Matrix

Sinclair User

Gilbert Factor 7/10

Chris Bourne 7/10

Memory: 48K Price: £6.95 Joystick: Kempston, Cursor Matrix from Salamander is the second in Jeff Minter's Grid Wars series, and is based on the arcade classic Centipede. The centipedes move along a grid, which is gathering solar energy for Earth, and as well as attempting to collide with your spaceship they may also drop bombs on you. At later levels the droids are aided by deflector shields which send your laser fire scattering in all directions except the one at which you aimed, and the now notorious cosmic cameloids, whose presence on the screen decreases your score until you have eliminated them. Spectrum owners accustomed to the complex graphics and vast playing areas may feel dismissive about the Minter style. He writes simple games which are challenging and appeal particularly to zapper addicts. The real strength of Matrix is its sheer speed of operation and the delicate game balance, which seems pitched at just the proper level to convince you that you could easily improve your high score if only you had another attempt. That is one of the core secrets of an addictive game.

Read it at Sinclair User Magazine Online

Crash

Use of Computer 57%

Graphics 51%

Playability 64%

Getting Started 80%

Addictive Qualities 55%

Originality 58%

Value For Money 52%

Overall 60%

Unknown

Unknown

Unknown

Producer: Salamander Software Memory Required: 48K Retail Price: £6.95 Language: Machine code Author: Jeff Minter In our earliest issue we reviewed Gridrunner by Jeff Minter. This new game is subtitled Gridrunner 2. It is ten years since the terrible Grid Wars shook humanity (Gridrunner) and now the terrible Droids have returned - and they are not alone. The droids now drop bombs at crazy angles and generate force fields which deflect fire, sometimes straight back at you. They also have a psychological weapon, which makes the pilot think he's seeing camels running down the grid. Your mission is to defend 20 sectors of the Grid. The grid is tastefully designed to be easy on the eye for once - dark blue squares on a black background. The droids come down the screen, zig-zagging left to right, and, when hit, break their chain, the damaged segment forming a pod. They may drop bombs, and when reaching the base of the screen, begin to move diagonally. A pod will remain after forming until it has been blasted to smithereens, or until it has mutated into something nastier, in which case it will fall down the grid on top of you. To the left of the grid, and along the bottom, there are two Zappers. These move back and forth, firing into the screen. Where their beams meet they form a pod. The beam from the base Zapper is deadly. If the snitch is above you and the Zapper below, the Zapper will fire out of sequence and get you. Some screens have deflectors, big screens in the centre which deflect your shots, Cosmic Cameloids appear on their own and with droids. On their own they decrease your score while they're on the screen, but with droids they are harmless, although they get in the way. COMMENTS Control keys: I/P left/right, Q/A up/down and O to fire Joystick: Kempston, AGF and Protek Keyboard play: quite good positions, very responsive Use of colour: average, good use of contrast Sound: fair to average Skill levels: 20 Lives: 5 Originality: new features to make an old game more complex

The Grid Wars are back - can you stay alive on the grid with Zappers, Snitches and Camels?