Game Reviews
At the end of each review, the publisher and year of production are given. We have also added our own “expert” ratings for each game, on a scale from 1 to 10:
- cod — the program’s presentation and appeal, including speed and the smoothness of screen and character movement
- gfx — graphics
- msx — music and sound effects
PULSOID
Another adaptation of the famous Arkanoid. The rules have not changed: you have to break a wall of bricks. This time, however, you don’t bounce a ball, but control “snakes” that can grow longer and split in two when they encounter obstacles. In addition, letters fall when some bricks are broken; they can make the game easier or harder. This is certainly nothing new, and the game is rather average.
MASTERTRONIC ’88
cod: 7 · gfx: 3 · msx: 3
HAMMER BOY
The game has two separate parts that differ practically only in their setting. The aim is to protect buildings. To defend them, you hit the attackers over the head with a fairly large hammer. You must keep them from getting inside the building within the allotted time. Each part has two levels. The game is addictive, but difficult despite the small number of keys you need to use.
The program has very nice, colourful graphics and quite well-animated characters. The music (AY) gets a little tiresome, and the sound effects drown it out.
DINAMIC ’91
cod: 5 · gfx: 9 · msx: 4
PROFESSIONAL SKI SIMULATOR
A skiing simulator. A pleasant little tune on the beeper greets you at the start. Two players can play at once. You have to complete the course within a time limit, which is by no means easy. To finish a run successfully, you must pass correctly around every flag. It sounds simple, but completing even two courses can be considered an achievement.
Quite nice graphics, good music and sound effects.
CODEMASTERS
cod: 4 · gfx: 6 · msx: 6
BOBSLEIGH
A bobsleigh run, with a wide range of options. One of the few sports games where the point is… money. You use it to repair damaged equipment and so on. The game expects you to know a little about the sport: depending on the weather and type of course, you can choose one of four bobsleighs (they differ in shape) to improve your results. The run itself is very nicely rendered on a “vector” course. You can choose AY or beeper sound. Despite appearances, this game may prove enjoyable…
cod: 9 · gfx: 4 · msx: 3
X-OUT
A continuation of the R-TYPE theme: another shoot-’em-up. You have a certain amount of money with which to buy spacecraft (four to choose from) and several types of weapons. Shooting down enemy objects earns you more funds, which you can spend on upgrading your armament. The game consists of eight levels loaded one after another.
The graphics are high-quality (two-colour), but unfortunately there is no music or even any sound effects. The game is very well coded. The screen scrolls smoothly, and the fast-paced action makes the program more appealing.
RAINBOW ARTS ’90
cod: 9 · gfx: 8
BUFFALLO BILL’S WILD WEST SHOW
A cowboy competition. This arcade game consists of six interesting events. You can choose one of them or play them all. The PRACTICE option lets you train in a particular event.
You can compete in knife throwing, horse riding, lassoing a bull, shooting bottles, and more.
Very nice, colourful graphics, average music (a little tiring), and quite decent coding.
TYNESOFT ’89
cod: 7 · gfx: 9 · msx: 5
Reviews by Scalman, Mały and Pyza.
Share your thoughts about the article