Yes, I agree with some critics that the talking alarm clock was a bit babyish but he didn't appear very often other than to give hints on what to do in certain parts of the game. At least you didn't have put up with his voice for very long which I have to admit reminded me of someone with perpetually blocked sinuses!

The story is as follows. NiteKap, the villain of the game just can't get to sleep. He decides that if he can't get some shuteye the why should any body else get a good night's sleep? He sends Threadbear, his cute but evil teddy-bear sidekick to capture the Winks; these are little creatures that give people good dreams. Instead he turns most of the of the Winks into Hood-Winks who are little green little critters that give make sure that no can sleep because all dreams will become nightmares! However there are still 40 Winks left but they are held captive and it is the player's job to rescue them and save the world from everlasting nightmares!

To move from level to level you must unlock doors, so along with freeing the Winks you have to collect cogs to open doors as well as find 12 keys to put into a clock, thus enabling you to battle it out with Threadbear and Co. for fate of the sleeping world,

The two characters you can play as are great. Ruff and Tumble are their names and I especially liked the fact you could batter your adversaries into oblivion with either a candleholder or a teddy bear! Some of the characters you can become were fun too, the Caveman, a Monster, a Ninja, a Robot and my favourite Curryman and his little sidekick Manic Mongoose. You don't get a chance to be him until RIGHT at the end of the game, which is a real bummer.

This game is one of Playstation's "nice" games. There isn't any blood and gore; the most frightening things you will come across are cartoon like zombies, spiders and green furry Winks to name but a few and let's be honest here, they aren't that frightening! The graphics are great, even better when played on Playstation 2, but I like my old trusty Playstation One so this is where it gets played most often! Learning to manoeuvre your character through the many differing levels takes practice but once you get the hang of it there will be no stopping you. I like the fact you can play this with a friend, but also on your own.

All in all this is a smashing little game. Not to everyone's taste but I think it is great, especially as you can often pick one up quite cheaply.

ADDITION 4th Feb 2003

With Playstation 2 Games becoming the norm now-a-days it would be wise for any fan of 40 Winks (or any other Playstation One Game) to start stocking up their shelves. A lot of games will be transfered to Playstation 2 but not all of them. Somehow I can't see the likes of 40 Winks EVER going onto Playstation 2 format which is a real shame.