Run the Gauntlet

Your Sinclair

Overall 69%

Rich Pelley 69%

Who needs a torch for the dark when you're wearing pink and yellow day-glo flares? 'Ever Ready' RICH PELLEY shines some light down the... BARGAIN BASEMENT RUN THE GAUNTLET The Hit Squad £2.99 Reviewer: Rich Pelley Remember the telly programme of R The G? Crap, wasn't it? Fortunately, though, the game is a sight better and comes in three multiload (groan) parts, which you get either once, twice or not at all per game (it's random, you see). The water events (hovercrafts, speedboats, jet skis and inflatables) take place on a big lake, half scrolling horizontally, the other half vertically, with you racing against the computer. This bit would be hundreds better if it weren't for the annoying controls and puny graphics. The track events (all on different sorts of buggies) work with a sort of off-centre flip-screen top view, nice chunky graphics, ramps and bumps - and are spookily satisfying. And as for the assault course - well, it's essentially just a waggler, but quite good fun. So to sum up, we're talking three averagely average sub-games - nothing special, although then again for a mere £2.99 you certainly are getting quite a lot of game for your moolah.

Ha! Evil Knievel, eat your heart out!

Crash

Overall 78%

Nick Roberts 78%

The Hit Squad £2.99 re-release This is probably the best conversion from a TV programme I've ever played. The action packed racing you see on the telly makes for even more action packed fun in the game. Choose the team you want to play and you're given a selection of courses to play: water courses, track and assault courses with a variety of vehicles to master. The most annoying thing is the way the programmers have included explosions on every track. In the telly programme these are only special effects but in the game they blow you all over the place! The terrible multiload is ruddy annoying too. The road racing sections are my favourite: large animated vehicles zoom around the well coloured tracks. The water is a different story though, the sprites are much smaller and when you keep on bashing into things you soon wish for the end. The Hill or assault course has large sprites but the waggle left and right control method makes it a bit of a pain to play. Run The Gauntlet has its good and bad points but I'd recommend it to all racing fans.

Sinclair User

Graphics 82%

Sound 75%

Playability 79%

Lastability 80%

Overall 78%

Chris Jenkins 78%

Based on the action sports TV series, Run The Gauntlet is a surprisingly good multi-sports sim in which one or two players can take part in challenges consisting of three events, selected randomly from a list of six. The water-borne events, which feature speedboats, hovercraft, jet skis, and inflatables, take place on a multi-directional scrolling screen. A map shows you the coarse you must steer, and then it's up to you to avoid obstacles and outrace the other boats. The action is very fast, but I found it annoying that while you go into an uncontrollable spin when you hit an obstacle, the same doesn't seem to apply to your competitors. The same applies to the land events, which take place on flip-screen mud courses, and which feature various types of buggy, amphibian and quadbike. The last section of a challenge takes place on the assault course, where you have to develop the right joystick-waggling motion to wade through the mud, climb nets and so on. Without question, this multi-sports sim packs a lot of quality in with the quantity.

ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment)

Graphics 8/10

Audio 3/10

IQ Factor 2/10

Fun Factor 6/10

Ace Rating 677/1000

Andy Smith 677/1000

Multi-eventing around with Ocean. Supercats, Quads and Meteors transport, surprisingly enough, and they all feature in this game based on the popular TV series Run the Gauntlet. On the telly, international teams compete against each other in several races on land and water, driving various kind of weird and wonderful vehicles. In the computer game you and a couple of mates can compete against each other in nine races (three groups of three legs) again, for the most part, in assorted vehicles. The driving races consist of three laps of a set course that varies depending on the type of craft you're in. The action's viewed from above, though it's more "above and a bit to the side" for the buggy driving races. Just like in most Codemasters games, the controls are simply left, right, accelerate and brake. Competing, whether playing solo or with friends, involves racing round the course against two computer drones: times for each leg are totted up at the end of the race and points awarded to whoever finishes most quickly. Failure to achieve the standards required, in other words not finishing in the top two, means you won't progress to the next round, so you will have to take risks and really go for it sometimes. As might be expected, there are other factors as well as the computer drones that can prove a hindrance. Explosions on both land and sea can send your craft spinning out of control for a few vital seconds, and colliding with the computer drones delays only your progress, and not theirs. Run The Gauntlet is not one of Ocean's better games. It's well put together and is fun to play (although the collision detection is a bit iffy), but it's far too easy to beat to keep you playing for months. Reviewer: Andy Smith RELEASE BOX Atari ST, £19.99dk, Out Now Amiga, £24.99dk, Imminent Spec 128, £8.99cs, £12.99dk, Out Now Amstrad, £9.99cs, £14.99dk, Out Now C64/128, £9.99cs, £14.99dk, Imminent Predicted Interest Curve 1 min: 60/100 1 hour: 50/100 1 day: 80/100 1 week: 80/100 1 month: 40/100 1 year: 15/100

(Right) ST - A water race, and you're piloting a tricky hover. These craft tend to generate bags of inertia, so you'll have to be aware of oversteer.

Amstrad - Piloting a hover. Use the small map in the top corner to guide yourself round the course.

Spectrum - Supercats are the slowest of all land craft, although that's not necessarily a bad thing!

AMSTRAD VERSION The gameplay is closer to the Spectrum than the ST version, so you can expect to get a fair amount of play from it. The graphics are good, being both smooth and colourful. Probably the most enjoyable version overall. Graphics: 8/10 Audio: 4/10 IQ Factor: 2/10 Fun Factor: 8/10 Ace Rating: 683/1000 Predicted Interest Curve 1 min: 75/100 1 hour: 50/100 1 day: 80/100 1 week: 80/100 1 month: 40/100 1 year: 15/100

SPECTRUM VERSION Everything's very fast and the graphics are fine. It's tougher to win on the Speccy, so there's more lasting challenge, but you'll master it eventually. An enjoyable short-term game in the Super Sprint and BMX Simulator mould.

ST VERSION The graphics are good, but the gameplay can be very frustrating. Once you know the courses it won't take you long to win every game. Graphics: 8/10 Audio: 6/10 IQ Factor: 2/10 Fun Factor: 7/10 Ace Rating: 647/1000 Predicted Interest Curve 1 min: 75/100 1 hour: 50/100 1 day: 80/100 1 week: 80/100 1 month: 20/100 1 year: 15/100

C&VG (Computer & Video Games)

Graphics 87%

Sound 76%

Value 79%

Playability 86%

Overall 83%

Julian Rignall 83%

Ocean Spec £8.99 cass, C64/AMS £9.99 cass, ST £19.99, Amiga £24.99 ITV's Run the Gauntlet is a brilliant TV programme - it pits four teams from the USA, Great Britain, Holland and Australia against one another over a variety of gruelling events which feature motocross scramblers, quads, speedboats, jet skis, hovercraft, Argo ATVs and off-road buggies amongst others. With action like that, it's ideal subject matter for a computer game-and Ocean have capitalised with an official licence to produce a Run the Gauntlet program. The end result is a three-stage action sports simulation played over land and water. At the start of a game the player(s) choose a team. After that the first event begins water. A random water vehicle is chosen - speedboat, jet ski or hovercraft; each has its own handling and speed capabilities. The action is viewed from overhead, and the course scrolls as the craft move around. A map at the top right of the screen tells you where to go, and also gives a radar indication of where the opponents are. The objective is to complete three laps in the minimum possible time. The player partakes in three rounds of three races. The time for each of the three races is added together to produce a result for one round, and points ore awarded depending on whether you come first, second or third. After three rounds, all points are displayed, and depending on whether you've done well enough, you go onto the next round - a land-based event which features the likes of buggies, eight-wheeled ATV's and bikes. Similar principles to the first event apply, with the player competing over a variety of courses with different vehicles. There are plenty of hazards to avoid, as well as a lot of bumping one another if you are to cross the finishing line first. Finally, there's the Hill, a tough and demanding joystick-waggling event. The player controls a runner as he sprints up the vertically scrolling screen, leaping over obstacles, running over log bridges and through water. Run the Gauntlet is a simple, but enjoyable and addictive game which has a very competitive element in two or three-player mode. The random selection of courses and craft is another bonus, making the game unpredictable and increasing its lasting appeal. The different style of controls is a great idea, and coming from the rather sluggish and slow hovercraft to a speedy and manoeuvrable jet ski takes some getting used to - mastering each craft is tricky, but perseverance reaps rewards. The graphics on both 8 and 16-bit versions are polished and highly detailed, Both the ST and Amiga versions are colourful, with excellent sprites and backdrops. Sound is also very good, with a variety of neat effects and ditties on 8-bit, and effective use of samples on the ST and Amiga to enhance the atmosphere of the game. Ocean have certainly done a great job bringing Run the Gauntlet to our screens, and any sports sim fan after an action-pocked game should definitely look this up.

All the fun of the TV programme.

Power your way along.

Sorts out the men from the boys.

The graphics are outstanding.

Where's Martin Shaw?

AMIGA SCORES Graphics: 88% Sound: 86% Value: 74% Playability: 86% Overall: 82%

UPDATE... All versions will be released at the same time, and will all play similarly. The only difference is the Spectrum version is a flick-screen rather than a scrolling one.

The Games MachineThe Games Machine Star Player

Overall 88%

Spectrum 48/128 Cassette: £8.99, Diskette: £14.99 OCEAN RACE TO SUCCESS Combat School was a surprising success, ringing the changes for compiled event games, and Run The Gauntlet offers a similar kind of challenge accompanied by different graphic presentation styles for each of the three events: road racing, water racing or the hill assault course - all of which load separately. For the waterborne race there's hovercraft, speed boats, jet skis, and inflatable boats. These all have their own handling characteristics and also their own particular race course. For the muddy track races there's two-man buggies, one-man buggies, four-wheel bikes and amphibious six-wheeled vehicles. There are two courses for these machines. And as for the assault courses... It's shanks's pony for the two different layouts. Four teams can take the challenge but one is always the computer which acts as a pacer. The waterborne race is a Spy Hunter-style overhead view which looks deceptively easy, but the vehicles characteristics are tricky, collisions with other vehicles or land leads to spins, and explosions can throw you off course. In the track racing the flickscreen action is more three-dimensional. A useful map helps anticipate bends and hills, but again, explosions prove to be a hazard. Probably the most graphically attractive section, this is also the most fun to play. Toughest is the hill. Back to the overhead smooth-scrolling for muddy pits, slippery logs over water, nets and water cannon trying to knock you over. The variety of events, and the assault course in particular, is suggestive of Combat School, but Run the Gauntlet is better presented graphically.

Track racing section - the well animated graphics neatly avoid colour clash as the buggies hurtle round the tortuous course.

"One of the best multi-event games for a long while"

OTHER FORMATS Commodore and CPC versions for Easter (£9.99 cass, £14.99 disk) Amiga and ST versions available in April (£24.99 and £19.99 respectively).

Your Sinclair

Graphics 7/10

Playability 7/10

Value For Money 7/10

Addictiveness 7/10

Overall 7/10

Duncan MacDonald 7/10

Imagine £8.99 Reviewer: Duncan MacDonald The Professionals. Episode 18. Bodie: You know something Doyle? I reckon that I'm the toughest out of the two of us. No one messes with me. Doyle: Don't be a doughnut, Bodie, I'm the action man - you're just the ineffectual sidekick. Bodie: You're asking for a poke in the eye, you muesli-muncher. You're the weak-kneed glamourboy. All the viewers know that if we fell out and had a fight you'd get the pips kicked out of you. Doyle : Ho, ho, ho. Says who - says a bloke who once played a handbag swinging, bouffant-hairstyled burk in The Cuckoo Waltz, a crap seventies sit-com! Bodie: Right! You've had it! Gordon Jackson: Boys, boys, boys. Calm down now. Bodie: No, come on boss, you're our sort of 'father figure' who do you reckon is the hardest? Gordon Jackson: I'm afraid Doyle is. Bodie : Right! You've had it too you old git! Bosh!! The casting director of Thames TV's Run The Gauntlet obviously agreed with Gordon Jackson - for who got the plum part as presenter of this tough men doing 'daring' things series? - Doyle, that's who (or Martin Shaw, as his mother prefers to call him). Have you seen the series? Four teams of moto-cross riders/marines/crocodile-wrasslers battle it out over five or six rounds of 'high action'stunt tomfoolery on impressive machinery: there are hovercrafts, speedboats, inflatables (Oo-er), dune buggies and jet-skis to name but five. And that's basically it. So, the question is: what has Ocean done with its licence. The only way to find out is to read on, chum! Most of the events from the TV series have been retained, and they've all been tackled in the same manner - viewed from above. There's a sandy off-road, flips-screen, race course for the meteors, supercats. buggies and quads (the essential difference between these are their respective speeds - the faster the-buggy, the harder it is to control), and there's a vertically and horizontally scrolling lake scenario for the speedboats, jet-skis, inflatables and hovercraft. The same 'speed' rules apply here as well, the hovercraft being the hardest to control. There's also a section called The Hill in which you're out of the machinery and on your feet. It's assault course time - leap over holes, trudge through mud and try to avoid the water-jets - they'll knock you down. Up to three players can join in, by the way, or you can play solo against the computer. When I first loaded up Run The Gauntlet I was quite disappointed, 'cos the same piece of coding for the racetrack and the lake is just used over and over again. The only differences are the vehicle sprites and their personal handling characteristics. Birrova con, thought I - until I'd had a few goes that is - the game's actually quite addictive. There's quite a bit of colour, and the graphics are quite chunky, although the animation is slightly on the jerky side. I've got a sneaking feeling this was a bit of a rush-job, after all, it could easily have been awesomely brilliant, but as it stands Run The Gauntlet's a bit on the mediocre side.

Read it at Your Sinclair Rock'n'Roll Years

Sinclair User

Graphics 82%

Sound 62%

Playability 81%

Lastability 76%

Overall 80%

Tony Dillon 80%

Label: Ocean Author: In-house Price: £9.95 Memory: 48K/128K Joystick: various Reviewer: Tony Dillon Now here's a turn up for the books. A conversion of an unconvertible idea and it's great! Not only is it great, Martin Shaw's in it and that makes it even better (or should that be worse?) Even though the picture of him is atrocious, you can still tell it's him. How? Because there's a speech bubble next to him saying 'Hello, I'm Martin Shaw'. Run the Gauntlet is a game for one to four players, each playing a different country in this multi-event international challenge. There are three heats to each game, each with three separate events. To qualify for the next heat, you mustn't come last. The loser has to drop out. There are dozens of 'actual' events, but each can be put in one of three categories. The first is the waterbound events. These involve one player and two computer riders in a mad three lap rave, sorry, race around a duckpond in a variety of vehicles. These range from jetbikes to hovercraft. The aim is to get the fastest possible time, even if you don't win. If you're too slow you won't get onto the next heat. The waterbound section is arranged as a vertically scrolling top view rotate-and-thrust game. The scrolling is silky smooth and the animation is fab, right down to the flotsam left in the wake of the craft. Craft are rotatable through 16 positions and are very responsive. Next, you can try your hand on the dirt track, with things like buggies and jeeps. This plays in much the same way as level one, only it's a multi directional flip screener. Graphics are as good as level one. with great attention to detail. Little cameramen are dotted about the track, which twists, turns, rises and falls like a twisty, turny. risey, falley thing. Unfortunately, this level doesn't play as well as level one. The third and final section, appropriately named, The Hill, has you as a contestant racing for all you're worth across the long and tortuous assault course. The graphics are fab, and the vertical scrolling is just as good as level one. It's a lot harder to play though. Left and right make the man walk left and right (thanks Tone - AS). Hold down fire and waggle the joystick left and right to build up power (to do strenuous things, like walk). Fire and up makes him jump, useful for getting over obstacles such as canyon walls and things (thanks again Tone (yawn) - AS). RTG is a pretty fabbo game, but it does fall down on one minor point. It's very hard to start with, which can be a little disheartening. Keep at it, and you learn where the best points to overtake a computer rider are, and where all the interesting little shortcuts are, as well as becoming a more proficient player. Ocean prove, yet again, they know their Spectrum inside out.

CrashCrash Smash

Presentation 92%

Graphics 88%

Sound 90%

Playability 89%

Addictive Qualities 90%

Overall 90%

Mark Caswell 85%

Nick Roberts 92%

Phil King 90%

Take on the professionals Producer: Ocean Petrol: £8.99 cass, £14.99 disk Author: Impact Software Hi, I'm Martin Shaw, and I'm standing here looking sickeningly fit and healthy waiting to take you through the many gruelling courses that make up Run The Gauntlet. The challenge is divided into three events, each made up of three segments (picked at random on the +3) which can be Road Racing, Water Racing or The Hill assault course - all are separate loads. For the waterborne race there's hovercraft, speed boats, jet skies, and inflatable boats. These all have their own handling characteristics and also their own particular race course. For the muddy track races there's two-man buggies, one-man buggies, four-wheel bikes and amphibious six-wheeled vehicles. There are two courses for these machines. And as for the assault courses... I'm afraid you have to use your own legs for the two different layouts. Four teams can take part in the challenge, three of which can be human while one is always a computer pacer. If more than one human is taking part, game segments are repeated to allow the additional player(s) to have a go as well. The waterborne race is presented in overhead, smoothly-scrolling fashion. It looks easy but the characteristics of the vehicles are tricky, collisions with other vehicles or land leads to spins, and there's some attractive explosions to throw you off course. Left/right controls direction and forward/reverse controls speed. A map shows your position and you obviously must stick to the course. Similar controls and a mini-map insert are carried through to track racing. However, the view of the course is flickscreen and more angled. The map is useful to anticipate bends and hills, while explosions again prove to be a nasty hazard. Probably the most graphically attractive section this is also the most fun to play. The toughest section, however, is The Hill. Here the view is again overhead and smooth-scrolling, but totally monochromatic one. The course includes muddy pits, slippery logs over water, nets and water cannons sweeping over the course to try and knock you over. Pressing left/right controls direction, fire and up makes you jump, while left/right with fire increases power (how fast you run). But if you fall in the water or mud you have to time left/right actions so that you establish a swaying rhythm to move forward. The variety of events, and the assault course in particular, is suggestive of Combat School. In terms of graphics the new game is better in places, the race track is really good, but the water course is a bit primitive looking. My problem with the game, though, lay with the controls which really took some mastering, especially with all the different vehicles. This may add to the long term playability, but in the limited time we had to play the game it was frustrating. The multiload is also irritating unless you have a +3. Still there's a heckuva lot of game here for your money and I'm certainly going to keep playing until I can go through the race track without crashing too much. MARK 85% THE ESSENTIALS Joysticks: Cheetah Special, Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair Graphics: mainly monochromatic, overhead view Sound: good, continuous ingame theme Options: up to three players, choice of country

All three inflatables in another tight race.

The buggy with a P beside it is Cameron's.

The power indicator is muscled up so you're at top speed.

close race in the Supercats.

SHAW TO WIN On the track section, avoid contact with other vehicles at all costs - be patient and wait for an opportunity to overtake. Before racing on the water, memorise the course from the map. Don't play with a joystick, it's too awkward - use the keyboard instead. Anticipate corners on the track and take the inside line around them. Explosions tend to occur in the middle of the track, so keep to the side. When crossing logs on The Hill, account for the water coming from the water cannons - move against it. Also on The Hill, try to avoid the water pools which slow you down.

Read it at Crash - The Online Edition