┌─────────────────────────┐
│ ───── REVIEW ───── │
└─────────────────────────┘
Debates about the imminent demise of the personal computer Spectrum continue. Owners of homemade "Pentagons" and "Leningrads" listen with dismay to the enthusiastic stories of happy owners of the "AMIGA" computer and, with a hidden sense of envy, watch the video recordings of "Amiga" demonstrations and games.
Some Sinclair enthusiasts frantically write plaintive letters to computer magazine editors asking for help in resolving the question of life and death: should they sell (throw away, give away, etc.) their beloved "Speccy" and save money for an IBM, or should they not do this?
Who will help our morally unstable reader? And a flurry of advice rains down on the unfortunate from all sides:
SELL! Because there is nothing cooler than the "AMIGA" in the world.
DON'T SELL! Because the "SPECTRUM" is the most convenient to work with.
THROW IT IN THE DUMP! Because there are no more new games for the "SPECTRUM" and there won't be any.
KEEP IT AS A MEMORY! Because even an "AMIGA" owner sometimes comes to friends to play on the "Speccy".
Each piece of advice has its own rationale. And our Sinclair enthusiast can choose any of the offered options.
But it is probably clear to everyone that some are interested in increasing the number of "AMIGA" users, while others do not want to be left alone in the Sinclair field. We will not give any advice. For us, such a problem does not exist. And the birth of our magazine this year is the best proof of this.
It is generally unclear why the wave of excitement surrounding the "AMIGA" has so clouded the bright minds of "ZX-Spectrum" users. It is no secret that some well-known hackers, having saved a certain amount for the purchase of an "AMIGA", are now in euphoria and no longer engage in adapting programs for the disk interface for the "ZX-Spectrum".
The flow of games from Poland has practically ceased, and in this regard, a surprising conclusion is drawn: THE SPECTRUM is dead. May I ask: when was the funeral?
If someone VASYASOFT bought himself an "AMIGA" and no longer sells his disk versions of games for "Speccy", it does not mean that everyone should follow his example. Others passionate people are coming to take his place and continue to replenish the software market with new interesting games. Moreover, strangely enough, these games are much closer to the originals and work fine unlike the "magic" versions of VASYASOFT.
So for everyone who continues to work on Spectrum-compatible machines, it is not the Spectrum that has died, but merely VASYASOFT. Let us put up a monument to his glorious beginnings and continue our games. And the memory of the hacker who left us too soon will forever remain in the scrolling text of his last disk version.
To those who are still tormented by doubts, we advise you to go to the nearest dump and look for the "ZX-Spectrum" computer among the skeletons of tube black-and-white televisions. You are unlikely to find it. Spectrum-compatible computers are still being sold at markets, at worst given away. But not thrown away. That is for sure.
This means that the number of Sinclair enthusiasts is not decreasing at all, and if we consider that companies producing "Pentagons," "PROFI," "ATM," and other Spectrum-compatible machines are springing up like mushrooms, the conclusion is obvious:
The number of Sinclair enthusiasts, despite all pessimistic statements, is constantly growing.
And arguing with IBM owners on this topic is pointless. How would you feel about a dispute between two car enthusiasts, one of whom has a "Mercedes" and the other a "Zhiguli"?
Therefore, let us put a period at the end of this conversation and no longer listen to Amiga fans, especially since new programs for the Spectrum, written by our domestic programmers, have already appeared on the Russian horizon.
In the very near future, we will begin to present these programs in our magazine.
And now a few words about new games that have recently appeared in Moscow.
S.W.I.V. (STORM, 1991)
----------------------
Any, even the most avid lover of smart adventure games will appreciate this non-trivial shooter. Beautifully drawn sprites and game space, smooth vertical scrolling of the screen, excellent sound effects, the ability to play with a partner against the computer make this game beautiful and quite interesting.
At the time, this game made a big impression on Western Sinclair enthusiasts, and in England, the electronic magazine "ENIGMA TAPE MAGAZINE" wrote about "S.W.I.V." with great enthusiasm.
In this game, you will have to fly a helicopter over enemy territory and destroy all enemy bases. You can take a friend as your assistant and suggest that he support you from a well-armed jeep. What could be more pleasant than the feeling of friendly support when the enemy stubbornly tries to wipe you out?
The advantages of "S.W.I.V." include good balance. Even a novice player can easily progress far into the first level.
This, without a doubt, provides a certain incentive and increases interest in the game, unlike other shooters, where you instantly turn to dust without even properly seeing the game space.
Speaking of the good balance of this game, it is impossible not to mention the fact that hacker MAX IWAMOTO, who prepared the disk version of "S.W.I.V." slightly overdid it and provided the option of "infinite lives." We return again to our conversation about the limits of what is permissible.
I would like to ask everyone who sells their own disk versions of games that are not theirs with "infinites" installed: how would you feel if an "infinite life" was installed on your original program and widely advertised?
It’s good if you later have enough space for one hundred twenty-eight kilobytes to fit a long profanity-filled scrolling text, which won’t even leave room for traditional greetings. By the way, MAX IWAMOTO encountered such a curse when working on the game "S.W.I.V.", but he just didn’t understand (as he writes himself) why the authors needed to insert this digitization into the program. Well, nothing, when he starts writing his own programs, he may understand. It is clear that a hacker is a hacker, but sooner or later, he also begins to write something of his own.
Unfortunately, the "infinization" of games has already become a tradition for us. It has become the norm to engage in this kind of "service," and this is considered a sign of a hacker's knowledge of his craft. It would be better if this energy were directed towards more useful endeavors. It is clear that our magazine stands on the side of players, and real players find any "infinite" as useful as a fifth leg on that bug. Therefore, we have been and remain on our previous positions and once again ask everyone to think before changing anything in the original program. For yourself - for God's sake, install any "eternities," but for wide distribution, please leave the original.
DIZZY 7? (THE LAST ADVENTURE)
-----------------------------
We have not yet seen the real seventh series of DIZZY. Those who assured us that they already have this game were probably misled by the homemade DIZZY 7, invented by O. Moskalenko from Lviv.
What can be said about this game? Of course, the author knew how in demand games about DIZZY are and reasonably assumed that if he wrote his own continuation, using ready-made sprites and game backgrounds, the commercial success of this endeavor would be guaranteed. In any case, the author surely managed to skim the foam off the wave of excitement surrounding the next series.
But what will the user see when they launch this game? Fragments from DIZZY 3.5 and DIZZY 6. However, that’s not the point. "The Last Adventure" of our hero is not well thought out by the author. By the way, why "the last"? An eighth series has already been written for the "AMIGA."
We undoubtedly pay tribute to the enormous diligence of the author, who invested so much effort into the remake, but in Moskalenko's game, there are fundamental mistakes that greatly spoil the overall impression.
In some locations of the game space, our DIZZY suddenly starts walking backward (maybe this is the author's idea? But then why does the main character sometimes split when trying to jump up a ladder?).
In all official "DIZZY" games, you can talk to other characters, even if they happen to be hanging upside down from a tree (see DIZZY 3.5). Here, however, all the heroes have become deaf-mutes.
It is clear that the author simply could not write a single dialogue in English. Well, the person doesn’t know English, what’s so terrible about that? Then why release a game in English at all? Oh, yes, it was necessary to create some illusion of a "company."
And those who also do not know ENGLISH will easily swallow this tasteless candy in a beautiful wrapper. Moreover, due to the lack of knowledge of English, the author uses a menu in which the lower window constantly displays the message: "You are carrying too much to take another item."
Even when you have no items at all, the computer, like some kind of schizophrenic, will constantly repeat the same phrase upon exiting the menu. It’s unnecessary to mention the upside-down selection of items for use (as everything in this game).
In short, the first pancake turned out lumpy. It happens to everyone. But thanks for the attempt. We hope that next time the author will be more careful to avoid a global embarrassment.
STEG (CODEMASTERS 1992)
-----------------------
A fun, original, and very beautiful multi-level game that will please all lovers of computer games for active recreation.
In this game, you play the role of a mother (or father?) worm, who is always hungry. Your task is to raise your children and bring them into the world. As soon as the first brood begins independent life, the game moves to the second level, and so on.
You have to feed the worms in a very original way: the mother blows a bubble next to a passing larva, and it ends up inside the bubble and rises up with it to the brood, which is just waiting for the larva to fall into the nest.
The mother has little strength, and with each bubble blown, she loses some energy. She can replenish her strength by eating something from the greenery. But be careful: some food has expired and may be dangerous for the nursing mother’s stomach. If the brood dies of hunger, the game ends, and you will have to start all over again.
Undoubtedly, this is a successful game that will adorn any family collection.
CISCO HEAT (MIRORRSOFT 1991)
----------------------------
Another car racing game. However, this time the creators (or rather those who made this game, having purchased a license for it from the Japanese) failed to realize the authors' original intentions on the Spectrum. Those who have seen this game on IBM will understand that the game lacks reality. Despite decent graphics, the game looks rather pale. The collisions of cars are not well thought out, and therefore sometimes you can safely pass through the neighboring car. It seems that the authors were most concerned about depicting a flipping car, but is that really the main thing in a game?
"CISCO HEAT" is precisely the case where an attempt to recreate a good copy from the original resulted in yet another mediocre toy that has no unique charm of its own.
BATTLE COMMAND (OCEAN 1992)
---------------------------
This game will likely become a hit of the season. It is already leading our hit parade. Without touching on the nuances of the disk version, which is already on sale in Moscow, let’s say that users will enjoy trying themselves in the role of the commander of a powerful super-modern tank.
Beautiful three-dimensional shaded graphics, good sound, a multitude of various weapons, a powerful information block with detailed task descriptions and a map of the area. All this creates an illusion of reality, and you will simply have no time to think about your pressing problems when your tank goes into the battlefield.
"BATTLE COMMAND" is a non-trivial game, and our programmers should pay close attention to it. It is quite possible that this imitator will open a whole direction of similar games. See how it all works and dare to try. By the way, there is a great opportunity to create new levels and new tasks.
We are ready to support any of your initiatives. A competition for the best task (or task package) for the game "BATTLE COMMAND" is not far off. We advise you not to waste time. Good luck!
* * *
In conclusion of today's review, we present a hit parade of games compiled based on sales at the radio market "MITINSKY."
----- TOP 20 -----
1 BATTLE COMMAND 11 T.RENEGADE
2 WRESTLEMANIA 12 TERMINATOR-2
3 DIZZY (1-6) 13 MYTH
4 ELITE 3 (r.THD) 14 F-16
5 ROBOCOP (1-3) 15 TURTLES-2
6 BATMAN (1-3) 16 D.DRAGON
7 EXTERMINATOR 17 R.DANGEROUS 1,2
8 G.BUSTERS 2 18 LASER SQUAD
9 S.DRAGON 19 PANIC DIZZY
10 NORTH & SOUTH 20 DYNAMO
The top five games that are in the highest demand remain ELITE-3 (r.THD), WRESTLEMANIA, and the series about the adventures of DYZZY. And this is understandable.
The remake of ELITE-3 holds the top spots due to the universal love of the people for the native version of this classic game.
In fact, the merit of the THD company here is minimal. But from a commercial point of view, THD's move is undoubtedly quite successful. With DYZZY, everything is probably already clear, but "WRESTLEMANIA" seems to have been appreciated by Sinclair enthusiasts.
There has been a sharp decline in demand for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This is likely related to the decline in interest in the multi-series animated series that many watched on television.
The significant decrease in demand for the incomparable "LASER SQUAD" can only be explained by the fact that the surge of interest in January for this game was apparently caused by the appearance of new, unfortunately unsuccessful, scenarios. Now that the wave of excitement has subsided, we can observe a low but steady demand for this game.
The appearance of new game titles in our hit parade (NORTH & SOUTH, RICK DANGEROUS 1,2) can be explained by the fact that fresh disk versions of the games have appeared on the market, which, unlike previous versions, fully correspond to (or are closer) to the originals.
* * *
Contents of the publication: Spectrofon #03
- Экспертиза
Critical review of the strategic game 'GENGHIS KHAN' for its lack of historical and geographical accuracy. Provides gameplay mechanics and strategic tips, including unique missions. Discusses features such as army management and collecting magical elements.
- Дебют
The article reviews the game 'ZZZZ' by MASTERTRONIC, highlighting its innovative interface combining text commands and icons for easier gameplay. Despite some interface flaws, the game's humor and unique narrative elements are praised. A detailed walkthrough of the game's opening scenario is provided.
- Дебют
Review of the game Castle Master by INCENTIVE, focusing on its 3D graphics and gameplay mechanics on the ZX Spectrum. The player navigates a labyrinth to rescue a kidnapped lover, combating ghosts and collecting treasures. Detailed controls and gameplay tips are provided.
- Экзамен
Article presents a challenge question about the 'CASTLE MASTER' game. Prize for correct answer is an uncopyrighted issue of 'SPECTROFON'. The magazine seeks answers to previous issues' questions.
- Обзор
Discussion of the rivalry between Spectrum and Amiga users. Overview of new Spectrum-compatible games and their features. Insight into hacking culture and influence on gaming.
- С миру по биту
Discussion about reader feedback on the ABS program and magazine distribution. Explanation of ABS program integration and challenges in game creation. Considerations on magazine content and reader suggestions.
- Архив
Review of retro game 'GREAT BRITAIN LTD', highlighting its strategic role-play as UK Prime Minister in the 1980s, focusing on politics, economy, and elections.
- Система - Павел Никитин
Detailed guide on using TR-DOS functions in assembly for ZX Spectrum. Focus on track formatting and a disk reading driver without TR-DOS system variables. Includes code examples and practical tips.
- Реклама
The article provides information on how to acquire the 'SPECTROFON' magazine, invitations for collaboration, and various hardware offers.
