Bring almost a whole arcade's worth of coin-op conversions into your bedroom in one go with this new compilation from US Gold. With eight stonking good games in one pack, no-one's allowed to moan about lack of value for money! Nick Roberts takes a trip into beat-'em-up land for an octagonal shoot out...

US Gold
£17.99

Kicking off is Strider, the original game starring the bloke with a big blade! Slice and dice lots of nasty peeps on your quest to find the Grand Master. Your journey takes you through some rough terrain, over snow capped peaks and into the middle of the Russian Red Army. A big hit when first released.

Forgotten Worlds was awarded a CRASH Smash when it first poked its head around the US Gold door. The game can be played as a simultaneous two-player blast and you have to blow away all sorts of alien scum to rescue the world from the grips of Bios! There's also a special shop section, where a scantily clad lady offers you some of her delights! (oo-er!)

Getting away from aliens for a while, we come to UN Squadron: an all out fight for survival in the cockpit of a flash plane. Graphics of the mega enemies in this are really impressive - lets just hope you have enough bullets left to polish them off.

WHAT A NAME!

Dynasty Wars takes you into the Ming Dynasty, with eight legions of enemy infantry and cavalry to zap and an evil warlord with a strange name to conquer. I ask you! Who calls the big Daddy of a game Thung Choc?

A real arcade game classic this one: its Ghouls 'N' Ghosts. The follow up to the brilliant Ghosts 'N' Goblins, this continues the adventures of Arthur, the gallant knight, as he takes on more ghoulish opponents. It's an incredibly addictive game and packed with action.

Well, we've already had Strider- how about a bit of Yes, he's back, now armed with a high velocity Gyro hazer gun. Our hero is obviously a sucker for punishment and wants to beat up even more baddies (sooo butch!).

LED Storm sticks the player into a high-powered futuristic mean machine to battle it out in nine fast and furious stages. Lots of obstacles in each, plus bonus icons to be collected to increase your energy and boost fire power.

These princesses are always getting into trouble aren't they? Another royal girl's blouse needs to be rescued in Last Duel, and you're staying in your car to do it this time. The great thing about the car is that it also doubles as a hoverplane!

NO COLOURS OR PRESERVATIVES!

This compilation is pure coin-op action all the way. If you plan to buy a copy, I hope you're a shoot- or beat-'em-up fan, as that's all you get! A bit more variety in gameplay styles wouldn't go amiss, but otherwise a great bargain.

NICK [63%]

Well, there's certainly lots here: eight games for nearly £18 isn't bad at al' (that's, erm, about £2.25 each). There are three real stars in the pack, games I still enjoy playing, and they're Forgotten Worlds UN Squadron and Ghouls 'n' Ghosts. Ghouls 'n' Ghosts is probably one of the most enjoyable games on the Speccy - perfectly playable action combat with great style and so much going on: exhausting! The rest in the pack aren't bad, but do lack a certain sparkle. As a complete package, for £18, The Capcom Collection is a worthwhile buy, specially if you're a coin-op freak!
RICHARD [70%]

Label: US Gold
Memory: 48K/128K
Price: £14.99 Tape
Reviewer: Big Al Dykes

Compilations abound this Christmas and if the latest Capcom Collection turns up in your Christmas stocking then watch out! It's so hot it'll toast your toes and turn your corns into cornflakes.

Strider and Strider 2 are both quality games. In the original, the Red Lord has taken over Moscow and it's up to super warrior Strider with his bionic bodily appendages and amazing power ups to free it from his tyrannical grip.

In Strider 2 the very same man is hired by another world (no not the TV program with Lisa WOW! Bonet) inhabited by the Magenians whose ruler is being held to ransom by mutant space terrorists/ He's equipped with a new laser and transmutation capabilities. The graphics are good with all the blisterin' action of the original.

UN Squadron involves fighting ruthless drug barons with some amazing techno planes including an F-14, an A10 and a F20. The monochrome horizontally scrolling graphics are well detailed but disappointing in animation. Unfortunately, the game isn't really up there in the stratosphere with the rest of this collection.

LED Storm is one of my favourites and takes the form of a futuristic road race over nine challenging scenarios. Exceptional speed, playability, power ups and mind boggling actions, this one's a real winner.

Dynasty Wars is very, very strange but worth a look if you are into medieval Chinese battling! (And if you are I suggest that you get psychiatric advice). It basically involves a horse mounted hero trying to defeat a really bad Chinese guy and all his minions.

Forgotten Worlds is a fantasy nightmare scape where two super warriors must fight against an evil god of destruction who has laid waste to four, until recently prosperous, worlds. Not at it's best on the Spectrum but still a furious shoot 'em up.

Last Duel contains more motorised mayhem in car a hoverplane as you shoot your way through vertically scrolling danger zones. A frustrating game I really wouldn't like to play again.

And last but by no means least we come to Ghouls and Ghosts, well what can I say it's good, very good, in fact it's probably more difficult on the Spectrum than on any other format so beware as you help Arthur on his medieval quest to rescue the Princess Hus.

Well, well, merry Christmas, this is definitely a comprehensive collection of software. Most of the games are above average or very good and had a high profile as full pricers. If you don't already have one or more of them the Capcom Collection is well worth a look.