could, and should, have been so much more.

There are four different campaigns to work through, for Federation, Klingon, Romulan and Borg forces, with each campaign telling a little bit more of the story, as the Borg seek to reclaim the Omega particle.

Initially, you are broken in gently, but too gently, for the first two campaigns are over before you have any real trouble. But little surprise, considering they consist of only four missions each.

There's plenty of nice touches, and variety in the missions - so instead of just churning out the ships and smiting your enemies, for example, one mission sees you on the run from Klingon warships, ducking into nebulae and using wormholes to jump from one location to another.

The cut-scenes are nice, featuring the voices of Jean-Luc Picard, Worf and the Romulan Sela.

But it's simply too short a game. By the time you are getting into it, it's practically over, and while it is a thrill to take charge of a Borg cube and send it out to assimilate the Federation, there really should have been more to this game.

Graphics 4/5

Sound 5/5

Gameplay 3/5

Gamespan 1/5

Overall 3/5

STEPHEN HUNT

Red Dog: Superior Fire Power, published by Sega for Dreamcast

A FLAVOURLESS shoot-em-up, Red Dog just doesn't have enough character to hold its own in a crowded market.

You take control of a buggie, armed to the teeth and ready to dispatch a vast array of robotic forces.

Controls are occasionally awkward, and targeting a small and distant opponent can be just plain frustrating, especially as they shoot lumps out of you unerringly as you advance.

A nice selection of weaponry is available, and you collect more as you advance, but really this is nothing more than an also-ran.

Overall 2/5

STEPHEN HUNT

WWF Smackdown, published by THQ for PlayStation

WWF Smackdown is the latest available instalment in the series of games based on the larger-than-life characters that appear in the wrestling programmes on TV.

The object of Smackdown is to collect all the championship belts.

Gaming starts when you select your character, or when you take the fun option and create your own.

Once you have decided on your character, it is advisable to fight in the pre-season, a good time to make wrestling friends, as you may need them to come to your aid if things get tough for you later.

When pre-season is complete, you are ready to start fighting in the main season. In season mode, you challenge people for different belts and they challenge you. Each season lasts one year, and at the end of each year, you get a new character to create or little extras that may change the game slightly.

This game also gives you a choice of exciting and dangerous sets of moves, from the eye rake to the ever-powerful stone cold stunner. The moves are simple enough, though the special finishers are a little tricky.

There are plenty of modes in the game to keep you amused, including pre-season, create a pay-per-view, exhibition and many more.

The soundtrack to the game is quite boring and annoying, but isn't the worst ever. The graphics are extremely good, but the faces are a little super-imposed and the crowd could be a lot better.

Overall, this is a brilliant game - and not just wrestling fans will like it.

Graphics 4/5

Sound 3/5

Gameplay 5/5

Gamespan 4/5

Overall 5/5

TOM DAKER