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Thought you'd seen the end of non-violent games with the demise of Automata? Think again - because here is Prodigy. True to their habit of releasing unusual and different games, Electric Dreams has come up with an Ultimate-style 3D arcade adventure with some original twists.

Prodigy features Solo the Syntleman and Nejo the baby - trapped in a world they never made. Solo wants to escape the nightmare maze of the Mechlabs, created by Wardlock the Machine Sorceror.

The Mechlabs are split into four zones. There's the Ice Zone, Vegie Zone, Fire Zone and Tech Zone. Each of the zones are connected by a teleport system.

Solo and Nejo need your help to find the four Power Keys which unlock the doors to the outside world and knock out Wardlock's security system.

Solo has to keep baby Nejo washed, fed and protected from the ghastly flesh experiments called Globewels and Bloberites.

The screen display shows a view from one of Wardlock's security vid-cams. Around the side of the monitor are four rotating cubes representing security system indicators. You must disable these by finding the security units and taking them to the computer control centre. At the top of the screen is a readout which shows Solo's oxygen supply.

This can be replenished by taking Solo to the Ice Zone and popping him in a few oxygen bubbles.

There are also displays for Nejo's food level and the condition of his nappy! There are showers in the Mechlabs and you can wash him. Luckily the game wasn't written in smellivision!

At the bottom of the screen is a teletype machine which relays messages and information as you play.

Nejo will follow you around, but you don't need him with you all the time to complete the game. Nejo will quite happily play by himself for a while if you want to take Solo off on a solo mission. Just watch the teletype for messages and remember where you left him.

The game is packed with logical puzzles - and illogical ones! - which have to be solved if you are to get Solo and Nejo out of the labs.

The zones are all colour-coded and can be reached using the teleport system. My favourite is the Vegie Zone - populated by odd vegetable creatures.

Many other parts of the graphically interesting landscape are animated as well. A nice technical achievement, this.

Prodigy will remind Ultimate fans of the time when that company used to produce entertaining and original games. It will provide a genuinely different challenge to all arcade adventurers and will prove high on lastability - mainly as it's not an easy game. Not easy by any means.

The original theme and the different graphics make Prodigy stand out from the mass of arcade adventures. Check it out.