Issue No. 31 August 1986

REGULARS

EDITORIAL
It’s all happening at CRASH Towers...

NEWS
Including the chance to go to two exciting events in London

FEAR AND LOATHING
Hunter S Minson gets involved in a little gossip, seeing as the free lunches are in short supply

LLOYD MANGRAM’S FORUM
Lloyd’s had a busy month, what with sorting out marketing deals and becoming a minor megastar, so his discussion shop has become a little concatenated (LMLWD)

CRASH HOTLINE AND ADVENTURE CHART

LLOYD MANGRAM’S HALL OF SLIME
Continuing the sterling work of exposing cheats

SEAN MASTERSON’S FRONTLINE
A CRASH Smash this month for an old favourite given a new lease of life

RESULTS
News of additional prizes on offer too. Take a peek to see what you might win!

HANNAH SMITH’S PLAYING TIPS
The Girlie Challenge continues. Is Melissa Ravenflame woman enough to respond? Lots of Maps this month, with the usual mix of Tips’n’Hints

DEREK BREWSTER’S ADVENTURE TRAIL
Continuing his sterling work in the world of adventure, Derek gets involved in gang rivalry and space wars amongst other things

SIGNSTUMPS
More coded clues followed by adventuring opinions

CRASH COURSE
Cameron Pound continues his education as he photographs the mind-expanding Rosetta reviews

CRASH/RAINBIRD GALLERY
A Cornish lad stages a one-man exhibition this month

LUNAR JETMAN
Parrotman takes a bashing — or does he?

TECH NICHE
Franco Frey has fun with a video digitiser and Dominic Handy gets to grips with wordprocessing software

TECH TIPS
Another mix of view on matters technical, including an analysis of LOKI, a look at THE CODE MACHINE and another mini-project

PBM MAILBOX
Brendon Kavanagh takes a look at one of his favourite games this month, and finds space for a few of your views too

MERELY MANGRAM
Lots of glossy colour pictures of upcoming releases (and a few words too...)

FEATURES

STRETCHING COMPUTER GAMES
Pete Tamlyn takes a look at the relationships between Fighting Fantasy, Role Playing Games and computer games — not just adventures. Next month he looks at Role Playing games on computer

MORE POWER TO YOUR NUMBER
Another batch of goodies on offer to tempt you to get the power of a MYSTICAL SUBSCRIBER NUMBER working for you

GOULASH GOSSIP
Mr Minson eats Hungarian style with a couple of Dutchman...

FIGHTING OFF DRAGONS
Tony Flanagan, new CRASH Staffer, zooms up to Liverpool and gets the lowdown on Software Projects and their latest arcade conversion

A CLASSIC GAME FOR FREE!
Special offer for CRASH readers only — buy four £2.99 CLASSICS and get one free! Complete that collection of golden oldies

DIY

ANOTHER 128K SPECTRUM ON OFFER
Complete the TANTALUS map and win some yummy prizes from Quicksilva

WIN A COMPLETE PRACTICAL JOKE KIT
CRL and St Brides offer Menacing Kits to practical joke designers in support of THE VERY BIG CAVE ADVENTURE

ADORN YOURSELF WITH JEWELS
Rainbird and Level 9 team up with H Samuel to offer a selection of glittering prizes

WIN A ‘LOKI’
... in a special TECH TIPS Comp

WIN A JUKEBOX!
Mirrorsoft offer a real Wurlitzer jukebox as top prize in the DYNAMITE DAN II competition

Pick up your copy of CRASH on 28th August or carry a personal dark cloud around all September!

REVIEWS

- Action Reflex Mirrorsoft

- Barchou Central Solutions

- Bobby Bearing The Edge

- Brian the Bold Central Solutions

- Cagara Players

- Car Journey Hill MacGibbon

- Cauldron II Palace

- Caverns of Kontonia Atlantis

- Conquest Mastertronic

- Countdown Central Solutions

- Desert Hawk Players

- First Steps with the Mr Men Mirrorsoft

- Heartland Firebird

- Hijack Electric Dreams

- Kung Fu Master US Gold/Ocean

- Labyrinthion Budgie

- Luna Atac Atlantis

- Mafia Contract II Atlantis

- Master of Magic Mastertronic

- Podder Central Solutions

- Pyracurse Hewson

- Rebel Planet Adventuresoft

- Rebelstar Firebird

- Special Agent Hill MacGibbon

- Sport of Kings Mastertronic

- Subterranean Nightmare US Gold/Americana

- Sword and Shield Black Knight Computers

- Toadrunner Ariolasoft

- Trick of the Tale Central Solutions

- Vowels of the Earth IEC Software

- Word Games with the Mr Men Mirrorsoft

Publishers

Roger Kean, Oliver Frey, Franco Frey

Editor

Graeme Kidd

Staff Writers

Tony Flanagan, Hannah Smith, Lloyd Mangram

Adventure Editor

Derek Brewster

Strategy Editor

Sean Masterson

Tech Tipster

Simon Goodwin

Contributing Writers

Jon Bates, Brendon Kavanagh, Rosetta McLeod, John Minson

Production Controller

David Western

Art Director

Dick Shiner

Illustrators

Ian Craig, Oliver Frey

Production

Gordon Druce, Tony Lorton, Cameron Pound, Jonathan Rignall, Matthew Uffindell

Advertisement Manager

Roger Bennett

Advertisement Assistant

Nick Wild

Subscriptions

Denise Roberts

Mail Order

Carol Kinsey

Cover by

Oliver Frey

Transcriptions

Matthew Wilson, http://www.crashonline.org.uk/

Additional review transcriptions

Chris Bourne, http://www.zxspectrumreviews.co.uk/

Thanks to those CRASH authors who have allowed their work to be reproduced.

Things are really on the move here at Chateau Newsfield — both literally and figuratively. Auntie Aggie and Guru Denise and the rest of the Mail Order crew are on the verge of moving out of CRASH Towers into another set of offices in the town which they will be sharing with a new magazine.

A new magazine? Well yes, Lloyd has finally negotiated a pay rise with the Powers That Be and lends his name to a new publication — LM — which you will be among the first people in the country to see. The first issue is going to be given away with the Christmas Special this year. We’ve already planned to have 196 pages in the Christmas CRASH, so if your eyesight’s a bit dicky, make sure you’ve got a set of reading glasses sorted out by Christmas. There’s going to be an awful lot of reading for you to do!

LM is going to be headed up by Roger Kean — not satisfied with being a traitor to CRASH (as some of you felt), he’s now about to do the same over on ZZAP! Roger promises LM is going to be an exciting read, covering all aspects of life as a teenager, from money and jobs through music and computer games to style, film, video and books. If you can’t wait until Christmas to find out more about LM, there’s a chance to attend an LM party in London next month — take a peek at the News Pages.

On the home front, the CRASH team has expanded, with the arrival of another staff writer, Tony Flanagan, and we’re eagerly awaiting Auntie Aggie’s departure so we can take over her room in CRASH Towers. There’s hardly enough room to swing a Comps Minion in the CRASH office nowadays!

It’s not just the CRASH team that’s expanded, either. The Art department has gained another couple of helpers, including Ian Craig — who was ON THE COVER in Issue 21. He’s going to be helping Oli with the illustration work on all the Newsfield magazines, and arrived just in time to plug in his airbrush and provide the artwork for our DYNAMITE DAN jukebox comp.

On the plus side, Gary Liddon now no longer eats massive meals in (and all over) the office: he’s scampered off to London with Flathead Andy (ex-Activision) to set up a software house by the name of Thalamus which is owned by Newsfield. Gary and Andy are currently sorting out their programme of releases, which will cover Spectrum, Commodore and Amstrad machines, and they’ve already got a couple of games in the bag. More news soon.

And we’ve had to go out and buy lots of extra teamugs — Mr Liddon was replaced by Richard “Dick” Eddy, a Cornish lad who is busily clotting the milk in the tea hut. (We don’t get cream!) Lee Paddon and Tony Clarke have also joined the AMTIX! crew, and poor old Malcolm Harding, AMTIX! Editor has hardly got room to park his bathchair...

All these new helpers should mean CRASH will get even better, and that’s no bad thing, I’m sure you’ll all agree.

NEW CRASH STAFFER

This month sees the arrival of another Staff Writer — Gorgeous Pouting I thought we’d had enough of this, thankyouverymuch. Oh alright then, Tony Flanagan has abandoned his job as a college lecturer to try his chances with the undisciplined CRASH crew, and being a sensible man has brought his very own tea mug with him all the way from Shifnal, another sleepy Shropshire town. He’s already zoomed up the motorway to Liverpool with Julian Rignall from ZZAP! and survived — see the Software Projects interview — so it looks like Tony is set to become The Bearded Man of Software Reviewing. Welcome Tony. We’ll all want our own monogrammed mugs now...

NEWS INPUT

£120 WORTH OF PCW SHOW TICKETS UP FOR GRABS

This year’s Popular Computer World Show is to be held at Olympia in London and runs from the 3rd to the 7th of September. (The first two days are for trade and business visitors only.) Widely regarded as THE event of the year for any one who has an inclination towards computers, the PCW show exhibitors include hundreds of companies who will be showing off their wares.

If you want a first hand preview of what will be coming out for the Spectrum over the autumn months, the PCW Show is vital visiting. Next month we should be bringing you a round-up of some of the goodies that are likely to be revealed for the first time at Olympia, and of course NEWSFIELD is taking a stand at the PCW Show — don’t forget to pay us a visit. We’ll be in the National Gallery on the first floor.

We’ve got 40 FREE PCW Show ticket packs, including the Official Show Guide, and they’re worth £3 each. If you fancy free admission to the Show of the year, jot the answer to this simple question on the back of a postcard or envelope and send it off to PCW TICKETS, CRASH TOWERS. We’ll be making the draw on August 20th to make sure the winners get their tickets on time, so get a move on.

There have been quite a few PCW Shows already: is the 1986 PCW Show the 7th, 8th, 9th or 10th?

LUDLOW MAGAZINE EMPIRE EXPANDS

Jo Quick was in such a hurry to tell people about the games DURELL are scheduled to release over the coming months that she sent out five press releases. One to CRASH, one to ZZAP!, one to Commodore User, one to Sinclair User and one to C&VG.

Realising that the centre of the Computer Magazine Publishing world is firmly placed in Ludlow. Jo sent them all to us at 1/2 King Street, as the picture shows... After Lloyd got over the shock of reading the press release five times, he managed to give the new DURELL games a mention in MERELY MANGRAM before sending the information winging off to the appropriate London offices. Nothing like hammering the message home, eh Jo?

GIRLIE TIPSTER GETS INTO TRAINING

LOLITA WREN puts Girlie Tipster HANNAH SMITH through her paces. Or was that the other way round? Hannah looks like an unarmed combat natural... Watch out Melissa!

... Meanwhile Hannah raises a glass of Perrier Water (in training you know, none of these Minsonesque excesses)

Thankyouverymuch, says Hannah, as she shakes the hand of Noel-Edmonds-Lookalike Manager Steve Clear for making it all possible. Steve’s quite happy to set up a ring and let Melissa and Hannah settle their differences...

Our very own Girlie Tipster (and star of this month’s cover), Hannah Smith, is certainly taking the challenge she issued to Melissa Ravenflame seriously. While Melissa hides behind her pseudonym down at C&VG, Hannah leaps into action, donning a MONTY ON THE RUN jogsuit and jumping at the chance to get some training in.

A little while ago, Worldwide Enterprises from Birmingham staged a wrestling tournament at the Ludlow nightclub, THE STARLINE. Spotting that a couple of lady wrestlers were on the program, and being a resourceful person, Hannah got in touch with the management and fixed up a training session with Lolita Loren, British Ladies Champion...

GENESIS BIRTH OF A GAME

Mark Strachan, resplendent in his bow tie, leafs through the astounding number of entries for GENESIS — BIRTH OF A GAME and looks suitably impressed

Mark Strachan (the MARK in DOMARK) wended his merry way up to Ludlow this month to show us Trivial Pursuits which is due out on the Spectrum in September. While he was here he had a quick riffle through the GENESIS — BIRTH OF A GAME competition entries. Here he is, snapped at the official Competition desk in CRASH TOWERS. As you can see from the photograph, Mark was clearly ‘amazed’ by the number and general standard of entries.

Don’t forget, the competition winner is likely to tread the path of fame and fortune... The winning entry will be selected very early in August by an impressive array of judges. The line-up consists of Dave Carlos of SOLUTION PR, Mark and Dominic from DOMARK, the team from DESIGN DESIGN, Graeme Kidd representing CRASH and Mel Croucher, who will act as independent judge.

Mel is rather pleased about this, because it means that DOMARK will finally have to cough up a bottle of champagne they’ve owed him for ages, for some reason so obscure that everyone has forgotten. Cheers Mel!

IN SEARCH OF A SQUARE MEAL

It is hot. The ice is gently crackling as it fights a losing battle to keep my Bloody Mary at a drinking temperature. If this continues I might just pack it in and fly off somewhere cool. A sea breeze on a Greek beach sounds a tempting alternative to the city heat.

Actually I may as well be anywhere else but here, sweating over a word processor, because the software industry has gone into summer recess. Nobody wants to launch anything, even if it means copious cold drinks, in this weather.

I’ve even been ticked off this month for constantly dwelling on the state of my stomach. The lovely Jeni Beattie, who handles PR for OCEAN, apparently took offence at my remarks about the scarcity of free lunches from the Mancunian moguls.

“Next time we have a new game we’ll just send him luncheon vouchers,” she told Graeme. Or a Fortnum’s hamper, Jeni... that would do nicely.

I have another follow up to the last column. Remember debonaire Andrew Wright, ACTIVISION press relations person and noted lobster hunter, whose photo featured among last issue’s ramblings? Well, no sooner had he appeared than his fate was sealed!

It isn’t so much that the blond bombshell is leaving the plush Hampstead headquarters of ACTIVISION. That’s just playing follow my leader as Greg Fischbach bails out for pastures new. Interestingly, I interviewed this extremely rich American yonks ago — he hung on longer than Andy, but even he couldn’t resist the Curse of Minson.

No, the true horror is not even his move to The People’s Republic of Islington but that (ha, ho ha...) he’s joining NEWSFIELD!

Yes, Andy is to head THALAMUS, the new software label, along with Gary Liddon, the only person I know who actually makes me shudder. Honestly, a half of Barbican and the Big L starts rolling around like a graduate of the Ollie Reed charm school.

Several examples of the Bodie and Doyle of bad behaviour’s boorishness were to be savoured at a recent party, thrown by the extremely charming assistant ed of a rival magazine (guessing who is quite a T’zer in itself!)

Myself, my attorney Tim, that well known man of medicine Dr. Laszlo Leys and his fiancee, Courtenay, were enjoying a quite drink when Wright took it upon himself to physically abuse me. Liddon stood by and laughed. Even the Kray Brothers were preferable to this sort of harassment.

Luckily it took mere words to set Andy to rights. Two words in fact, but I’m too much of a gentleman to mention her name in print. “’Ow did you know that?” asked the software industry’s answer to Jimmy Somerville. No, that’s unfair — Jimmy Somerville isn’t a silly enough question to deserve such an answer.

The Pearly Queen of Argus Press Software, Jane Smith. Would you send this woman a banana?

Well, Andrew, the Shadow Knows that and a lot more, and unlike ZZAP’S puny penumbra, the Shadow comes out after dark. This Shadow knows who you treated to two nights in one of Ludlow’s poshest hotels. But again I’m too much of a gentleman to say who... just that the room cost more than £1.99. Now ’ow did I know that?

Back to the clothes horse’s sidekick though — Superyob! Amongst this human garbage disposal’s feats is the small matter of the Apricot and chicken. Who else could possess the style and grace to cover the screen of somebody else’s ACT computer with the greasy debris of a Colonel Sanders?

The machine had to be stripped down and bathed to remove the Kentucky Fried felon’s remains. His behaviour at the party was so unwelcome that the hostess, sweet delicate thing that she is, retired to bed very early indeed.

Understandably Andy has been hired to present the public face of THALAMUS. The thought of Half Biscuit-Half Beast, who weighs in at 16 stone, I’m told (and though he’s over six feet tall manages to look much shorter) being the public face of anything is akin to an obscene Mount Rushmore monument in its magnitude.

Meanwhile in the world of software, strange things have been happening. The lovely Jane Smith of ARGUS recently received a banana through the post. So did several other gorgeous, pouting computer beauties. When somebody starts sending young women bananas, it’s time for some hardcore investigative journalism.

My first call was to my personal mole, the Elegant Baxter, who is no longer eligible, I’m quite happy to say. Michael is quite capable of making people go weak at the knees, though unluckily for him his suitors are not always one hundred per cent suited. He wasn’t the man behind these particular fruity doings though.

Next I phoned Jane to see if she’d sing. Well, the banana may have been yellow but she was no canary. I asked her if it was firm or squishy to the touch but she declined to comment. All she would say was that an instruction accompanied it, warning her to wait for the gorilla.

Eventually the gorilla arrived — or rather a photo of said simian did. And with it an explanation. It was all a publicity stunt by a PR agency, touting for business. Now I ask you — if you were Jane Smith, would you hire somebody who send you a banana to publicize your games?

Still, it brings us neatly back to where we started and my thought for the issue. In a month where there are no launches, even a Jiffy bag full of pulped banana would be welcome. So Jane, if you didn’t eat it, please forward before I starve.

Yours in fear and loathing,

Hunger S.Minson

The summer weather has certainly caught up with Ludlow — even with all the windows open, the office is like a sauna and one or two sets of knees (including Roger Kean’s) have recently been treated to the light of day, now that shorts have become acceptable dress in the Towers.

I sit here slaving over a hot Hermes, without the prospect of a cool canned drink to soothe me: members of the Ludlow Mafia have abandoned protection rackets (temporarily) in favour of self-preservation, and were spotted marching across the Bull Ring clutching the entire stock of iced pop held by the Ludlow Newsagents. Any sploshes or blodges found on these pages this month have nothing to do with Tony Lorton from Art — he’s sunning his knees on a week’s holiday — they all come from my own moist brow.

WINGE MOAN COMPLAIN

Dear Crash
Is it my imagination or are we all turning into moaners? People never seem to stop complaining about the price of this and ‘oh, what a waste of money that was.’ Is this what computers are doing to people? I do hope not. I am sure that people can put their moaning to more important use.

People moan about the price of software, but at the back of their mind most of them realise that it is their software piracy that has sent prices soaring. Yes, Mastertronic can survive and seem to go from strength to strength, but how could software houses like Ultimate ‘go budget’ when they are only producing about five games a year?

People moan about buying games that are either pathetic, too easy or too difficult. The pathetic games can’t be excused, although maybe Domark would disagree. I believe that the time will soon come when there is no longer any room for the software houses that constantly produce pathetic and much hyped software.

The difficulty of games is a difficult, much talked about and much moaned about subject. The problem is, how do you decide the difficulty level of a game when there are five million Spectrum owners with very much differing game playing ability?

The software houses moan about a slump in sales, but this is a trend which has spread as far as the record industry who are suffering from single sales hitting rock bottom and record companies placing adverts between tracks on albums; is the computer industry heading for this?

Anyway, I am enjoying my computing more than ever and that’s all that matters isn’t it?
John Pinkney

What a refreshing world-view you have, John. Here’s Twenty Pounds worth of software as author of Letter of the Month to help you continue enjoying computing.
LM

‘DISGUSTED’ Sudbury

Dear Lloyd
I have just been reading your letters and to tell you the truth I’m disgusted!!!!

If all people want to do is complain about your magazine why the bloody hell do they buy it!
Philip Green, Sudbury

There’s nothing wrong with constructive criticism when it is applied appropriately, like your comments Philip!
LM

MOANING MUMMY

Dear Lloyd
I am writing for your advice on a problem I have about when I go to buy games. When have enough money to buy a game I yell ‘Just goin’ to buy a game’ and my mum answers, ‘Oh! you’re not going to buy a GAME are you?’ Alarmed at this reply I say, ‘Yes, what’s wrong with that’. And then my mum comes up with the feeblest reason I’ve ever heard: ‘But, But, You’ve got games, why don’t you play with them’ And so this goes on, I’m just told that games are not worth the money (and some aren’t), and that I must put the money in the bank, but surely buying an odd game now and then won’t hurt, it’s not as if I’m always buying games, only when I see something that looks good (and I’ve played it to make sure it’s all right.) Then I’m told that I can’t buy the game, and that I should get something else. Have you got an answer on how I can explain my point of view, as all my previous attempts have failed. Thanks a lot.
Timothy Jones

Try putting it in terms of books, records or videos. Just because you’ve got a lot of books on the shelf doesn’t mean that you should keep reading them again and again. If all else falls, at the risk of being branded horrendously sexist, why not try playing dirty — remind your Mum that’s she’s got lots of clothes next time she complains about ‘having nothing to wear’ to a posh do... The next letter puts part of another side of a similar story.
LM

DISAPPOINTMENT

Dear Lloyd
This is my first letter and it is for a good reason. I recently subscribed to CRASH. Today I got issue 30, as soon as I got it through I dived to open it for my free game. I was surprised to see I had no game, the package had not been opened so it had not fallen out. Please could you tell me what has happened to my game which is Ghosts and Goblins.
Stephen McGinley

Sorry you were disappointed Stephen. Perhaps we should have made it a little clearer that tapes included in a subscription offer are sent under separate cover. The magazines are wrapped on special machines at our printers in Carlisle and put straight into the post. Auntie Aggie has to send games out in individually sealed Jiffy bags — and that takes a little longer. Judging by the next letter, it’s just as well she does....
LM

HUNTING MINSON

Dear Sir
The articles written by Hunter S Minson leave a lot to be desired. Over the last few issues he seems to have taken to emphasising his prowess for consuming alcohol and food in vast quantities rather than commenting on the subject he is sent to cover.

I am not a spoil-sport or even a teetotaller and as I am overweight I too enjoy food, but CRASH is a computer mag not a Gourmet’s guide to software launches. You do have some responsibility to your young readers. If they start to think that is normal business practice they are in for a sharp shock. No-one is going to stand for ‘vomiting on Volvos’. We have already a hooligan element in the inner cities, why condone it in print, if it is meant to be funny IT IS NOT.
J A Attwood

I don’t think Mr Minson is condoning the hooligan element — rather reporting on events in a journalistic style that evolved in America in the late sixties and early seventies — Gonzo Journalism — by which the writer took a very personalised, and often satirical view of events, distorting them in the course of reporting them. No one was ‘vomiting over Volvos’, any more than they were being encouraged to set off bombs in police stations by Jack the Nipper. How about some more views on Hunter S Minson’s column?
LM

PAGE THREE???

Dear CRASH
Please lend a serious and sympathetic ear to a group of female readers with a big query on — not sexual overtones this time — but something far more important — your magazine’s sexist attitudes!

Please bear with us — fans of CRASH we may be but we feel we have a genuine complaint which deserves your serious consideration. Our feelings on the subject have been brought to a head by (of all things) the advent in your May issue of a real live female STAFF WRITER — Hannah Smith!

You can’t imagine the furious arguments that have raged in our social circle since this amazing event took place.

Briefly, they amount to this. We girls are keen CRASH readers and enthusiastic Spectrum users though unlike so many of the boys of our acquaintance we don’t go ‘over the top’ about either. (We feel that like men, computers have their uses but shouldn’t be taken to extremes!) We’ve always been aware that women do not figure very noticeably in your mag. And we personally do not have any wild ambitions to figure in it ourselves (in spite of Lloyd Mangram’s appeal last month for more female slimesters! YUK!)

We know of the existence of Ms Rosetta McLeod as a ‘contributing writer’ — if she in fact exists!) but to see listed a female ‘Staff Writer’ sent CRASH up several points in our popularity polls.

However our delight was short-lived when various male friends pointed out that the aforesaid HS no doubt actually exists but not as a ‘Staff Writer’. They reckon she is in fact your answer to the popular press’s Page 3 girl and that some guy on your staff does her writing! They add — rubbing salt in the wound that she is probably somebody’s girlfriend or perhaps Graeme Kidd’s Grand-Daughter — and that she has been introduced as a kind of token ‘female’ into a male orientated magazine!

If this is so, then shame on you. We have to admit a sneaking fear that they may be right — after all, the little write-up on Ms Smith was decidedly patronizing wasn’t it? (Gorgeous, pouting etc etc) And what about Sean Masterson? Note his article on Lothlorien in the April issue — ‘While the men do battle, the women (secretaries?) keep the home fires burning’. That’s the idea Sean — keep the women in their rightful place — backing up the dynamic men!

Our spiteful little male friends are quite certain that you will prove them right by not publishing this letter. We are seriously hoping that the author of that lively fanzine article is a real live female writer — and if you’re really there Hannah (and the fellas allow you to have a look at this) — a big hello from some loyal fans! More power to your pen (or should it be your word processor!)
Helen Beckett, Sara Beckett, Lisette Menage, Liz Soanes, Sarah Gract, Becca Davies

Well you can give your spiteful little male friends a big nice pouting kiss — I published your letter. Consider Sean castigated (chauvinist strategenarian). Of course Hannah really exists, and really writes her column — unlike a certain ‘rival’ female Tipster. First me, then Rosetta, now Hannah — where will it all end?

Your spiteful friends are right on one respect only: by the law of averages (whatever THAT might be) Hannah probably is someone’s girlfriend, but that someone isn’t on the Newsfield staff, and isn’t known to All Seeing Lloyd.
LM

PAGE THREE!!!

Dear Lloyd
If your mind is made up yet about having a ‘ladies page’ then why not ask the lasses to send in photos and make it a Page 3 special (If this is printed I shudder to think of the kind of ‘nice’ letters you’d receive. Unless you give my address)!

Next the ‘neat’ way Oli revamped this section. But is it obligatory to have grey splatters in the middle part (or any other part) of a letter (or even a rare poem)? Can’t Oli get his brother Franco to look at his Air brush?
Simon P Broder

No wonder you see spots before your eyes Simon. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the palms of your hands were hairy too!
LM

BEDEVILLED BY TEMPTATION

Dear Lloyd
I want to ask you a big favour. Please could you get the subscriptions department to redesign the plastic envelopes which carry issues of CRASH through the post to subscribers?

You see, I’m a postman, and around the 20th of the month one of the houses on my round receives an issue of CRASH by subscription, six or seven days before I have got mine. So far, I have resisted the temptation to open the envelope up and pore over CRASH’S wonderful contents, but this act of denial cannot continue for much longer as my will-power is rapidly diminishing.

Therefore either ask the ‘subs Dept’ to make the plastic folder open at one end or make the envelope a plain brown one so the temptation to open is kept to a minimum.
Yours Truly, The postman off the Maxwell House Advert

Plain Brown Envelopes indeed! Whatever would people think. Keep resisting the temptation postie — if you are a subscriber, try asking your colleagues to help you out by ensuring your personal copy arrives as promptly as possible.
LM

ARROGANT ADVICE?

Dear Mr Mangram
I can’t understand the whinging schoolkids who say they can’t afford all the CRASH Smashes each month, and therefore have to copy other people’s tapes to play the games. Well if they save up and buy one CRASH Smash, by the time they have completed the game they will have saved enough to buy another one. There is no use stock-piling all the CRASH Smashes because if a game gets a Smash it is most likely a brilliant game that will get you hooked, so you won’t have time to play any others.

As a working person, I could afford every CRASH Smash every month but I don’t buy every one as playing every one of them to their full potential would be impossible. So stop moaning and start playing the games for what they are worth, you don’t win prestige points for owning every CRASH Smash, with every one pirated.
Andi ‘The Arrogant’ Kirbyshaw

Moderation in all things, is what my mother always used to tell me. Moderation in most things (except pay rises) is what I believe in....
LM

A πMANIAC WRITES

Dear Cwashy
If you start giving Smashes to games that are innovative, and to them only, I will make you play THE GREAT SPACE RACE! That would be a bloody stupid thing to do (the Smashes, stoopid), because innovative games can be SO unplayable (Hi MEL), and computers are there for enjoyment, not farting around saying how good innovative games are. I have met, and had numerous conversations with Mel Croucher, and he strikes me as very intelligent, so Mel don’t waste it building up enemies. (I am still a devoted PIMANIAC, my number is 35. Maybe us PIMANIACs should meet at a Microfair).

I have noticed a few things about games ads. Smaller, independent companies (Gargoyle, Mosaic, Automata) have better ads. They are funny, can give clues or are plain entertaining. But ads by Ocean, Elite et al are dead boring, often badly drawn (Legend of the amazingly Badly Drawn Women) and are generally useless, except Mikro-Gen (HI OLI!). this is another sign of how much ‘nicer’ indie companies are. I recently led, sorry, read a letter in PCW (I think) about someone who couldn’t get his chewed up copy of Golf (by Argus Press Software) replaced. I had a similar problem of Technician Ted being chewed up, but it got replaced for no fee or problems, with a friendly reply from the Hewsons, so that shows how more pleasant these companies are (and it shows in their games).

DOGS (dogs?). Why are doggies being used in games and ads now. The first was PIDO, but there’s now PODDY, the OFFOG, the Pyracurse doggy and BONZO, from Jack the Nipper. And of course doggies in Trashman and Saboteur. Why? When will there be the first doggy hero?
Luv Bones, (Fellow Pimaniacs please write)

No wonder you’ve got a Fido Fixation with a name like that. DOGGY HEROES? Well, there’s an idea. Games with bite. Perhaps the Lassie licence is yet to be snapped up? Would a dog licence be the result?
LM

TAKEBACK PROBLEMS

Dear Lloyd
HELP! Do you know, by any chance, the address of CRL or SILVERSOFT? I’d like to send them my copy of Bored of the Rings, as it doesn’t load. But the ads don’t carry the address; the inlay card doesn’t help, either. Any clues, please?

Do you think you could ask the Ed (blessed be his name etc) to INSIST that all companies put an address on their ads? It’s a bit stupid of them to leave it off — it doesn’t take up that much space, and it IS essential. If your local computer store doesn’t stock the game, you can’t buy it! Really sensible, eh? (OK, forgot CRASH Mail Order, but you wouldn’t replace my copy, would you? I didn’t get it from you!)
Yours pseudomorphically (LMLWD), John Yeates

Sounds like another knock-on effect of piracy. The Sale of Goods Act quite clearly states that goods should be fit for the purpose for which they were sold, and if loading into a computer and playing is what a computer game is sold for, then you should be able to obtain a refund or working replacement from the shop after two days has elapsed.

Sadly, some people have no doubt been treating some retailers as libraries and copying software then deliberately damaging tapes so that they won’t load. The ‘returns’ procedure by which retailers send faulty tapes back and receive credit from the distributor, rather than the software company also complicates the retailer’s life.

Thus more and more shopkeepers are insisting that non-loading tapes be returned to the manufacturers for examination before parting with cash or alternative titles by way of replacement. It might be worth nagging the shop a little more, or maybe taking your Spectrum and tape recorder in with you...
LM

The Valente Papers

1

Dear Lloyd
I feel I must reply to a couple of points raised in S Valente’s letter (Issue No 30). He said that Ultimate has ‘gone to the dogs’ so to speak, and that their latest releases have been a load of crap. This is a very unfair statement, although I must agree that Nightshade was not up to Ultimate’s standard. BUT how can they get away with saying that Gunfright is a load of rubbish too? I think that Gunfright is one of Ultimate’s best and I think that a quick glance through the back copies of CRASH Hotline Top 30 says the lot. Also, who would be foolish enough to pay the least bit of attention to a second rate mag like PCW (sorry LM!) that said that Cyberun was also very poor.

Cyberun in my humble opinion is sheer brilliance, so is Pentagram and I think you will agree with me too, right LM? So before S Valente or anyone else starts slagging Ultimate off, I suggest that they play the games first and then form their own views (But that would be asking too much of you Mr Valente, wouldn’t it?)

I’ve got one more gripe to make, and it’s on CRASH (gosh horror!!). Yes, I mean Hunter S Minson. Who is this stupid little prat? I think his ‘fantasy’ stories on orgies of gutsing and boozing are very boring to say the least. Personally I don’t care if he had a chip buttie or chicken in soya sauce. What he writes (?) is a load of irrelevant tripe, and he can try and rip out my liver if he wants to as well. But I digress. Please LM you complain about lack of space, why not get rid of him and use the page for something ‘a little more constructive’. Blackmail Mr Kidd by hiding his Docs or something but get rid of Minson!!!!

Well I’ve said enough! I hope your runner beans are coming along well and I wish Hannah Smith the best of luck in her ‘Duel to the Death’.
Mr C H Evans

In reverse order: For some reason, they seem a little reluctant to flourish this year, but thank you for your kind interest; removing Mr Kidd’s Docs is not something to be taken lightly, his feet have a lot in common with Tom Thug’s pedal extremities; the Ultimate question seems to have no ultimate answer.
LM

2

Dear Lloyd
I have decided to write (well I typed actually) to you on the subject raised by S Valente in the JULY issue of CRASH. He says that he thinks that reviewing poor games is just a waste of time and space and if they must be reviewed at all it must very briefly. But on the contrary, I feel you should review them. Not just to show readers some of the poor games out at the moment so as to maintain a balance between good and poor games, but so as to keep readers aware to the fact that there is some real rubbish out there and they must steer well away from it. Besides, I find it quite amusing to sit back and read about some pathetic new game getting totally slagged from all quarters. Maybe that doesn’t say much for me but if Software companies are going to turn out this load of complete and utter MUCK then you as decent and fair reviewers have every right to give it a good going over. And it is only fair that us sitting at home should be warned not to buy the rubbish.

Take US Gold for example. They did exceedingly well. They produced game after game, every one of them excellent and of the highest standards. BUT then in March they released the long awaited Zorro. You reviewed it that month and gave it an overall 53%. A bit of a let down for US Gold. Then in the July edition of CRASH I noticed a review of the infamous World Cup Carnival. 26% it said at the foot of the page. I read the review and nearly passed out when I discovered it was by US Gold.

Now, had CRASH not reviewed these games and thus not informed the every day peasant of the disgusting quality of these games many people may have rushed out thinking: “US Gold have released the long awaited Zorro. Must buy it...” £8 down the drain THEN:

“US Gold have released World Cup Carnival... Must buy that too because US Gold write excellent programs...” £10 down the same drain... (with the game following close behind). Only people who don’t buy CRASH would have bought those games and THEY deserve all they get. (HAH!!!)

So what I am saying is you must keep printing the BAD! games so’s we know what NOT to buy. Like I always say ‘FOREWARNED IS FORARMED’ (or summink like that.)
Jan Cook

Just because a company releases a bad game or maybe two bad games in a row, doesn’t mean all their releases are going to be bad. The converse is also true — which is why we will continue reviewing bad games in with the good. Buying games on the strength of a company’s past reputation is not always a sound policy, as you so clearly illustrate Jan. Reading reviews, or at the very least getting a demo of a game from the shop (or asking a friend) is always the soundest policy before parting with that hard-earned commodity, money.
LM

3

Dear Lloyd
I am writing to you with regard to S Valente’s letter published in Issue no 30’s FORUM. Mega-drivel are the only words fit to describe it. He/She or IT whichever the case may be, has not only wasted the ink in IT’s pen, but the space in your previously un-scathed forum, and the time of many readers.

The first point made concerned software delays. I suppose any future software published by S Valente would arrive dead on schedule without any hiccoughs. Unforseen circumstances do have a tendency to crop up occasionally you know, like Bugs in the program, illnesses, favourite Grandma’s funeral. They are bound to upset even the strictest schedules.

Point 2: Subscription delays. More unforseen circumstances and more S, H, one, T from S Valente, the reader with the IQ smaller than the Valente shoe size. Distributing thousands upon millions of magazines each month can’t be the easiest job in the world. Snags, again, will occur: this cannot be helped. Subscribers such as myself just have to accept it. If their magazine is late, fair enough, it’s not as if it’s a deliberate mistake. After all nobody’s perfect, least of all S Valente.

Point 3: Ultimate’s downfall. More mega-drivel. I wish S Valente would suffer a downfall, preferably off a short cliff. To me, Ultimate are the world’s top software producers. If their programmers are prepared to spend months polishing a game up to the extent they do, then surely they are entitled to reuse an idea. If S Valente dislikes any Ultimate software I will be only too pleased to receive it, as being unfortunate enough not to own a Swiss bank account, the miserly income at my disposal means I can ill afford to purchase more than one game every two months.

Where would us games players be without Ultimate? No Gunfrights Alien 8s or Sabre Wulfs to mention a few; life just wouldn’t be worth living. I can’t think of one Ultimate game reviewed in CRASH which has failed to receive a Smash.

Point 4: Fair enough my tape recorder’s hardly technologically advanced (Taiwan-ologically advanced is nearer) but all the same I do have problems with turbo loaders. I manage though mainly by exchanging the game for a new copy (thanks Micro-Fun in Barnsley for being so co-operative over this.) As for removing the Lenslok code... pah! Now that is ‘pure unadulterated crap’ for you. The percentage of people who can do this must be microscopic (a good word for describing S Valente’s brain capacity). In fact if prices weren’t so high, piracy levels would also fall which brings me to the next point.

Point 5: Discount software. This is the only point I agree with but then again, what’s wrong with cheap software?

Point 6: Reviews. If it weren’t for CRASH reviewing ‘dross games’ then there would be a sight more divvies buying them. I unfortunately am one such divvy but after purchasing several trash games, the ones CRASH don’t give a good review don’t get bought (or pirated for that matter.) Another thing, not many programmers are so talented that they can release their first game and then have the privilege of sitting back, watching it climb the charts whilst reaping in the royalties. Remember, no-one’s perfect and everyone has to start somewhere. You never know, one of next month’s CRASH Smashes may have been written by the author of one of last months ‘dross games’. Keep it up CRASH, and Ultimate. 10 out of 10 so far, with or without subscription delays.
Jonathan Dale

Such vitriol! S Valente might have very large feet, for all you know Jonathan...
LM

GIRLIE TAKEOVER?

Dear Lloyd
I feel I must warn you that CRASH is being taken over by women. There are at least four female members of staff named in the magazine and God knows how many more there are lurking in the canteen at Newsfield waiting to overpower you and turn CRASH into another woman’s monthly full of knitting patterns and recipes.

I only hope this warning does not come too late as I observe that already Robin Candy’s position has been taken over by a woman who insists on printing POKEs to make games harder, I suggest you take my advice and confine the female members of your staff to making the tea and pushing the hoover around, which is after all what they’re here for isn’t it? And meanwhile us men can get on with the more intellectually demanding business of playing the computer games and writing magazines.
Mr P Schofield

Don’t ‘us men’ me, Mr Schofield. All Mr Liddon was here for was making tea and pushing the hoover round, so some people believed, and he achieved a great deal more, going onto be half a software house. I really can’t see people like you are here for, Mr S, unless it’s to learn how to spell words like ‘intellectually’ before using them. I am very tempted to pass your address onto the next correspondents...
LM

MESS OF POTTAGE

Dear Lloyd
I just thought I would make my opinion known about the layout of CRASH. In reply to Douglas Robertson’s letter in July’s issue of CRASH, I totally disagree with him, all reviews should be like the Smashes: colourful and very nice to look at, even if the review itself is not that kind. Strangely, I find that I feel that it is my duty to read all of your wonderful magazine, even to plough through the boring 10% overall reviews. The least CRASH can do is make them look nice.

I’d like to say a few things about the divisions of CRASH into sections eg CRASH Course, Adventure Trail, etc. BORING! Why don’t you just spread these sections throughout the magazine as you do with the arcade and arcade/adventure reviews. All you need to do is state what type of game it is at the top of the page.

Many improvement have recently been made to CRASH: On the Screen and the Homegrown Software section — I will be sending off for my copy of Supernova. Hannah Smith has added a touch of class to the Playing Tips section and she also looks much more attractive than Robin Candy.

The ‘GENESIS, Birth of a Game’ competition is the best compethion idea I have seen yet, which provides both fame and fortune to the lucky (and talented) entrant. But what a stupid time at year to have it, just in the middle of the exam season, I personally have had a brilliant and original idea for a game but have not had time to develop it. And I have only had end-of-year exams. I feel sorry for the CSE/O level and A level takers who probably could have thought of a better idea than mine.
Robin Grant

The people up in ART are always trying to dream up new ways of making CRASH more attractive, but the physical limitations on the printing in combination with our printer’s deadlines mean that all the pages can’t be as colourful as the Smashes.

Designing a magazine is rather like serving a meal — admittedly some people like a straightforward stew, or Mess of Pottage, but most folks like their greens on one part of the plate, the mash on another and the meat kept separate with a generous dose of tasty gravy poured over the lot. The Art Room tries to add the gravy and we keep the sections separate to make readers’ lives easier. Vegetarians find it difficult to eat Irish Stew, but can avoid the meat in Meat and Two Veg...
LM

CONSISTENCY COMPLAINT

Dear Lloyd
Stand back and prepare for a barrage of criticism. One of the problems with CRASH at the moment is inconsistency (mind you, you are pretty consistent in ignoring all my letters). It seems that you are not sure what type of audience to aim at (compare John Minson’s decidedly ‘adult’ style with the overtly childish Bug Box — has it gone for good? — Hall of Slime, LMLWD and now the MYSTICAL SUBSCRIBER NUMBER), and end up with at times a rather pathetic mish-mash. This is also reflected in the FORUM which, as you yourself have acknowledged, occasionally degenerates into infantile triviality. I am not about to cancel my subscription or anything like that, because although the bad bits can be embarrassingly bad, the many more good bits can be exceedingly good. However I do feel it’s time you opted for consistency and so I urge you to drop the puerile facets of CRASH; after all the average CRASH reader is a mature teenager. I know the computing industry is fairly light hearted, but it is possible to be witty or entertaining without being childish.
S G Young

It all goes to show that you can’t hope to please all of the people all of the time, and that playing with ‘averages’ leads to woolly thinking. There are three kinds of average for a start: Mean, Mode and Median, all usually quite different. Thus we have three types of ‘average’ CRASH reader.

What is ‘puerile’ or ‘childish’ to one reader may well be regarded as the best bit of the magazine to another, and the CRASH readership isn’t as easily quantifiable is you might like it to be. The World Cup Carnival or Great Space Race debates are the kind of debates that generate ‘consistent’ or one-sided responses, but look at the diversity of opinion on Ultimate games for instance. Try not to get embarrassed just because everyone else isn’t as ‘grown up’ as you!
LM

INS AND OUTS IN AGAIN?

Dear Lloyd

IN

OUT

- Ghosts and Goblins

- Shaded Alien 8 clones

- Hannah Smith

- Jack the Nipper

- Starstrike 2

- Previews

- World Cup Carnival

- Diego Maradona

- Summer

- Cruz’s Boxing

- Alan Sugar

- Oliver Frey’s Ear

- Batman

- 128K Spectrum

- Streethawk 2

- Bounder

- Bangles

- Bambi

- Match Point

- Match Day

- Deuce

- Rock ’N Wrestle

- Alien 8 clones

- Matthew Smith

- Herbert Week

- Space Raiders

- Reviews

- World Cup Soccer

- Elite’s Basketball

- Spring

- McGuigan’s Boxing

- Robin Candy

- Van Gogh’s Ear

- Robin O’ The Wood

- ZX81

- Streethawk 1

- Bounces

- Biggles

- Rambo First Blood Part II

- Match Day

- Match Point

- Cherry Coke

SLOBBER DROOL

Dear Lloyd
Please stop dribbling on the FORUM pages, Issue No. 29.
Yours soaked, Robert Phelyes

Sorry. I was anticipating a pay rise (more fool me!) Actually the dribbles really belong to Tony Lorton in art, he just don’t know what to do when a paint pot gets knocked over.
LM

CATCH 128?

Dear Lloyd
You asked 128 owners to write in with their side of the story so here I am. First I’d like to say that the 128 is an excellent computer despite the 15% of 48K games that don’t load. The music is brilliant and the games are longer because of the extra memory. Knight Tyme is a good example of a great 128 game. But people have been writing in and saying that if the software companies don’t make enough games then they won’t buy the computer. The software companies say that they are waiting for 128 sales to go up before they start making any decent games. This is a Catch 22 situation.

However, if more people bought the computer the software companies would make more games and everyone would be happy. Also seeing as the 128 Spectrum’s price is down to £139 it isn’t far off the old 48K’s original price. And look how many people afforded to buy that? In my opinion, the 48K has reached its technical peak. The 128 leaves room for improvement. Look at it this way. If the 128 does as well as the 48K, CRASH will keep going for many more years to come.
Derin Agilgat

No doubt the 128K Spectrum will catch on and sell in large quantities once it has been relaunched in time for Christmas. It seems certain the revamped version will have a cassette recorder on board, and may well include joystick ports — maybe all will be revealed at the PCW Show in September. Whatever happens, though, it’s fairly certain that there’s unlikely to be a shortage of new 48K games for a long time yet.
LM

That just about wraps it up for another month (PHEW!), and I’m off to find a cool patch of shade in the garden to recuperate from the broiling I’ve received sorting out this month’s FORUM. Send your letters (and iced cans of pop) to LLOYD MANGRAM’S FORUM, CRASH.

BRENDON takes a look at an old favourite this month, STARGLOBE...

STARGLOBE

StarGlobe is a game of three dimensional space exploration. The player is the captain of a Mondian starship under orders from the Lord of Monde to explore the Starglobe (a globular cluster of 2000 stars — MONDE being the central star). The player must also try to establish a communications base at the rim — the radius of the starglobe is 50 lightyears. This is the player’s Prime Directive. He can, however, play the game in any of a number of roles which do not directly involve the Prime Directive.

THE MERCHANT is a sly, peaceful player who buys and sells whatever he can get his hands on; the PIRATE is a belligerent character who takes pleasure in harassing the other players and plotting against the Lord Of Monde: the XENOBIOLOGIST seeks out alien life and alien artefacts; the BOUNTY HUNTER is an evil ‘goody’ who destroys pirates for payment; the EMPIRE BUILDER establishes an empire of stars and colonises as many suitable worlds as possible, using their productive output to build various devices of his own design... and so on.

Starglobe is an open-ended game which can accommodate about 100 players of various strengths and skills. The starglobe is so vast that you can easily hide yourself away if you wish, whilst player interaction is still available to those who want to trade, fight, or whatever. It is a very realistic game — I could go as far as to say that it is more a simulation of interstellar travel than a game! Ken and Carol Mulholland (who meekly claim responsibility tor this game) have not only created a relativistic universe, they have also given it 5,000 years worth of history. The printouts are quite impressive, often being over 6ft long!

THE TELEPATH

Starglobe Is one of my favourite games, and it has built up quite a following among PBMers worldwide. As a result of this popularity I launched a Starglobe fanzine in 1985 called THE TELEPATH. THE TELEPATH (fondly known as TT) contains helpful articles on playing the game, as well as general PBM chat, interplayer messages and a considerable slice of humour. Currently into its tenth issue, TT has built up a loyal readership and is now considered by TIME PATTERNS as an influential part of the game! THE TELEPATH is sold to players at cost price and is distributed by TIME PATTERNS — if you join the game. I recommend TT very highly (no bias here, you understand).

CONCLUSION

Starglobe is a very interesting and enthralling game — the only limit to what you can do is your imagination. You have an orbital factory on board your starship with which you can build almost anything that is physically possible, such as advanced weapons systems or goods useful in trading. Great fun.

It is a game well worth trying, although perhaps a touch overpriced at £1.90 per turn. The GMs are generally friendly and the software more or less reliable (bugs have been known to cause problems but since there is over 7MB of program data, this is hardly surprising.)

StarGlobe Four is due to be launched in September, so if you would like an early launch you can post a £2 cheque/postal order to TIME PATTERNS and they will place you on the waiting list and get in touch during early September. The £2 covers your startup and first printout. Have fun if you join! Starglobe diplomatic relationships can get pretty confusing...

OF SUN, FUN AND PEBBLES IN THE SKY

Huh! Well into the summer season and all I’ve managed to do is sunburn both shoulders and one half of my face. Typical. I go through the same pointless charade every summer (well, every summer the sun shines) but never has it been worthwhile. Maybe I ought to go back to wearing clothes pegs. Graeme only thinks it’s stupid because he can’t figure out why I wear them. Still, the hot days have forced me to many a pub to avoid dehydration where many pints of cider have been consumed in thirst quenching ecstacy.

Apart from quaffing the ale and becoming a part time culture vulture during the Ludlow Festival, I’ve had more time to delve into arcane tomes on role playing and have whetted my appetite for the autumn to come. If and when Games Workshop get their Convention schedule sorted out properly, I will go along and join in the festivities. If you have never visited such conventions, I can only suggest you keep a look out for the upcoming events and drag yourself along. Assuming there’s a bar, I’ll let you buy me a pint. If there aren’t any bars, I’ll take you to a pub and then you can buy me a pint. In return I’ll listen to your abuse. An offer you can’t refuse.

Meanwhile... Game Designers’ Workshop, the American company responsible for Traveller has altered its quarterly Journal of the Traveller’s Aid Society to standard magazine format, widened the subject matter and renamed it Challenge, now available at all good games shops at a ridiculously inflated price. However, they’ve started a regular page devoted to program listings for referee’s aids. They are actually written with Apple users in mind but would not need much alteration to run on a Spectrum. It is worth taking a look at if you use your trusty black box for such things.

One other thing. As this issue goes on sale, hope for clear nights. There’s a meteor shower known as the Perseids which should peak around this time. Well, it’s something to watch while you lie on your back in the garden cooling the suntan in the evening breezes.

Good deeds over. Let’s get on with the reviews...

REBELSTAR

Firebird, £1.99

Inside the moonbase, two androids on the lower part of the screen move to attack the raiders. The hollow square on the left of the viewscreen is the cursor — it’s the start of a turn, and no selections have been made

After recently looking at the old Red Shift game, Rebelstar Raiders and getting a lot of response, I was pleased to receive this release from Firebird. Called Rebelstar, it is actually written by the author of that early classic but has been much improved. For the price, this has to be the best strategy game I’ve reviewed in ten months of writing FRONTLINE.

One and Two player versions of the game are provided, each loaded as a separate game from a different side of the cassette. There is only one scenario, but this is larger than any of those in its predecessor. It involves a group of raiders trying to break into an enemy complex and disable the main computer. Player(s) controls individual characters or robots which are each allocated a certain number of action points. The members of a player’s team are ordered individually with different actions costing varying numbers of points. Each team member may carry out as many actions as required in a single move, as long as the point allowance for that character is not exceeded for that move.

Each character carries a weapon of some description and a quota of ammunition and may also carry several other items found on the route to the central computer. Only one item may be used at any time and it costs Action Points to change from one item to another.

The screen scrolls in four directions following the trail of the cursor used to order team members. To the right of the main action area, an information display lists the options available and any information about the figure currently highlighted by the cursor.

Play consists of turns during which a player moves and orders all forces under his or her control. Movement for characters is eight directional and orders consist of M (drop object), P (pick up object), O (change object in use), L (load object) and F (enter fire mode). Movement is achieved by selecting a unit and moving it under the cursor. When fire mode is entered, some map detail disappears, combatants become coloured spheres and the cursor changes into a sight. This sight is positioned in the desired target area and when confirmed, an energy beam is displayed along with a message detailing the accuracy of the pulse. There are three different kinds of shot: an aimed shot costs the most points but is most likely to succeed; a snap shot is less accurate but costs fewer points to perform; finally, a player may select opportunity fire to cover a particular area. Opportunity Fire only executes a shot when an enemy crosses the line of fire during his turn, in which case a snapshot is fired at him.

Shots may damage, wound or kill, scoring a random number of points determined by the power of the weapon. Generally, the more powerful the weapon a character possesses, the less ammunition is available. If a character is wounded in combat, a message to this effect appears next time that character is selected. Wounding reduces the constitution of a character — second wound kills. Killed characters are removed from play, but droids that have been knocked out leave wreckage which causes a blockage.

As the complex is entered and explored, various objects may become available to the players. Keys can be used to lock or unlock security doors (the key to the armoury is particularly useful). Medi-probes can be used to heal wounded characters, and Droid-probes repair droids. Using an object is achieved by bumping into the required target.

In the one player game, you may only take the part of the raiders but this apparent limitation is offset by the fact that the computer opponent is a highly competent adversary. It deploys the delending droids cleverly and uses them ruthlessly in its attempt to thwart your mission. However, as there are eight difficulty settings, you can temper this efficiency somewhat.

The game is superbly error trapped and many of the warning messages relate to specific actions to avoid ambiguity. The map is clean and well drawn but packed with detail and every item is properly labelled. Character graphics are quite good with different weapons altering the look of the troopers (all of whom are named). Even the sound effects are reasonable. Weapon skills, stamina and morale are taken into acount on an individual level and atmosphere and variety included in each event. Each character also has an assigned percentage chance of hitting a target listed.

I would have expected a game of such quality to appear at a much higher price, and take my hat off to Firebird for introducing this much improved version of an old favourite back onto the market at a reasonable price. I can find no fault with it.

Presentation 88%
The presentation on screen is spotless. If Firebird had taken more care with the instruction inlay, it could have been better

Rules 90%
Simple to pick up, but deviously devised

Playability 92%
You can almost play as soon as you load. The game runs at a fast pace from start to finish

Graphics 90%
Colourful, clear, detailed... what more can you ask?

Authenticity 91%
The Action Point system works excellently. It is however, very similar to that used by GDW in their game Snapshot. Come to think of it, there are a lot of similarities...

Opponent 91%
You will hate it once on the higher skill levels

Value for money 95%
Unbeatable

Overall 93%
No longer need you lament for Red Shift. This classic game is up for grabs now. I can only suggest you scamper off and get a copy

SWORD AND SHIELD

Producer: Black Knight Computers Ltd
Price: £5.95

Sword and Shield is a mediaeval strategy game concocted by the same team that brought you Seventh Cavalry. A king of somewhere lost in the mists of time has allocated control of one of his territories to you. Your orders are to make 1000 groats (local currency) from development of the crop farms. However, there are more than natural disasters to contend with. Invading knights and their infantry can cause trouble and rebellious farmers, known as the masked men, are set on making your life impossible.

A number of parameters end the game should they be exceeded. If you ever have less than thirty crops, or your own contingent of knights becomes exhausted or you take over 200 years to reach the objective, the game ends in defeat. The only way to win is to amass the groats and avoid any of the above.

The game turns are one year long, and the player can order forces to keep the enemy at bay, send knights out to look for treasure in neighbouring castles and set the tax rate. The player can select a short or full length game and the facility to load and save unfinished ventures has been thoughtfully included.

The game isn’t a purely historical saga however. Black Knight have gone down the fantasy road by populating the wilds with up to four rather unfriendly dragons. These dragons have an inverted hibernation habit in that they only appear in the winter (though they remain in play unless dealt with). They are also the strongest of the player’s possible adversaries.

Knights are a major asset — they are strong and fast, adaptable, and can conscript peasants to create infantry. At the end of the year, when treasure chests appear (for some strange reason), only the knights can venture to get them. Movement and orders for knights and others are carried out with a cursor (known as your ‘shadow’) and eight directional scrolling of the landscape can also be achieved with this.

At the end of the year three summary screens appear. The first is the obligatory SAVE option. The second tells you the current tax rate, the quantity of crops grown during the year, how much income has been made and the balance in your treasury. The final screen displays the number of knights, farms and infantry you have with another reminder of your balance. At convenient points in this sequence are the options to change the tax rate (arbitrarily set at 20% at the start of the game) and purchase new knights, infantry and farms. Play then continues to the next year.

Play is simple and straightforward. There’s no obvious flaw in the game it’s just that there isn’t enough game there. The trouble with products like this is that they are immensely difficult to get anywhere with until the correct balance is found. After that, all the challenge disappears. Enter yawn mode.

If there was something of interest to look at on the screen, it might have been more bearable. As it stands, the visual aspects of the game are bland and unimaginative, with smooth scrolling being the only saving grace. The price adds insult to injury. It costs at least two pounds more than it’s worth. The company probably don’t have the resources to bring the game out more cheaply, but they should have gone for an improved product to justify their pricing. They stand to gain little from overpriced mediocrity.

If you’re really stuck for a new strategy game, then this one will provide a challenge for a while. But play becomes as predictable and hackneyed as the plot itself before long. The game is a throwback to the days when strategists couldn’t afford to be choosy. Nowadays we can, of course, and I suggest you choose to leave this one alone.

Presentation

39%
Passable title screen.

Rules

40%
Not bad — what there is of them.

Playability

45%
Easy to play if you can take the monotony.

Graphics

33%
Good scrolling but little else to catch the eye.

Authenticity

10%
I don’t think this game is true to anything — itself included.

Opponent

37%
Difficult to beat at first.

Value For Money

36%
Two years ago this might just have been reasonable, but not nowadays.

Overall

35%
Very mediocre.

CHICKENS AND EGGHEADS

he 128K Spectrum has been around now for some time, and apart from some early commissioned software, and the exemplary efforts of Mastertronic, every software house old enough to remember computers like the Oric, Enterprise, and Memotech is saving its efforts until the 128 has a proven sales record.

Admittedly, there have been question marks over the computer’s future since the takeover by Alan Sugar, everyone knows that it may take some time to produce a successor, and that when it arrives it will no doubt be fully compatible with the 128. May I just put forward the argument that if the successor is not compatible then this is a matter for Alan Sugar to worry about and not any potential 128 purchaser.

There has been much advice on this issue in magazines and the general consensus is that the public should wait and see. All I can say is heaven knows what would have happened to the Sinclair phenomenon if such advice was offered in 1982 amid rumours of the 48K’s unreliability. Presumably, everyone would have ended up with Atari microcomputers which were (and still are) superb value for money, and the home software industry might never have gained the poise and standing it has now earned for itself.

Alan Sugar is caught in a marketing quandary over the positions of his Amstrad and Spectrum concerns. He claims far too much for the likes of the CPC 464 and its derivatives and is too dismissive of the huge Spectrum games world he has inherited. I suggest the potential micro purchaser keeps well clear of such political manoeuverings and simply goes out and buys the microcomputer which offers the best software backup at the most competitive price. If this be the 128 Spectrum then so be it. Sold in sufficient numbers, the 128 will ensure both software support in the near future, and hardware compatibility in the longer term — no matter who provides them.

SOMETHING TO CROW ABOUT?

Adventuring began with the mainframe Colossal Cavern and due to the inherent limitations of mainframes, text without pictures was the order of the day. Along came the ZX Spectrum in 1982 and, although many adventures remained text-only, mimicking the original, the first faltering steps were taken towards full-blown illustrations with the likes of The Hobbit and Fantasia Diamond.

Some time later, graphics (as pictures on computers are invariably called) became quite sophisticated, and respectable even, as some specialist graphic computer artists got to grips with the Spectrum, most notably Banner of Interceptor (Jewels of Babylon, Warlord) and Teoman Irmak of the old Adventure International (Gremlins, Touchstones of Rhiannon). Now, you might think it a little hypocritical to mention these games. After all, when they were released I refused to be swayed simply by their graphics but instead reviewed the adventure as a whole — remember this was when Level 9 were releasing games with simple graphic styles but immense intricacies of plot and composition, and games as good and innovative as Sherlock and Lords of Midnight were about. The reason why good graphics could not co-exist with complexity of gameplay was simply the restriction on memory. Surely now with 128K, adventures can combine the two and produce something worth crowing about.

BRIAN THE BOLD

Producer: Central Solutions
Author: Edward Beck
Price: £0.99

It is the tenth year in the reign of Good King Frederick. No more do the people enjoy a happy existence. The last few months have been a misery for each and every person of the realm. Everyone is miserable because King Frederick’s beautiful daughter, Princess Leanora has been kidnapped. It is thought Bragen, an evil warlock, was behind this wrongdoing and it is said the daughter is held captive in the Black Tower. Several of the king’s champion knights have failed in their quest to rescue the princess and now there is a reward for anyone who succeeds.

You are Brian, a peasant boy with very little knowledge but a great imagination. You have often dreamt of daring escapades in which you achieve great wealth. Secretly, you leave home and travel to the king’s castle. The result is not altogether surprising — you are not permitted to enter the hallowed cloisters of the sovereign’s castle. When you tell the guards of your intention to rescue the princess they smile and tell you to go home before you get hurt. Maybe they are right, but standing dumbstruck outside the imposing castle, your dreams take on a new clarity. It is indeed your destiny to set out for the Black Tower and rescue the fair princess.

As introductions go, the above isn’t too bad as at least you come out of them knowing exactly what you have to do. What I’m not so keen on is the break in loading where you have to press a key to read (or skip) the instructions. I wonder how many other people tend to go and make cups of tea while a game is loading?

I think me reviewing this game points out the folly of a company like Central Solutions releasing a great batch of games all at the same time. Because of the constraints of time (especially in adventure reviewing) the reviewer tends to pick one or two at random from the mass of cassettes, seeing as there is nothing to distinguish between those releases of some merit from those just thrown in to make up the numbers and create the impression of grabbing a fair slice of market share. What with choosing at random, and rejecting quickly those which wouldn’t load first time so as to get onto those that would, I ended up reviewing Brian the Bold which is not a good adventure. The location descriptions are terse and inadequate. Examining and even picking up objects is met with a puzzled silence, and the pictures are simply awful (and slowly drawn to boot).

COMMENTS

Difficulty: moderate
Graphics: awful
Presentation: Spectrum characters
Input facility: verb/noun
Response: Quill
General Rating: Poor.

Atmosphere

54%

Vocabulary

58%

Logic

65%

Addictive Quality

45%

Overall

58%

COUNTDOWN

Producer: Central Solutions
Author: C & B Bradbury
Price: £0.99

You are a reporter, somewhat baffled as to why a famous explorer, well-known for his contempt of the news media, should offer you an exclusive interview. You approach your destination with your editor’s words echoing in your mind: ‘Don’t ask me. He specifically requested you. Anyway, it’ll do you good to get away from all those corruption exposes for a while’.

After a short journey across the bay, you arrive at the island retreat of Sir Justin Philips. The huge mansion looms up in the early morning mists as you reach the jetty and secure your motor boat alongside a similar craft. Approaching the imposing front entrance you notice the main doors are slightly ajar. With a gentle push you are inside. You sense a sudden movement and turn to see the doors slam behind you.

So goes the story which follows a superb loading screen for such a cheap game (commissioned loading screens can cost a fair amount on expensive games these days). Keeping the quality up, the first picture isn’t bad either with very neat shading and altogether superior appearance when compared to the normal untidy line-drawn cheapy look. It is a drawing of the large entrance hall with a pair of stairs leading up to a landing with two pictures hanging from its walls. The perspective and shading are just right and the redesigned character set is a very readable set of capital letters.

Heading east from the off you meet a cloakroom, and a useful item while heading west takes you on through the library to a study where examining the typewriter reveals a clue: ‘Confused already? Let’s soap you’re not, insert the tape to discover your lot’. The tape this sheet of paper in the typewriter refers to may well be the video tape you find in one of the remoter rooms in the mansion. In the library you see a fairly typical location description. ‘You are in the library. In the centre of the room stands a low table. On it an ornately carved bowl-shaped artifact containing the remains of several cigars is resting beside a coffee-pot and cup. Along each wall are rows of well-stocked bookshelves. Doors lead north, east and west’. There are a few clues as to the lifestyle of the owner of this mansion here, and a further insight is the reply to examining most domestic items, ‘It looks expensive’.

To the north is a location which at first appears pivotal but is somewhat unyielding to efforts to actually get anywhere: ‘You are in a stylishly appointed lounge, containing items ranging from the prehistoric to ultra-modern. The walls are adorned with many unusual and obviously ancient ornaments, including an elaborately decorated sword, a sacrificial dagger and several grotesque carvings. The room also boasts a state-of-the-art video, TV and audio system. In the centre of the room stands an easy chair with a coffee table alongside. To the west there is a window’. I won’t go through what happens when you try to make use of every item here but when you get down to the window at the end, even that’s barred! Further along the way you meet a dumb waiter which is easy to operate and takes you up and down the levels and about four different shades of bathroom.

Countdown is a game composed around The Quill and Illustrator. As a cheap game it has much to offer, not least its surprisingly effective (if slowly drawn) graphics. The room descriptions are evocative and the game is well enough constructed to hold your interest for some time.

COMMENTS

Difficulty: easy to roam
Graphics: Not bad for the price
Presentation: good
Input facility: verb/noun
Response: Quill
General Rating: Very good value.

Atmosphere

75%

Vocabulary

76%

Logic

77%

Addictive Quality

71%

Overall

79%

MAFIA CONTRACT 2

Producer: Atlantis Software Ltd
Author: Neil Smyth

Howdsa bout dis for a deally doriginal (original — sdupid) intraduction to dis here game and da course I wand da heaters off, afda all it dis Djuly. I could go on but my chewing gum is running out so let’s just leave the smart alec accent and get stuck into this one. Yes, it’s the sequel to Mafia Contract by the same author, from the same company (not always a certainty these days) and at the same price. If anything, this game is better then its predecessor and so I can see it featuring in SIGNPOST just as much as the first one. The graphics are just that step up from Mafia I and the puzzles, and the story which links them, are a real pleasure.

Again you are in Don Capolla’s gang whose territory runs throughout the dark back alleys and creeping fire escapes of the Big Apple, housing the biggest den of thieves east of Chicago. In the first program, Capolla’s own son had gone down and you were one of the suspects behind his untimely demise. Once again, this is a Quilled game but the theme, story and its interpretation distances it from the usual run-of-the-mill release.

You are in trouble, yet again, but what else would you expect being Capolla’s henchman? Last year you assassinated a rival gang leader for your boss and as a reward he has taken you into his confidence as his Number One personal adviser and bodyguard. Capolla’s regime is now being threatened by a powerful gang led by Vito Rossi. Capolla has panicked and gone into hiding but not before putting out a contract on anyone he fears, including you. Not being one for half measures, and stirred on by your successes, you have decided to kill both Rossi and Capolla. If you can pull this off you are then free to get the documents detailing Capolla’s Mafia gunmen, and will be able to seize control of the entire city. You find yourself in Capolla’s mansion which is being raided by Rossi’s gunmen. To progress any further you have to escape them and put into effect your ambitious plan.

Impressive is the way the program introduces itself with varying loading screens and sound effects — a good omen for what turns out to be a well-polished game. The pictures are slowly drawn but a definite notch up on the standard of the first Mafia game. RAM SAVE and LOAD are very useful as it is in the nature of this type of game that danger lurks around every corner (just for the record RAM LOAD will take you back to your SAVEd position as many times as you like before the computer is switched off). The character set is pleasantly redesigned and the game is generally attractive and well laid out.

There are some unusual screens, one with CRASH scrawled right across it, and another with ZAP. I’ll leave you to find out where you come across these two but suffice to say its when something goes wrong! Only being able to carry four things at a time causes you one or two headaches in the time-honoured fashion, but generally the game is most playable and flows along nicely. Many times you find all manner of doors locked (getting the keys early on is recommended) and so I appreciated the humour when trying to bolt it out of the mansion in the car before me: ‘You won’t believe this, but it’s locked’.

Mafia Contract II is a really good game for the price. Some of the problems are a little easy or hackneyed but overall the game is quite a good run around.

COMMENTS

Difficulty: easy
Graphics: average
Presentation: fair
Input Facility: verb/noun
Response: Quill
General Rating: Good value.

Atmosphere

88%

Vocabulary

69%

Logic

78%

Addictive Quality

81%

Overall

85%

THE MASTER OF MAGIC

Producer: Mastertronic
Author: Tim Miller, Richard Darling
Price: £2.99

The first time I saw this game was on the Commodore 64 where it had the most brilliant Ron Hubbard soundtrack accompanying it. Alas, the Spectrum version has no such treats, but is still a fair old game for the price.

While exploring some underground caverns you chance upon a deep black pool. A ripple on the mirror-smooth surface draws you closer to the edge and a powerful hand slides out and swiftly drags you under. It is the hand of Thelric, the master of magic, who plunges you into a strange mystical world of magic and evil.

It is written in the Book of Magic that only Thelric has the knowledge to blend time and space into a powerful enough spell to return you to your own world. He promises to cast the spell if you retrieve for him the lost amulet of immortality, for without it he will grow old and die. He teaches you some useful spells and you embark on your dangerous quest. As you leave, Thelric says ‘If you do not bring me the amulet of immortality and place it on the pedestal by this pool you will never return home’. Shucks.

After the game has loaded it automatically goes into demonstration mode where, we are told, there are less objects and monsters than in the game proper. I must admit I was a bit confused as to just where the demonstration mode ended and where the game started — easy to do when you’re constantly tapping the FIRE button. On starting, a menu is displayed across the middle of the screen. The options shown always include RUN, and often EXAMINE, PICK UP, DROP and so on. The cursor can be moved by joystick or via the keyboard, much as in Spellbound, with FIRE selecting the option. As with Spellbound, some selections can lead onto further menus and options.

The screen is split into many different areas. In the top right is the major window which scrolls the text telling you what’s going on. The window at top left is a kind of Out of the Shadows depiction of the terrain you are going through with the various caves, corridors, steps and rooms shown in a very simple, thumbnail sketch manner. The instructions tell that only your actual line of sight is shown which may be a way of getting round the fact that the programming here isn’t awfully good. To make matters worse the whole thing scrolls in character blocks which just looks amazingly primitive.

The display across the bottom of the screen reveals pictures of the creatures and objects you come across, and very fine representations they are too. The ‘m’ and the ‘b’ along the top represent your mind and body strength. Another curious admission in the instructions is the acceptance of the drawback of the time clock at top right stopping when the player accesses the menu which, as the instructions say, does provide time to choose carefully, but also allows a chance to stop attacking monsters in their tracks.

Magic falls into the categories of casting spells, wearing rings and drinking potions. A MAGIC MISSILE produces a fiery arrow which can be directed at any live target in sight. It has a high chance of missing, but causes serious damage should it hit home. FIREBALL causes a 15 feet radius fireball to surround you and burn any creature in this area; your player remains unharmed. ENERGY DRAIN may be directed at any creature in sight and causes the instant loss of some of its body strength. MAGICAL SHIELD produces a shielding over your skin protecting you from attack. Like all the spells, it continually reduces your mind power and you should note that this spell lasts until Uncast.

The outcome of physical combat is, naturally enough, determined by how skilled the attacker is and how well the defender is protected, but also by magical factors and luck. Once a blow meets its target the damage inflicted depends on the weapon used and the strength of the attacker — much as you’d expect in this type of game. Should a monster be slain, any of its possessions can be collected and used to further your goals.

The monsters have some pretty nasty habits. Although they vary in intelligence, they are invariably hostile. Most alarmingly, they crave your meat to eat as well as taking a shine to your possessions while guarding their own treasure troves jealously. Some monsters are easily scared, others will search the last place they saw you and keep searching there for a while, while others hound you into an early grave.

Given the asking price, Master of Magic is not such a bad game at all, and not so long ago would have commanded a much loftier price tag. Leaving aside the rather poor display of your terrain in the top left with its jerky scrolling, the look of the game is very appealing. The pictures of the objects and creatures you meet along the bottom are neat and effective with graphics of bats, vampires, skeletons and hellhounds brightening up the whole game. The menu system, similar in principle to the one used in Spellbound and other such games, works very well. The options given on the menu at any one point are a very good indicator of how you might proceed.

After killing a skeleton or an orc (the result being the word DEAD boldly emblazoned across their picture at the bottom) you may be given the option to PICK UP, which might see you getting the dagger. Since you tend to only have enough mind power to cast two spells in the first instance you may think it wise to save killing spells for creatures who are carrying something you would like to retrieve from their dead bodies (bats use their teeth and spiders their sting so you are unlikely to get any weapons from these two). When by a door a check of the menu options reveals OPEN and, very useful when being pursued, CLOSE once you’ve passed through the portal. All in all, a game which grows on you the more you get into it and well worth the meagre three pounds.

COMMENTS

Difficulty: easy to play but takes a while to play well
Graphics: overall good but map poor
Presentation: attractive
Input facility: best played with joystick
General Rating: Good value.

Atmosphere

84%

Logic

82%

Addictive Quality

85%

Overall

86%

REBEL PLANET

Producer: Adventuresoft
Author: Stefan Ufnowski, Robin Waterfield
Price: £9.95

Err, right, err, I’m going to try and tell you some of the history of this one without actually knowing quite what the heck I’m on about, but there again, what’s new. Well, there was the advertised Swordmaster series and if I’m not mistaken that had something to do with Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, the names behind the book which led to this one here. Then it surfaced some time later as Fighting Fantasy and the game was Seas of Blood, and it had those stalwarts of computer coding, Mike Woodroffe and Brian Howarth behind it. That game had an animated dice sequence, a combat routine, and a status page showing skill, stamina and strength. Well this game is much more mainstream without any gimmicks but is very well constructed and has an interesting set of rules, as you might expect from the style of the Fighting Fantasy books (these work by giving a set of choices which lead to pages further on into the book). Take a look at Pete Tamlyn’s article on page 46 of this issue if you’re still confused...

Your spaceship is called the Caydia. It is a merchant ship. You — well, you’re some sort of agent, in fact the finest, as you’ve been chosen for your courage, resourcefulness and dedication to the liberation of the peoples of Earth. Your cover has been well researched: you will travel as a merchant to the planets of Tropos, Halmurus, and Arcadian all of which are a part of the Arcadian Empire.

If you are to take on the might of the huge Arcadian Empire, which tightens its grip on the galaxy by the hour, then you will need the might of some huge organisation behind you. SAROS stands for Search and Research Of Space, and has managed to send spies on ahead to gather intelligence before your arrival. Of course, it wouldn’t be an adventure if this information was just placed in your lap — you’ll have to work out where it is. There is a building on the planet Arcadian which houses the all important queen computer. This can be entered (and this information is proffered quite openly) by using a numerical code of nine binary digits. The underground spy network may know something to help you discover these digits. Your mission, then, is to locate the rebel leaders, learn the digits, and destroy the queen computer before it destroys you.

The program boasts an extensive vocabulary. Commands range from simple two word instructions to multiple action commands. Take a look at these examples. ASK THE DROID FOR HELP, ATTACK THE POLICER WITH THE LASER. GET THE WRENCH, THE CRYSTAL AND THE BOOK. OPEN THE DOOR, GET THE GRENADE AND THEN PULL THE PIN. You are advised to use WAIT 5, WAIT 10 and so on when you’ve missed the pneumatube on Halmurus. By the way, last month’s review of Human Torch was a touch inaccurate when I reported it in the summary as being only verb/noun. It is, like this one here, quite a way beyond simple verb/noun input.

There are some useful hints on play in the instructions. Caydia has a pre-programmed flight plan (which you are warned not to alter) and it’s only a matter of time before it docks at its first port of call, Tropos. The only thing is, you might not be ready when it does. However, you can fool around with time with the curious commands ADVANCE CT and RETARD CT, CT standing for Caydia Time. Fooling around without knowing what you’re doing could lead to the Caydia taking off without you. It’s worth noting that the Arcadians have banned humans from carrying weapons and you should therefore keep your laser sword out of sight until you plan to use it.

The first frame is stylish and attractive. The stars before you, out of the observation window, hardly move in true 3D motion but at least bring some movement to an adventure screen. To the south is an access corridor with a dispenser attached to one wall. The powerful EXAMINE command comes in handy here and we learn it is a sustenance system, an Arcadian one in fact, which surprised me as I thought this was one of our ships. There again, I probably dozed while I was reading the instructions and have probably missed something. Inserting a card gives you the sustenance, something you will need otherwise you could find yourself running out of steam later on. To the east is a cabin with hydro-bed and regeneration unit. Stepping into the unit has zetri waves bathing you after which you feel ready to take on the challenge and pick up the laser sword lying here. Across the corridor to the west is passenger cabin 1 with its lite-kube which, on examination, reveals a jet pak and a fuel capsule. Only thing is you can’t pick them up quite yet. Typical! Rebel Planet is a good adventure by any standards, what with its decorative graphics, sound plot, and useful vocabulary. It has enough to make the grade.

COMMENTS

Difficulty: difficult after a while
Graphics: good, often mirror images.
Presentation: blinding white background.
Input facility: complex sentence analysis
Response: Sluggish
General Rating: Very good.

Atmosphere

89%

Vocabulary

85%

Logic

87%

Addictive Quality

86%

Overall

85%

by Rosetta McLeod

USING COMPUTERS IN THE HOME

Quite often I’m asked to speak to groups of adults on the topic of computers in education. Most of the parents in the audiences seem to feel rather at a loss about how to encourage learning in the home situation. We’ve now reached the stage where a vast number of homes possess a computer of some kind, many of them bought in the hope that they will assist the children with their school work, or help them to cope with life in this high-technology age. Parents, however, are becoming increasingly concerned that the machines tend to be used in the main for game-playing — usually arcade games.

Another worry is that girls seem to show less interest than boys in computers, and this is of particular concern to those parents whose daughters are aiming for a career in a modern office where techniques rely heavily on computers. It’s hard to alleviate worries such as these, as there is really no simple answer.

Young children often enjoy a large amount of parental support when it comes to using computers, and some of the early learning games reviewed this month are certainly of the type to encourage parent/child involvement. Older children, however, tend not to be given this kind of support, being left very much to their own devices. Programs like Special Agent and Car Journey are helpful in letting parents see the sort of related activities their children can be directed towards.

Instead of taking a back seat, the adults may even be encouraged to work with their teenagers on the games. Certainly all children ought to have the chance to develop keyboard skills at least, and this means moving away from arcade games and joysticks. I do wish, though, there were more programs designed to appeal to girls — publishers please note!

CAR JOURNEY

Producer: Hill MacGibbon
Author: Five Ways Software Ltd
Price: £9.95

In the same series as Special Agent, Car Journey involves decision-making and skills of calculating time, distance and money. The program has 4 levels: levels 1 and 2 involve driving a car around the country with or without road hazards, while levels 3 and 4 are based on running a delivery service, again with or without the road hazards.

On all levels you have to choose from which town the journey is to begin, and then select the vehicle you are going to drive. The smaller vehicles travel faster and cost less to hire for the day (when you are playing Delivery Service), and of course each has a fuel tank with a different capacity. A histogram displays the fuel consumption at various speeds, and you have to fill up with petrol before the journey can commence.

On levels 3 and 4 a progress chart can be shown on the screen and this registers the cost of the fuel purchased. An overlay placed on the top row of keys allows the player to call up status information and also contains the commands for driving the vehicle chosen.

The Delivery Service games are quite complex as there are so many factors to be borne in mind. The fee for delivering some contracts, for instance, is larger than for others, though the more valuable contracts have to be delivered very quickly. Journeys have to be planned carefully, and petrol can be saved by carrying more than one load at a time. An additional problem is that whenever the clock reaches 19.00 hours, you must stop for the night and this incurs overnight costs unless you are in your home town. Penalties also have to be paid if the vehicle is overloaded or if a load is not delivered in time.

The accompanying booklet gives information about the history of roads and how a car works, as well as containing the extract from The Wind in the Willows where Toad becomes car-crazy.

COMMENTS

Control keys: a keyboard overlay ensures ease of operation
Keyboard play: responsive
Graphics: an attractive and sensible screen display
Use of colour: effective
General Rating: This is a useful program for developing quite complex skills in an enjoyable way.

FIRST STEPS WITH THE MR MEN

Producer: Mirrorsoft Ltd
Price: £8.95

Young children fond of Roger Hargreaves’ Mr Men characters will love the four programs in this package. The colourful booklet which accompanies the software tells the story of each game and explains what to do. Mr Greedy’s Ice-cream Hunt helps the child with the concept of direction as Mr Greedy is moved round five carefully graded screens in search of ice-creams, while Mr Silly’s Hat Game was specially written to develop left/right scanning in preparation for learning to read.

Shape recognition is covered in Mr Forgetful’s Wardrobe Game where the child has to match up pairs of familiar objects such as shoes and socks, and the last game, Mr Forgetful’s Letter Game extends this to letter recognition when a random selection of letters of the alphabet takes the place of the objects. This game also gives the adult the option of entering a chosen range of letters to suit the needs of the individual child.

The games are extremely easy for even the youngest child to operate as a colour-coded overlay featuring Mr Clever is supplied. This sits over the keys 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 0. Unfortunately it is very easy for a child to press BREAK inadvertently if a Spectrum Plus is used, and this crashes the program.

COMMENTS

Control keys: a colour-coded overlay sitting on top of six number keys makes the commands easy to input
Keyboard play: very fast
Graphics: clear and appealing for the young child
Use of colour: eye-catching
General Rating: Although aimed at children from 4 to 8, I would lower the age range. For most 7 and 8 year olds, the stories and games would be too simple, so perhaps 2 to 6 years would be more realistic.

SPECIAL AGENT

Producer: Hill MacGibbon
Author: Five Ways Software Ltd
Price: £9.95

Special Agent is a program in the Games to Stretch the Mind series, and was designed by Fiveways, well-known for quality educational software. The player assumes the role of a special agent for MI6 based in London, and the mission is to catch a devious enemy spy on the loose in Europe.

The player has to travel by air and rail to a variety of destinations, making the most of all the clues and intelligence reports that flash on the screen. The city from which a report is sent is highlighted — but if the enemy has eliminated your agent in a city, no report can be received! An informer’s report can also be purchased for the sum of £100, and the record of your total costs is displayed at the top left hand corner of the map, together with a clock which records the passage of time.

Sometimes, reports are received in code and the player has to choose the cipher option for clues on how to decode it or pay £100 for help from the back-room boffins in London. Money may also be spent in hiring new agents to replace those eliminated, and on making journeys.

The educational possibilities of this game are immense. Learning about the map of Europe, reading timetables and solving codes are only a few of the skills involved. Intelligence reports such as, ‘Spy reported in the capital of Turkey’ may require a bit of research before the name of the actual city is discovered. The package also contains an attractive illustrated booklet with information about spies and agents such as Mata Han, Burgess and McLean, and the fictional Sir Percy Blakeney; brief descriptions on some of the major European cities; maps showing population and land use; and details regarding the contents of a spy kit — bugging devices, microdots and so on.

This is an extremely well thought-out package which will hold a child’s attention and make learning fun. A particularly useful feature is the facility for pausing the game to allow time for thought. Great care has been taken to ensure ease of operation.

COMMENTS

Control keys: an overlay is supplied for the top row of keys
Keyboard play: good
Graphics: very clear
Use of colour: bright and attractive
General Rating: An absorbing game full of learning opportunities. For the price, this package represents excellent value.

THE VOWELS OF THE EARTH PART ONE — QUEST FOR A

Producer: I.E.C. Software
Price: £8.95

Quest for A is the latest in IEC Software’s series of programs specifically aimed at children with learning difficulties. The program takes the form of an arcade-type game, with the player in search of a bag of gold. A rolling globe has to be moved through a network of caves as quickly as possible until you find the correct spelling to complete a word. All the words use the ‘A’ sound, and the child has to choose from ai, ei, ey, ay and so on.

There are several layers of difficulty to select from, and these build up to the completion of words such as ‘ancient’, ‘neighed’, ‘investigation’ and ‘beige’. On the second side of the tape a homophones program encourages the child to distinguish between the spellings of words which sound the same but have different meanings such as plain and plane, veil and vale. Both programs can be played with a joystick, using cursor control, or using specified keys, and it is also possible to select the length of time needed for the game. A fair amount of manual dexterity is required to remove the globe without touching the walls of the caves — if this happens the energy score displayed at the bottom of the screen is reduced.

Designed by educational psychologist, Jo Westwood, this is a game that will hold children’s attention and improve their spelling skills without them being aware of it. The colourful and attractive screen displays add to the appeal of the game, and the children I tried it out on were keen to do well.

COMMENTS

Control keys: choose from Kempston or Sinclair joystick, cursor control, or keys V, B, I, J & 9
Keyboard play: very responsive
Graphics: very attractive
Use of colour: good
General Rating: An extremely useful and professional game which would be of benefit to any child with a spelling problem.

WORD GAMES WITH THE MR MEN

Producer: Mirrorsoft
Price: £9.95

This two cassette pack contains Mr Noisy’s Word Game for children learning to read, and Read With Mr Bounce for more advanced readers. The first game helps the child to understand three sorts of words which sometimes cause confusion — opposites, comparatives and superlatives. There are nine short games in this section, the first four introducing words such as tall/short, high/low, wide/narrow and fat/thin, while the next two give practice in turning these adjectives into their comparative and superlative forms. The final three games provide an opportunity to practise all the skills learned.

In all the games, words are large and easy to read and the graphics are most attractive. Read With Mr Bounce extends the skills already covered and introduces the understanding of words such as in, on, outside — the animated graphics show the meaning of each concept in a very clear way before giving the child the option of typing in the word which shows where Mr Bounce is. For this, a plastic overlay is supplied, displaying the letter keys in their lower case form. The overlay is fine for the ordinary Spectrum but useless for the Plus.

Both Mr Noisy’s Word Game and Read With Mr Bounce give the child the chance to obtain a printout, and the glossy booklet contains details on how to play the games together with colourful pictures of the characters.

COMMENTS

Control keys: ENTER, 1 and 0 for the easier games, letter keys for the more complex ones
Keyboard play: very responsive
Graphics: excellent
Use of colour: very good indeed
General Rating: An enjoyable and entertaining package of games, though again I would lower the age range as all the 8 year olds I know have outgrown the Mr Men!

BORROWING IMAGES FROM THE TEE VEE

The SUNSET VIDEO DIGITISER for the Spectrum brings out the best artist in me. I don’t know how I do it, but within a couple of seconds I can create the most realistic pictures ever seen on the Spectrum screen.

The possibilities are enormous. Just plug in the family video camera or the rent-a-video recorder and you’ll spend hour after hour tracking down interesting subjects and shading them to perfection for the final print-out. The video frame can be the starting point for an exceptional games loading screen, which can be manipulated with any screen graphics utility to the point of non-recognition. Or ultimately, the digitiser can be part of the home desk-top publishing system, incorporating pictures into editorial text for your local family rag. Either way, the SUNSET VIDEO DIGITISER provides lots of fun.

THE PIXEL OF THE MATTER

Now everybody knows that the Spectrum screen is not a bottomless cup of pixels, but a mere conglomeration of 256 x 192 lonely points, so the TV resolution picture loses somewhat in definition when converted to the Spectrum format. Busy or overcrowded pictures end up rather unrecognisable, but if larger subjects are focussed on, the perception is definitely good. The lower resolution provides a grainy artistic touch, highlighted by the many shading facilities. Taking a picture results in each point or pixel on the Spectrum screen being allocated one of sixteen values representing the brightness level. This master file is stored outside the screen area and requires no less than 24576 bytes.

As the screen dots can only assume two states, on or off, intermediate levels can be displayed in various patterns of dots. Three grey scale modes are available. ‘Black and white’ provides just two display levels. The brightness of the picture can be adjusted by setting the trip level between black and white to any of the sixteen values. ‘Black white and grey’ divides the sixteen levels into black, white and one grey level. Again, the two boundaries may be set to accentuate the darkness and the amount of grey zones in the picture. ‘Full grey scale’ provides black, white and three grey levels and imitates the photographic image on the Spectrum screen as closely as possible. Again, the grey scaling can be set by varying the grey, black and white boundary levels.

One of Franco’s heroines, MARLENE DIETRICH in a guest slot on the Spectrum screen. This sequence of pictures reveals the way in which the same digitised image can be tinkered with using the software that comes with the SUNSET DIGITISER

THE DIGITISING UTENSILS

Yes, I’m afraid part of the equipment is encapsulated in the usual black interface box with an insignificant phono socket as a major landmark. A cassette tape for the software support together with the NLQ print manual comes with the package. A phono cable with two converters ensures access to any type of video equipment (phono plug, BNC socket and plug). Push interface into lifeless Spectrum, link up to video unit, switch on Spectrum and load software from cassette. Camera roll... ACTION!

THE SOFTWARE SCENE

Who doesn’t like to be driven by a menu? (It’s all that drives Gary Liddon — ED.) Eight options are available — only one modifies the master file containing the basic picture information. TAKE PICTURE sets the 8-bit A/D converter in motion and transfers the video picture to memory. During six seconds, the software has to convert the 8-bit value from the converter into 4-bit data acceptable to the Spectrum memory size. No flash conversion means a rock steady picture is required for the six second duration. No wobblies, NO ACTION, in front of the video camera and a pretty good freeze frame facility on the ol’ video recorder. Noise bars need to be fought into the bottom edge, or even better into oblivion.

Unsuccessful attempts at grabbing a frame are met with a beep, followed by the PICTURE ANALYSER screen, which displays anything from a missing frame sync to a signal format error; this could be wrong number of lines, wrong line length or wrong field format (Interlace, odd, even).

Successful frame grabbing can be improved upon by SET INPUT LEVELS. Maximum and minimum levels representing the contrast of the current picture are analysed and evaluated for a further take. The second scan converts the 8-bit data with a corrected ratio into 4-bit giving maximum contrast.

MOVE INCOMING PICTURE takes into account the fact that only part of the TV picture is transferred to the Spectrum and allows the conversion window to be positioned over the relevant TV screen area for a further take.

GREY SCALES enables the selection of the parameters responsible for the interpretation of the master data into screen representation. All three grey scaling modes have a bar graph for the selection of the boundary levels (brightness and grey shade control) while PRINT PICTURE ON SCREEN converts the master file data into a screen picture using the aforementioned parameters.

Having lost all the colour information of the original TV picture it might be a good move to display the mono picture in different colours. CHANGE DISPLAYED COLOURS does this at a touch of a key. Unfortunately, there is no provision for changing the border colour. Individual colouring can be accomplished at a later stage once the screen has been stored to tape or cartridge using SAVE/RETRIEVE PICTURE to save the screen picture as a screen file or save and load the master file for further manipulation at a later stage.

Provision is made for producing a backup copy of the software onto cassette or Microdrive cartridge. The reverse side of the cassette contains a print driver routine which can be set up for various printers and printer interfaces. The manual gives a detailed explanation of the control program and provides the programmer with call addresses for the various machine code routines.

CUE AND REVIEW

The SUNSET VIDEO DIGITISER is not a cheap add-on for the Spectrum. Unfortunately it is one of those devices which grab your imagination and you’ll find yourself spending far too much of your valuable time designing excellent looking screens with the least possible artistic requirement. No news yet on the printer ribbon that allows you to make iron-on transfers of your pictures for application to shirts — more details next month, hopefully.

SUNSET VIDEO DIGITISER
Price: £128.00 inc P&P

TASWORD 3

Producer: Tasman Software
Price: £16.50

The team at Tasman Software have taken the old favourite Tasword II and moved it onto Microdrive and Opus Disk, adding more commands, more memory and greatly increasing the ease of use. This seemed to me to be a very brave step on the part of Tasman as they must think that all their prospective customers have Microdrives or disk systems. I can see them getting a bit worried about running out of memory, but all the rest of the latest batch of word processors made it out on cassette in a very useable form...

The main text editor loads in one chunk, and the only other drive access you need is for dumping the text to other peripherals (printers, backing storage and so on). As with Tasword II, when you load up you go directly into the text editor, which means you can get down to work straight away.

The text editor at first glance seems the same as Tasword II, but a closer look shows that table markers or tabs are available. These are shown on the switches panel at the bottom of the screen. A PAGE BREAK switch has been added that can be used to reveal on screen how text will be printed — a handy facility when it comes to producing the final version of a document. During one-screen formatting, a dotted line is displayed where the page breaks will occur on the printer.

One of the best features of Tasword III is the impressive HELP menu. This shows you every command available at the press of a key, and a quarter of the HELP page can be shown at the top of the screen while you are typing. This is useful — for instance if you use printer controls regularly, the graphics symbols which Tasword III uses as printer tokens can be shown in the top quarter of the screen, so you don’t forget what does what!

Tasword III only features a few brand new commands, but the old commands of the Tasword II era have been expanded considerably. The most important addition to its array of over sixty commands are the TAB commands: very useful for setting out charts or tables. TABs act rather like TAB STOPS on an ordinary typewriter and are little markers on the screen which the cursor can jump between. The user can set up any number of character positions between any number of tab stops — a very easy process and a definite plus over any other Spectrum word processor I’ve come across. The other new addition to Tasword III is the expansion of the screen width from 64 characters to 128, which means you can see exactly what your hard copy will look like on the screen, via the very ingenious scrolling of text across the screen.

The cursor movement has been expanded too, and it’s possible to jump to the beginning and end of lines, paragraphs and printer pages (via page markers). Tasman have gone to town on the deleting as well: words, lines, paragraphs, blocks and the plain old character behind the cursor can now be deleted, instead of just the cursor character as in Tasword II. Paragraphs and blocks have to be confirmed before deletion, and lines can be un-deleted, so there’s not much chance of you ruining your text accidentally.

A very useful mode, which is missing from most word processors, is the AUTO INSERT mode. This allows the user to write directly into the middle of a piece of text without overwriting the existing text. Full use is made of the keyboard buffer here, as the existing characters have to be scrolled forward on to the next line.

Tasword III features a very comprehensive printer menu which has all the features of Word Manager and more. With all the headers, footers and page number combinations it would be fairly easy to print a simple magazine using Tasword III.

There’s a word count in Tasword III; the search and replace option has been speeded up and the cursor speed has also been increased, thus rectifying the main problems with Tasword II. The package offers full value for money, with a word processor, a Tasword II translation program, a Masterfile interpreter, an introduction letter and tutor as well as a simple but very effective data merge file (which can be used instead of Masterfile) included on the cartridge or disk.

There is no doubt about it, to my mind Tasman have now definitely got the top spot as far as word processors go. With the price of printers and disc drives dropping by the month it’s almost worth popping out and getting a system to try it out on. One look at Tasword III will take the words out of your mouth!

THE LAST WORD

Producer: Saga Systems Ltd
Price: £13.95

Saga Systems have built a solid reputation in the Spectrum add-on market based on their peripherals — Spectrum keyboards predominently. Now they have come up with a piece of software that is best used in conjunction with one of the peripherals they sell. Late last year Nick Buckingham strolled into the Saga offices to see if they would publish his word processor, The Last Word, as he hadn’t had much success doing it himself. Saga were very impressed with Nick’s program, but wanted the manual re-written and software ‘tweaked up’ on a few points, mainly compatibility with other periperhals. Once this had been achieved, the program was ready for release.

The software is accompanied by a comprehensive manual (which is being updated every time Saga thinks of something extra to put in). The cassette arrives in a NORMAL cassette box (!) and comes with all the relevant programs for transferring The Last Word to the storage medium you have as well as the obligatory introduction letter and a very neat piece of software that can convert any Tasword II file that you care to give it into something that The Last Word understands.

The layout of The Last Word is very easy to follow, and on loading you are put straight into OVERWRITE mode. This shows the large 20 line text file window and a very neatly presented status bar at the top of the screen. This contains all the information you are likely to need during the typing in of the document: cursor status, justification, word wrap and so on... The text window width can have 4 different settings, 40, 48, 60 or 80 columns. I found the tiny 80 column characters tiring to read but the mode is useful if you want to see what the finished output will be like. The actual print line can be extended up to 146 columns if necessary by using the appropriate number of screen lines to accommodate the text.

The Last Word contains all that the average home and business user would need, and more. Text is typed in as normal but when you want to fiddle about with it care is needed as The Last Word is so powerful you could find yourself splicing a text file in a few swift key movements.

Cursor movement is very comprehensive with all the features found in Tasword III except movement paragraph by paragraph. The cursor can be moved around sentence by sentence instead, which I found a bit less useful. The author has also included a useful option which allows the user to input a line number for the cursor to jump to — very useful for moving around in a large chunk of text. Inserting new text into an existing text file is easy, but looks a little strange at first. As insertion begins, all the existing text after the cursor disappears until you go back to OVERWRITE mode — this may seem trivial, but I found it very awkward to use, especially when I forgot the gist of the original text.

The facilities for deleting text are also very comprehensive and all types of things can be deleted: the cursor character, to the end of a line, to end of the file or the whole file.

The author has tried to dispose of the laborious marking of blocks of text and plumped for the option of inputting the line numbers instead of block markers. This approach means that blocks of text can be deleted by specifying the first and last lines. This is by far the quickest method. There isn’t an actual Move Block command as this can be done using the repeat/delete options.

The first key that a Last Word user should memorise is the REFORM to next firm marker key. This effectively rectifies the mess that is made of a paragraph that you’ve been playing around with by rejustifying the whole lot. The key is well used as most the The Last Word options do not rejustify after commands have been carried out, leaving tidying up in the hands of the user.

When any main option that could effect your text is chosen a small window opens up at the top of the screen into which commands are entered, which commands are entered. A CALCULATOR mode allows you to use the Spectrum as a normal calculator. This option is very powerful, as the result of computations may be saved as a BASIC variable (m1 to m0) or included in the text. Saved variables may be incorporated in calculations — a powerful and useful facility. The routine, I was told, took up a very small part of memory, so it seems a pity it isn’t included in other Spectrum word processors.

The EXCHANGE option allows words in the text to be swapped and can also be used to find a word(s) in the text. If the urge grabs you, every occurrence of a word or phrase can be deleted. During exclusive substitution operations it is necessary to know where all the words you want to change occur in the text as The Last Word just provides a line number and asks if you want to exchange the occurrence of the word on that line. If you don’t know where you are in context, you end up guessing! Replacing all occurrences of a word or phrase is straightforward enough; unfortunately the keyboard buffer is not cleared and you can end up with lots of ‘s’s over the text. I felt this option was quite limited on its own — it’s only possible to exchange strings of up to 16 characters, and the letters have to be input in upper or lower case correctly…

The Last Word includes an option that allows a simple variable of any length from BASIC to be INCLUDEd into the text file. I found this most useful when I wanted to include saved calculated results or very long bits of text that crop up over and over within an annotated piece of script.

The Last Word includes the use of TABULATION markers, but they are very inflexible as you can only have one width of TAB column. This means that most tables would be hard to enter using these, nevertheless, moving across the line is much quicker via TAB markers.

All the options are accessed via different combinations of shifts, which means that once you’re a proficient user of the program there is absolutely no reason to look at the screen menu system while typing. Where The Last Word scores particularly highly is via its compatibility with practically every disc drive or printer you run with it. Every disk system I could think of, and some I’d never heard of before were catered for with full CAT, ERASE and LOAD/SAVE options, proving that a lot of time had gone into ensuring compatibility — every programmer’s nightmare.

The printer options cater for all types of visual output, with 24 different control tokens available.

Printer tokens, unlike Tasword III take up no screen space and just invert the letter they start at. When an inverted letter is encountered by the cursor, the window at the top of the screen displays the token that is represented at the top of the screen displays the token that is represented at the cursor position. Any number of printer tokens may be placed on one letter, taking up no more screen space. Because of this, the ragged edges of text in the printer output are avoided, unlike in Tasword III where graphics characters are taken as text letters and used in justification of lines.

Overall The Last Word is a very powerful wordprocessor with lots of little things like the calculator and including of BASIC strings to make it appeal to both the first time and experienced wordprocessor user equally. Where The Last Word fell short was in the expansion of each of the options. There is certainly no lack of commands, but each command fulfils its function with no frills attached: things like the printer menu and exchange menu could have been improved. As The Last Word was written to put a new angle on the wordprocessor market, it may take some getting used to, but once mastered it performs beautifully.

THE WRITER

Producer: Softechnics
Price: £14.95

The Writer comes in a video type cassette box, which contains a very professional-looking manual and a cassette that holds both tape and Microdrive versions of the software. Users of the tape version should notice that you do not get some of the options available on the Microdrive version, like HELP files and the print merging facility. Even so, the tape based software includes all the vital elements of The Writer. After a short time using The Writer it became apparent that this word processor had been based on the word processors available in the CP/M market.

The Writer uses a very attractive method of accessing the options. When you press the EDIT key, the status bar at the top changes to display six options: FILE; EDIT; TEXT; SEARCH; FORMAT and HELP. Options are selected using a pointing device, which may be a mouse, joystick or the keyboard. The option window then appears using the same technique as Art Studio, and subsequent windows can be accessed from this.

Although The Writer uses windows, most of the text handling operations can be carried out via the keyboard. This mix of controls allows operations to be carried out very easily at speed. All the keyboard operations are accessed by various combinations of SHIFTs.

On entering The Writer you are put straight into INSERT mode as with most CP/M wordprocessors. The layout of this is very professional. You do not miss all the text after the cursor, as in The Last Word, or get the very strained process of all the text after the cursor scrolling forward, as in Tasword III. What you do get is very easy to use and amazingly fast process not that different to ‘good old’ Spectrum BASIC.

The basic, non-flashing, inversed cursor can be moved around the 22 line text window in a variety of different fashions — all the cursor options found in Tasword III are used, plus the ability to move to special markers in the text, as well as specifying the exact page of text to which you want to jump.

The Writer has two types of marker. The first is a position marker, which can be jumped to at any stage. This is very useful if you want to wander off around the text fiddling with it, but want to leave some kind of marker to return to. The second type of marker is the block marker. One of these can be placed on either side of the text on the Spectrum, thus creating a block which can be moved around at will. All other Spectrum word processors, including Tasword II and The Last Word only allow lines of text to be manipulated in this way.

As well as moving blocks you can save them to a backing store, and at a later date include a saved block into the text you are writing. The uses for this seem endless. I found it useful for all types of work — files can be chopped and changed until you get the right mixture. It’s rather like a very flexible MERGEing. Unfortunately cassette based users do not have this operation at their disposal.

As with all professional word processors, The Writer offers TABs. The TAB option is extremely powerful, and can easily give the novice some very business-like results. There are basically three types of TABs: left/right justified; centered and decimal. When the TABulate key is pressed the cursor jumps to the next TAB marker (shown in the RULER line under the status bar) and then carries out the appropriate action when text is entered. If a justification TAB is chosen, then the text is justified to the TAB marker accordingly; text is centered around a Centre TAB marker. If a decimal TAB is used, the text is aligned so that decimal points appear under the TAB marker.

A leader up to a TAB marker may be specified which causes any spaces before a TAB marker to be filled with one of three different characters: dotted lines, dashes or a solid lines. All of these prove useful for clean and neat tables, and once used you wonder how you ever coped without them.

The FIND/CHANGE options on The Writer are again the best of any Spectrum word processor. Basic find and change options are allowed, but ‘wild card’ characters are also permitted. This means that you can tell The Writer to look for ‘beg?n’, and it will find; ‘begun’, ‘begin’ and ‘began’. Tell it to look for ‘????’ and The Writer finds all the four letter words in your text file! You can also choose to look for bits of words — tell The Writer to look for ‘he’ and it throws up ‘the’, ‘he’, ‘hero’ and so on. If instructed accordingly, the software looks for any occurrence of ‘GRAEME’ and changes it to ‘-ED’. ‘graeme’ will be changed to ‘-ed’ and ‘GRAEME’ to ‘-ED’: CAPS for CAPS and lower case for lower case.

The DELETE options available are basically the same as in Tasword III but instead of deleting the word the cursor is on, The Writer deletes from the cursor position to the end of the word. Not much difference, but it takes those extra precious micro-seconds to delete a word.

Printer tokens are placed as in Tasword III but there are only eight styles that can be defined due to The Writer using GRAPHICS codes to stand for a string of printer codes. When printing, you can choose to use a mail-merge option, which allows data such as names and addresses to be entered into the text during printing. This option is again out of reach for tape-only users. The data can be produced from a database such as The Filer, which Softechnics is bringing out soon, or data can be input using a simple program which is listed in the manual.

The Writer includes a very simple printer spooling option. You can tell the program to print the text file, and immediately it puts you back into that text file. But you can’t alter the existing text, as in Word Manager, but you can add to the end of it. This seemed a bit pointless, as most people only want to print out the text when they’ve finished it, and not change any errors in the existing text while it’s printing!

When printing you can choose to put headers and footers at the beginning of each printed page with the main title and the page number, in Roman numbers, alphabetically or numerically. The heading or footing can be centered or left/right justified, or even printed differently on alternate pages, giving a book-like appearance to the output.

The basic text can be controlled exactly as in Tasword III, and even with some of the same control keys! You can centre, left/right justify lines and justify the paragraph and use other jollities that appear in Tasword III.

The Writer also includes some extra features like only printing the text if a certain condition occurs in the print merge file — the price of a product being less than a hundred pounds for instance — and working out the actual value of an expression so ’100-12/3’ (no brackets) would be printed in the text as ‘104’. A communication program allows the user to LOAD/SAVE Writer files, ASCII files, and Word Star files, and even send and receive data via a RS232 serial port. Compatibility with printer interfaces is a bit less flexible and giving Softechnics a ring before you purchase is a good idea.

A ‘proper’ keyboard buffer has been included, which allows a sequence of keys to be pressed after an option has been selected: the program flicks through the chosen option without waiting for the prompts to be answered if the keys have been pressed in advance. The keyboard buffer isn’t cleared after any option so care is needed — mind the keys you press after an option.

Overall I found The Writer amazingly fast and extremely powerful. It is the most powerful word processor I’ve seen on the Spectrum, and most CP/M word processor writers would do well to look at it. The main attraction points are the very powerful FIND and REPLACE commands, mail-merge, block handling and TABs, but with all these options I found The Writer extremely easy to use.

I didn’t find using the mouse any quicker, because you have to take your hands off the keyboard and the keyboard buffer was effective enough to make the use of keys as good if not better than the mouse. Any self-respecting Spectrum owner who wants a word processor should definitely go out and get The Writer. Softechnics plan to launch a database, a spellchecker and The Artist II, all of which are designed for use with The Writer very soon. The only thing that was missing was a word count facility — very useful when it comes to writing articles such as this, but most users shouldn’t find this omission too dismaying.

RATINGS

The Writer

Tasword III*

The Last Word

User Friendliness

8

10

8

Speed Of Operation

9

9

8

Tab Markers

10

8

5

Calculator

4*

n/a

9

Mail-Merge

6*

8

2

Find/Replace

10

7

7

Peripheral Compatability

7

8

10

Printer Options

7

8

9

FACILITIES

Screen Line(chars)

64

64

40,48,60,80

Printer Line(chars)

127

128

146

Word Count

No

Yes

Yes

* refers to Microdrive or disk version only

Simon Goodwin looks at the likeliness of LOKI, introduces a 97p lightpen to the Spectrum, chases Cheetah, reviews The Code Machine and Spectrum technical books, disables BREAK and dispenses sundry tips!

DREAMWARE

Whatever plans Alan Sugar may have for the Spectrum, you can rest assured that the much trumpeted ‘Loki’ project is not among them. I’ve had a few letters from readers asking about the rumoured Sinclair Megamachine. By now many of you will have read hysterical comments in various comics, so it’s probably time TECH TIPS sifted the gist from the gibberish.

The story so far... as Sinclair Research slid towards bankruptcy, sundry brains were invited to dream up a wonder-product that would rescue the firm from extinction.

It was obvious that the existing projects would not be enough to save Sinclair. Besides the 128, launched in a desperate bid to stave off creditors early this year, these projects included a kind of Quantum Triple Jump follow-up for the QL, which had to re-use all the old parts to save money, and a portable machine called Pandora which was handicapped by the fact that it needed a display that stubbornly refused to work despite six years of development effort. Since the sale of Sinclair’s computer business Amstrad have turned down the chance to market Pandora, and Sinclair have — at last — given up on the display.

A list of really new possibilities was made, including an IBM Personal Computer clone — which may have attracted Mr Sugar’s attention given his intention to enter this sector of the market any day now — and a cut-price version of Commodore’s Amiga — code-named ‘Loki’. If nothing else, leaked details of those projects might have helped Sinclair to stave off the demands of creditors for a while longer.

But as we know, Timex, Thorn EMI and Barclays Bank didn’t wait; they chose to over-rule the management at Sinclair and force the firm to sell out to Amstrad.

LOKI THE JOKI

It is not clear whether or not anyone at Sinclair was aware that Loki was the name of an epic liar, epitomised in Nordic legends — in any case, the coincidence of the names seems to have passed by other magazines. Here at CRASH, where we spent a while trying to play Valhalla before we reviewed it, we spotted the name from that game.

Anyhow, being blessed with lots of headed typing paper and very little money, the Thinkers at Sinclair were invited to make a big list of trendy computer features. That list, embellished with a few charts and tables but a noticeable lack of circuit diagrams and real detail, finally escaped into the hands of the computer press.

Despite six years of agonising experience of the difference between Sinclair specifications and reality they swallowed it whole. Technical know-how has never been a strong point in magazines that still — indeed, the same month — print Commodore 64 screen shots in their Spectrum software preview section.

THE PRICE IS WRONG

The fact is that the proposed machine would take literally years (plural) to build, at a cost of millions. It has taken four years for a single-minded, well-funded firm, led by Jay Miner — designer of the Atari 800, and several sophisticated Atari coin-op arcade machines — to develop the Amiga. Relatively little of that time, you can be sure, was spent writing the specification.

When the Loki ‘exclusive’ appeared I spoke to an ex-Sinclair designer. He hadn’t heard of the project — ‘dreamware’, he called it — and poured scorn upon the suggested price of £200. Even if the machine could sell in the vast quantities needed to repay the development costs (and the interest on the money borrowed to support that level of production), it couldn’t be made, packaged, distributed and sold for £200.

Remember, this isn’t just a machine with ‘Amiga graphics’ and ‘Fairlight sound’. It also boasts a fully-buffered expansion bus, RGB, composite and TV display outputs, a serial port, two joystick ports, a light pen (supplied), three different types of MIDI (musical instrument) port, stereo (sampling) sound in and out, a headphone socket, and a video recorder/video disc interface. If that’s not enough you can plug in a floppy disk, hard disk, compact disk, mouse and modem as ‘extras’. See what I mean about a shopping list? “What! No Microdrives?” I hear you cry.

When it comes to costing this sort of thing it’s not just a matter of flicking through a few catalogues and adding up component costs. No one can work out a firm price on the custom chips intended to go into the Loki, as they’ve not been designed, let alone tested and fabricated. We’re talking about very large, very fast components — chips with about eight times the power of the Spectrum’s (none-too-reliable) ULA.

A 7MHz machine, with 52K of video memory and an asynchronous graphics processor could not use standard, cheap, RAM chips; you’d have to use the scarce and expensive 64K by 4 components which are one of the reasons for the high price of the Amiga.

There are unconfirmed rumours that Amstrad may have obtained some options to use the Amiga chip set. These tales may be true, and it’s certainly possible that Amstrad maybe in the running for such rights if Commodore was forced to sell. But the Amiga chips rely upon the 16 bit bus of the 68000 processor, and there’s no practical way to use them in a Z80-based Super-Spectrum. In any case, the ‘details’ of Loki appear to have come from Sinclair, not Amstrad.

THE LOKI — A SUGAR COMPUTER? Guaranteed free from artificial press speculation it is not... Full of Monosodium Glumate rather than Silicon, this version of the LOKI is exclusive to CRASH. Now it's been photographed, the ‘computer’ has been consumed with the aid of Roger ‘Gannet’ Kean. But do not despair! You too could own a specially commissioned CRASH LOKI. All you have to do is come up with another name for the Speculative MegaSpectrum. Send your suggestions in to LOKI COMP, TECH TIPS, CRASH TOWERS Best name wins its sender a scrummy chocolate comestible (LMLWD) like the one in the picture. Burp!

THE REAL WORLD

It may be fun to dream about Loki, but the fact is that it won’t appear, and nor will anything like it.

All we can look forward to is Amstrad’s Spectrum Plus 2 — the 128 with a cassette recorder “glued on”, to use Mr Sugar’s own phrase — and, very likely, a dirt-cheap Spectrum games console this Christmas.

But don’t despair — we’ve yet to see everything the humble Spectrum can do, and we’ve hardly explored the possibilities of the 128 at all. Don’t believe all you read, even in CRASH!

CODE MACHINE

Picturesque’s popular machine-code Editor/Assembler and Monitor/Disassembler have been relaunched by Discovery Software — a branch of Gremlin Graphics. The programs used to be published separately at a price of £8.95 and £7.95 — you can now get both for £12.95. The package supports Microdrives, the Interface 1 network and a very wide range of printers, but there’s no mention of disk compatibility.

Picturesque’s Assembler first appeared way back in 1982. For a long while it was one of the best around, used by firms like Quicksilva and Oasis. The program has been steadily improved over the years, but it’s looking a bit dated in 1986.

The editor uses a 40 column tabular display. The delete key scrubs characters but it doesn’t close up the text to the right. This is not as bad a restriction as sounds, when working with short assembler mnemonics, but it does mean that you have to re-type lines every so often.

Every line has a four digit number, which can be automatically generated if you wish. The editor works much like the ZX BASIC editor, with the addition of single-key commands to delete, copy and renumber groups of lines. Files can be merged from tape or Microdrive, and you can list from any line number, or from any label — a nice touch.

Program comments are not very well supported — they have to be enclosed in inverted commas, indented on lines of their own. Labels may be no more than six characters long — DREDFL!

The Assembler is fairly run-of- the-mill. You can fit about 25K of source into memory — enough to generate 3 or 4K of machine code. After that you can assemble from up to ten files on tape or Microdrive — a slow and (with tape) fiddly process. You must assemble the code into memory — you can’t send it directly to tape or Microdrive. You can print or display assembly listings, and the contents of the label table. Error messages are adequate.

Numbers can be entered in decimal or hexadecimal (base 16). Maths is limited to 16 bit addition and subtraction, plus operators to extract the high and low bytes of a 16 bit value. There’s no support for macros or conditional assembly, but interestingly the assembler does recognise 70-odd undocumented Z80 instructions: SLL and various instructions to handle IX and IY as four eight-bit registers. As far as I know this is the only assembler which supports those instructions.

THE MONITOR

A Monitor is a program that lets you test and examine machine code — your own or someone else’s. The Code Machine’s offering is 8K long, and can be loaded to more or less any address, so you can load it with the assembler. The monitor is also fairly run-of-the-mill. You can move, fill, search and edit areas of memory. There are a couple of useful but potentially hazardous commands for inserting and deleting bytes from tables. Annoyingly, all values must be entered in hexadecimal, although you can convert from hex to decimal or vice versa with a special command.

The disassembler generates a mnemonic printout or screen listing from memory contents. There are no labels, so disassembled code can’t be loaded back into the editor.

When you come to test code the monitor is usable, but unsophisticated. You can step through code, one instruction at a time, checking or changing registers and optionally performing subroutine calls at one mighty bound. Alternatively you can set a single ‘breakpoint’, and set the program running; when the breakpoint is reached the monitor will be called automatically. You can’t ask the monitor to check register values as code is tested. There’s only one breakpoint, so you can’t trap several possible events without stepping through the code, line by line.

The Code Machine has a readable 61 page A5 manual, written in a tutorial style. It’s clear and well organised when you’re learning about the package, but it’s a poor reference guide. There are several summary tables, but there’s no index.

If you want a simple, easy to use package, The Code Machine is a reasonable buy. But if you intend to write a lot of machine-code you’re better off paying an extra £2 for Ocean’s Laser Genius.

STRETCHING THE CONCEPT OF ADVENTURE GAMES

COMPUTER GAMES: FROM ADVENTURES THROUGH FIGHTING FANTASY TO ROLE PLAYING (Not forgetting MERPS!)

A debate has been raging across the pages of CRASH recently. Derek Brewster and Sean Masterson have been receiving a lot of letters about the relationships between computers and Role-Playing games. Some correspondents are adamant that Swords & Sorcery is role-playing on a computer, while others are insulted by the comparison. Should games like S&S belong in Derek’s column or Sean’s? Is there really such a thing as a computerised role-playing game? And what is role-playing anyway?

Pete Tamlyn, freelance game designer and regular contributor to White Dwarf, the leading role-playing magazine, steps back and takes a different perspective... This month he examines some of the similarities and differences between computer games, adventure gamebooks and true role-playing games.

While role-playing games have probably only been enjoyed by a small proportion of CRASH readers, most of you should have seen the Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebooks created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone as well as other works of interactive fiction produced by FF imitators. Just in case you’ve been lost in the Amazon jungle for the past few years, the general idea is as follows: you, the reader/player, read through a succession of numbered paragraphs. At the end of each one you are presented with a choice of options — normally three. The number of the paragraph that you read next is determined by the choice that you make.

There are two objectives to such books. Solving the game by making the correct choices to get to the end of the adventure and complete the quest is the primary objective, but you should also be entertained by the story that unfolds as you read through the book. The storytelling, however, tends to fall by the wayside — most of these books are written by game designers rather than by novelists and, I’m sorry to say, it shows. The game aspect is more interesting, but it suffers from its simplicity.

Looking at a gamebook in pure game terms, as a contest between you and the writer, the book is simply a succession of game turns in which you have to choose one of three options. This is not a very complex game: even in noughts and crosses you get an average of 4½ choices per turn. The sad fact is that if a gamebook writer plays fair and gives you the chance to make an intelligent decision each time, then the game will be much too easy to solve. Instead they rely on dirty tricks: withholding information from you, giving seemingly sensible choices that lead you into inescapable danger, and killing you off as often as possible. That way the game takes longer, and the player gets more value out of it.

It is generally accepted that gamebooks and roleplaying are not the same thing, although they do have some features in common. A gamebook is very similar to a computer adventure — instead of location descriptions, which may involve graphics displayed on the computer screen, you have paragraphs. In a computerised adventure, however, you have a lot more options — usually at least six per location — and, more importantly, you don’t always know what they are. Instead of a list of choices you have a list of words which you can use, only some of which are of any use.

Of course, even though the format of the computer game makes life much more difficult for the player, some game designers still don’t play fair. A good puzzle takes a lot of thought to solve, but is blindingly obvious once you’ve cracked it. Many adventure games still rely on problems which require seemingly ridiculous solutions or a very obscure choice of words in order to keep the player guessing. Computerised adventures are getting steadily better, and in general are much more interesting than gamebooks. On the story-telling front things can be much worse on the computer screen. At least most gamebook writers accept that they are supposed to be telling a story, but many adventures are written by programmers, and programmers tend to be obsessed with logic puzzles. It doesn’t enter their minds to try to entertain as well. It is a great shame that Infocom have coined the term “interactive fiction” because it is a very good description of what adventure games could be like, but a very poor description of what they actually produce! Valkyrie 17 is perhaps unique amongst adventures in that it was scripted by a top class professional writer — the popularity of Valkyrie shows that the approach works. Games based on books (Fourth Protocol for instance) also tend to be better than those for which the programmer writes the plot as well as the code that makes things happen.

Talking of games based on books, we do have a direct comparison between adventures and gamebooks. Adventuresoft are doing a series of direct conversions of Fighting Fantasy books into computer adventures. The first of these, Seas of Blood, followed the book so closely that it suffered from it: some of the rather unfair tricks that Jackson and Livingstone pulled in their book were simply not necessary in the more complex computerised adventure format. Still, it does go to show that gamebooks and adventures are very similar animals indeed. Adventuresoft’s output belongs very firmly in Derek’s column.

Now, what about role-playing? Gamebooks and role-playing are not the same thing. And if gamebooks and computer adventures are very similar, then adventures can’t be role-playing either. So what is this mystical ingredient found in role-playing games that gets Derek’s Signpost correspondents so upset?

The most obvious thing to say about role-playing is that it involves playing a role. You, as the player, are supposed to identify with the character whose part you take in the game. Of course this happens in gamebooks and computer adventures as well, but these games are often so obviously artificial that it is difficult to maintain such an attitude when playing them. You are far too busy puzzling over the logic puzzles to identify with your character.

Role-playing then, is often a matter of degree rather than an obvious characteristic of a game. In order to determine whether the role-playing element of a game works, role-players often use a term invented by Tolkein, “suspension of disbelief”: if the player — despite the fact that he is playing a game — can believe both in the fantasy world into which he has been plunged and in his place in that world, then he is role-playing. Accordingly, a lot of the features of role-playing games are designed to promote this “suspension of disbelief”.

One way of creating this air of reality is to set the game in a well defined world rather than have isolated adventures which have no meaning in any wider context. Setting games in the real world is an easy means of achieving this, but role-playing games tend to be set in fantasy worlds. Thus we have Middle Earth Role-Playing (MERP, based on Tolkein’s books), Star Trek, Judge Dredd, Marvel SuperHeroes, Dr Who, and any number of other games set in worlds that the players will know well. In addition, role-playing game publishers put a lot of effort into producing ‘background material’ for their games.

The most obvious feature of a role-playing game, as opposed to a gamebook or computer adventure, is that you can in theory do anything you want. Rather than having a restricted number of options as in a gamebook, the player can give any order and expect a reasonable result. Of course, you can issue any order in an adventure, but the chances are that if you type in “scratch nose” the program will reply with “I don’t understand” or “You can’t do that”. More importantly, the computer often comes back with the same idiot response to many of the things you thought were reasonable solutions to the current problem.

Role-playing games are run by human referees (called Games Masters, or GM’s for short) rather than computers; humans (Commodore owners excepted) are rather more intelligent than Spectrums. But role-playing games also approach things somewhat differently. As anyone who has used The Quill or a similar product will know, adventure games work on a very simple system governed by a table of ‘events’. Events tend to have the form, ‘if the player enters word X when in location Y then Z happens’. Role-playing rules are much more flexible. They tend to assign numerical values to various aspects of the world in which the game takes place, and use these to determine the result of actions. In a computer adventure, the command “break down door” will either work or not, depending on whether there is an event allowing it: in role-playing the GM will compare the strength of the player to the resistance provided by the door to determine the result.

This sort of rule can be, and is being incorporated into adventure games (indeed, even Fighting Fantasy books manage to accommodate the example given above). The problem is that each rule needs different code to interpret it, where as in the event-based system you only need to check that the event that occurs is in the table provided. Doubtless, as artificial intelligence programming techniques improve, so will the games. (It is interesting to note, incidentally, that the original computer adventure, Adventure, was written as a PhD thesis on artificial intelligence. We’ve come a long way since then!)

Something else that the human referee has on his side is his command of language. His vocabulary is much greater that that of any computer, and a GM can understand the same instruction put in many different ways. The parsers — chunks of code that interpret player commands — of computer games are improving but the simplest way to handle command input is to have a list of legal commands from which the player can make a selection. That may seem artificial, but knowing you can only do a limited range of things is often much less irritating than doing what you think is sensible and getting an idiotic reply.

Storyline is a very important factor in role-playing. A lot of the identification that you get with your character and the game world comes as a result of the skill with which the GM presents the material to you. Computer games don’t have that personal touch, but could make up for it by having a good novelist providing the script. The main problem is lack of space for the large number of words that writers require to generate atmosphere.

Several of the people who have written to CRASH about role-playing have stressed the interactive, social element of such games. As well as the GM you have maybe four or five fellow players to talk to. This tends to be very good for atmosphere, especially if you all sit round saying things like “what shall we do next” rather than “what do you think the GM expects us to do now”. A multi-player game where everyone can participate at once (rather than one at a time as in Doomdark’s Revenge) might be fairly difficult on a Spectrum, but two player games should be quite simple, especially if the game is joystick controlled. The arcade game, Gauntlet, caters for up to four players and works very well — I have to admit a personal interest here: having designed a Spectrum implementation of the arcade original, I’m waiting to see if it comes to fruition.

One thing you can’t do on a computer is have the non-player characters talk back sensibly. In role-playing the GM can act the part of everyone you meet, but we are a long way from getting programs that can hold sensible conversations with the human player(s).

Another point I would like to consider is the death rate. In gamebooks and computer adventures, getting killed is a very common result of making a mistake. It has the advantage of forcing the player to start again from the beginning, which is a very good way of increasing the time it takes to play through the game. A lot of computer adventures allow you to save positions and go back to them if you die, but you are still expected to get killed regularly. In role-playing this tends not to happen. Instead you get a little way into the game, find it getting tough, and retreat. Having got home safely you are deemed to have learned from your experiences and your character may get more powerful as a result. The number of ‘experience points’ gained during a foray into the adventure world generally governs the alteration to your status. When you go back to fight another day, things are likely to be more easy.

Allowing the player to build up experience contributes a better atmosphere to the game. The player should feel for his character, ideally, should feel he IS the character. If he keeps getting killed off the character is more likely to be viewed as expendable rather than as an extension of the player. Role-playing tends to be very open-ended on account of the the effects of experience points — players tend to have lots of little adventures rather than one big one. And to begin with, you are often not powerful enough to do anything spectacular. To run such open-ended games well, a vast arena in which to play is needed: GM’s sometimes map out entire continents, worlds or even universes. You can’t run anything like that on a computer without quite a lot of memory, and disc drives...

Next month, I’ll take a look at the way role-playing games have been transferred to computer — and not just the Spectrum. On the Spectrum front, Mike Singleton’s new game Dark Sceptre should be nearly finished, and Mandragore from a French software house is due along any day now. There’s Swords & Sorcery, of course, plus a few other favourites....

GOULASH GOSSIP

Our roving reporter JOHN MINSON meets a couple of Dutchmen over a Hungarian meal in London.

Ruud and Ernie Peske enjoy the summer sunshine in Soho Square with Mark Strachan playing ‘publisher in the middle’. Ernie is on the left, with the moustache...

This is a tale of two men who were, unknown to me at the time of the interview, about to take my beloved away. Not in person but... well, read on and you’ll see.

It all started with a call from David Cuddlesome Carlos (he insists I treat him with more formal respect nowadays) asking me if I’d like to meet Ernieware.

“The programmers of Split Personalities,” asked I, “from the land of clogs and tulips?”

“The same,” said the bearded one. “They’d like to meet you because you were the only person to review their first game when they tried to sell it on import over here. Can we arrange a lunch?”

Never one to turn down free nosh, a few days later I found myself walking through Soho accompanying brothers Ruud and Ernest Peske, Mark Strachan — the part of Domark that’s not DO — and Carlos the chaperone, there to see fair play.

“Will Hungarian do?” he asked.

Well, by this time I was hungry enough to eat anything and gorging on goulash seemed like a great idea so in we stepped.

The interview began well. I conducted the first two or three tape recorded questions with the Pause button on. Eventually we restarted, and briefly recapped the History of Dutch Software — or the History of Ernieware, which is virtually the same thing.

The Netherlands software scene is, “Very poor,” according to Ruud. It seems that the Dutch have failed to take the Spectrum to their hearts, which has made it rather an uphill struggle for the Ernies. There isn’t even a native Spectrum magazine.

But Ruud had studied computer languages for four years before becoming a teacher, and bought his first Spectrum only eighteen months ago. Ernest, who had taken the same computer course, was put in charge of the graphics.

The Evolution, the program that I reviewed (for another publication!), was one of the first things the brothers wrote. Though it was rather primitive in gameplay, being a block sliding puzzle, the programming was excellent.

Together they approached Dutch retailers, having decided to go it alone. Unluckily, sales were not that great, so they looked for a company to publish their work. At this stage Mark takes up the story.

“What happened was Ernieware sent us a demonstration tape with these ten pictures on it. Richard, our software manager, loaded it up and said, ‘Come and have a look.’ There was one of Kate Bush. I was used to looking at arcade games and I’d never seen a picture like that on the Spectrum and I said, ‘That’s brilliant’.

“As a layman I really thought that it was not possible to produce Spectrum drawings like that one of Kate Bush. Then I thought, well they’ve put so much memory into that one screen to make it look superb. But they hadn’t as there were so many pictures.

“I was then not sure whether they could draw better pictures than other people or...”

“We had to improve a lot,” says Ernest, with undue modesty.

“Anyhow, I said to Richard, ‘Phone them up and find out if they do other things.” Mark continues.

As it happened, Ernieware did do other things and already had the game that was to become Splitting Images. I’m interested in how the satirical tie-in came about.

“We wanted to put some humour in,” Ruud explains, “It’s very important, I think.”

In fact it was the pictures of faces in the demo that had worked best, even though most people who do Spectrum graphics have problems with the human visage, according to the brothers Peske.

“But how long did it take you to draw them?” Mark asks. I like this. He’s doing my job for me.

“Two days.”

“What do you use to draw them?” I slip in.

“My own utility. It’s not very usable for the window routines.”

Ernest works from photographs though he doesn’t rate digitising — and everybody who’s ogled the grainy renditions of Sam Fox is liable to agree that a good artist will beat the photographic image on the Spectrum, hands down.

“Choosing the ten pictures was interesting,” Dave remembers.

“Marilyn Monroe and Humphrey Bogart were classics and Maggie and Ronnie and Kinnock were obvious. Sir Clive and Alan Sugar were specific to the marketplace, but after that it was very open. Everybody was throwing in ideas.”

Mark picks up the story, “Together we thought of the Queen and wrote to her but the Lord Chamberlain wrote back saying that the answer to that question was really ‘No’.”

Luckily the Prince and Princess of Wales were delighted with the idea, and Andy and Fergie, a picture which Ruud seems extremely proud of, left (sic) it was up to Domark.

Mark stresses that they contacted all the subjects to get their okay and avoid problems, except in cases where it was impossible. If Bogey or Monroe wants to sue no doubt there will be angry table raps from Doris Stokes.

The other legal matter I raise is the question of the game’s title, which is, it must be confessed rather similar to a certain satirical TV show.

At this stage Mark categorically denies that Central Television is at all concerned about the title and that Domark are sure that they are on safe ground because nobody can copyright a caricature.

However, when the phone rings the next day and it’s Mark telling me that Splitting Images is now Split Personalities, I’m not entirely surprised. When it comes to the law courts the first rule is never to get involved in a long and costly action if you can help it.

Before we take our leave of the Old Budapest I have a complaint to make. Cuddlesome Dave has neglected to send me a copy of the program, which is Domark’S first CRASH smash (and their first good game, some would say).

“Have you finished it?” Ruud asks.

“Nowhere near,” I say.

“It’s really quite simple, I think.”

There is much laughter, through which the tape recorder has caught Mark’s comment that, “Programmers always say that.”

But get a copy I do, and a few days ater my girlfriend arrives from Sweden to spend the summer with me. Now she says she hates computers and computer games but out of interest she looks over my shoulder, asks how to play, takes over the joystick...

Ernieware, I am going to sue you for alienating her affections, For the past week or so I’ve only seen her back as she tackles picture after picture. And I wouldn’t mind, but while I’m still struggling with Alan Sugar, she’s completing Marilyn with consumate ease!

It’s enough to make you Spit!

John Minson

LURE OF THE DRAGON

Accompanied by garrulous ZZAP! dynamo, Julian Rignall, CRASH novice Tony Flanagan zoomed up the M6 to the land of Brookside, Bleasdale and the Beatles to get a sneak preview of Software Projects’ latest game: Dragon’s Lair.

Level three, and Dirk the Daring has to get to the top of the three-tiered building.

Perhaps it’s because of their Irish forefathers that scousers like telling jokes. Take this one, for example. Er — what d’you call a Liverpudlian in a suit? I don’t know, what do you call a Liverpudlian in a suit? The accused. “People have a sense of humour in Liverpool that makes life quite bearable,” explained Alan Maton, director of Software Projects, as we ate our lunch in the concrete garden of the Elephant and Castle. Not that Liverpool is a city of doom and gloom, though sometimes it might appear that way to us ‘southerners’ from leafy towns such as Ludlow. There is something irrepressible about Liverpool and its people that is very infectious. And what is true of Liverpool is also true of Software Projects.

The company began life in 1983 and is most widely known for two very successful games, Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy. The latter, remarked Paul Patterson, the Sales Manager, “is probably the biggest seller of all time.” How did they account for this success? “The thing about Jet Set Willy and Manic Miner,” Alan pointed out, “was that they were different from what everyone else was doing at that time.” But, like many other companies, Software Projects has not had a resounding success with every game. Jet Set Willy II, in particular, was very badly received by the computer games press.

NEW POLICY

Since October 1985, the company has adopted a new policy which puts quality as its main priority. Before then, Software Projects had produced about ten games which, as Paul remarked, “didn’t do very well and weren’t very good.” The new policy is only to market very good games — anything of dubious quality is scratched, even if a lot of money has been invested. But how do they decide what is worth marketing?

The simple answer is, they don’t — well, not all by themselves. Recently, Software Projects advertised in their local paper of players to come in and test their games ‘in progress’. The players’ comments are taken very seriously and usually acted upon. This was also the case with Dragon’s Lair, as Paul explained. “We brought in people to try Dragon’s Lair about eight weeks ago. If the response to the game had been negative, like some of the previous ones, it would have been scrapped.” Fortunately, this was not the case.

“Everyone gave the game nine or ten out of ten,” said Paul happily. “They asked us to change certain things and we did. Everything they asked us to change, we changed.” Dirk, the dynamic hero of the game, was thought to have too big a nose, so slices of it were lopped off in a neat bit of computer surgery. Some thought the first screen was too easy, so that was made more tricky. And there have been several other minor changes, all as a result of players’ suggestions.

Dragon slaying Ludlow style, a candid snap from a street performance a few weeks ago during the Festival.

A CHANCE DISCOVERY

So how did Alan get hold of the right to the game which is fairly well established in the arcades? The story is involved, to say the least. “I went away to Paris for a long weekend and, er, ... it was shut. I think there must have been a Bank Holiday. On the last day I went into this computer shop and there, in a box, was Dragon’s Lair for the Coleco Adam.” Alan liked the look of the game, bought it and took it home to Liverpool.

Obtaining the rights was a tortuous business. Initially, he contacted Coleco which, when he finally got hold of the right fellah, gave him the go-ahead. Unfortunately, Coleco had the rights to home computers, they didn’t have the rights to make sub deals with the licence. These rights belonged to Magicom who, as fortune would have it, had recently gone bankrupt. Eventually, Alan managed to get through to Magicom’s solicitors who agreed to license the game but explained, as Alan already knew, that the rights to home computers were owned by Coleco. As Alan put it, it was like “Er — can I go out Dad?” “Ask yer Mum.” “Er — can I go out Mum?” “Ask yer Dad.”

Eventually, the matter was resolved and Alan put together what he called a ‘Liverpool contract’. Basically, this amounted to “giz it and I’ll pay yer,” though after several amendments the contract ran to twelve pages and took five-and-a-half months to be processed through the courts. As this was only a formality, Software Projects began the programming schedule almost at once.

The progress of the programming has not been without its snags. Jim Damell, one of the programmers, outlined the initial problem. “First of all we looked at the game and decided it couldn’t be done in 64K on the Commodore — not to do it justice anyway. Then I said to The Boss that I thought the game could run while the tape was loading. It’s all based on the fact that you can play one level. By the time you’ve finished that, another level will have loaded off tape into memory.” Unfortunately, unlike the Commodore, the Spectrum version will not have that cunning load while you play facility...

The schedule took a major knock when one of the programmers decided to leave, with only two-thirds of the program done! Alan was not impressed. However, curbing any nefarious tendencies he might have had, he phoned up Andy Walker who agreed to help the company through the final phase of the schedule.

Programming the game has been a real team effort. Jim Darnell, Michael Davies, Steve Birtles, Colin Porch, Sue Maton, Nicole Baikaloff, as well as Andy Walker, have all played their part to produce a game which they hope will emulate the success of Jet Set Willy. Dragon’s Lair is now virtually finished. “We’ve got to the point where the programmers are just tidying everything up,” said Alan. It should be in the shops by the middle of August, and stores will be sent demo versions for public display.

Good old Dirk enters another corridor of doom

DRAGON’S LAIR

So what’s the game all about? Basically, Dragon’s Lair is a cross between an Arthurian romance and George and the Dragon. In it, the heroic knight Dirk the Daring is called upon to rescue King Aethelred’s daughter, Princess Daphne, from the fiery breath of Singe the evil Dragon. If the King does not renounce his Kingdom then she will die!

The game has nine screens which, as you progress, become increasingly more perilous. By means of the Falling Disk, you descend into the dungeons of the Castle and progress to the Skull Hallway, haunted by a host of osseous (LMLWD) ghosts and ghoulies. From there, by means of the Swinging Ropes which hang above a steadily ascending fire, you get to Singe’s Weapons Room, where the weaponry assumes an insidious life of its own. Next, a series of Ramps has to be negotiated — dally too long, and they disappear from under you. At the same time Giddy Goons, gargoyle-like monsters who don’t exactly have your best interests at heart have to be fought off.

Past the Ramps and rampant GGs is the Tentacle Room: Singe’s laboratory, where strange hybrids of the creepie-crawlie kind lurk, waiting to enter combat. Once the insectoid nasties have been despatched, hacked carapace from thorax, a ride on the Second Disk takes you to the penultimate level where the Phantom Knight awaits. “This eighth screen,” said Paul, “is a game in itself” in that it requires strategic thinking as well as physical dexterity. Finally, if you’re incredibly brave and mega-skilful, you reach the Dragon’s Lair and get the chance to slay the monster and free the beautiful (and voluptuous!) Princess.

PIECES OF EIGHT

The next Software Projects venture, which should be completed by the end of July, is John Silver’s Return to Treasure Island and coincides with the TV series of the same name. “The idea behind it,” Alan explained, “is to write a game which is based very loosely on Treasure Island, using the same locations and same characters but with a totally different story. You can write a program like this and get away with quite a lot of differences because you don’t have to stick to the book. People play the adventure but they don’t know what’s going to happen next.”

You play the part of Jim Hawkins and the idea is to find the Island’s hidden treasure. The Island is reproduced in 3D and is based on the original Treasure Island maps. “It works on a landscaping technique,” said Alan, which means that it draws your locations as you go along according to your position. There are, therefore, an incredible 1.5 million possible views all in full perspective.

The final screen: Dirk meets Singe, the Dragon with pink ears. Daphne waits in the bubble, but will Dirk get to the sword he needs to slay the dastardly Singe?

SUCCESS CAN BE HAIRY

According to Alan, success is simply a matter of having “a bit of nowse, a bit of time and a thorough knowledge of the market.” But success certainly hasn’t gone to their heads, though both Julian and I enjoyed the trip in Alan’s Porsche — a first for us both! But if success hasn’t gone to their heads, grey hair certainly has. As Paul complained, “when I came here my hair was curly and black, now it’s straight and grey.”

As the car coughed and spluttered its way back to Ludlow, I wondered whether grey hair was contagious, and whether one day I myself would own a Porsche. Alas, some things I fear weren’t meant to be. Then I thought of one of Alan’s jokes which cheered me up a little. “What d’you call a Liverpudlian in a detached house? ... A burglar.” That would keep me going for a while.

ACTION REFLEX

Producer: Mirrorsoft Ltd
Author: Christian Urquhart
Price: £7.95

Another ballgame with a difference! The central character in this game is a chequered ball which has been trapped inside a linked sequence of three mazes. The sphere has to be guided through the whole course three times in all, each trip through the mazes more difficult to make, before freedom is won.

Like most balls, the star of Action Reflex can roll along the floor — in this flip-screen playing environment, to the left or right. Bouncing is also in the repertoire: holding the fire button makes the Round One bounce higher and higher until maximum bounce has been achieved. The game is played against the clock, represented by a chart at the bottom of the screen. As time progresses a yellow pointer gradually moves towards the red danger zone, and if the current section of maze is not completed before the time limit expires, it’s curtains.

A variety of static and mobile obstacles must be avoided or evaded: bullets are shot from the ceiling; boxing gloves punch the spherical hero skywards, impaling it on dangerous looking spikes; magnets lure the bouncing ball to the top of the screen and hold it immobile until a dart comes along. Nearer ground level, drains suck the ball downwards and pools of water lurk in which unsuspecting balls can easily drown. Air vents whoosh the ball upwards through a vacuum delivery system and suck it along overhead pipeways to deliver the reluctant prisoner back to an earlier part of the maze. Whenever the ball is burst, time is lost and play restarts from one edge of the current screen.

Some objects in the game can be of use to your little bouncing chum on its travels. These are not collected on the journey as in most arcade adventure games, but are awarded automatically according to the number of points that have been amassed. Points are dotted around the maze in a variety of denominations, and are collected by rolling through or bouncing onto them. Once five hundred points are nestling comfortably in your pocket, a rubber ring is thrown your way. This makes it possible for the ball to pass unscathed over stretches of water. Seven hundred points is the price of a hammer that comes in very handy for breaking down one of the glass walls blocking off explorable areas of the maze. A key is slipped into your possession when nine hundred points have been collected, and can be used to unlock underground chutes that provide safe passage through tricky areas. These items can only be used once, and icons in the status area keep track of the quantity of each of the tools in stock.

When a direction key is pressed and held, the ball gathers speed and two sets of chevron arrows under the time display give a readout of the speed of travel. Releasing a key allows the ball to slow down and come to rest — there are no brakes! The speedometer is useful when judging large leaps or when avoiding bullets and spurts of flame which suddenly erupt from cracks in the floor. When time runs out, the game ends and a result screen pops into view to report on progress. Better luck next time, eh?

CRITICISM

‘The preview copy of Action Reflex looked very entertaining so I’ve been waiting for the proper copy for a few weeks now. I am not at all disappointed. This game has a really good feeling about it that keeps you playing: there are lots of nice graphical touches which help, like the bulge in the pipe when you are shot up it. The graphics are very near perfect — all the characters are very well animated and the scenery is very well drawn. My only niggle is that there is a touch of colour clash on the more colourful screens. The use of colour is excellent throughout the game, and is never garish. The sound is fairly average but there are some nice spot effects. A very playable and addictive game which I can recommend strongly.’

‘At first sight this game seems like Bounder, but viewed from the side. After playing a few goes, I soon realised that Action Reflex also has good depth to it that should keep any arcade player at the Spectrum for ages. The game is very playable and extremely addictive. Although Action Reflex has some old ideas, taken as a whole, the game format seems quite original, and is lots of fun to play. The ball moves around the screen very smoothly, although I feel it moves more like a stone. Action Reflex is definitely a move in a new direction.’

‘Neato! Lots of colour and very nice graphics make Action Reflex very attractive visually. The loading method is very clever, but the loading screen is not particularly brilliant. I found it very playable, and despite the continual frustration, it also seems to be pretty addictive. The colour and graphic style is reminiscent of Chris Urquhart’s last game, and very good it is too. Though not absolutely stunning, this game is a lot of fun: I like it.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: Z left, X right, SPACE increase bounce, P pause, Q quit
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: no problems
Use of colour: very attractive
Graphics: nice animation, lots of detail
Sound: good effects
Skill levels: one — gets progressively harder
Screens: 7
General Rating: A very good game, frustrating at times but addictive.

Use of Computer

88%

Graphics

88%

Playability

86%

Getting Started

88%

Addictive Qualities

89%

Value for Money

88%

Overall

88%

BARCHOU

Producer: Central Solutions
Author: Zafarullah Karim
Price: £0.99

Those aliens are at it again! Why can’t they leave civilisation alone? In this game, an intrepid spaceman has to prevent four cities from being obliterated by alien attacks. Single-handedly, he has to zip around and destroy the enemy’s bombs before they reach the ground. The only way the nasties can be zapped is with a quick burst of laser fire. However, if your reactions are a bit slow, there is an explosion and the spaceman’s atoms are spread evenly over a small area of space. Those multi-coloured aliens move at quite a pace!

Fortunately, the spaceman has five lives to play with, one of which is lost every time he gets too intimate with an alien craft. The game is over when all these lives have been lost or the four cities have been destroyed.

CRITICISM

‘The graphics offer nothing vaguely interesting or new, just a few characters flickering around the screen. The sound is on a par with the graphics — a few spot effects here and there, but nothing special. Even for budget software this is a bad deal.’

‘The graphics are pretty awful, with some bad animation and grotty sound. Even for its cheapo price, the game is still pretty bad, as it’s not very addictive. I wouldn’t fork out for it and I wouldn’t recommend you to, either.’

‘As usual, Central Solutions are assuming that ninety-nine per cent of the people who buy this game are going to be psychic. There are no instructions with the game and it only becomes obvious what you have to do after several attempts at thrashing around unsuccessfully and getting killed a lot. The game is also so fast-moving that you need impossibly fast reflexes in order to get anywhere. The whole game seemed to be a case of whaaaaat hit me?’

COMMENTS

Control keys: Q up, W down, O left, P right, SPACE fire
Joystick: Kempston, Protek or AGF, Interface 2
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: basic
Graphics: poor animation
Sound: the odd beep and tinkle
Skill levels: one
Screens: one
General Rating: Virtually unplayable.

Use of Computer

36%

Graphics

32%

Playability

25%

Getting Started

21%

Addictive Qualities

28%

Value for Money

38%

Overall

29%

BOBBY BEARING

Producer: The Edge
Price: £7.95
Author: Robert and Trevor Figgins

In the land of Technofear, mothers tell their baby Ball Bearings fearsome tales about the perilous Metaplanes. They say that unless they’re good little Bearings the monsters from the Metaplanes will come and get them in their sleep. Most young Bearings listen to this story with wide eyes and heed what their parents have told them, but occasionally the odd rebellious Bearing decides that he or she knows best and goes out to explore.

In all fairness, Bobby Bearing and his brothers were very obedient children until Cousin Nasty came to stay. He convinced the younger Bearing brothers that the Metaplanes were quite harmless and suggested a little sortie. However, the stories about the Metaplanes were not pure fiction and the Bearing brothers, together with their cousin, disappeared without trace. Being the eldest in the family Bobby must venture into the Metaplanes himself and try and rescue his relatives before it’s too late.

The Metaplanes are inhabited by a race of mutant bearings — fearsome black spheres with huge teeth. Their idea of fun is to prey upon innocent bearings and do nasty things to them. Bobby soon discovers this for himself as he roams around the 3D maze that makes up the Metaplanes. The Black Bearings are very possessive about their property and get quite vicious. They jump out from dark corners and stun our hero into seeing stars.

Somewhere in the Metaplane, Bobby’s brothers lie in a state of unconsciousness. The heroic Bobby must locate his relatives and then push them along, back through the maze, and shove them through the tube that leads to their home. Not a simple task, as the maze is very large and it is very easy to get lost or wander into a screen from which there is no escape.

Bobby Bearing can roll around the maze following the arrows that show him the exits from the current section. Air blasting holes send master Bearing shooting up on a current of warm air — with careful timing they can be used as lifts to get the little smiling steel ball to previously inaccessible areas.

Each monochromatic screen contains a single section of the three dimensional maze, and as Bobby moves off an arrowed edge of one screen, the next section of maze flips into view. Switches in the ground turn on magnets, trigger off nasties and activate blocks which may be used as lifts when Bobby passes over them.

Apart from the evil Black Bearings, there are other dangers in the Metaplanes. Bobby really has to keep his wits about him. Slabs of concrete come smashing down to the ground and getting caught under a descending block has stunning results — literally. Bobby must also keep to the pathways in the maze — if he strays too close to the edge of a ramp on the screen he stands a reasonably good chance of falling off. When Bobby is stunned a little question mark appears above his head and his eyes roll in confused concussion.

At the bottom right hand side of the screen a little counter ticks down as the game progresses. Whenever Bobby falls off a ledge or gets squashed by a flying slab he is incapable of moving for a while and the clock counter speeds up, removing vital seconds from the time limit in which the missing bearings have to be rescued.

A window below the main play area reveals the name of the next member of the Bearing family who should be found and herded to safety. Naughty Cousin Nasty. Mummy Bearing is going to be well cross when she gets hold of him!

A really complicated set of rampways and inclines confronts the heroic Big Brother of the Bearing family as he continues on his quest to fetch Barnaby safely home

CRITICISM

“Though very derivative in its presentation — Spindizzy does seem to be a title destined to inspire a million clones — Bobby Bearing is a heap of fun to play. Its main appeal is the realistic reactions of the little steel ball as he’s guided around the Metaplanes. Bobby realistically rebounds off all manner of obstacles in a very convincing manner, even curved ones. As far as the game goes, it’s brill, though a little bit difficult at first. It’s very easy to get lost when you start out since some screens tend to repeat. After a while though, the old arcade adventuring instinct should take control and a fairly logical map forms within your mind. Bobby Bearing is a game I’d recommend to most people, especially those enthralled by Spindizzy. Though the format is similar, the challenge is different enough to stir up a fair bit of enthusiasm.”

“Fabulous! A surreal world in your Spectrum where its residents stick to the laws of gravity, inertia, curvature and all the rest, completely convincingly. Bobby has got to be one of the best computer characters yet — his animation is superb and his smiling gob is really endearing. The first noticeable thing about Bobby Bearing is the loader: it’s a sort of Fighting Warrior loader but a scrolling message moves along the bottom while loading — very professional. I found the presentation of the game very smart and pleasing. The graphics are neat and well detailed — especially the baddies. The sound leaves a bit to be desired with only a few spot effects. The best point about Bobby Bearing is the actual animation and movement of Bobby around the maze — all done very smoothly and accurately. ‘Curvispace 3D’ is the name The Edge have given to this new technique — well worth checking out.”

“Hooray it’s finally here! The torturous wait is over at long last and I think I can truthfully say that it was worth it. What a lovely game. The 3D playing area is very good, although I think that some of the screens tend to repeat a bit too often. It is quite easy to get lost if you aren’t too familiar with the whole area. Your character is also very good, moving around the place well. I was a little surprised to find that he couldn’t jump about or fall off the edges of sections of the maze — this gives the feeling that you are not in complete control all the time, but makes life easier. The sound is good, with some very nice effects in the game but no tune. I recommend this game to everyone, especially Marble Madness and Spindizzy freaks.”

Poor little bearing — stunned again! A well awkward screen. Those two evil Black Bearings roll up and down the U shaped slopes relentlessly and Bobby has to time his move just right to avoid getting into trouble

COMMENTS

Control keys: Y-P up and right, H-ENTER down and left, alternate keys on bottom row up and left/down and right
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: monochromatic
Graphics: very neat details
Sound: a few effects, but no tune
Skill levels: one
Screens: 150
General rating: A technically stunning game which is addictive and fun to play

Use of computer

94%

Graphics

94%

Playability

92%

Getting started

92%

Addictive qualities

93%

Value for money

91%

Overall

94%

CAGARA

Producer: Players Software
Author: Sam Garforth and Steven Cork
Price: £1.99

A naughty Gypsy has cast a wicked spell which means that you can’t get back in to your castle. To make matters worse, you’ve been incarcerated in a Crystal Sphere. Only by finding the magic chalice of Cagara can you break the spell and get back home.

To accompany you in your quest is your favourite hamster, Eric. Some help, eh? But little Eric packs a powerful punch. Somehow he’s managed to grow helicopter blades! This means that when you release him he can put a timely end to the various nasties that are out to stop you finding the chalice.

Moving out from the castle grounds you enter a world of mazes, caverns, and exotic gardens. Sometimes you have to travel in the dark, with only one section of a maze in view. There are also hidden rooms, some of them cul-de-sacs, where you must avoid getting cornered by the grizzly ghouls in pursuit.

The monsters come in a variety of forms: animate gargoyles, whirling disks and crystalline spheres. There are also flying arrows and the odd laser beam or two. And don’t get too close to the colourful hedgerows as nasties can leap out at any moment.

Finding out where the chalice is hidden is really a matter of trial-and-error. There are no screen directions, but there are various objects along the way which come in handy. The sword is particularly useful as it can be used to slay monsters: they have to be stabbed in the left ear — apparently their most vulnerable spot!

Without the chalice there’s no chance of returning home. And don’t expect any compliments at the end of the game. It’s not nice being called a ‘useless worm’!

CRITICISM

‘Hmmm...! This game, to say the least, is pretty tricky, in fact, I’d say that it’s almost impossible. The graphics are uninteresting, the characters are very primitive and the backgrounds are unvaried. The sound is pretty much run-of-the-mill stuff, although there are a couple of fair to average tunes on the title screen and a few spot effects during the game. Generally, there is nothing here that I haven’t seen before. Another less than wonderful game from Players I’m afraid.’

‘I had great difficulty trying to get Cagara to load and once I did, I must admit, I wish I hadn’t. The presentation is not all that bad for a budget game, and the sound is nearly decent too. I just found the game much too boring. The keyboard response is very good but the graphics are very poor compared with most budget stuff — they’re small and colourful. Even the most excitable person wouldn’t be impressed with this one.’

‘Cagara is really weird — not in the sense of it being an entertainingly original game, either. The game, even for £2.99, is far too simple, and though it moves at a reasonable pace, gets boring after only a few minutes. I’ve seen the scenario more than once before as well: recover the chalice and get out? The sound on the title screen is the best bit of it. The graphics are very boring, with only a border around most of the screens, and some very flickery characters. Even for the price, Cagara is one game that I wouldn’t think about buying.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: Q up, A down, O left, P right, bottom row to fire
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: nothing special
Graphics: uninspiring
Sound: above average
Skill levels: one
Screens: Players didn’t know!
General Rating: A poor game, lacking in originality.

Use of Computer

50%

Graphics

37%

Playability

40%

Getting Started

44%

Addictive Qualities

35%

Value for Money

47%

Overall

39%

CAULDRON II

Producer: Palace
Price: £8.99
Author: Steve Brown, Richard Leinfellner, Richard Joseph

At the end of Cauldron, the wicked witch defeats the Pumpking and wins the Golden Broomstick. Flushed with victory (and a stack of newly acquired magical power) the witch takes up residence in the Pumpking’s castle and moves her sidekicks in for company. All the fighting with the Pumpking has tired old witchy out, and now she spends most of her time tucked up in bed dreaming of world domination.

Little does she know, one of the Pumpking’s minions survived her veggie clean-up campaign. Under cover of darkness this determined delicacy makes its way stealthily towards the castle with one objective in mind: to take the golden broomstick and claim the Castle in the name of all things round and yellow.

Although the wicked witch stays between the sheets, she has animated various objects within the castle to keep out undesirables. Floating mines, trolls with hammers and roasted pig heads which waggle their ears in anticipation and then pounce on intruders are amongst the army of horrors that awaits the little yellow fellow. Contact with anything that moves saps Pumpkin’s strength, and when the magic meter in the status screen reaches zero he bursts!

At the start of the game, the hero is unarmed — bouncing into a pool of sparkling magic replenishes the magic meter and allows nasty-zapping to begin. Unfortunately, the canny hell-hag has granted her minions the power of immortality, and after they’ve been blasted with a bolt of magic they re-appear a couple of seconds later. Some guardians, like the patrolling skeletons and fluttering bats, cannot be killed with a magic blast — the galivanting gourd can only get past them when a certain object is in the inventory. Gargoyles on the edge of the building harbour great magical secrets... misjudging a leap onto a gargoyle’s plinth sends the little hero falling into oblivion with the witch’s laughter ringing out loud.

Before the witch can be usurped, five objects must be collected and used at appropriate points in the game. The objects that Pumpkin Junior is carrying are displayed at the top of the screen along with the number of lives remaining. Points are added to the scoremeter each time a magical minion is zapped. Although the horrible warty hag is catching up on her beauty sleep, her evil spirit haunts the cobwebbed castle. When the veritable vegetable turns into pumpkin pulp she cackles hideously from her vantage point in the status area.

The smiling swede has obviously been doing some serious training for this mission, as he’s an agile little fellow, full of bounce. Pressing fire increases the level of sproing — there are three bounce strengths. The pumpkinette roams around the spacious castle by bouncing along, and up and over the obstacles in his path. Careful timing is needed, for movement is effected by pressing left or right as the vegetable hits the ground. Fire and a direction pressed together while the full-fibre hero is in the air shoots a bolt of magic off in the appropriate direction.

Considering the dangerous nature of his mission, Pumpkin seems unreasonably happy about everything, with his crooked little smile and the glint in his triangular eyes. When all lives are lost, the game can be restarted — but the pumpkin sets out from one of eight randomly selected start locations, so getting to know the castle’s geography is vital.

It is up to you to guide the Pumpkin rebel through the castle chambers, collecting and using items so the hag is destroyed and Veggie Power restored. Can you help the Pumpkin Strike Back?

In the throne room, where the pumpkinlet can find a crown. But that nasty, indestructible skeleton is in the way...

CRITICISM

“At last us Spectrum owners get a chance at Cauldron II — and what a good game it is. The graphics are superbly drawn and beautifully animated. The Palace team has managed to get a brilliant combination of lots of colour and limited attribute clash. The way the pumpkin moves around is superbly realistic. The tune on the title screen is excellent and well matched by the creative sound effects within the game. There are some very nice touches — like the way control is reversed when you hit a hand. Although the game is brilliant I think a lot of people will find it a bit hard to get used to, and a fair bit of effort is needed before you become a competent pumpkin controller.”

“The best thing about this game for me is the sense of reward you get when a task is completed, as the game is hard enough not to be a walk over but easy enough to keep you playing. The graphics are not as good as they might have been, but they are by no means bad or sloppy: there are lots of characters that move around nicely and the backgrounds are very well detailed. Sound-wise, things are pretty good — there are some great spot effects during the game and a smashing tune on the title screen. Cauldron II needs practice to get into but once you’ve made the effort, I’m sure you’ll find it rewarding.”

“Great! A brilliant arcade adventure which doesn’t rely on the now rather worn and weary filmation style techniques. The game offers a lot more than its prequel and has one of the most novel control methods I’ve seen — bounce-ability, that’s the beauty of Cauldron II. The graphics are excellent with great backdrops and some of the best animated nasties I’ve seen in a long while. As for the game, well, it’s by no means easy, but I feel that it merits a lot of perseverance and is one which you’ll feel inclined to play and play. A very playable and addictive game that’s well worth the money.”

COMMENTS

Control keys: definable
Joystick: Kempston, Interface 2
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: very attractive
Graphics: clever animation, minimal attribute clash
Sound: very neat intro tune and spot effects
Skill levels: one
Screens: 128
General rating: An addictive sequel to an addictive game

Use of computer

90%

Graphics

91%

Playability

93%

Getting started

86%

Addictive qualities

92%

Value for money

89%

Overall

91%

CAVERNS OF KONTONIA

Producer: Atlantis Software Ltd
Author: John Shepherd
Price: £1.99

Our hero is trapped, deep in the darkest recesses of a set of dank caves. The only light comes from glowing patches of phosphorous on the slime covered walls which twinkle in the half-light. As feelings of claustrophobia set in, he realises he must get out as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the character has not been blessed with huge amounts of courage and this makes his task all the more difficult.

To add to his predicament the caverns of Kontonia are filled with various monsters whose staple diet seems to consist mainly of unwary pot-holers. These nasties must be avoided at all costs. Every time the character clashes with them his courage is sapped and eventually it fails him altogether and he dies. The courage-count is represented by an apple at the bottom of the screen. As the far from intrepid explorer gets weaker, the apple is eaten away to the core.

Life in the caverns isn’t too hopeless, however, as there are various objects lying around that come in handy. The only way to get out of the underground maze is to collect the sword and the key of ultimate power. Without these, the mission is futile. Other objects that assist escape are shown at the top of the main screen. When an umbrella is picked up, for example, the potholer is protected from the occasional shower of toxic rain. The bag of hole-filler may be used to bridge gaps in the cavern floor which you can’t get over.

The best way to stay alive in the Caverns of Kontonia is to avoid the monsters, but our hero can get his own back. If he manages to pick up the hammer, then he can have great fun indulging in a spot of nasty-bashing until the hammer breaks. Some of the caverns in the game are filled with poisonous gases. Gas kills, unless you have had the foresight to pick up and wear the gas-mask.

Our hero moves around the caves on foot, climbing down ropes to get to the lower levels or using teleports to explore new parts of the cave system.

The game contains eight screens, and some levels cannot be completed before the correct objects have been picked up. Do you have the strength to keep the wimpy hero going, or will his courage fall and condemn him to spend the rest of his life entombed within the evil Caverns of Kontonia?

CRITICISM

‘This has to be the most infuriating game of the week. It’s so easy to die before you get anywhere. Like so many other budget games, this has no lasting appeal or outstanding features. The graphics are of an average standard: the many undetailed characters flicker and the backgrounds are boring and uncolourful. The sound is also fairly mediocre, with only a few odd effects here and there. Not a wondrous game.’

‘Ugh! What’s happened to Atlantis games of late? Some of the ones I’ve seen have been really dire. A pity, after they started with such playable games. Caverns of Kontonia is pretty bad. The graphics are quite pleasing to start with, but when the colour starts clashing, they get less and less attractive. Playing through the same boring screens time and time again is very irritating, and the whole game begins to get very boring after an all too short while. Not one I’d recommend.’

‘Oh great, at last Atlantis have come up with a game that is above their usual standard. The game reminded me very much of the not so old Hocus Focus. The screen display is only a third of the screen big, and it consists of some very large, colourful and podgy graphics. The presentation of the game was very poor — there’s only two lines of instructions in the inlay, and very poor sound in the game itself. The control of your character is a bit slack but it was quite easy to get used to after a while. Overall, another typical budget game, but a bit better than the usual Atlantis efforts.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: Q up/down, A down/pick-up/activate, O left, P right, H hold
Joystick: Kempston
Keyboard play: fairly responsive
Use of colour: quite colourful, though there are some clashes
Graphics: not very good
Sound: poor sound
Skill levels: one
Screens: eight
General Rating: A fairly run-of-the-mill budget title.

Use of Computer

46%

Graphics

48%

Playability

42%

Getting Started

44%

Addictive Qualities

45%

Value for Money

48%

Overall

46%

CON-QUEST

Producer: Mastertronic Added Dimension
Author: Derek Brewster
Price: £2.99

Oscar has trouble with squatters. There he is, just about to move in to his spacious gothic castle, only to find that someone has got there first. The evil Demon Grell and his merry band of sprites have set up residence already and are none too keen to vacate the property. But if Oscar doesn’t persuade his unwanted visitors to find somewhere else to live, his soul will be condemned to eternal hell. The game follows Oscar’s efforts to rid his castle of ghoulies.

Various objects lying around the rooms of the castle can be used to destroy the spectral nasties. At the bottom of the screen is a row of icons that must be used in conjunction with the action pointer. When Oscar sees an object which he thinks might help him, moving the pointer to the picking-up hand and pressing the action key collects the item and stores it in one of his spacious pockets. This icon select system allows objects to be examined, used or dropped.

The Demon’s apprentices are a vindictive lot and try anything to steal Oscar’s soul. Contact with them drains Oscar’s life energy which is shown on an hour glass at the bottom of the screen. If Oscar finds his life-energy being used up too quickly, he must find the Globe of Invulnerability. Once inside, he can travel around the castle, impervious to the attacks of the beasties.

It isn’t very nice having a supernatural presence in your house, especially when it’s trying to kill you. Will Oscar manage to rid his Real Estate of the multi-coloured nasties, or will he be forced to flat share for ever after? As usual, it’s up to you to sort things out.

CRITICISM

‘Oh dear. Why have MAD gone and ruined their reputation by putting out such a bad game? The biggest pity though is the game itself. It’s acutely unprofessional in that it’s boring, both graphically and playability-wise. For three quid, it’s not good value, and I don’t think I would play it for pleasure.’

‘I was really disappointed with Conquest mainly because of the poor graphics and slow playing. The screen is very poorly presented, with some very average looking characters which are all very colourful but result in lots of terrible clashes. I thought that the screen had a good 3D perspective but that didn’t always act true. The game couldn’t really make its mind up between an being arcade game or an adventure, and as a mixture it’s terrible. There are much better budget games on the market.’

‘I’ve seen so many games like this before that even if a really compelling one came along I don’t think I could get enthusiastic about it. The graphics are about average for this sort of game: lots of flicker, colour clash and poorly detailed characters. A nice touch is the way in which your character looks at you every now and then as if to say: ‘what’s going on?’ The sound is slightly above average with lots of well placed spot effects and even an awful little tunette when the game finishes. Generally, as with countless other trite offerings from Mastertronic, I wouldn’t really recommend this as there are many budget games around from the same company which are a lot better.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: redefinable
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: very poor, slow response
Use of colour: lots of colour which sometimes results in colour clashes
Graphics: fine detail but occasionally too small
Sound: slightly above average
Skill levels: one
Screens: about 300
General Rating: A passable game but there are better alternatives.

Use of Computer

47%

Graphics

42%

Playability

37%

Getting Started

48%

Addictive Qualities

35%

Value for Money

42%

Overall

39%

DESERT HAWK

Producer: Players Software
Author: Michael Barnard and Steven Bough
Price: £1.99

Once again you have the chance to prove yourself as a hero on the battlefield. In Desert Hawk you pilot a sophisticated helicopter over a particularly nasty part of the desert on a mission to rescue soldiers stranded behind enemy lines — remember Choplifter? The risks are high; the chances of success, low. Only flying skills can decide the outcome.

Under cover of darkness, the helicopter slowly rises into the sky. Silently, the chopper flies over the arid desert in search of the wounded men. The enemy have been expecting such a mercy mission, however, and have positioned defences to destroy the helicopter. A cannon fires lethal shells which are very hard to see in the half light. Shrapnel launchers are positioned rather too close to the pick-up zone. As you appear on their radar, missiles shoot out of the top of the shrapnel domes, to explode, spraying shrapnel everywhere. Only skilful manoeuvring prevents the helicopter from being blasted out of the sides.

On the higher levels, more sophisticated weapons are sent to stop your mission. The tanks can only fire shells to a certain height, but this makes them no less dangerous when you are coming in to land and pick up some comrades. The real weapons to avoid at all costs are the heat-seeking missile launchers. These missiles are attracted to the engine heat of the helicopter and go to any lengths to destroy the chopper, unless you can out-smart them with some pretty nifty flying. Contact with the missiles results in the destruction of the helicopter and the mission is prematurely terminated.

Only three soldiers at a time can be carried to safety. Once the chopper has been successfully landed, the allies run on to the screen and hop aboard. When three guys are inside, you must take off again and fly back to base before returning to pick up another batch. At each subsequent level the number of soldiers to be rescued increases by two, and the enemy weapon systems multiply.

The helicopter is equipped with a defence system — at the start of the game, the helicopter has one hundred missiles. These can be fired horizontally or dropped on to a target below, depending on the position of the helicopter. Points are scored in the game for picking up soldiers and these are displayed at the top of the main screen.

The Landing Computer display occupies the bottom of the screen. When the helicopter is in the correct position for a successful landing the colours around the edge of the landing screen stop rotating and the word ‘LANDING’ appears. If you try to land the helicopter before this has happened, it crashes. To the right of the screen there is the fuel and temperature chart. If things get too hot, the engine cuts out and you drift slowly towards the ground. Should the enemy be below the helicopter when this happens, it’s curtains. Running out of fuel has a similar effect as overheating the engine.

The screen scrolls sideways to give the impression that the helicopter is moving. Below the desert with cacti and ancient relics passes by.

CRITICISM

‘Desert Hawk is the sort of game that takes you back to the age when all Spectrum games cost a fiver and you had to take pot luck in the computer shop when you bought a game (the mighty pages of CRASH weren’t available!). I feel that there is no real point to this one, as once you’ve completed the first bit, all the rest is the same. The graphics are full of attribute problems and they seem to suffer from in-built flicker. The sound, however, is fairly good: there are lots of spot effects and even a tuneful beep at the beginning of the game. The game itself is very tedious to play and also very primitive, so I wouldn’t really recommend it, even for two quid. A bad start for Players I’m afraid.’

‘The presentation of Desert Hawk is good for a budget game. It’s superior to the usual budget stuff but not as good as the Spellbounds of the budget world. I found the game was very similar to an old favourite, Blue Thunder — not just because it’s a helicopter game but because the whole look of it is very similar. The way the helicopter moves around is very poor and, like the rest of the graphics, suffers from a very bad flicker when anything invades its character space. The sound is very basic and merely consists of a few blips here and there and a quite convincing whirr at the beginning of each game. The whole look of the game is very bright and full of colour but the graphics are not well drawn and the desert scenery is not very convincing. A nice try Players, but something a bit more playable next time please.’

‘First impressions of Desert Hawk left me dying to get away from it. The controls are extremely unresponsive, and the whole thing felt as if it were one of those games that gives cheapies a bad name. It can become a little bit addictive after a while, but it doesn’t really justify an expenditure of £1.99 to my mind. There are many better cheapies around. If I were you, I’d take my money to Knight Tyme or something like that.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: definable
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: pretty unresponsive
Use of colour: quite dull
Graphics: quite a lot of attribute problems
Sound: some nice spot effects and a realistic sound effect at the beginning
Skill levels: one
Screens: small scrolling play area

Use of computer

48%

Graphics

52%

Playability

42%

Getting started

56%

Addictive qualities

47%

Value for money

47%

Overall

47%

HEARTLAND

Producer: Firebird
Price: £9.95
Author: Odin Computer Graphics

For thousands of years a fierce battle has been fought between the forces of good and evil. During this war, the people of the Nether World were transported from their own dimension and imprisoned inside The Book, where the conflict with the evil demon Midas and his followers rages.

The Book, in which the people of the Nether World have been trapped, was sent into our dimension arriving on Earth for safe keeping until Midas is defeated. The tome has been passed down through the generations until, one day, it comes into your hands. Being an inquisitive sort of person you sit down for a good read. As your eyes skim the pages, drowsiness sets in. Unable to stay awake, you stumble to bed, fall into a deep sleep and start to dream of many strange things.

A lady dressed in white begs for help in rescuing her people, trapped in the lands contained in the weird dimension inside The Book. She tells you that the final chapter of The Book has been torn out and its six pages scattered through the lands, mixed up with six Dark Pages created by the forces of evil. The people from the Nether World can only be returned to their own dimension once The Book is whole again — the missing pages must be found and replaced. The six Dark Pages must also be destroyed to put paid to the powers of Midas once and for all.

The Lady in White transports you, bed and all, into the Heartland, and the mission to free the oppressed people of the Nether World begins. Although the reign of the evil Midas is on the wane, some of his fanatical followers still roam the Heartland and do their best to hinder progress.

Movement through Heartland is achieved by scampering Mad-Hatter style from screen to screen, being careful to avoid the holes in the ground — a fall means instant death. Providing the central character is facing left or right, he can leap in the air to catch floating objects. Doorways and lifts link screens and can be used by going ‘into’ or ‘out of’ the screen. The bed permits travel between the lands that make up Heartland, once pages of The Book have been collected.

On the quest for The Book and its elusive pages it is wise to collect a weapon or two along the way. Contact with any of the nasties or their weapons saps strength, and relying on acrobatic skills to stay alive isn’t very clever. Weapons or objects are collected by jumping through them, whereupon they are added to the inventory in the status area at the top of the screen. The top hat is the least powerful weapon — three hits are needed to eliminate an enemy, but an unlimited number of throws is available. A knife is good for nineteen stabs, with most baddies dieing after two hits; the flaming power-ball turns even the stubbornest baddie into dust and old bones with a single hit, but only lasts for nine shots.

The evil minions of Midas do their best to sap strength — and as they remove your life force, Midas gains energy and his grinning countenance grows in the inventory. Wizards fire lightning bolts of energy and can be a right nuisance. Goouches refuse to stay dead for very long, even after they’ve been reduced to bones on the floor, and rise up out of their remains to seek vengeance. Spacemen just hang around being irritating until they are killed. Apart from evil minions, spells float around, some nice, some nasty. The large star spell homes in, saps energy and cannot be destroyed. Running away is a good move... Touching a small star spell confers temporary invincibility, while bubble clusters build up strength levels a little.

The passage of time in Heartland is shown by two revolving hourglasses, one on either side of the status area. The glass on the left revolves every couple of seconds, while the right hand hourglass takes about eight minutes to complete a revolution. Whenever you travel to another land the hourglasses reset, but tarrying longer than eight minutes in one land causes the Lady in White to run out of power. If the hourglass on the right is allowed to complete a revolution, it’s game over. First on the list of things to do has to be ‘find a weapon’ so that the score can be evened a little; then it’s time to search out The Book and begin hunting for pages. To make life that little bit easier, The Book flashes when a missing page is in the vicinity — but pages still have to be found and identified. Only the Good pages must be added to The Book: the Bad pages have to be destroyed. Let’s hope the Lady in White can hang on in there and keep you in this strange dimension until the task is completed.

Zooming up to a new level via the lift. The book and top hat are in the inventory, and things are getting a bit bad — the face of Midas is building up rather rapidly

CRITICISM

“Heartland in a way resembles the film, The Never Ending Story as the plot is based around a book. As with all the other Odin games this is very playable and immensely compelling. The graphics seem to be a little more impressive than those on their last release: there is plenty of colour and the animation of all the characters is superb. The sound is also excellent with lots of spot effects during the game and a very jolly tune on the title screen. I strongly recommend this one as it is a very good place of ‘finished’ software.”

“The Spectrum has had its fair share of arcade/adventures, some good some bad, but we Spectrum owners have come to expect the best from Odin. Heartland is definitely up to scratch. The graphics are superb, the tune at the beginning suits the game perfectly and the addictiveness scores very high. When the game first loaded up I was sure that I was in for something special — the title screen is superbly drawn, and like the rest of the game includes lots of colour and few attribute problems. The whole look of the game is very smart, it’s beautifully animated and very involving. Your average arcade adventurer will love it, but your old shoot em up fanatic may find it a bit boring after the effect of the graphics has worn off.”

“This is a very nice game. The graphics are fabulous, and the animation is really rather neat. The things like wizards and Goouches (mis-spelt cricket players?) are great, and the game itself is very attractively designed. Playability-wise, Heartland is very good indeed, and it’s also addictive. Lots of things combine to make this one of the better games on the Spectrum. Another credible release from the people who brought you Nodes, Arc, and Robin O’ The Wood.”

An energy-sapping Star Spell comes to hassle you now that you’ve just fireballed a nasty into a bag of bones. If that was a Goouch, it’ll sproing back to life any second. Energy is running really low — the full countenance of Midas looms down

COMMENTS

Control keys: top row to fire, Q-P into screen or jump when facing left or right, A-L out of screen, alternate keys on the bottom row left/right
Joystick: Kempston, Interface 2
Keyboard play: a bit awkward
Use of colour: no clashes, a bit sparsely used
Graphics: excellent animation
Sound: spot effects
Skill levels: one
Screens: 256

Use of computer

91%

Graphics

93%

Playability

92%

Getting started

90%

Addictive qualities

93%

Value for money

89%

Overall

92%

HIJACK

Producer: Electric Dreams Software
Author: Paradise Software (David Shea, Mark Eyles, Nigel Brownjohn)
Price: £9.99

This is the age of the terrorist. Hijacking has become ubiquitous and no-one is safe now an unknown group has hijacked a vehicle and they’re making demands. As Head of the Hijack Division, it’s your job to track them down and negotiate, using whatever financial, political or military power you can muster. And all this within a time limit!

The game is set within the Pentagon and there are a number of characters who can either help or hinder, depending on how you handle them. Most important of all is the President — he’s the only one who can give you the boot. On the other hand, he might negotiate with the hijackers on your behalf (thereby extending the deadline) or even allow you to use his helicopter.

More information can be obtained from the FBI Agent, who can be made to question employees, at the risk of losing their loyalty. Intelligence work is carried out by the CIA Agent who provides reports of varying detail on the hijackers. Military and Political Advisers may be sent to the scene of the hijack to help the Political and Military Assistants, who are the real workers. They have the power to call upon diplomats to negotiate, or summon up troops to frighten the bad guys into surrender. Extra cash which might be necessary can be raised through the Finance Officer. Last but not least is the President’s Secretary — she is really only accountable to the President, but you can order her to find an employee for you.

It is important that public support is maintained, and the services of the Publicity Officer are vital: good Press keeps the President happy. Remember, at any time he can send you a friendly little missive which goes something like ‘You’re getting on my nerves — you’re fired!’

You travel up and down the Department building in the lift which links offices, and access options via a menu and icon system. Information, such as news headlines and top secret documents, can also be called up.

The faces of all the characters in the game are displayed along the top of the screen, and light up whenever you are in the same room as one or more of the characters. A clock slowly counts down to that dreaded deadline. Just below, is the lift sign with arrows pointing in both directions which light up to indicates that a lift is available. At the bottom left of screen, various items are displayed which you can pick up, examine or use on your way through an office, and the inventory is displayed to the right. A graphical readout displays your military, political and financial strength, which gradually diminishes as time goes on, unless support is won.

Once you feel confident enough to confront the hijackers, the President has to be found and a code word requested that gives access to the helicopter — certain items in the inventory may prove crucial in your negotiations.

Success depends on how quickly you can co-ordinate people and assimilate information. One thing, however, is certain. If you fail, expect the worst: an indefinite holiday in some remote Himalayan embassy perhaps? Happy mantras!

CRITICISM

‘From my first look at Hijack I was hooked. The game is superb, the graphics are excellent and the controls are extremely well laid out and very easy to use. One thing I can say about Hijack, as opposed to many other ‘good’ games about, is that I got totally enthralled with the whole idea of the game. The way that you go about the offices and order everybody to do what they are told is superb, although I found you have to be nice to people if you don’t want them to betray you. The icon-type control is very easy to use and very well presented. All of the rooms are well detailed — even down to the last little waste paper bin in the corner... Of course you have to check these for discarded paper and codes. Hijack is addictive from the first. I loved it; don’t miss this very original game.’

‘Hijack is a very entertaining game. Although it took me a long time to get into the swing of things (possibly due to the fact that the instructions, although well written don’t explain everything that they should) the game is still good fun. The graphics for the most part aren’t particularly amazing, but they serve their purpose and could be a lot worse. The lift system is a bit of a pain and doesn’t always go where you want it to, but perseverance usually succeeds. Even with its few downfalls, I can see myself wanting to play Hijack for a long time to come. Hijack is not as good as Spindizzy, but is an admirable attempt at a different sort of game.’

‘This game is very boring to begin with, but once you start having some success with the various features it gets quite addictive. Initially, you can spend a great deal of time just going up and down the lifts not getting anywhere. Then everything seems to click and you find yourself totally intrigued. The graphics are good and the colour clash is minimal. The messages you receive from the various characters can be quite humorous, especially when you ask the President if you can use the helicopter. On the whole, I liked this game a great deal because it’s one you can go back to again and again.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: definable
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface II, Fuller
Keyboard play: very good
Use of colour: lots of variety
Graphics: nice detailed graphics
Sound: realistic spot effects
Skill levels: one
Screens: large office complex
General Rating: A very original and compulsive game.

Use of Computer

89%

Graphics

83%

Playability

90%

Getting Started

79%

Addictive Qualities

89%

Value for Money

83%

Overall

86%

KUNG-FU MASTER

Producer: US Gold with Ocean
Author: Data E
Price: £7.95

The honourable Kung Fu Master is in a bit of a fix. Hidden within the evil wizard’s temple is a fair oriental damsel in distress. In the cause of truth and justice, the martial arts supremo must battle his way through the rooms in the temple to try and save her from a terrible ordeal.

This wizard is no fool, however, and has made sure that his little lotus blossom is well protected against any who might try to rescue her from his dastardly clutches. He has used his magical powers to good effect and has set many traps to prevent her from leaving.

Mystical globes hover sinisterly at head level, waiting to burst and shower our hero with deadly pieces of shrapnel. Vases drop from the ceiling to reveal poisonous snakes which slither around under the Master’s feet. He must jump to avoid them or else he will be bitten by the little sacks of venom and won’t be at all happy. If yellow spheres drop near the Kung-Fu Master he must watch out, for when they break open they reveal fire-breathing dragons. These can be destroyed, but their flaming breath is deadly if you get too close. The wizard’s henchmen are not to be trifled with either. Although you may be a Master of Kung Fu, this does not guarantee that you are invincible. The henchmen will try to dispatch you with a blow to the head or with a sharp and pointy knife.

The Kung-Fu Master walks along the scrolling play area, and has a variety of moves in his fighting repertoire. Flying kicks, body punches and squatting kicks, all accessed in Exploding Fist style, are just some of the ways in which he can dispose of his enemies.

At the end of each floor a door leads to the next level. The portals are heavily guarded by the wizard’s lackeys, and a motley crew they are too — from giants to boomerang-wielding felons, their sole object in life is to stop you from gaining access to the next floor in the temple.

Being a mystical fellow, the Kung-Fu Master has been granted three lives. He loses one of these every time he is defeated by one of the guards in the temple, and falls off the bottom of the screen. The number of lives left is shown at the top of the screen along with the amount of energy left. Some of the nasties in the game sap energy rather than killing outright. When the energy level, represented by a blue line, gets too low, a life is lost and play resumes at the start of the current level.

For every guard despatched to an early grave, points are awarded depending on the power of the vanquished opponent, and a meter keeps track of the score so far. For every 40,000 points collected, an extra life is awarded. Quite apart from all the wizard’s henchman, there is another problem for our slanty-eyed hero to contend with. A strict time limit is set to the game, and each level has to be completed before this runs out. A clock in the status panel starts at 2,000 and counts down. The state of the wizard’s army enemy is represented by a red band underneath the energy chart, which shrinks a little more as each minion is defeated.

The persecuted damsel is trapped within the fifth level of the temple, held captive in a dark, locked room. The mission is completed when she has been freed. If you want to continue the game, you return to the first floor, but from then onwards there are more of the wizard’s minions. The task is much harder second time around...

CRITICISM

‘I first saw this one in the arcades about a year ago. I didn’t really rate it that highly then. On the Spectrum, it has lost its nice sound and graphics, and any addictive qualities that the original ever possessed. There isn’t anything in this game that remotely pleases me I’m afraid. Even the thought of beating up the odd Ninja bloke doesn’t really appeal anymore. The graphics are really very poor — there are so many attribute problems that it’s hard to tell what is going on, and the use of colour is also quite bad. The sound, on the other hand, is pretty good. There are a couple of nice tunes and a spot effect now and then. On the whole US Gold seem to have produced another ‘no-no’.’

‘Well I suppose I shouldn’t really have expected a great translation from the arcade game but the least they should have done is got the graphics and colour sorted out. If you look at someone playing Kung Fu Master, all that is apparent is the most awful flicker of the graphics. The game is fairly average as far as Spectrum games go and, as a result, it doesn’t do the arcade version justice. I didn’t like the idea of choosing which level to enter at as this spoils the addictiveness of the game. Each level in Kung Fu Master is no harder than the previous one as far as I could see. I didn’t find myself as stuck on the game as I felt I should have been. Not a brilliant conversion.’

‘The arcade game is nothing mega-amazing by today’s standards, but it is playable, and very addictive. Not so US Gold’s conversion, however. The front end to the game is quite impressive. The music (if you can call it that) is irritating, and the game very definitely lacks something to make it addictive. A big disappointment on something that, with the exception of the scrolling, would convert quite well to the Spectrum, although it looks as though it hasn’t. An element of the original playability, albeit a weak element, still exists. A disappointment, really.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: redefinable
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: quite responsive
Use of colour: not very good at all
Graphics: lots of attribute problems and lots of flicker
Sound: tune plays throughout
Skill levels: five
Screens: five levels, scrolling backdrop
General Rating: Overall, a very poor conversion from the arcade game.

Presentation

72%

Graphics

55%

Sound

55%

Playability

63%

Addictive qualities

56%

Value for Money

57%

Overall

56%

LABYRINTHION

Producer: Budgie Budget Software
Author: Ivan Horn, Andrew P. Deakin
Price: £2.99

Labyrinthion features a magic scroll, a labyrinth (well that’s a shocker), a hero, several baddies and a scenario that runs as follows:

Trapped within a dusty labyrinth you, as the hero of this fair tale, must escape with your life by avoiding the far from gentle touch of the cave’s inhabitants. Trouble free travel within the subterranean passages is heavily restricted by doors that link the five sectors of the maze and require four objects to be in your possession before access is allowed. A quartet of compasses, maps or water bottles acts as a key to the doors between sectors, so your first main task is to hunt for these objects.

Lots of roaming evil beings troll from cave to cave in search of tasty morsels, and as far as they’re concerned you are a very tasty morsel indeed. The action is viewed from above, as in Wizard’s Lair, to which the game bears more than a passing resemblance. Swarming baddies constantly home in on you, sapping energy all the while. Their energy-sapping activities can be curtailed with a good old fashioned blast with one of the two weapons supplied.

Nine pieces of magic scroll must be neatly placed in your knapsack before they will obligingly point in the direction of the exit.

CRITICISM

‘Graphically, this is Wizard’s Lair, with the exception of Pothole Pete, and the flickering characters found in the labyrinth. Playability-wise, it’s totally different: Wizard’s Lair was great fun! The instructions are pretty good but aren’t immediately readable. I couldn’t find enough to do to make it challenging, and therefore I got bored quickly. General enjoyment, too, wanes after about ten minutes. The sound is well below par, and the tune on the intro screen is awful. Okay, okay, it’s really cheap, but give me Spellbound any day. Take my advice and spend your money elsewhere.’

‘This game resembles Wizard’s Lair and looks almost the same but with different monsters and a different man. Overall, I found the game fast and lots of fun to play. The graphics are well drawn and detailed, especially around the screen edges. Colour is well used and the sound is good and clear, with firing and getting killed noises. As more and more cheapo games come on the market, this is one of the better ones — I’d recommend it.’

‘After a spate of Atic Atac-ish type games before last Christmas the craze started to die down, but of course there is always the budget market. Budgie have published a relatively good product but it suffers from very bad collision detection. The colour is well used with lots around the outside and all moving characters of the same colour. I felt that the play area should have been increased in size by quite a bit as it only occupies about one third of the screen. The sound is very basic, just a few spot effects and a very bland tune to open with. I didn’t much like the idea of the lives being eaten away with no gauge or indication of losing the lives. I don’t think this will appeal to all of the adventure freaks but it is very simple and the price suits it right.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: K up, M down, Z left, X right, L fire, P pick up, V shield, S select, F change weapon, 5 pause
Joystick: none
Keyboard play: no problems
Use of colour: bright and cheerful
Graphics: a bit flickery
Sound: minimal — just a few effects really
Skill levels: one
Screens: 256
General Rating: Not a bad game for the money.

Use of Computer

60%

Graphics

59%

Playability

58%

Getting Started

66%

Addictive Qualities

59%

Value for Money

62%

Overall

60%

LUNA ATAC

Producer: Atlantis Software Ltd
Author: Nigel Edwards, AKAK, Chaz
Price: £1.99

Trapped inside a space ship crawling with aliens, the spaceman wants to escape. Robot patrols are on his trail. Somehow the intrepid spaceman must locate his escape shuttle, refuel it and crack the code so he can flee from the merciless invaders.

Apart from being very deadly by themselves, the robots have also booby-trapped the ship with elaborate snares to try and get rid of the spaceman. Spikes rise ominously out of the floor and impale the unwary spaceman if he treads on them. Beware of glowing panels in the floor. When they’re white these are quite harmless, but if they change to blue when you’re walking over them they sap your power pack considerably. Contact with the patrolling staff also results in power loss.

Your power pack is shown at the top of the screen, coloured magenta and labelled AC. Each clash with the patrol robots or a trap around the space station results in a drain of this power. When the level becomes too low, the spaceman dies and the game is over.

In order to re-fuel the shuttle, nine barrels of fuel have to be collected. Fuel barrels come in three colours: magenta, green and cyan. When three barrels of each colour have been collected, their contents can be mixed to provide the fuel for the shuttle. These barrels are situated on platforms and are studiously guarded by the robots.

The spaceman can move around the space station on foot or he can use the teleport pads, represented by flashing cyan boxes. If he needs to super-leap to another higher platform, then this can be arranged by way of striped pieces of floor. When the spaceman stands on these he automatically jumps upwards and can get to where he wants to go.

Once all the barrels have been collected the spaceman still has to gain security access to the shuttle. For this he needs a secret password. Dotted around the space station are computer terminals. When the spaceman approaches one of these he is given a series of letters. Only one of these letters will go towards making up the password anagram. If he selects the right one, then it is displayed at the top of the screen and transferred to the Master Computer. However, if the spaceman chooses wrongly, then some of his valuable energy is sapped away. Six letters are needed to build the access code to the Master Computer.

There is a time limit to the game. Next to the AC box is a green one labelled TM. The green level gradually goes down as the game progresses and if the escape mission is not carried out within 15 minutes then the game is over.

CRITICISM

‘Atlantis has never really impressed me with software. The whole look of Luna Atac is very unimpressive and off-putting. As with most budget games from this company, the screen contains lots of colour and very small, plain graphics. The idea of Luna Atac being a platform game is nothing new but going around getting the barrels and guessing the codes is quite addictive at first, but after a few games I realised that there isn’t a great deal to the game.’

‘I seem to remember a game much like this a couple of issues ago called Hypa Raid. This is not a great improvement, but at least you can get to look around the space station without having to work out problems first. The game is not really original or compelling but for two quid you can’t really expect it to be. However, if this is your type of game I’m sure it’ll keep you playing for an afternoon at least. The graphics are below average — there are only platforms and small undetailed characters. The sound is also poor. The odd spot effect is all you are likely to hear. This seems to be a little more playable than Hype Raid so if you liked that you’ll probably get on with this.’

‘Luna Atac bears graphical resemblances to Frank N. Stein, which in itself is not a bad thing, but the screens are very empty looking. The game isn’t amazingly big, but getting around isn’t quite as easy as it first seems. Atlantis seems to have stopped production of mainly good games and the standard, in general, seems to have gone down a little. That said, Luna Atac is a reasonable game, but not one I’d recommend to anyone who likes a game that’s immediately hookable, as it takes some persistence to get into properly. Not bad, overall Atlantis but could do better....’

COMMENTS

Control keys: O left, W right, P activate, Q W and P also used to crack computer codes
Joystick: Kempston
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: very colourful
Graphics: quite good, though sparse at times
Sound: occasional spot effects, but that’s all
Skill levels: one
Screens: 21
General Rating: Quite good, but could be better.

Use of Computer

55%

Graphics

49%

Playability

55%

Getting Started

54%

Addictive Qualities

56%

Value for Money

58%

Overall

55%

PODDER

Producer: Central Solutions
Author: GA Holmes
Price: £0.99

Equipped with a futuristic tank, your task is to escape from a maze which is inhabited by all manner of nasties. Their job is to guard the various pieces of the Pod Monitor which you need to complete your mission.

Scattered around the maze are various useful objects which must be collected. The most important are the pieces of the Pod Monitor. Once all these have been stored in your tank, the Pod Monitor assembles itself and all you have to do is get your tank back out of the maze. Although you are travelling around in a super-tank, you are by no means invincible. The nasties in the game present themselves as tanks similar to the one you are driving, or as long-legged spider-like creatures. These move around the screen at random and contact with them loses one of your five lives. If your tank remains immobile for too long, a mine is activated nearby. Fortunately, the tank is equipped with bullets and mines, and extra ammunition can be picked up along the way.

At the bottom of the screen the score chart records the points awarded for each object that is picked up in the maze. To the side of this, the number of mines and bullets in stock is shown. It is necessary to rearm quite often to avoid being overwhelmed by the enemy forces.

What sort of tank commander are you?

CRITICISM

‘After a couple of goes, Podder starts to grow on you. The graphics are fairly good although they flicker a little. The playing area is a bit drab but the characters are nicely drawn. Soundwise, this game rates quite highly as there are lots of spot effects in it and a couple of tunes which are played on the title screen. The game itself would have looked pretty good a couple of years ago but it doesn’t look too good compared with today’s new releases. But then, for the price, fair enough!’

‘Podder is your average budget game. The graphics are highly detailed but small. The sound on the opening screen is very beepy but the tune is much more than I’ve come to expect from budget games. I found the game very easy to get into but I didn’t feel that the instructions went into enough depth. The whole presentation of the game was well up to Mastertronic level and very impressive for 99p. I forgive Central Solutions for their previous efforts, and I just hope that they accept more games like this one.’

‘Compared with other games CS are marketing at the moment, Podder is much better than the rest. The tune at the beginning is quite merry, although a bit irritating after a while. It’s easy to play and requires very little brain ache to actually get started. At the very worst, it’s a harmless sort of game which will provide the player with a few hours of innocuous enjoyment before the novelty wears off.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: Z left, X right, O up, K down, 0 fire
Joystick: Kempston, Interface 2, Cursor
Keyboard play: quite responsive
Use of colour: effective and attractive
Graphics: simple but effective
Sound: nice little ditty at the beginning and some cute spot effects throughout
Skill levels: one
Screens: mazes which get more detailed as the game progresses
General Rating: Quite respectable, especially at the price.

Use of Computer

55%

Graphics

54%

Playability

55%

Getting Started

54%

Addictive Qualities

52%

Value for Money

58%

Overall

54%

PYRACURSE

Producer: Hewsons
Price: £8.95
Author: Mark Goodall and Keith Prosser

Thousands of years ago the god Xipe Totec reigned over the Sinu people in South America, bringing them knowledge and prosperity. However, he was a barbaric master, striking a cruel bargain with his worshippers. In return for his superior knowledge he demanded ... BLOOD! Periodically, soldiers slaughtered some of the people of Sinu so the god could replenish his life source. Such was the power of Xipe Totec that the people of Sinu still believe in his presence. Many insist that he slumbers within his tomb, waiting for a sacrifice that will awaken him so his reign can continue.

Death and mystery surround the tomb of Xipe Totec — no one has ever returned from its clutches. Unperturbed by these stories, explorer Sir Pericles Pemberton-Smythe set out from England to excavate the tomb. Nothing has been heard from him since. Distraught with worry his daughter Daphne decides to investigate. With her fiance, Professor Kite, ‘Legless’ O’Donnell, a drunken hack from the Saturday Post, and Frozbie the dog, Daphne travels to Sinu. The game begins with the rescue party at the entrance of Xipe Totec’s tomb.

Xipe Totec is well protected. Headless guardians patrol the warren-like tomb, and unpleasant scorpions scurry around. If one of the exploration party gets too close, these mobile nasties give chase. Floating skulls terrorise the team and try to stop them entering certain areas of the tomb. Mechanical men and other hideous creatures await those who penetrate deep into the tomb. Contact with a nasty saps a character’s energy and eventually leads to death, but all is not lost: reincarnating fluid, once found, can be used to restore life.

The characters in the game have different personalities: O’Donnell is a tenacious fellow, and the strongest member of the quartet; Daphne is good at finding things, and is a source of support when things are looking tough; the Professor can apply his superior intellect to find ways of using objects found in the tomb, while Frozbie enjoys nothing more than a good scrabble in the dirt — and often unearths useful items.

Pyracurse is controlled in much the same way as Avalon. Using the fire button, menus can be flipped through until you find the action you require. One character is controlled at a time, and he or she can either go solo or lead the other members of the party. If the main character is in Lead Mode, the others follow in a rather shambolic fashion. Each member of the party may carry up to three objects — objects can be picked up by moving onto them, although some artefacts can only be picked up by the appropriate character. A cursor control system allows objects to be used: once an object has been put on the screen it can be moved around.

The action is viewed in isometric 3D through a window on the screen, in such a way that you can see over walls into inaccessible areas while other locations are hidden from view. Full hidden object removal adds to the realism and the screen scrolls in all directions, with the character under the player’s control remaining roughly in the middle of the playing area.

Daphne must find her father — she will be overjoyed if he is alive or very rich if he is dead, for she stands to inherit a considerable fortune. Are you ready to lead an archeological rescue mission?

Frozbie the dog has a little scorpion trouble — run away Froz! Wonder what’s hidden in that chest... and the vase might conceal something useful too.

CRITICISM

“Pyracurse is a good game, and if you’re a big fan of Hewsons’ Avalon and Dragontorc, you’ll like this new game from a new programming team. Just wandering around looking for things is fun, but the size of the game makes it a daunting task to solve. The graphics are very good, with nice ‘hidden view’ effects, and the different abilities of the characters make the game more fun to play. This is a very different type of arcade adventure — but if you didn’t like Dragontorc or Avalon, you might be disappointed.”

“Pyracurse is a welcome relief from the usual arcade adventure type game. It’s a smashing mixture of great graphics and excellent gameplay. The scenario is brilliantly interpreted by the authors. The characters all have individual personalities and you have to get them to work as a team if you want to get anywhere in the game. The graphics are of the usual high Hewsons’ standards and scroll around the screen beautifully. The tune at the start of the game is a very loud two channel simulation — but during the game there are only a few spot effects. I’m sure the atmosphere — which is superb — could have been improved with a little tune throughout the game. Overall, I would say that Pyracurse is one of the most absorbing games around. Every type of games player will love this one.”

“I was expecting a great deal from this game after watching it being played, but when I sat down to it on my own, I found it a little hard to get into. The graphics are certainly very good: there are well detailed backgrounds and ‘moon walking’ characters, but I was surprised to find that there was no view change control — it’s possible to lose things behind walls. Playing the game itself is quite good fun but one feels a little awestruck at the huge task ahead. Generally, this game is quite hard to get into, but if you make the effort, it’s a rewarding arcade adventure.”

COMMENTS

Control keys: up/left A-G, up/right H-ENTER, down/left B-SPACE, down/right CAPS-V, fire Y-P
Joystick: Kempston
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: simple, but effective
Graphics: neat 3D effects, good animation
Sound: intro tune, plus spot effects
Skill levels: one
Screens: scrolling play area equivalent to 300 screens
General rating: A quality development on the 3D arcade adventure front

Use of computer

89%

Graphics

88%

Playability

89%

Getting started

84%

Addictive qualities

90%

Value for money

87%

Overall

90%

SPORT OF KINGS

Producer: Mastertronic Added Dimension
Author: Jeff Calder
Price: £2.95

Sport of Kings from Mastertronic simulates a day at the races. At the start you must decide whether the state of the course, weights of jockeys and distances are to affect the outcome of each race. The number of horses running each season is also in your hands. Obviously the more horses you choose the harder it will be to predict the winner. Each time the game is loaded the horses take on different ‘personalities’, so studying form is only relevant during a single season.

To begin with, horses have no form cards to check against so you can either run a few races blind or set the game to auto-run which builds up the form for you. Once you have gone through all the preliminaries, the game can be played for real. A menu screen with eight icons giving access to form cards, the lineup for the next race and the balance of your money — £200 — is in the bank to begin with.

The race information icon accesses the line-up for the first race of the day complete with odds, distance and the going. Once a likely sounding nag has been selected, you can check its form card where all the usual information is logged. Then it’s time to place a bet — on the nose, each way, straight forecast or a reversed forecast are all allowed.

The screen shows a race course with the horses lined up at one end and a commentator in a box in the top right hand corner. If you have a Currah speech unit you can also listen to the commentary. During the race the screen scrolls from right to left and furlong markers show how much of the course is left to run. When the finish line has been crossed, the results are displayed, and it’s back to the bookies to claim your winnings or tear up your betting slip in disgust. The bookie is a mean-looking character with a cigar firmly clenched between his teeth — if you’ve lost he grins malevolently, but if you’ve won he looks very dangerous indeed.

CRITICISM

‘This is quite a reasonable game — good value for £2.95. I’m not so sure about the BASIC in it though, because machine code could have got around the annoying and tedious ‘please wait, I’m calculating’ pause which comes up after each game. Up to five people can play, and the more people involved the more fun it is because the atmosphere is far better in a group. For the price, there’s not much wrong with it. Not bad, but I’d rather MAD kept to the sort of quality seen in other releases like Spellbound and Knight Tyme.’

‘Most betting games are total trash, but Mastertronics usually come up with the goods. I’m afraid the game is a waste of time. This game is like one of the first budget games, in that it’s slow to react to responses and contains very basic (literally) graphics. The icon control could have been very good but again it is let down by the slow BASIC calculations. I would suspect that Sport of the Kings could possibly be a fun if you loaded it up during a party and everyone had to use real money, but I’m afraid that’s the only case when an appalling game like this could come in useful.’

‘Horse racing isn’t really my cup of tea, but after persevering for a while I began to enjoy placing my bets and watching the race, although the fun is limited. Placing bets, reading form cards and so on is very easily done with the icon/cursor set-up, so there isn’t any brain ache remembering what key does what or how to get through the various menus. The graphics used vary from good on the main icon page to awful during the races. The sound effects are minimal; only the odd spot effect here and there. This might well appeal to racing fans, but I can’t really see myself playing it for too long.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: cursor keys and 0 for fire
Joystick: Kempston, Cursor, Interface 2
Keyboard play: okay
Use of colour: simplistic
Graphics: nothing remarkable, simple animation
Sound: clippity clop!
Skill levels: one
Screens: main screen, animated sequence and form data
General Rating: Not as polished as it could be, reasonable fun though.

Use of Computer

51%

Graphics

49%

Playability

55%

Getting Started

53%

Addictive Qualities

52%

Value for Money

57%

Overall

53%

SUBTERRANEAN NIGHTMARE

Producer: US Gold Americana
Author: Tim and Jane Cloff
Price: £2.99

During the 1980’s, various nuclear weapons were tested in the Nevada desert. At the time, there appeared to be no harmful after effects on the surrounding environment. However, in 1991, five years after the last test, severe seismic tremors were recorded in the area of the testing site.

Professor Fusion, a top scientist and an expert in these things, has been sent to investigate. However, as he strides out across the sun-bleached Nevada desert in his little radiation suit, the ground begins to shake beneath him and a great chasm opens up. Suddenly, Professor Fusion feels his body being sucked downwards. By a miracle he survives the fall, and finds himself in a subterranean world of dark caves and even darker passageways. Slightly bemused, he dusts himself off and begins to explore.

Large, glittering radium crystals are scattered on the cavern floors, deposited many years before. As the Professor picks these up, secret doorways open up before him. Intrigued, to say the least, Professor Fusion explores deeper, and deeper and deeper...

The Professor is not alone in the caves. They are populated by hideous monsters that have been deformed by the high levels of radiation. In the half light, they clutch at anything, including the Professor. Even his radiation suit can’t protect him against these nasties and contact with them loses the Professor one of his four lives. Apart from the monsters, there are also mutant mushrooms to avoid, not to mention the Ominous Vat of Sticky Gunk which is hardly conducive to good health.

As the Professor progresses deeper into the caves, he discovers that the systems harbour a more sinister secret than mutant monsters: a huge underground complex has been built underground. The truth gradually begins to dawn on the unflappable Professor. This subterranean citadel is being used for storing deadly missiles which the mutants plan to release into the outside world as revenge for the nuclear tests that caused them all their problems. As soon as Professor Fusion realises this, he knows that he must escape at once and inform the powers that be of the impending danger. The more radium crystals he picks up, the more pathways are revealed to help him find the exit.

Professor Fusion moves around the complex by walking or jumping. Some monsters are so docile that they permit you to bounce on their heads in order to get to the higher levels in the caves, but most of them are not so friendly. There are no weapons involved in the game, so the Professor must stay alive by using his skill and dainty leaps to avoid the terrors which lie beneath the Nevada desert.

CRITICISM

‘After last month’s unexciting start, I thought maybe Americana could have done something more positive than this. It seems they can’t. The graphics are nothing amazing, but there is some nice animation on some of the screens. Basically, it’s just a very simple platform game, with no features that might make it something special. I didn’t find it very playable, and was bored within half an hour. Platform freaks may find it grabs them as being a reasonably cheap bit of fun, but it doesn’t appeal to me in any special way at all.’

‘There are so many trite platform games like this on the market, it is hard to see how big companies still release them. The graphics are above average, but only just. There are many characters, the majority of which flicker and jerk around the place quite badly. The various screens are pretty drab and uninteresting. There are a few platforms here and there and if you’re lucky you might chance to see a decorative mushroom. The use of sound is poor. Instead of a tune there is what sounds like an elongated screech, and the spot effects during the game are minimal. Generally, there is nothing to keep me interested for more than a few goes at a time. So, even for its two pound price-tag, I wouldn’t recommend it.’

‘Americana seem to be entering the Spectrum budget market in a very quiet manner. All of their games so far seem to be typical budget games, and to prove their point they’ve come up with a typical arcade adventure. Subterranean Nightmare is definitely nothing out of the ordinary but still presents as much game as most higher priced programs. The graphics are better than most of the small stick graphics that I’ve come to expect from budget games. These are very colourful, extremely well animated and drawn with precision. The sound is nothing to shout about — so I won’t! Gameplay is very accurate and sensible. The presentation is well up to standard and contains some very well written and meaningful instructions. Subterranean Nightmare is a very good product from Americana, but I feel they may be a little late with this type of game.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: O left, P right, Z jump, W suicide, E abort, S save, Enter load
Joystick: Kempston
Keyboard play: not too bad
Use of colour: a few colour clashes
Graphics: a bit jerky
Sound: nothing to write home about
Skill levels: one
Screens: scrolling arcade adventure
General Rating: Might appeal to a hardened platform game addict.

Use of Computer

50%

Graphics

59%

Playability

56%

Getting Started

66%

Addictive Qualities

52%

Value for Money

59%

Overall

56%

TOADRUNNER

Producer: Ariolasoft
Author: Dave Harper
Price: £8.95

Toadrunner — half man, half frog — has been trapped inside a tortuous maze. Hidden within the maze is the beautiful Princess who would be rather glad to be rescued, even if it is by a one-eyed, slimy frog being. No doubt when she bestows a girlie kiss on his revolting forehead he’ll turn into a handsome prince — but there’s a lot to sort out before that can happen.

Mr Toad must scamper around the colourful rooms in the Stone Master’s castle looking for objects to assist him in his quest to destroy the Stone Master and release the Princess. The intrepid natterjack must collect those which he thinks will help him and ignore those which are useless. Toadrunner has four pockets and they can be used to store objects until he can think of a use for them.

Only four objects can be carried at one time and these can be dropped or picked up when necessary. If the toad wants to use an object, then he must first make sure that it is nestling comfortably in pocket number four. A press of the fire or ‘use’ button brings it into action. All the objects in the game are displayed on the menu screen before the game starts, with labels to assist identification.

The Stone Master’s castle is a sinister hole and quite unpleasant even to a horrible warty toad. It is filled with nasty winged sprites who mercilessly pursue the toady hero, sapping his strength with every onslaught. The Stonemaster’s ugliest henchmen guard the exits from some of the rooms — their touch is usually deadly, and there are only five lives to play with. The guards can be disposed of eventually, but the right object has to be in Toady’s pocket for each guardian...

Exits are marked by gaps in the dungeon walls. They may be attended by the nasty guardians or they may be open. Sometimes, there is more than one exit, and this is where Toad starts to wish that God had given small amphibious creatures psychic powers. Only one of these triple exits leads safely to the other room. The other two lead to certain death, and it’s no use trying to memorise which of the three exits is the right one, because they change every time Toad tries to pass through a set of portals.

Although toads can remain out of water for a white, evolution has not yet provided them with the ability to survive indefinite spells on land. After seventy-five Toad Time Units have elapsed, our hero dehydrates and death is usually fairly imminent. After six Toad Time Units have elapsed, a thief appears on the screen. He snatches any object he can get his hands on. Fortunately, the thief can only carry one object at a time and is very greedy with it. If he sees another object within close proximity, he drops the original object and snatches the new one. The robber can be killed, but despatching him while he’s holding an object means that object is lost from the game — and may make finding the Princess impossible.

A percentage readout in the status area shows how much of the adventure has been completed. The contents of Toad’s four pockets are revealed, together with the energy icon which turns black as energy is lost. A clock keeps track of Toadtime.

And all for the love of a Princess.

CRITICISM

‘Toadrunner’s bears an immediate resemblance to the Electric Dreams release, Riddlers Den. Briefly, the scenario concerns one lovesick prince in the guise of an overweight reptile. He searches for his princess in the hope she’ll transform his slimy body to something more desirable. Original? I think not. Graphically, it’s no more than adequate, with our reptilian hero wobbling through the game. Gameplay is all too familiar: it’s an average arcade adventure with no features that haven’t been implemented better elsewhere. Fans of David Harper’s earlier game will no doubt love this one, but it’s a bit too expensive to my mind.’

‘I must confess to not having seen Riddlers Den, so I approached Toadrunner with a completely open mind. The presentation of the game is very neat and colourful, with some good drawing on the loading and title screens. The sound is a bit of a let down, as it only consists of a few whirrs and clicks. The graphics are very colourful and to avoid character clashes, the author has made sure that the characters don’t invade each other’s character space. I felt that Toadrunner was good to look at, but the actual gameplay was very poor unless you are into puzzles. It’s a bit hard to play and suffers from poor collision detection.’

‘Definitely Riddlers Den II, except that this is probably near to impossible to complete. The graphics used are colourful and fairly well drawn. The characters move around the screen nicely and your frog has a novel wobble! The sound is generally run-of-the-mill stuff, with effects during the game and a loud shrieking noise when you begin or end a game. The game itself is infuriating: the random triple exits tend to kill you off rather suddenly and introduce a frustrating element of pot luck into the game. You’d have to be very persistent to complete the game — one for Riddlers Den fans and masochists everywhere!’

COMMENTS

Control keys: redefinable
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair and Protek
Keyboard play: fairly responsive
Use of colour: very colourful
Graphics: quite well drawn
Sound: mundane
Skill levels: one
Screens: 55
General Rating: A very difficult sequel to Riddlers Den.

Use of Computer

79%

Graphics

76%

Playability

65%

Getting Started

71%

Addictive Qualities

69%

Value for Money

68%

Overall

68%

A TRICK OF THE TALE

Producer: Central Solutions
Author: G. A. Holmes
Price: £0.99

This arcade game follows the explorations of a fearless little chappy towards a mysterious volcano. He must use his skill and judgement to navigate his way around the screens, picking up the coloured music notes as he goes. Each different screen must be cleared of notes before he can progress to the next one.

The caped hero stomps around the bottom of the screens, leaping into the air when necessary. In order to collect some objects, he must leap from platform to platform — not that straightforward as some of the levels move to and fro. Accurate timing is essential if our hero is not to tumble to his death.

One of his nine lives is lost each time the hero encounters a blazing cross or stumbles over a tombstone. He has unlimited energy, but must avoid the nasties to stay alive.

CRITICISM

‘Gosh! Another Manic Miner clone! The graphics are pretty much the standard issue for budget games — a couple of nice characters, little flicker and lots of colour clash. Sound is minimal with only a few spot effects. Not exactly an original piece of software this but for its price one can’t really grumble.’

‘The whole look of this game gives you a sense of very simple programming. The colour is well used and everything fits into its own little U.D.G. space perfectly. If you look at A Trick Of The Tale as a sixty pence blank tape and a forty pence game, then you can’t go far wrong!’

‘The graphics are less than reasonable and the sound is limited to the occasional bleeps and burps. To begin with, this looks as if it could prove addictive, but after a few goes it’s very frustrating. Even at ninety-nine pence, this is not a game I would recommend.’

COMMENTS

Control keys: P start/pause, SPACE jump, Q left, W right
Joystick: no
Keyboard play: not bad, considering it’s the only option you’ve got
Use of colour: quite a bit of colour clash
Graphics: less than reasonable
Sound: the occasional bleep
Skill levels: one
Screens: fifteen
General Rating: An outdated platform game at a silly price.

Use of Computer

30%

Graphics

33%

Playability

28%

Getting Started

39%

Addictive Qualities

25%

Value for Money

48%

Overall

29%