Screen Machine

USING the Spectrum's functions it becomes laborious and time-consuming to produce a screen display which can be used as a title or loading logo. For the average programmer it is much simpler to use a custom-built screen editor on which complicated designs can be roughed-out, altered and then saved on tape when complete.

The ISP Screen Machine provides a flexible and relatively simple system for the production of such displays.

Circles, arcs and blocks can be drawn, filled or un-filled. Paper, ink and border colours can be altered without affecting the design. There is a graphics mode with a full set of UDGs which are useful in building a design.

The designs are based mainly on character cell blocks and the user should not expect to produce a fine-line masterpiece. There does not appear to be a printer function.

The general impression is of a versatile editor which will be a boon to the amateur programmer, helping him to enliven his efforts and giving very acceptable screen displays for the minimum of effort.

Richard Price

Spectrealm

ECONOMIC simulation and strategy games can often be either mind-boggling in their complexity or too simple to give much stimulus to continue. Spectrealm from Runesoft, is fairly well between these two extremes. Spectria is a rather under-developed land with a corn-based agricultural economy and no real assets at the beginning of play. As governor of the small barren place, it is your task to ensure that the people remain well-fed and contented, mainly so that you can make sure of re-election at the end of your term of office. One year is the equivalent of a turn. The aim is to remain in power for 100 years - long-living folks, these Spectricians.

Everything depends on good harvests. A bad year will bring famine and discontent and those electors who are still alive may not take too kindly to starving.

If you lose, only suicide remains. Spectrealm is a convincing and well-paced program which could easily become compulsive if you enjoy strategy games. It also features a full load/save facility to let you get to bed during an unfinished game.

Richard Price

Spectrum Information Handling

SPECTRUM Information Handling Routines is a collection of 30 programs used in the book Information Handling for the ZX Spectrum, published by McGraw Hill. The book is a good introduction, containing many ideas and explanations. It covers basic programming, loops, branching, strings and Boolean algebra in detail. Then it moves to simple data file handling, and various methods of collecting, checking and organising the data.

A few of the programs use short machine code routines. They are held in the program as DATA statements and POKEd into memory as required. In one program it is put into a REM statement, with no warning as to what could happen with a microdrive attached.

It seems excessive to charge £6.95 for a tape which can be used only with a book when that book already contains the listings. The only reason to buy the tape can be laziness on the part of the purchaser. In the first half of the tape, for example, the programs probably do not average more than 20 lines apiece, and one has only eight.

John Lambert

Spoof

AFTER a long career of portentous and mysterious adventures the grim, hardened explorer may well have lost his sense of humour somewhere in the depths of his copious backpack. Never fear, Spoof, by Runesoft, will go some way to restoring that essential character trait.

Using the Quill interpreter, this classic text adventure invites you to participate in the hunt for Spoof the Magic Dragon. That may well be intended to mislead, as there appear to be a number of other sub-quests.

As you leave the obligatory village in your role as Yaw Ning, the deeply-bored citizen, you will discover signs pointing to such typical destinations as The Secret Mysterious Hidden Cavern.

Despite the spoof style the adventure is well-constructed and contains all the necessary problems to make an adventure the brain-racking experience it should be. The authors have made good use of the Gilsoft system and its minor limitations do not intrude on the action. The humour gives a real lift to the program without interfering with the journey and its problems.

Richard Price

Stuart Henry's Pop Quiz

RADIO disc jockey Stuart Henry lends his name to Stuart Henry's Pop Quiz, a program for music fans from Bellflower Software. The program is more than a simple quiz. There are 768 questions spread over six rounds and the computer chooses questions at random. Each round also has a mystery tune, and each time you answer a question correctly you have the opportunity to guess another note in the tune. The first player to guess the complete tune wins the round.

The questions start easy and gradually become more difficult, until round six provides some really esoteric teasers which will sort the genuine pop buffs from the rest of the herd. The questions cover a range of music styles, from the early 1960s, through glam-rock to punk and the new wave.

The response time for the questions and answers is fair, although it is a pity more use could not have been made of sound in the program, given that it is about music.

A fine quiz program and one that deserves to do well.

Chris Bourne

Super Bridge

IF YOU are a beginner at Bridge you will find Buffer's Super Bridge a useful supplement to the terrors of the card table.

The program is not intended as a tutor, though the instructions contain the rules of Bridge and some useful tips. As the program is designed round the Acol system, some explanation of that bidding convention might also have been included but there are plenty of books if you are interested.

Super Bridge is a playing program and has three main displays, all of which are muted colours and easy on the eye, an important feature for a game which can last a long time.

Screen prompts leave no doubt as to what you need to do next. At the end of each hand there is the choice of viewing all four hands or going to the next deal.

Super Bridge is a versatile and well-made program which will assist players in live games. The only criticism, albeit minor, is that the program allows only one human player. With an option for two there would have been the opportunity for pair to sharpen their skills.

Richard Price

Temple of Vran

THE PERILS and deep places of the magic mountain lie behind our reluctant adventurer in Temple of Vran, second of the programs in the Ket Trilogy from Incentive Software. The sound of running water and the scent of lush grasslands greets him as he emerges into daylight again. He has retained some useful items to see him through the troubles to follow and must now search for the temple of the mad sorcerer.

Those who have played Mountains of Ket will know that text adventures from Incentive are well-crafted and abound in tough puzzles. The combat routine in the first game has been modified and improved to allow a choice of weapons, thus giving more realism and variation.

Temple of Vran is ingenious and original in its design. The player can identify strongly with the central character and, through the provision of status indicators, the game can mirror at least some of the complexity of role-playing scenarios. Enjoy yourself, but remember, take care.

Richard Price

3D Bat Attack

WELCOME to Transylvania. The dubious delights of the vampire's tower await you in 3D Bat Attack, by Cheetahsoft. The tower is built in four levels, each connected to the others by a lift. Play begins on the lowest level and the foolhardy explorer must collect the gold blocks on the passage floors. Heads of garlic are also scattered round the place and must be eaten to provide some protection against the four vampire bats which squeak about the maze seeking a quick snack of your Type O.

A map and radar are provided to show the position of both adventurer and bats, and there are ten levels of difficulty available.

The keyboard movement takes a little getting used to as the cursor keys are doubled up - using Caps Shift - to enable the player to rotate as well as move. The rotate facility can he confusing but the map shows the whole floor, including the location of the garlic. The graphics are competent and clear and there are comprehensive instructions.

Richard Price

Sinclair User
September 1984