Space Quest V:The Next Mutation - Sierra RRP œ44.99
             (Icon driven graphic adventure for PC)

                    Reviewed by John Moore

As a lover of the Space Quest series, I look forward to each new
one, expecting it to be not as good as the previous one. This is
usually the case with film sequels. Well, let me tell you that
Space Quest V is the best yet.

As usual you are the intergalactic janitor and superhero Roger
Wilco. The game starts with Roger attending space college no less,
hoping to become a starship captain, but first he must pass the
aptitude tests. After a little judicious cheating and a computer
malfunction due to furry pointing device (or mouse, to you) our
hero passes out as the captain of a garbage scow.

On a mission to collect intergalactic garbage, Roger becomes the
target of a mindless and ruthless killer android whose aim in life
is to sell Roger's body parts off to pay for a mail order scam in
a previous episode. With a motley crew of Flo, a green Rigellian
feminist and man-hater, Drool, a gung ho nuke 'em kill 'em weapons
officer and Chiefy the engineer who drinks, fights and generally
gives you most of your problems, Roger sets off to discover the
source of the dreaded sludge dumpers. Toxic waste dumping is a
serious problem and the source must be found and neutralised. The
first problem to overcome is the Android. You beam down to the
battleground, armed only with your wits. I remember a Star Trek
episode similar to this. Soon you warp to different planets to
trace the dumpers and get your crew out of trouble.

The problems are not too difficult, the animation is excellent and
the game combines adventure, a game of battleships and cruisers,
navigating a space pod to rescue Chiefy, a maze of tunnels and, as
a twist, you spend part of the game as a house fly.

Mark Crowe's sense of humour seems to match mine and I can
heartily recommend SQ5. Do shop around for prices; the cheapest I
saw was from Premier Mail Order on 0268-271172 (Basildon), price
œ25.99.