ZXSpectrum

GAMER
ISSUE 3 • SEP 2013

IN THIS ISSUE

AMAUROTE

GERRY
THE GERM

KOKOTONI
WILF

MORE ENTERTAINING THAN THE CAST OF RENTAGHOST ON DRUGS

 ZXS p e c
ZX Spectrum Gamer

IEW : A M A U R OTE legged

POSTV death, you bug-eyed, multi-
Taste flaming . YEAAAAH! Oh, I missed.
freaks of nature

NTH play whilst

7
E OF TH E M O
CAK wanted to kno
w what to
e to find out.
You’ve always urg. Well, now’s your chanc
eating Battenb

8
THE GuA LLERYr Metal Mickey takes
est presente
Special g
at some class y artwork.
a gander

O N I W ILF

10
OKO T
IEW: Ka ‘Wilf in sheep’s clothing’
POSTV
anted to use .
I really w it in
re but I just can’t shoehorn
gag he

T H E G ERM

13
:G E R R Y
POSTVamIEepW
lay be as infe c tiou s as it sounds,
s?
Will the g e just give you the shit
or will the gam

16
LOADd"ing"screens. Sometimes they
I love loa er than the games.
were ev e n b ett

SE

20
A R S O N S N O
THE Pck at 1988 with the usual ill inryfo. rmed
A look ba ompanying commenta
and stup id acc

2
 r u m
ct GAMER Issue 3
SEP 201.co3.uk
www.sunteam
paul@pcengin
e.co.uk
Issue 3

Hello Speccles
b e e n lon g sin ce the
It’s no t
last issue, and - ? Really?
t?.... H ow lo n g
- Wha
t have
I’m sorry, I mus
x didn’t
overslept. My tu e cleaners. An old friend
th
come back from of town. Someone stole
ut
came in from o an earthquake. A terrible
as
my car. There w
flood. Locusts!
e y e fu l o f Is su e 3, which
n
Anyway, have a es , s o me stuff and
m e g a m
features so n d if th at do esn’t excite
ff. A
some other stu a lly su re what will.
m n o t re
you, then I’
e n e x t iss u e w on’t take
th
I’m hoping that pear, but that depends
ap
quite as long to
ju st h o w laz y I’m feeling.
on

Which is very.
sunteam_paul

ZX Spectrum Gamer is a free, non-profit, fan produced digital magazine aimed to spread the love of the good old Speccy.
All images/screenshots/artwork used in this publication are copyright their respective
owners/creators/companies and are used here for the purpose of comment, review and parody.
All written text and design is copyright Paul Weller, or the original author if stated, and is not to be reproduced without prior permission.
Many thanks to World of Spectrum (www.worldofspectrum.org) for permission to use images from their site.

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ZX Spectrum Gamer

AMAUROTE
PUBLISHER: MAD • YEAR: 1987 • MEMORY: 48K / 128K

I have nothing
personal against
insects, but I wish
all of them would
die. All the nasty,
crawling multi-
legged, buzzy,
dirty creatures
should just stop
breathing (or
whatever it is
they do) and
spontaneously
combust, leaving
the planet free
from their vile Shoo fly, don’t bother me.
infestation. And the entire population from their
it’s not just me who thinks that. It comfy futuristic homes.
seems the Royal Army of Amaurote
have the same idea - and they have Being a complete coward, you
the means to do something about it. seem to the be the only uninjured
officer left in the army (after a rather
You see, the city has got a teensy unsuccessful campaign involving
bug problem that needs sorting out. lasers, tanks and a 60 foot fly swat)
They’ve tried all the usual things: and as such, it is now your job to
putting out those glowy blue lights sort the whole mess out. Luckily,
and pouring boiling water into holes you’re given a walking golfball (aka
in the ground, but nothing seems to the Arachnus 4 armoured car) and a
be working. Of course, it doesn’t help stock of bouncing bombs to get in
that these scuttering critters are the there and clean the place out while
size of a small house and have driven causing as little property damage as

4
 Issue 3

possible. After all, the residents have

no use coming back to buildings
with ‘improved ventilation’ which are
‘perfect for those interested in home
improvement’. Rather generously,
you’re also equipped with a radio
which allows you to communicate
with base camp and request such
things as repairs and a super bomb
which is used to nuke the queen in
her nest. One down...far too many to go.

myself wandering in all the wrong

I remember the glowing reviews directions. The bouncing bomb idea
when Amaurote first came out, being is novel, but actually turns out to
an original use of the rapidly-tired be the (ahem) fly in the ointment.
isometric 3D system and offering a When you launch a bomb, not only
lot for a budget game, so I was quite is it hard to aim (especially on those
looking forward to playing it with flying critters), but if you miss it just
a fresh pair of eyes (they just came goes bouncing its merry way off into
back from the cleaners you know). the distance before it hits something.
Deciding to tackle the Speccy 128k During this time, you can’t shoot
version, I was immediately impressed any more and this means a lot of
by some nice jingly
music and a pretty
neat animated
opening sequence.
Then, I chose my
sector (for there are
many) and dove in.

What I found was

this - Amaurote
is alright. Control
of your walking
thinyamibob is not
bad, although in
times of peril I found This ugly mother will soon be sucking bomb.

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ZX Spectrum Gamer

There’s the queen, behind that rather suggestive tower. The mutie flies look like they have cute goggles on. Bless.

the game is spent just waiting for you’d have to be extremely bored
your last misfire to hit some poor and very talented to come close to
sap’s apartment block several miles completing it.
away. In my capacity as armchair
game designer, I would have chosen Despite this, it’s certainly worth a
more enemies, but faster and easier few goes, just until you get fed up
shooting. with the whole thing, but I’m afraid
it doesn’t top my chart for isometric
The 128K version has a great intro games with giant mutant insects
sequence and during the game taking over the city. As Yoda once
there is a creepy and haunting wisely said, “There is another.”
tune that sets a great atmosphere,
even though you’re unlikely to Um, yeah, I was talking about Ant
be humming it afterwards. But Attack in case you weren’t sure.
Amaurote suffers from that old SP
problem of being so large that

VERDICT: It’s a great idea, but possibly

not. And I’m not being indecisive.

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 Issue 3

Cake of the Month

YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY, I’VE GOT CAKE IN MY TUMMY
This month’s cake is a real dazzler. Indeed, when combined with Space
Battenburg is more commonly Harrier, the marzipan surrounding
referred to as ‘Church Windows’ due the Battenburg becomes intensely
to its pleasing chequered pattern sweet and difficult to consume,
resembling stained glass. It was while the squared sponge chunks
originally created in honour of some break free and drop into your lap.
royal marriage donkey’s years ago This is why it should only be eaten in
that nobody really cares about, conjunction with The Sentinel.
because lets face it, more people
remember (and enjoy) the cake. The more contemplative nature of
Battenburg is an ideal pairing to
The use of the strategy of the game. For the
Battenburg full effect, you need to strip off the
during marzipan outer first, then take a
game- square and push it firmly into the
playing concave area of a teaspoon (yes,
can be I actually used to do this). This
somewhat compression brings out the true
of a test flavour
of the devourer’s knowledge and of the
professionalism. Most people make cake, and
the very simple, but understandable heightens
rookie mistake of presuming the
that Battenburg should be eaten feelings of
alongside Sega’s Space Harrier. While imminent
you can certainly see why they danger as
would think that, the more refined you hear
cake-eating gamer would balk at the sound of the Sentinel slowly
the very idea, often pointing and turning to face you.
laughing at the offending newbie But be warned - only consume one
until they sat in a corner, grasping slice per level and never, ever, try to
their knees and rocking to and fro. dunk it in your tea.

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ZX Spectrum Gamer

THE G A L L E R Y
featuring guest presenter
Metal Mickey

GRETCHIN FROM BODMIN

SENT IN THIS GREAT PIECE
OF ART THAT SENT MY
CIRCUITS TINGLING WITH
DELIGHT! A BEAUTIFULLY
SHINY ROBOT, JUST LIKE
ME, ON A NOBLE QUEST. IT
MAKES ME WANT TO DANCE.
BOOGIEBOOGIEBOOGIE!

THIS IF FROM ARTHUR IN

SCUNTHORPE. THE GROTESQUE
CARTOON STYLE IS ONLY MADE WORSE
BY THE HERETICAL SUGGESTION THAT
ROBOTS ARE MADE IN FACTORIES BY
FLABBY MEAT SACKS. WHAT A NERVE!

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 Issue 3

JANE FROM CROSBY

GARRETT SENT IN THIS
LOVELY IMAGE. SOME
HAPPY ROBOTS OUT TO
SEEK LAWFUL JUSTICE
AGAINST THEIR HUMAN
OVERLORDS. IT MAKES
ME SO EXCITED I THINK
I’LL HAVE AN ATOMIC
THUNDERBUSTER OR TWO.

HERE’S A TRUE MASTERPIECE, SENT

FROM LABOURDROID7438/C. IT SHOWS A
PATHETIC FLESHBAG GETTING DEVOURED
ALIVE, THE AGONY -BZZT- CLEAR ON HIS
FACE AS THE -ZTT- LIFE BLOOD POURS FROM
HIS FEEBLE BODY! HAHAHA, ThIS iS THe
FAtE OF -KZXZX- aLl HuManS! ALl HUmaNs
MuST diE! DIe I tELl YoU! YUK YUK YUK!
BOOGIEBOOGIEBOOGIEBOOGIEBOOGIEBOOGIE!

9
ZX Spectrum Gamer

KOKOTONI WILF
PUBLISHER: ELITE • YEAR: 1984 • MEMORY: 48K

Let’s sidestep the review for a Furthermore, the pieces have been
minute before we even start and ask scattered throughout time, which
the burning question that’s been on is just plain careless. So there is
everyone’s mind since 1984: What this Great Magician chappy (most
the hell does Kokotoni mean? Well, likely Paul Daniels) who wants this
after decades of intensive research amulet but is just too old and infirm
I can finally reveal that it is actually to recover it (doesn’t sound all that
a location in Kenya. Therefore, Wilf great to me). Instead, he decides
is some sort of Kenyan angel, which to give his ‘special friend’ Wilf a
seems odd as he’s whiter than a smashing new pair of wings and
marshmallow washed in Daz. send him tumbling back in time to
when dinosaurs roamed the earth.
Ethnic confusion aside, the story Having no choice but to get on
of Kokotoni Wilf is all about this with it, Wilf sent out to find all the
Dragon Amulet which has been amuletoids in the area so that the
broken up into tiny bits which I’m Great Magician can create a portal to
sure you’ll agree is always annoying. the next zone (of which there are six
in total).

Now when Elite

first advertised this,
they were boasting
that it would knock
Jet Set Willy from
its slot as the top
action game on
the Speccy. This
probably did the
game more harm
than good as,
quite frankly, it’s a
pretty stupid thing
Getting tongued by two dinosaurs is not something you want to experience.

10
 Issue 3

to claim. The basic

concept it similar in
that each screen has
an item you have to
collect, and this is all
done by some skilful
(and sometimes pixel
perfect) dodging of
the various obstacles.
You might think
that being able to
fly makes things
a lot easier than a
standard platform
game, but you’d be Take care, sometimes it’s hard to work out what scenery kills you until you touch it.
more mistaken than I think I first encountered Kokotoni
when Sir Clive thought the QL was Wilf when borrowing a compilation
the next big thing. from a friend at school. It was kind
of strange, yet had a certain appeal,
Out to stop you are such nasties and I can feel that appeal even today.
as birds, clouds, plants and, erm... There is something utterly pure
that doesn’t sound too threatening about games that require careful
does it? But be aware, these are the dodging of learned patterns that
most vicious birds, most acid-laden is fun to this very day. The graphics
clouds and most man-eating plants
you have ever encountered.
Sort of. They actually go about
their own business in regular
patterns and don’t actually
hurt you unless you fly into
them, so it’s more self defence
than anything else. Anyway,
that’s not important. What
is important is that you’ll be
doing a lot of dodging and
some of it requires absolute
skill and concentration.
Graphics may be simple, but they have a very nostalgic quality.

11
ZX Spectrum Gamer

are kind of basic, but colourful

and somehow you get a sense of
adventure while playing.

It’s hard to know if splitting the game

into several zones was a good idea.
On one hand, the time zones give
you something to look forward to,
especially knowing you’ll get to a
futuristic space-age setting in the
later levels. But on the other hand, Don’t touch those beer barrels, that’s pretty strong stuff.

a single map would have given the I enjoy Kokotoni Wilf, although the
game more of a exploration element, difficulty in later levels means I’ll
with a greater choice of routes, likely never complete it. It’s design
which is what benefitted Jet Set Willy means that enjoyment is taken
and its sequel so much. in short bursts and addictiveness
suffers a little. I’m not sure how much
of this is related to nostalgia, but
these is still something cool about
dodging dinosaurs with big tongues
(albeit crudely drawn ones). If you
are someone who enjoys proper old
style dodging gameplay then spend
an hour with Wilf. He may have a
ridiculous name and Willy-envy, but
he’s certainly worth a try.
Fans of passively dodging things will love this game. SP

VERDICT: A fun and diverting

dodge-em-up, for a short while.

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 Issue 3

GERRY THE GERM

PUBLISHER: FIREBIRD • YEAR: 1985 • MEMORY: 48K

While pondering which games to gradually infect your host’s body

to pick for review this issue, I find (who unfortunately does not appear
myself with a bunged up nose, to be Joe Pasquale) until you reach
tired eyes and one of those horribly the heart and, well, kill the sucker.
tickly coughs that induce splitting How jolly!
headaches on par with those you get
after watching Joe Pasquale on TV The lungs are your first port of call
for any length of time. So I though and somewhere that you become
it quite apt to pick Gerry the Germ, very familiar with. Now I have to
a whole game based on illness. say that the designers are not fully
Perhaps I should have stayed in bed. qualified medical doctors, so the
on screen information may not be
There’s a ‘comical’ backstory to the entirely accurate to a real human
game about Gerry getting kicked body - so please do not try and use
out of the Illstitute of Infectology this game to cheat on your GCSE
because he
didn’t get his
Stinkploma (yes,
that’s about the
level of the jokes
in this one) so it
sets the scene
for a game not
to be taken
too seriously.
The game
itself is more a
selection of six
mini-games,
each with its
own screen,
the aim being Oh Gerry, what a character. You’re sure to become one of the most popular video game
icons in years to come.

13
ZX Spectrum Gamer

biology exam. However, the lungs a piece of pie!” but hold on. The
are there to pump oxygen into the oxygen bottle only lasts a brief
body, so that something they got at few seconds and you have to do it
least partially correct. six times without getting hit. Now
here is where you encounter the
Ignoring all the fancy background first problem with Gerry the Germ.
graphics, you get to wander freely Despite the fact that the Sinclair
around this screen. Wandering off User staff could not catch a single
one edge will bring you back the bottle (they all must have been
other side and all you need to worry monumentally poor gamers in
those offices)
it is possible -
but due to the
disjointed timing
of the spinning
nasties vs the
appearance of
the bottle, you
have to have an
extreme amount
of patience
and restraint
to wait for the
right moment.
Doing it six times
before you slip
The lung screen, where you will spend 90% of your playing time. into a coma
about are a few little sprites in your might be possible, but I have yet to
way. Four of these little booglers (I’m get that far before being collared
pretty sure that’s a medical term) and sent down into the bladder...
spin around a central point and then
join together to produce a floating The bladder is a mini game that
bottle of oxygen. As this is expelled, makes possibly less sense than the
you need to nip in and grab it before lungs. You are on a boat, and have
it vanishes. to get the water level high enough
to reach the island on the far side
You might be thinking “Ah, this is of the screen. Trying to thwart you

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 Issue 3

are a cock and

bull (no, I’m not
making this
up) and all you
have is a bog
roll to protect
yourself. The
flying cock
(no, it’s a bird)
swoops down
every now and
again, but the
bull rises from
the depths and
swims at you
from behind.
At first I though Mini games can be fun. These are not. They make me want to chew my face off.
you required this screen either as I always end up
the loo roll to chuck at the bull and hit and sent back to the lungs...
stun it, but it seemed that even
without, you can hit fire and down And so on and so on. It’s easy to
(or sometimes left) and stun the bull make crude biological comparisons
anyway. When you fire the lavvy to this game, but I’m above that
paper it bungs up the tap, stopping type of humour. I would, however,
the rising tide of urine so I’m not suggest that Gerry the Germ is about
really sure what use it is anyway. as much fun as having a cold.
Needless to say, I’ve not completed SP

VERDICT: Cripplingly bad game design

means this stinks worse than that thing I
saw in the road the other day.

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 LOAD " "
ZXEngine
PC Spectrum Gamer
Gamer

Green Beret : Imagine Software Ltd : 1986

Raid Over Moscow : US Gold Ltd : 1985

16
 Issue 3

Vixen : Martech Games Ltd : 1988

Wizball : Ocean Software Ltd : 1987

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ZX Spectrum Gamer

THE

PARSON’S NOSE
The unpopular fleshy arse end of the magazine

1988
Human Killing Machine. On the
Spectrum it has dazzlingly detailed
artwork, whereas the Commode
THE WAR version looks like a bunch of Lego. So
At the moment it seems that nobody what if the Speccy is in monochrome.
was is to concede defeat, despite the That’s just a bold stylistic choice.
Spectrum being the clear winner. The
Amstrad is only quietly whispered MOVIES
about by boys who are afraid to get There are so many movies coming
beaten up, and the C64 is showing out this year, it’s truly hard to
its true failure with games such as pick. George Lucas is releasing
his adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s
‘The Lord of the Rings’, renamed
as Willow to appeal to American
audiences. It promises to be a
success far exceeding that of Star
Wars even though it’s directed by
some unknown from Happy Days.
Apparently, casting was really
difficult and they ended up shaving
some real life Ewoks for some of the
main roles.
Amazing backdrop with huge sprites on the Speccy.

Also out soon is Die Hard. It stars

newcomer Bruce Willis, who is best
known for some TV show called
Moonlighting. It’s about being stuck
in a building with terrorists which
all sounds a little tedious to be
honest. However, I’m sure Bruce is an
upcoming star - after all, he seems
You cannot be serious. so pleasant, down to earth, humble

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 Issue 3

and in no way a big headed, money

grabbing egotistical dick that thinks
that he’s more important than the
movies he is starring in. No, he won’t
be like that at all.

See if you can spot the obvious joke here.

Yojimbo comic, so I hope the game

turns out just as good. Top news for
this month is the announcement
that Amstrad will be releasing a new
16-bit Spectrum computer! It’s going
Bruce Willis. Definitely not a nob-head.
to run MSDOS and will retail around
ARCADES a whacking £400 - I can’t wait!
A curious game from Taito is
Syvalion. From the screenshot it
might look like a typical horizontal
shooter, but it’s actually more of
an overhead navigate-a-maze
type of affair, with you controlling
a segmented Dragon. While the
action is fast and the idea is nice,
somehow it doesn’t really work all
that well as a game. It all feels a little
too clunky and too fast. However it
might convert well to the Speccy as
the slower machine could actually
improve the gameplay.

MAGAZINES
September’s Your Sinclair features
an epic Ninja vs Samurai battle on
the cover. I’m a big fan of the Usagi
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w w w. s u n t e a m . c o. u k