The War of the Worlds

Sinclair User

Gilbert Factor 4/10

Richard Price 4/10

WAR WITHOUT WELLS Memory: 48K Price: £7.95 Joystick: Protek, AGF, Cursor Just reading the instructions may have you feeling quarrelsome and irritable about The War of the Worlds from CRL. H G Wells does not even get a mention and the only way to find out the order of places to visit is to buy the record of the same name. Martian fighting machines terrorize the Home Counties in this graphic 'adventure' and your aim is to guide your man, a stick-like figure, through the moving landscape. Much of the game seems to be spent moving along the streets towards London and there is no real text input. The few text commands are single key entries such as E for eat or G for get. You will find yourself zapped frequently if you take a wrong turning, which sends you back via long delays to the teletype-style beginning. After reaching London things get chaotic. I was swamped by refugees from the city for so many moves that I gave up in absolute annoyance as the program seemed to be stuck in an endless loop. No movement was possible after that point.

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Your Spectrum

When H G Wells wrote War of the Worlds somewhere back in the dark ages of 1898, you can bet he never expected it to end like this. Certainly, few such internationally famous books can claim to have made the transition from book to radio, then to film, TV, record and, finally, home computer. CRL has created a video game in conjunction with Jeff Wayne (whose best-selling War of the Worlds album was released in 1978); the software incorporates his music. The game is available for the 48K Spectrum at £7.95 from usual stockists, and CRL is planning versions for the CBM 64, Oric Atmos, BBC Micro, Electron and MSX machines to appear in the near future.

Personal Computer Games

Graphics 5/10

Sound 6/10

Originality 8/10

Lasting Interest 4/10

Overall 5/10

Bob Wade 5/10

MACHINE: Spectrum 48K CONTROL: Curs, Keys FROM: CRL, £7.95 The concept of acting out one of the most dramatic stories of all science fiction is very attractive, but this game is sadly lacking in the excitement of the radio show which threw America into a nation wide panic. The aim of the game is to go in search of your fiance Carrie. You have to reach six locations in the right order and on the right days. Finally you're meant to find the Martian encampment on the seventh day where all will be revealed as to the fate of you, Carrie and the rest of the human race. The program is a graphic adventure, although there is little adventure. The occasional single letter command or decision means that the game relies mostly on the visual effects, which don't stand up to the burden. Your character, a stick-man journalist, wanders around the drab streets of London and the Home Counties hoping to bump into a location and not a Martian fighting machine or a horde of refugees. The fighting machines attempt to blast you, and the refugees sweep you away with them until you're totally lost again. The only way to get back into normal play after being swept away is to quit and start from scratch, otherwise the refugees will continue to dug your every move. It might help anyone determined to solve this adventure to read the book or listen to Jeff Wayne's musical version. Unfortunately, this program is unlikely to give you the enthusiasm to do either. Patience is most definitely a virtue in this game and I doubt whether many people will have enough for this disappointing program.

Crash

Use of Computer 45%

Graphics 53%

Playability 38%

Getting Started 59%

Addictive Qualities 37%

Value For Money 42%

Overall 46%

Unknown

Unknown

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Producer: CRL Memory Required: 48K Retail Price: £7.95 Language: Machine code Author: Nigel Taylor Ogilvy the astronomer always sounded like a bit of a twit, but at least he went down in history by coining the famous lines that almost became the chant of a generation in Jeff Wayne's musical adaptation of the H. G. Wells novel War of the Worlds. 'The chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one,' he said. The chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one - but still they come! War of the Worlds is described as a graphics arcade/adventure strategy. In a superficial way it resembles Valhalla visually, in as much as 'you' are animated. The adventure element comes in that you are supposed to move in directions when possible, the arcade in that you are frequently opposed by the Martian fighting machines which will blast you to death unless you can run from them. The game starts on Horsell Common, Surrey, where the still cooling cylinder has landed. The top unscrews and a Martian fighting machine emerges, firing its death beam. You are given three options - make a run for it, hide in the bushes, or stand very still. Hiding is the best bet and you will escape. Pressing a key results in your finding yourself on a nearby road in the company of an artillery man. You can move via the cursor keys and the landscape of fields and houses scrolls past. Each screen section ends and allows you to walk to the edge before cutting to the next section. Occasionally roads lead north or south. Any direction may be hazardous if you encounter a fighting machine. On running away from one you tend to get lost and wander around for a while. Companions are inevitably turned to ash by Martians if you manage to escape from a Martian. You are searching for your fiance, Carrie, and the object of the game is to reach the main Martian encampment by visiting six specific locations. These must be visited in the correct sequence and on the correct days. As a result of this, the game plays to its own time scale, beginning on Monday morning. If night falls, you must find a house to shelter in or die of the cold. Only houses with open doors may be entered. Food and drink must also be discovered, although you start with three bottles (unspecified contents) and three loaves. More bottles and loaves are dotted around the streets (again, reminiscent of Valhalla). Getting caught in the panicking crowds fleeing London is not very pleasant and may lead to your untimely death by trampling. As the game progresses the Martian Redweed spreads its baleful, bloody influence, draining your strength if you get entangled in it. The Hobbit held clues which were to be gleaned from Tolkien's book - War of the Worlds relies on your knowledge of Jeff Wayne's album, and occasionally musical clues are provided. To help you visit the six locations correctly, they are featured in the game in their correct order in Jeff Wayne's musical version of War of the Worlds. COMMENTS Control keys: cursors Joystick: Protek, AGF Keyboard play: poor Use of colour: very good title screens, limited during play Graphics: ditto Sound: generally poor in game without Currah, reasonable tunes Skill levels: 1 Features: Currah Microspeech compatible Originality: based on a 'novel' idea but the implementation spoils any effect

Another Martian fighting machine blasts you into the dreaded set up mode.

One of the excellent title screens in War of the Worlds.