OK, YOU KNOW HOW IT IS, YOU'VE STUCK TO THE DIVE PLAN, swum through the cave, past the killer moray eels, negotiated the octopus trap at the entrance to the wreck, hauled yourself into the engine room, careful not to disturb the silt with your fins, found the golden goblet, emerged into the light, only to have your leg bitten off by some sodding great shark that makes Jaws look like a docile goldfish!
And to cap it all, your turquoise T-shirt and black shorts are soaking wet and will stay that way as you swing through the jungle in search of another golden goblet which you've found 10 times before, just before the dinosaur eats you.
I refer not to a training session at Fort Bovisand - it would have been raining - but to a day in the life of Lara Croft who, by her finning action, I can only assume attended the Action Man school of diving!
For those who claim to know nothing of video games, Ms Croft is about the most famous incarnation of polygon power on the planet.
She is soon to grace the silver screen played by Angelina Jolie, in the hope that the film version of Tomb Raider can succeed where other game-to-film transitions have failed.
The omens are good. With a mega-million-dollar budget and Simon (Con Air) West directing, the Pinewood-based production looks set to wow the world, at a time when the video games industry worldwide is now worth more than the movie industry.

Fine, but where's the wet stuff? As the evenings draw in and the leaky drysuit reclaims its corner of the garage, you will still be needing your fix of H2O, and what better way to get it than in the virtual world?
Video games came of age a while back, but the next 12 months or so will see a real leap forward in the hardware and software available. While you can play many video games on your PC or Mac, it is the rise of the TV console system that has propelled them into the general consciousness.
Some games developers have even stopped designing games for the PC platform in favour of its more user-friendly cousin.

Today, the buzzwords are "next generation", and the next-gen video games console promises unrivalled graphics with near-photorealistic quality, connection to the Internet for on-line playing with "3 billion players", and hard-disc support to cater for all your home-computer needs.
The manufacturers would have us believe that all we need do is open the box, close the door and never leave home again!
These systems won't be "just for the kids" in the future, though at the moment it is games which are used to sell them.
The market is controlled by three main players. Sega and Nintendo dominated it for years before Sony came from nowhere with its own box of tricks, the Playstation.
This product accounts for more profit than any other in Sony's catalogue, and this month sees the launch of Playstation 2, the most eagerly anticipated electronic device in history.
However, Sega's Dreamcast offers some wonderful games, superb graphics and amazing effects - far better than the original Playstation and perfectly adequate for video game enjoyment. Next year, Nintendo brings out the Gamecube, which it claims will be optimised for game development, rather than sheer horsepower, and thereby result in better games.
Meanwhile, just like Sony six years ago, Microsoft is coming out of nowhere with its X Box, a console claimed to have three times the graphics capability of Playstation 2 (in case you were wondering, graphics capability is measured in polygons per second). To cap it all, there are rumours that Playstation 3 will be 1000 times more powerful than Playstation 2 - though not until 2005!
Confused? You might well be, particularly when you throw in the complex matter of some consoles playing DVDs, some connecting to the Internet, and others acting like mini-home computers. But once you reach a certain level, it doesn't matter how good the effects and graphics are, or what additional functions the console has - if the games don't provide the entertainment you seek, what's the point?

So what is that level? From Dreamcast upwards, and the Sega machine is half the price of Playstation 2. Both will be out of date next year anyway, but you have to make a stand somewhere! Look at the games on offer and go with the console that provides them.
So what games are available for the budding diver who wants to keep his eye in over the winter months? Not enough yet, but a number which incorporate underwater components are on offer, kicking off with the Tomb Raider series from Eidos. Lara Croft never uses an aqualung, but she seems to spend an awful lot of time under water!
The first Tomb Raider was released in 1995 and has since spawned three sequels, with a fifth due by Christmas. Apart from the obvious sexist appeal of a tough babe running around with guns, shorts and a ponytail - a sort of female Indiana Jones - Tomb Raider was the first true 3D adventure in which you could really feel you were visiting another world.
The graphics have improved with every episode, particularly the water effects. When Lara swims underwater, the lighting and ripple effects make the experience realistic. Also, as she has to hold her breath, there is the tension of having to find somewhere to surface to breathe, when swimming through tunnels or passageways.
You often find yourself holding your own breath along with her just to see if it's possible, and it can be a relief when she breaks through the surface and you are able to take a much-needed gulp of air!
The second episode also sees Lara doing battle with serious underwater adversaries, such as sharks and aggressive divers. Quite how she manages, without scuba, to reach depths at which even Mark Andrews would baulk is not made clear.

The Aquanaut's Holiday from SCEE is aimed at the gamer who wants to immerse himself in the underwater world. Unfortunately the result is disappointing at best.
Working on the hard-pressed technology of the first Playstation, the game attempts to locate you in a submersible in a barren area of seabed. You must build a reef and attract a growing number of species to the habitat you have created by communicating with them through sonar.
However, the graphics are pretty ropy, and there is no real end to the game or specific goal, so it's fun for a while but tedious thereafter. It might be an idea to resurrect as consoles become more powerful.
Diver's Dream is more on track. It's on the basic Playstation so the graphics are limited, but at least there is a plot. You're a diver looking for buried treasure, starting with an underwater propulsion vehicle which can be upgraded to more sophisticated submersibles as you progress from level to level.
The inevitable dangerous marine life and enemy subs will keep you on your toes. Effort has been made to make it seem realistic and there are some genuine diving problems to overcome. All in all, an enjoyable few hours spent at the console.

With Treasures of the Deep on Playstation from Namco, the scenario is on a larger scale. You are Jack Runyan, former Navy Seal, now working for the Underwater Mercenary Agency. Your missions, should you choose to accept them, range through racing the bad guys to the treasure on the wreck of the Conception; blowing up a cargo ship and preventing weapons falling into enemy hands; recovering dead bodies of top scientists in the Bermuda triangle; and recovering specialist gear from a downed Space Shuttle.
All the while you are battling enemy subs, frogmen, sharks, giant squid and anything else the games designers decide to throw at you!
At your disposal are night-vision goggles, homing torpedoes, remote underwater vehicles and heat-seeking mines. As you proceed, you earn the cash to upgrade your hardware, all the way up to a high-tech attack sub. The games are exciting and varied and make good use of underwater scenarios, though the finning action of the divers leaves much to be desired!

In Deep Fighter, available on the PC and Dreamcast, you are in charge of a submarine operating from and protecting an undersea base. The graphics utilise the full power of Dreamcast, and the feeling of immersion in another world is more pronounced.
As you advance through the game, you gain access to bigger and better subs. The varied missions allow you one minute to race fellow cadets through a designated course; the next to tear down dark tunnels with only flares to light your way.
With nearly 50 levels to get through, the longevity is hardly in doubt. The only slight question that arises is in the game's linear approach.
Once you have completed a mission you have to pass a certain point in the wonderfully rendered environment to continue. That aside, you could do worse than submerge yourself in Deep Fighter.

Probably the most breathtaking underwater game so far developed is Ecco the Dolphin on Dreamcast. You are Ecco, on a quest to save the planet from invading aliens. Far-fetched, sure, but what the developers have spent their time on is the graphics.
They have come the closest yet to simulating the underwater world in a video game, and Ecco's movements must be seen to be believed.
You don't always know what you're supposed to be doing, and swimming around waiting for something to happen can be a bit frustrating, but the environment is a joy to be in, as you encounter species after species that you have probably seen on your own underwater travels.
The aim is to complete certain tasks at each level, perhaps using the services of other animals, such as the bioluminescent fish that can light up a tunnel.
Dolphins can't breathe underwater, of course, so every now and then you have to surface. This is no problem in the early stages but later on, when deep inside some passage, you still have to find air - it all adds to the excitement!
For once, the music is in perfect keeping with the tranquil environment, and a welcome change from the usual technobeat. Whether you want to swim around admiring the view or get involved with serious cetacean matters, Ecco the Dolphin provides hours of glorious entertainment.
The six games covered here are the thin end of the wedge - the console revolution promises graphics equal to the challenge of bringing the underwater world to life, and we can only hope that a clutch of exciting new titles are even now being developed for release in 2001 and beyond.