After the success of US Gold's Ghouls 'N' Ghosts conversion, which received a Format Gold in these hallowed pages, it was inevitable that its predecessor would make its way to the 16-bit machines.

For the six people that have just landed from Mars and don't know anything about the game, the plot tells of brave Sir Arthur, valiant knight and bold warrior. While resting with his girlfriend after a particularly tough quest, an evil demon swooped down and swept away the fair maid to a dark and dangerous hiding place deep within a mountain.

Arthur quickly dons his magic armour and sets off to the rescue, passing through the various creature-infested sections of the demonic realm. He must fight off zombies in the graveyard, ghostly flying monks in the forest, tattooed ogres in the ghost town and bats in the caves.

Initially Arthur is armed with an endless supply of sawn-off lances to throw at foes, but occasionally a creature carries a pot containing treasure or new weapons, such as torches, axes or daggers. If one of the creatures manages to land a hit on poor Sir Arthur he will lose the protection of his magic armour - one more hit and the brave hero turns into a bag of bones for the vultures to pick at.

GRAPHICS AND SOUND

Given the time that Elite had to bring out this conversion, it's not surprising that the game is extremely close to the arcade original. In fact the only difference is that you aren't asked to put any money in! All the introduction and intermission scenes have been included, from the abduction of Sir Arthur's love to the map of the game before play.

One thing that was missing from previous conversions was the grave spirit that emerges to turn Arthur into a frog, but a few blasts into a gravestone on the Amiga version and hey presto! Out comes the spirit! A lot of care has been taken over both sound and graphics to recreate the feel of the coin-op, and it certainly shows. Both are superb.

LASTING INTEREST

Anyone who has played the arcade version to any extent will be able to quite easily get into the action, but this also means that they may complete it fairly quickly. However, even if you do get to the end, it's still great fun to pick up and have a bash at every now and then.

JUDGEMENT

Despite its age, Ghosts 'N' Goblins is well presented, highly playable and an enjoyable romp. Techno-snobs shouldn't be put off simply because the follow-up is available, since the prequel has a feel and charm that Ghouls 'N' Ghosts somehow lacks. Veterans of the coin-op should get hold of a copy, even if it's just for nostalgia's sake, and newcomers to the tales of Arthur and his foes could do a lot worse than take a brief visit to this weird and wonderful world.

Way back in the mid Eighties, Elite were the software company to license coin-ops. It was a time which brought them a great deal of kudos and financial success. In the early days of eight bit conversions everyone had a copy of Commando and Ghouls 'n' Ghosts.

How times have changed. That was five years ago and Elite have long fallen away as a major force in the industry having shown little interest in licensing coin-ops since. It's only belatedly that the 16 bit conversions of their classics have begun to appear.

Worse still Elite have to follow the US Gold conversion of the arcade sequel Ghouls 'n' Ghosts which won them awards after its release last Christmas. Ghouls clearly sets the standard by which this should be measured, with its brilliant sound and all round playability. Sadly the challenge seems to have proven too strong for Elite.

Whilst Ghouls is a superior coin-op with updated graphics and ideas, US Gold were able to convert it without great difficulty. So why does Ghosts 'n' Goblins require a meg? Its sales and appeal are restricted, yet there is little in the game which an Amiga couldn't cope with.

This isn't to say that the conversion is poor, simply that in the face of current competition that it looks a bit lacklustre. It follows the arcade's graphics closely but the sound is dire - although it was hardly a sonic wall of noise when it first appeared.

That said, the challenge posed by the game is undiminished and obviously, most would say, that's the main thing. True, but you'd expect that. Recreating the arcade spirit and finish is what separates real quality releases.

So then, Ghosts 'n' Goblins can be recommended but with deep reservations about its overall style and more significantly about its relevance when set against the current wave of 16 bit original product. Arcade conversions are fine but they need freshness, unless they are cult classics (which it could be claimed with some justification this is) and extremely well produced. Ghosts is simply too little far too late.