 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
50 |
Turrican |  |
|||
| Whilst admittedly losing quite a bit in the transition from the original C64 release to Spectrum (this game was custom made for that hardware and really pushed it), Spectrum Turrican is still a fun game and is, in its own way nearly as much of a technical marvel as it was for the C64, with its full colour graphics, parallax, and multi-directional scrolling on a computer that had no hardware scrolling or sprites. The game itself is a platform shooter with a heavy emphasis on exploration (an element that works well with this version's slower pacing). There's lots of cool weapons and big bosses and you also have some nice inclusions like the ability to change into a gyroscope that gives the game some personality of its own. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
49 |
Deflektor |  |
|||
| Deflektor is a clever puzzle game where the aim is to reflect around a laser to destroy all the spheres before the timer runs out. Its a great concept that lends itself to the creation of a whole host of clever puzzles. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
48 |
Wizball |  |
|||
| Very good port of the classic C64 shmup. The game is a very original shooter in which the aim is to power-up and collect paint, when you fill a jar with a colour it empties into the world, with you slowly colouring the environment. The game starts off tough, with you in control of an unwieldy bouncing ball, but as you successfully get power-ups you slowly get more and more control. The Spectrum does a surprisingly good job of running the game, it scrolls pretty smoothly, and whilst not quite as good as the C64 original it plays well and is in higher resolution. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
47 |
Deactivators |  |
|||
| Puzzle game where you control a team of bomb-disposal robots. The game involves moving your team around the building finding computer chips to repair the building's functions, this allows you to get hold of all the bombs and throw them out before they explode. You avoid bad guys, use lifts, problem solve, and throw the bombs from robot to robot to achieve your objectives. Its a smart, well thought out, and fun game. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
46 |
Bard's Tale |  |
|||
| This is a pretty good port of the popular and influential American computer RPG. The game has you exploring a town in first person perspective getting into random battles and visiting shops and pubs and such looking for dungeon entrances. The game had an advanced character creation system for its time with some imagination put into the different character classes. The Spectrum doesn't have many RPGs, but it does have a good port of an important release here. | |||||
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |||||
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |||||
45 |
Ping Pong |  |
|||
| Very well translated table tennis game from the arcades. Ping Pong gives you four different moves, each assigned to a direction on the D-Pad. Holding down the fire button reverses the direction of the paddle. Its a simple and elegant system that works well. Other than the gameplay the graphics here are smooth, clean and colourful with little colour bleed. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
44 |
IK+ |  |
|||
| Fighting game where three martial artists vie for for the championship belt. Like most of the early fighting games IK+ matches are based around points for knockdowns, not decreasing your opponents health bar. The game was one of the greatest fighters of its era on C64, and whilst a bit downgraded the Spectrum version retains the playability of the original. The graphics are low-key but are clean and carefully put together. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
43 |
Three Weeks in Paradise |  |
|||
| The last, and arguably greatest game in the Wally Week series. The creator for this outing was actually Dave Perry, a guy who would later gain fame and respect for his work on Aladdin and Earthworm Jim on the Mega Drive. The game has the Week family taking a vacation that goes horribly wrong, leading them to become stranded on an island of cannibals. Wally Week must search the island for useful items to aid him in rescuing his family and escaping. Like its predecessors the game has a lot of charm, there's a noticeable graphical improvement here, and even some in-game beeper music! | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
42 |
Ranarama |  |
|||
| Ranarama is kind of like Gauntlet mixed with RPG elements like spell acquirement and upgrades. You play as a wizard who's been turned into a frog, and the aim is to search for evil wizards and clear them out of each level of the dungeon in turn. This is done by leaping on top of them and completing a mini game, if successful they drop runes which can be used in the shops to upgrade your defense, offense, and health, as well as purchase a variety of different spells. When the floor is done it gets dimmer and you need to move on. A very original and addictive game. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||
41 |
Sacred Armour of Antiriad |  |
|||
| This is a very early release in the Metroidvania sub-genre (or should that be "Metiriad" sub-genre, given that this game released at the same time as Metroid!). The game takes place in a post-apocalyptic world that has been sent back to the stone age after a nuclear holocaust. Prior to the nuclear war one of the countries had created an advanced prototype anti-radiation power-suit, but had been destroyed before putting it to use. This ancient suit now represents the only hope for humanity in a fight against alien invaders. The game has you searching for the suit (you put it on by facing forward) and slowly fixing and upgrading it to fight the alien menace. The game is a little too easy once you've learned the layout, but its fun whilst it lasts and is an important early game in the genre. | |||||
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | |||||