COMPUTERS.

THEME HOSPITAL

pounds 39.99 Bullfrog/EA

Funny thing, the medical profession. It's either treated as heavy drama, or sent up something rotten. Thus, we have the likes of ER and Casualty, all sweaty brows and dire emergencies, or Carry on Doctor and Surgical Spirit -fantasy worlds where incompetent medics and buxom nurses rule.

Theme Hospital, is definitely in the latter category. It's been two years since Theme Park, the first game in Bullfrog's Designer series, appeared and sold three trillion copies (or thereabouts). This time around you're in charge of a hospital - the whole caboodle, from the building of the facilities to the hiring of the staff, research and, well, everything. Each level requires you to meet a set of goals. It might be earning a certain amount, getting a set percentage of the population into the hospital, or gaining a particular reputation. Each time, you have to build your hospital from the ground up, starting with a receptionist's desk and a receptionist. A GP's office is also mandatory, along with a GP to go in it.

Building rooms is just a matter of dragging out the blueprint until it's the size you fancy, then adding a door and windows. Each type of room comes with default furniture, such as a desk and chair in the GP's office, (you can buy more if you want).

After visiting the GP, a patient is sent to the appropriate treatment room, or goes to a general diagnosis room for more tests. The range of ailments is predictably silly. One of the first you encounter is Bloaty Head. Later, you are subjected to the horrors of Hairyitis, Alien DNA, Serious Radiation, and others. Simulation and management games are tricky blighters to pull off successfully - they're either too shallow and pretty, or too deep and dull. Theme Hospital is an almost-perfect crossbreed, and a joy to play.

Oodles to do and easy to pick up

Lovely, detailed graphics

Special Internet game levels

90%

SIX DISC CD-ROM CHANGER 

pounds 140 TEAC 

Back in the bad old days when floppy disks ruled the earth, and CD-rom was a hobby for the rich, big games were often ruined by annoying disk changes in the middle of the action. Nowadays, when even a CD-rom isn't big enough for all those minutes of filler video, games are often ruined by annoying disc swaps.

So, get six eight-speed CD-rom drives, stick them together in one unit, and what do you have? This. It looks and installs just like any other IDE drive, except for the six buttons along the front. Press one, insert a CD (there's no caddy or drawer) and you're laughing. Repeat six times.

The software is supposed to enable you to treat the drive either as one unit, using a utility to switch between disks; or as multiple units, each with its own drive letter. Unfortunately, it's a bit moody and didn't work on our setup. Luckily, Microsoft's own CD changer utility installs and works perfectly first time. Once it's working, you wonder how you ever got by without it.

79%

DIE HARD TRILOGY

Fox/EA

We've had our ears to the ground for Die Hard Trilogy cheats, and while there aren't any confirmed as yet, you'd be a fool not to try these. Rumours suggest that shooting the dustbins in Part One gives you more time to complete your task. Also in the first part, you can shoot the blue car and this gives you a bazooka on the third level. Infinite Beretta ammo would come in useful, wouldn't it? The 'copter that arrives on the left-hand side of the screen contains just the powerup you need. When it comes into view, pump it full of rounds until it bursts into flame. Lo and behold, infinite Beretta ammo!

82%

Eyewitness Encyclopaedia of Science

pounds 39.99 Dorling Kindersley

The first of the Eyewitness series, and arguably still the best. Split into four separate sections: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Life Sciences, this most visual of encyclopaedias comes with over 1,000 screens and pop-ups, two hours of audio narrative, 600 illustrations and 80 animations and video sequences -enough to keep you going until you know everything about science. Ranging from the Big Bang to the greenhouse effect, it's the definitive work in its field.