To be honest, I don't know what this game is about, but what I can certainly tell you is that it is awful. It's a run-of-the-mill space shoot-'em-up where you shoot aliens and collect power-ups while exploring a maze and trying to find the route through it. However, the nature of the controls is such that far too often, you end up using your precious power-ups when you don't need them, and since you will actually need the power-ups to progress through the maze, this makes the game nearly impossible to play. Excellent graphics are wasted once again on a lousy game.

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It's gangster shooting time in this truly abysmal horizontally scrolling shoot-'em-up. Kill the gun-toting gangsters either in a hail of bullets or by throwing Molotov cocktails at them, and try not to hit the informer that wanders about the screen as if he's in a trance. There are plenty of games like this, and nearly all of them are much better than this one. The scrolling is very slow, it takes ages to complete a level, it's far too easy, and the Spectrum-like graphics are off-putting. The only good thing is the music on the menu.

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You are the sole heir to your uncle Ferdinand Sharpe's fortune, but to inherit it, you must find twelve treasures and the deeds for your uncle's estate. You start in an inn, in a quiet village in Somerset, where your solicitor is waiting for you. After you've spoken to him, you're on your own. If you're a fan of Infocom's text adventures, you'll know which one influenced the creation of this GAC adventure, although there are many puzzles to solve before you even encounter your first treasure. The map is quite large, and there is a lot to see and do. Plenty of well drawn pictures have been added, too, and unlike many GAC adventures I've played, there are few problems with finding the correct word to use.

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The American-built Sherman M4 tank saw action in World War II. Despite its inferior armour and weaponry, it was also reliable, and they managed to beat the Germans by outnumbering them. You can command a battalion of up to four tanks in ten missions against the Germans. Five of them are based in Normandy, while the other five are based in the Ardennes region. The playing area contains villages and supply bases which are held by the enemy and which you must capture. You also have to hunt down and destroy enemy bunkers and tanks. The game makes use of wonderful 3D graphics, but the game slows to a snail's pace when the screen becomes crowded. However, the biggest fault is that all of the missions are too easy, even on the higher difficulty settings, and the gameplay is rather limited anyway.

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Shinobi
(Virgin, 1989)

Bwah Foo has captured all the children at a school for training ninjas, and as Joe Musashi, a former graduate of the school, you resolve to rescue all of them. The children are scattered over five levels which are split into three or four sections. It's a platform game, and a rather good one, with lots of enemy ninjas to slay with your shurikens. Different ninjas will require different techniques, though, and then there is the matter of defeating the end-of-level guardians. You do have magic powers to help you, although you can only use them once in each section. The graphics aren't all that good – they're rather messy – and the music on the menu is poor, although some better tunes play throughout the game, which is easy to get into and fun to play.

See also: Shadow Dancer.

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Shockway Rider
(FTL, 1986)

This is a rather silly game, and one which was also slightly controversial when it was first released. You know those long airport walkways? This game sees you jumping to and fro between them and killing gang members with whatever weapons you can find lying at the side of the walkways. You can also get extra lives if you can achieve certain targets which change on each level. The controversy arises when you lose a life; your blood-stained head gets cut off and rolls down the walkway! It's not that bad a game, but all the levels (apart from the first) are basically the same thing. The music is really cool, though!

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Short Circuit
(Ocean, 1987)
Reviewed by Guillaume Chalard

Struck by a lightning bolt, Robot 5 has come alive. He tries to escape from his creators who want to catch him in order to study what happened. This game was inspired by the movie of the same name by John Badham. You control Number 5 through the laboratories and must find the way out. You can download programs to enhance your abilities, search the rooms for keys and other items. This part is rather good, with good graphics and a cheerful tune. The second part is an action sequence in which you must escape cops and various animals while jumping over ponds. It's difficult and rather stupid. In summary, this is an average game. It's a pity that the second half of the game could have been better.

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The evil Boris has planted bombs in several capital cities around the world. Only Sam Short can save the world! As Sam, you must defuse all the detonators within the time limit, otherwise the bomb will explode. The gameplay consists of simple platforming action, jumping across gaps and on to moving platforms and avoiding falling off the edges of platforms or landing on spikes. The graphics and sound effects are both very basic indeed, and the music is particularly annoying. As for the gameplay, Sam moves about the screen in a rather jerky manner and the controls can sometimes be unresponsive. This was one of the first games that Firebird released for the CPC and it looks very dated now.

See also: Super Sam.

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Welcome to Shufflepuck Café! If you've ever played a game on one of those air hockey machines you find in big amusement arcades (and boy, I loved playing them in my youth!), you'll recognise this. Air hockey is like ice hockey except that it's against two players, and you hit the ball with a bat rather than a stick. It's really easy to grasp. The café is filled with eight contestants, who each have their own ways of playing, which you will need to know in order to beat them. You can play a few games against any of them, or take part in a knockout tournament. Both the graphics and the music are stunning and the game is great fun, and you can customise it as well.

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A man known as Bozon wants to exterminate Earth, and his headquarters lies deep underwater. As Lieutenant Henry, you must swim through the sea to locate his headquarters. The game consists of one long level with lots of creatures to shoot, and several huge dragon-like monsters (which you must obviously shoot as well) help to break the action into distinct stages. Initially you can't move fast at all and your firepower is limited, but collecting the power-ups left behind by the creatures you shoot gives you more speed and weaponry – and you're going to need it! Without it, you'll lose lives very easily. If you keep hitting the fire button, you'll be OK. The graphics are all right, but they could be better, and so could the music, which is mediocre. The game itself is reasonably good once you get the hang of things.

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