Close-In

Crash

Use of Computer 5%

Graphics 30%

Playability 35%

Getting Started 48%

Addictive Qualities 35%

Value For Money 35%

Overall 31%

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Producer: Pulsonic Memory Required: 48K Retail Price: £2.99 Language: Machine code & BASIC Author: Shelly & Ofer Ben-Ami This offering is a throwback to the 'Tron' style light cycle grid game where you must force your opponent's light trail off the screen. If either trail hits another, its own or the edge of the screen the other player wins. The game may be played against another human or against the spectrum itself. There are 10 speeds and the computer may be made to be intelligent in a ratio of 0 to 9. One element which distinguishes this from other similar games is the hyperspace facility. When the key is pressed, play is frozen for a second and then your trail starts off somewhere else on the screen. COMMENTS Control keys: E/X up/down, S/D left/right, W/R up-left/up-right, Z/C left-down, right-down, A= hyperspace (keys for left player only) Joystick: you must be joking! Keyboard play: responsive but almost impossible to use sensibly Use of colour: extremely limited Graphics: very simple Sound: poor Skill levels: 10 speeds, 10 levels of computer intelligence and five different mazes, some with extra hazards Features: 1 or 2 player games or one v the computer

A game for a person with sixteen nimble fingers - Close-In.

Sinclair User

Gilbert Factor 4/10

Memory: 48K Price: £2.95 Close-in is one of those abstract games where you move round the screen drawing a line behind you, while your opponent does likewise. The object is to avoid colliding with your opponent's or your own trail and to cause your opponent to crash by surrounding him. The version from Pulsonic offers a bare minimum of graphics - two simple lines generated by the players and a set of five mazes which can be superimposed to provide added difficulty. That such a simple game should require a 48K machine seems extraordinary, even with five screen configurations and a number of skill levels. The game can be played by two players or against the computer. Two players will have difficulty manipulating eight directional keys each on the same small keyboard and the solitary player may feel aggrieved by the apparent ability of the Spectrum to start again from a new position in mid-game. There are better variations on the theme available and if Pulsonic is serious about selling the game, it should consider finding how to use a joystick with it at least.

Read it at Sinclair User Magazine Online