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A new software house is something of a rarity these days. In these times of ruthless ambition and dog eat dog, it's no wonder. With everyone waiting for the first game it's important not to make a pig's ear of it, or future games will be judged before they're even released!

So what have Newsfield's software house got to offer the gamer? A shoot-'em-up, pure and simple (Well hard actually). Forget the waffley scenario about Super Powers and aliens about to destroy the world, which is dreadful, and load the cassette up and attempt to get from one end to the other.

The game is divided into sectors which you must patrol, eradicating enemy ships and hanging onto your precious lives. You begin in a city with the ship under Defender/Scramble style conditions. There's a vertical view looking down on your fighter situated at the top quarter of the screen, and a side view of your ship taking up the rest of the space. From then on it's high power blasting and manoeuvring through the various backdrops (trees, Arizona-style deserts, cities and water) until you complete the level.

Subsequently there are two bonuses. The first is automatic if you manage to complete the level within the allotted time, the second a rainbow breakdown in which you shoot, collide or pick up objects which flash at you from the four corners of the screen. After that, you progress onto the next level and so on.

If all this sounds vaguely familiar and yet you can't quite put your finger on it, let me tell you what you're reminded of. Uridium. Sanxion is, putting it bluntly, a clone. It's been dressed up to look different, but taking it out of space and changing the angle of view.

Otherwise, it's all there, fast scrolling shooting, bas relief graphics, sections followed by bonus screens, sound effects, the lot. Add to that a bit of the Salamander coin-op and mix it all up and you have Thalamus' first effort.

It may not be original but I can't fault its execution. Nice smooth scroll, good use of colour and plenty of frustrating action and classy sound.

On the minus side there's a colour clash when you're flying through parts of the city which can result in a careless and infuriating mistake. There's a Rob Hubbard version of Prokofiev's 'Romeo and Juliet' (Act IV if I'm not mistaken, classical buffs) which I'm not too happy about. Who wants a great bit of music like that ruined on the C64's sound chip? No reflection on Rob, it just isn't possible.

For a first effort, Sanxion isn't bad. It won't get gold or get Thalamus any platinum cassettes (or whatever the industry awards itself) but it is something to build on. However, it's not that much better than Warhawk that you'd prefer to spend eight more quid on it.