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Today we will talk about new programs that have appeared in Moscow recently. We will look at games that are sold under the auspices of the "AUTHOR'S PROGRAM" project by the "INFORCOM" company, as well as those that have come to Moscow through other means. First, we will discuss domestic developments.
It should be noted right away that there are no overtly poor developments among the presented programs, and this is not surprising - all of them underwent quite powerful censorship - a strict selection at "INFORCOM". Let's examine these games in order:
QUICK REACTION UNIT.
Q.R.U.
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(c) 1993-1994, Nizhny Tagil, author - "Chip", graphics - "Rocky".
The game beautifully combines the genres of STRATEGY and ARCADE. Your task is to destroy the enemy's base. The enemy's task is to eliminate your military base. But you won't be able to simply bomb the enemy - the airspace is covered by a battery of the enemy's anti-aircraft installations, which cannot be destroyed by helicopter machine guns but quickly explode from the shells of your tanks.
The game somewhat resembles "NETHER EARTH", but here you will have to act not only as a commander but also as a direct participant in combat operations. For each of YOUR hits on enemy targets, you receive a cash bonus. Accumulating a sufficient amount, you can start producing automatic soldiers, tanks, and rocket launchers. Thus, you must simultaneously monitor the production of weapons and the air support of your army. Don't forget about yourself - your helicopter runs out of bombs, ammunition, and fuel. To replenish all of this, you will have to fly back to your base and leave your troops unprotected, which the enemy army will undoubtedly take advantage of. This makes the game very tense and dynamic. Unfortunately, the authors made one unfortunate miscalculation that allows for quickly leveling enemy structures to the ground. But to discover it, you will have to win several times in the traditional way, which, believe me, is much more interesting.
THE MAIN BLOW
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(c) 1994, author - "Chip", graphics - "Chip", "Rocky".
The basis of this game is undoubtedly the well-known program "SILKWORM". Here you control a helicopter and a jeep that destroy everything in their path.
However, the authors created completely new sprites, radically changed the monsters, added new weapons - in short, they did a solid amount of work that allows us to say that we have a new game. The program turned out to be very nice - an endless stream of various enemies attacks you (and your partner if you are playing two-player) - from armored infantry with bazookas, tanks, and "Grad" installations to such exotic types of troops as a squadron of Pe-2s from the movie "Kin-Dza-Dza".
At the end of each level, you are attacked by one or several monsters - flying fortresses, armored snakes, and mechanical dragons. You will have to work hard to complete the entire game.
"THE BASE"
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(c)1994 ALMAZ group, Yekaterinburg.
In the accompanying file to this game, the authors defined its genre as a mix of STRATEGY and PUZZLE. The element of STRATEGY in the game is not discernible; in our opinion, it is a typical representative of the PUZZLE genre, with elements of ARCADE.
The essence of the game is to destroy all the Batters (red bats) on each screen. This can be done in several ways - by trapping them with stones and depriving them of the ability to move, "setting" a police robot on them, etc.
The game resembles BOULDER DASH, but with slightly changed rules. The authors wrote a "prologue" for the game, which seems completely unnecessary for the PUZZLE genre; in addition, there is a small introductory "animated film" and an INTRO explaining the rules.
The graphics in the game leave much to be desired, but this is not important for a puzzle - fans of "BOULDER DASH" will surely enjoy the game.
MAGIC STORY (MAGICAL STORY, PART 1 - DEDICATION TO FALKORIS)
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(c)1994 Author - Vadim Bodrov, Ufa.
This game is an adventure with nice illustrative graphics accompanying the text. The author managed to create an atmosphere of mystery and magic, into which the player immerses. The texts describing the locations are written tastefully and without gross errors.
If we consider this program as a demonstration, it can only evoke positive emotions.
However, the game has two major drawbacks: the first is that the game is too simple, it can be easily completed in one day, with the main difficulties related not to solving puzzles, but to finding phrases understandable to the program and locating the necessary keys for Russian letters. It was very difficult to find the right phrase to examine the crystal ball (as it turned out later, it looks like this: "LOOK AT THE BALL").
The second unpleasant moment in the game is that it crashes into BASIC when you press "BREAK". So, very careless players can easily see what to do next.
But despite all of the above, the game is very enjoyable. I would like to wish the author to continue his work and create new parts of the adventures of the young wizard.
TREASURE, PART 1
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(c) 1994, TECHNOTIME, Gomel
This game is the only one among the author's programs that has entered the market not through "INFORCOM" channels but through its own means. The game is an adaptation for "SPECTRUM" of a well-known program from computers like BK, UKNC, CORVET, etc.
All the action takes place on one screen - you must find the key to the door to the next screen in chests and make it to that door in time. This is not easy, as you are pursued by several "devils" - guards. You can destroy stone walls with shots, but they will grow back after a while.
In general, this arcade puzzle strongly resembles "LODE RUNNER", although it has a number of fundamental differences. There are fans of "LODE RUNNER" in our country, and they will undoubtedly enjoy the development by the programmers from Gomel.
However, not only author's programs have appeared on the market recently, but also foreign novelties. Among them, two programs stand out:
THE SIMPSONS: BART VERSUS THE SPACE MUTANTS.
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(C)1991 OCEAN SOFTWARE.
Before releasing this program on the market, the sellers conducted a solid advertising campaign, promising a stunning game - occupying the entire disk, with excellent graphics, music, etc.
What does this program actually represent?
First, the game occupies 840 sectors (and on a TR-DOS system disk, as we know, 2544 can fit). Secondly, the graphics in the game clearly do not reach the level of '91, and it is better not to mention the music at all - it is practically nonexistent. It is not surprising that many buyers speak of the game in the darkest tones.
Meanwhile, the "OCEAN SOFTWARE" company has created a very nice arcade quest in which you control a comic book and cartoon character - Bart Simpson. The essence of the game is as follows: Aliens have prepared a device to capture Earth. To complete it, they are missing just one part - any purple object.
The cunning invaders decide to take the missing object from Earth, in the quiet town of Springfield, for which they send their agents. But then you step in their way, in the role of Bart Simpson. You must remove all purple objects from the city - repaint flower pots and trash cans in another color, cover forgotten toys with cloth, release a purple bird from its cage, etc. You will be hindered by aliens, who frolic freely on the streets and already control the overwhelming majority of the population.
The game is not easy at all, and although the main emphasis is placed on the arcade component, the player will also have to solve logical tasks.
Overall, the program makes a pleasant impression and can make the player forget everything for several hours and focus solely on saving the world from behind their computer.
Caring hackers have equipped the program with a whole range of different "immortality" options. If you decide to play "SIMPSONS" at any time, never select "INVISIBLE MODE" - you will become invisible not only to aliens but also to some objects that will not be usable in this mode. You are also unlikely to need INFINITE TIME - this function is practically duplicated by infinite lives. It is best to play without any "infinites" at all, as the game looks much more appealing that way.
STARGLIDER II
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(C) ARGONAUT SOFTWARE
In this game, you will control a spaceship of the "Icarus" model. Apparently, the authors are dragging us into yet another interplanetary war: as soon as you start the game, you are immediately attacked by groups of wireframe ships (the game features vector graphics), wireframe guns bombard you with shells, and wireframe mines explode right in front of you (probably also wireframe). So, you will have to return fire and engage in an endless battle with opponents.
However, this is not an ordinary three-dimensional shooter. You can collect small items into the cargo hold using the impulse loader. You can mount the most modern weapons on your ship, and the "Icarus" onboard computer helpfully displays information about passing objects on the screen. All actions in the game take place in one of the star systems. In addition to planets, you can land on their inhabited satellites - so the overall gaming space impresses with its size. It is quite possible that you can fly to other stars as well.
In short, the game goes beyond the primitive principle of "kill everything that moves," although, of course, it is still far from "ELITE"...
And finally, let's stop at another novelty that has come through the channels of the "Author's Program" project ("INFORCOM"):
VIRUS
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(c) 1995 Amateur Software System
Kukovjakin S.V. (Ivanovo)
The game belongs to the category of "undetermined" games. Many will probably remember the article in one of the issues of "ZX-REVIEW" from 1994, which discussed the concepts of undetermined games using the example of "SNAKE BATTLE" by the Moscow firm "GAMOS". And now, the owners of the "ZX-SPECTRUM" computer can see for themselves that our little Speccy is capable of handling games of this genre. It still has no name. We believe that a very fitting name would be "virus," "viral games." For example, a name was invented for the adventure genre based on the name of the first game of this kind - "ADVENTURE."
In the game "VIRUS," you can "cultivate in a test tube" a new virus and test its strength against another virus, i.e., arrange a small battle between them. Each virus is characterized by aggressiveness, reproduction speed, aging speed, lifespan, age during which it can reproduce, division conditions, breadth of living space, as well as initial appearance.
All parameters are interrelated; improving one can lead to the deterioration of another. Your task is to create the most viable and resilient virus.
The virus you create can be transferred as a short file (one sector) to disk and participate in competitions with other viruses created by other authors. In "battle" mode, simultaneous clashes of 2 to 4 viruses are possible. For each virus, a form is kept with data on battles conducted and their results. All data and parameters of your virus are protected by a password.
Thus, the game "VIRUS" is based on the "LIFE" rule system. Watching the clash of multiplying viruses (dividing cells) is an exciting activity. We thank the author for this engaging game. We dare to assume that this is not the limit. The author of the "VIRUS" program started with something simple, achieved success, and probably does not intend to stop there. We would just like to express a few wishes:
1. The game "VIRUS" is Russian, written in the Russian city of Ivanovo. But why is the entire interface and contextual hints in English? Perhaps it is worth not forgetting about the "great and mighty"?
2. It is 1995, and the music coprocessor is no longer a novelty. And, probably, it is not difficult to insert powerful three-channel musical and sound accompaniment into the game.
3. The design of the game, despite all its merits, deserves improvement. A beautiful splash screen and special attention to the design of the interface would hardly hurt.
Overall, this game is a new word in the "Sinclair empire," and we, for our part, are already ready to support both the author and those who will participate in future battles.
Under the auspices of the editorial office of the magazine "SPECTROFON," an Open Championship for the game "VIRUS" will soon take place. Everyone who wishes can participate. Your "homegrown" viruses will enter the battlefield. Who will be the first? Details about the Virus Championship will be in the upcoming issues.
And for those who have not yet acquired this program, we recommend contacting the "INFORCOM" company, to which the author transferred all rights for distribution.
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Contents of the publication: Spectrofon #12
- Expertise - Дмитрий Усманов
Detailed description of gameplay mechanics for a tactical video game involving combat on an alien spaceship. The article outlines various game strategies and character abilities. Includes information on game stages and outcomes.
- The Exam
Description of a successful heist strategy in the game 'THEY STOLE A MILLION' by readers from Tomsk. Includes step-by-step details on disabling alarms and managing resources. Raises a new challenge for readers to accomplish a heist without arrests.
- Premiere
Review of two programs for ZX Spectrum: a math learning tool for children, and a cellular automaton simulation.
- Review
Review of recent gaming software releases in Moscow, highlighting domestic and foreign games, with detailed critiques of several notable titles.
- From the World by Bit
Discussion of the demo version of the game 'Star Heritage' by Step Creative Group, based on reader feedback and suggestions. Details about gameplay tips, technical aspects, and future plans for the full version. Comments on other game projects and software queries.
- System - Vladimir Larkov
Detailed guide on improving VG-93 turbo mode with corrected schemes.
- Advertising
Advertising opportunities for ZX Spectrum users and detailed instructions for purchasing Spectrofon magazine across Russia.
