Fruit Machine Simulator

Sinclair User

Overall 8/10

Graham Taylor 8/10

Label: Codemasters Author: Mark Baldock Price: £1.99 Memory: 48K/128K Joystick: various Reviewer: Graham Taylor In the olden days when Spectrum games all had little graphics made of squares fruit machine simulations were all the rage. Magazines even printed listings for them - it went along with Battleships and Pontoon as one of the first things you ever do with your Spectrum. Those days were, I thought, gone forever. How mistaken. Codemasters has brought them back with Fruit Machine Simulator but, cripes, it's pretty brill. The point is Fruit Machine Simulator, unlike the tedious old things you used to get, is as authentic and complete as any computer fruit machine could ever be - you just don't actually lose or win any money. It isn't just the actual fruit which trundles around and bounces to a stop - this game has bonuses gambles, special payouts, 'light up the word' games, nudges, meganudges and more. You can really 'play' the game accumulating money, deciding when to take risks and working out the odds. Graphically it's great. The fruit all looks authentic (I do hate inauthentic fruit don't you) and it's chock full of lighting lights, flashing numbers and scrolling messages. Combined with a jolly soundtrack that is infexious or irritating depending on your point of view. The whole game is idiotically addictive. The money I lost...

Your Sinclair

Overall 6/10

Rick Robson 6/10

There are mounds of cheapies on the racks this Chrimble, some good, some indifferent and some terminally pitiful. We asked the Joystick Jugglers for their thoughts (the printable ones, at least) on some of the more recent offerings... FRUIT MACHINE SIMULATOR Code Masters £1.99 Reviewer: Rick Robson With more lights than Southend pier, every one-armed bandits star points have been squeezed into this game's single-screen format. You can nudge, hold, gamble or collect, and also enjoy features like mega-hold, skill climb and winning streak which tests reflexes as well as luck. Faithful but necessarily limited.

Crash

Presentation 34%

Graphics 39%

Playability 34%

Addictive Qualities 25%

Overall 30%

Bym Welthy 25%

Paul Sumner 19%

Robin Candy 46%

Producer: Code Masters Retail Price: £1.99 Author: Mark Baldock Now's your chance to be a gambling man, ripping the monetary guts out of a fruit machine with all the panache of The Man Who Broke The Bank At Monte Carlo. And it's just like Monte Carlo at Joe Scarface's One Arm Bandit Emporium in Fruit Machine' Simulator, where you're faced with the traditional fruit-machine layout: three rotating reels marked with fruit and bell symbols. Electronic money pays for your plays, and when you get a winning combination, only electronic cash is awarded, adding to a running total at the top of the screen. Hold and nudge options are available, just like in the real coin-eaters - but only between 40p and £ 1.40 can be gambled during each turn, so dig deep into the pockets of your 501s, crack open your plumped-up piggy bank and let gambling commence. It may be immoral, but then maybe it's better than shooting things. COMMENTS Joysticks: none Graphics: cluttered display Sound: dull spot effects Options: multiplayer option for one to four players

Fruit Machine Simulator from Code Masters: why play more?

ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment)

Visual Effects 5/7

Audio 2/7

IQ Factor 1/7

Fun Factor 5/7

Ace Rating 283/1000

Andy Smith 283/1000

Can Code Masters hold your plums? They're all there, the familiar features that are loved by the fans of this sort of coin-op - the Cash Box, the Nudge features, the Feature Holds etc. It's very well put together, with the spinning reels being very well animated and colourful. For up to four players, Fruit Machine Simulator could provide you with a lot of entertainment if you're a real fruit machine freak - just think, you don't have to put any money in! Of course, you never win any money either so you would have to be a real. Reviewer: Andy Smith RELEASE BOX C64/128, £1.99cs, Nov 87 Spec, £1.99cs, Reviewed Ams, £1.99, Nov 87 Predicted Interest Curve 1 min: 60/100 1 hour: 50/100 1 day: 30/100 1 week: 10/100 1 month: 0/100 1 year: 0/100