Danger Mouse in Double Trouble

Sinclair User

Overall 3/5

Graham Taylor 3/5

WHAT CAN I GET FOR £1.99 Rock bottom - £1.99. It seems there is a simple rule governing software pricing policy - if it doesn't cost £9.99 then it must cost £1.99. Now this is jolly simple for software distributors and retailers who find the fact that most software is one of two possible prices easy on their accountant's brains but it means this: software which costs £9.99 is either really fab or involves a licencing deal so expensive that the software firm needs the margins. Software which costs £1.99 is... well... rapidly becoming almost everything else. From the titles reviewed here it's clear that £1.99 will buy you some of the most awful and some of the most awesome programs ever devised... DANGER MOUSE IN DOUBLE TROUBLE Label: Creative Sparks Price: £1.99 Joystick: various Memory: 48k/128K Reviewer: Graham Taylor Beware games which are divided into different sections, it almost always means nobody could think of one really good idea for the game, and instead hoped that three really small ideas stuck together would be just as good. It almost never is. Danger Mouse in Double Trouble has three sections, the flight to the jungle, through the jungle, and at the android mouse base. It's save the world time again for dear old DM and trusty sidekick Penfold (whose voice sounds amazingly like Terry Scott), this time the evil Baron Greenback plans to infiltrate the good guys with a replica Dangermouse built from spare Sinclair parts, and an old Dragon 32 or two. Part one has DM in flying car facing a barrage of robotic devices which trundle in from the right of the screen. Each may only be repulsed by playing the correct tune on DM's juke box (don't ask me, I didn't think it up). In the easy playing levels correct tune selection just happens automatically, you merely guide the car up and down the screen until it is in a line with the current 'tune targeted' adversary. Does it sound fantastically boring? it is. Even when you get to chose the target tune yourself it goes on far too long. The next section is sort of Pitfall, DM and Penfold run through the jungle jumping across swamps, on the backs of alligators and climbing trees to avoid nasty black pumas. Possibly slightly more tedious than part one I'd say. The final section comes closest to containing original thought. Danger Mouse, for the usual unlikely reasons found in computer games, has to press buttons on a grid of lights - the idea being that a certain sequence will gradually switch off a pattern of yellow lights. You have to control him and watch the sequence of lights carefully. Danger Mouse was originally a full price offering, so this budget price is in some ways a good deal. The actual programming is reasonably professional, reasonable animation and so on, but it isn't actually enough to prevent the game itself from being terminally dull.

Your Sinclair

Graphics 8/10

Playability 7/10

Value For Money 6/10

Addictiveness 6/10

Overall 6/10

Gwyn Hughes 6/10

Creative Sparks £1.99 Reviewer: Gwyn Hughes Oo eck, if it isn't Danger Mouse and Penfold back on the trail of the evil Baron Greenback. An odd sort of hero, D M, in an odd sort of game. Part one is a shoot 'em up for our rodent hero as he sets off to rid the world of the CroCodilian menace in his flying car. A variety of mutant monsters is launched at the vehicle which alters its height to take them on in one-to-one combat. Only it doesn't just blast away. You have to choose the picture of the beastie from a sub-window, before it bites the dust. On the easier level this is automatic most of the time, but for real heroes it's necessary to spool through the options. Once this perilous journey is completed there are two screens of jungle. The first is a Turtle Bridge, but be snappy as there's just one alligator to bounce on. Timing is made more difficult by the presence of Penfold. Your leap has to allow for the fact that he'll follow, just behind you. Crossing the other screen means climbing a tree and dodging a deadly black panther. Again Penfold acts true to form and is a hindrance rather than a help. Then its off to Greenback's lab where he's bringing the android Danger Mouse to electric life. Here you have to play a strange strategy game, changing the colour of blocks on a grid to transform the yellow lights into red ones. It actually sounds more complex than it is to play. That, in a nutshell, is how you save the world, and the temptation would be to say 'so what' if it wasn't for the fact that it's so well animated and true to the flavour of the cult cartoon. Take that first section, for instance, where as well as the side section you get a view through the windscreen with Danger Mouse and Penfold exclaiming at every collision. The problem with this is that while the game's most obvious players are at the junior end of the market, it just doesn't play smoothly enough for the very young - yet older fans, who secretly sneak in front of the TV at Danger time, are unlikely to find it holds their attention for long. Given that, it's a budget title though, it's worth a look.

Your Spectrum

Dave Nicholls 4/5 HIT

Roger Willis 4/5 HIT

Ross Holman 3/5 MISS

JOYSTICK JURY All the latest software from around the houses! Passing judgement this month are Dave Nicholls, Ross Holman and Roger Willis. Our regular crew of software screw balls are in fine form this month. Draining the dregs of Christmas spirit are Dave Nicholls, the hairy hacker; JSW champion Ross Holman; and our own two-wheeled terror, Roger Willis. Just in case you find our scoring system too confusing, here's what it's all about. The score out of five at the end of each person's review is based on their own experience of the game. But that's pretty subjective... so, they also use the HIT and MISS system to indicate its potential as a commercial success. DANGER MOUSE IN DOUBLE TROUBLE Creative Sparks £6.95 Dave: Baron Greenback is at it again - not satisfied with his conquest of TV, he's decided to take over the VDU as well! Luckily, Danger Mouse and his trusty sidekick Penfold have got wind of his plan and have leapt into action... Your first objective is to fly Danger Mouse's aerocar from his hideout in Mayfair to the Baron's lair in the jungle. Aah, but the Baron knows they're coming and he's sent a fleet of flying robots to stop them. These robots can be repelled by a blast from DM's jukebox, but a different song is needed for each type of robot; on lower levels the selection is automatic, but later on the player must decide which song to use. Once in the jungle, DM and Penfold proceed on foot, jumping over crocodiles and scaring off pumas, until they reach the Baron's HQ. The final battle involves DM turning off a number of yellow lights on a grid; if he fails, an android Danger Mouse is released on an unsuspecting world and the game is over. Throughout the game the graphics are superb and there are lots of nice touches that mark this as a very well thought out game. Danger Mouse In Double Trouble will probably appeal more to the younger player as it's slightly too easy for the hardened arcade freak, but the graphics are good enough for anybody.

Read it at Your Spectrum Unofficial Archive

Sinclair User

Gilbert Factor 8/10

John Gilbert 8/10

A MOUSE WITH A MISSION Memory: 48K Price: £6.95 Joystick: Kempston, ZX, Protek, Fuller Penfold would certainly have approved of his rodent pal's adventures in Dangermouse in Double Trouble, from Creative Sparks. It is a simple tale of terror in which the evil Baron Greenback, the turtle who is always trying to land Danger and Penfold in the soup, decides to create an Android Dangermouse. There are three episodes, reminiscent of the television series, in which you have to get the terrible twosome through to the computerised robot factory. The first screen shows Dangermouse in his aerocar under attack from robots which must be shot by musical notes. As each is shot the score increases and the display showing you and Greenback in a tug of war changes so that you are winning the struggle. Every robot which hits you makes the turtle give an extra pull, which takes you further from your goal. The jungle scenario of screen two, in which you have to jump on a crocodile and avoid the big cats and monkeys, leads to the final confrontation. Here Dangermouse must extinguish all the lights in the power matrix to destroy his double while avoiding Penfold who is being chased by Nero. The game should keep any ageing youngster entertained for hours and the only danger is that the real youngsters will not get a look-in. Dangermouse in Double Trouble would make a great Christmas present. We will certainly be asking Santa for future adventures starring the intrepid hero.

Read it at Sinclair User Magazine Online

Crash

Use of Computer 80%

Graphics 85%

Playability 74%

Getting Started 72%

Addictive Qualities 67%

Value For Money 71%

Overall 75%

Unknown

Unknown

Unknown

Producer: Creative Sparks Memory Required: 48K Retail Price: £6.95 Language: Machine code Television characters are making it big in computer games just now what with The Fall Guy, Minder and now Dangermouse. Of all of them, Dangermouse is the most likely candidate - he being a graphic character already. Double Trouble is a three-part game, each game being very different. According to the scenario Crocodilian intelligence has just heard that the evil Baron Greenback has developed an android version of DM and the first one is about to be switched on. It could be curtains for London if Dangermouse and Penfold can't get to the secret base in time to prevent this dastardly event. Part one sees DM and Penfold tucked safely in the aerocar, but Baron Greenback has dispatched a variety of flying robots to defend his base. The top half of the screen displays a horizontal picture with the aerocar at the left and the oncoming robots at different heights approaching from the right. This image is repeated head on at the bottom left. They are destroyed by playing a tune and this is done automatically on the easier level for a while, otherwise by selecting the correct robot in the VDU at bottom left When the correct number of miles have been travelled, DM and Penfold have to hoof it through a jungle, hopping over swamps on the back of a crocodile and climbing a tree to avoid a mouse eating puma. The third screen is set at the secret base where the android mouse is about to be electronically born. The object is to make DM leap up and bounce along a row of buttons which have the effect of altering the colours of the grid of lamps. Baron Greenback's finger can be seen pressing buttons on the side. If the light in line with DM's button is also in line with BG's button then the chain of yellow lights is decreased by one. Turning them all red saves the world. COMMENTS Control keys: 9/1 up/down, 1/2 left/right, zero to fire Joystick: Kempston, Fuller, ZX1, AGF, Protek Keyboard play: rather awkward keys but responsive Use of colour: generally good, although some characters are a bit hard to see in jungle stage Graphics: good to excellent with close resemblance to TV original Sound: average Skill levels: 2 Lives: time limit Screens: 4 in 3 stages

Baron Greenback and DM battle it out in the last screen.

Dangermouse and Penfold battle Greenback's flying robots in their attempt to reach the secret base.

Personal Computer Games

Graphics 9/10

Sound 5/10

Originality 9/10

Lasting Interest 7/10

Overall 8/10

Martyn Smith

Peter Walker 8/10

Richard Boniface

Robert Patrick

MACHINE: Spectrum 48K CONTROL: Keys, Sinc, Kemp, Prot, Full FROM: Creative Sparks, £6.95 Go on, admit it - you watch Danger Mouse on television, don't you? Well, now you can play and enjoy a highly original and amusing game from Creative Sparks based on the series. You control the rodent super-agent whose mission this time is to deactivate an android clone of himself. This has been built by his arch-enemy Baron Silas Greenback in a remote jungle. First you'll have to get there in your flying car but don't expect a quiet trip. Greenback has sent out squadrons of robots to stop you. You must dodge or destroy these using, for some reason, a note from the car's juke box. Strange, but fun. Once in the jungle, you jump crocodile-infested rivers and move any pumas blocking your path by starting an elephant stampede with your Tarzan call. Honest! However, all this is nothing compared with the final stage. In order to disable your double you must press certain buttons, which Greenback has somewhat discourteously surrounded with a high voltage fence. So how do you press them'? Yes. you've guessed it, you jump over the fence and balance on the buttons with your index finger! Who said Spectrum software was all the same? What really sets the game apart from the crowd is the quality of the graphics. All the characters are easily recognisable and well animated, especially Danger Mouse. My only important reservation with this game is the possible lack of really long-term appeal. With only two skill levels, the tasks might get a little easy after a while. Still, this is a beautifully presented game and should be immensely popular with all Danger Mouse fans.

C&VG (Computer & Video Games)

Getting Started 8/10

Graphics 9/10

Value 8/10

Playability 9/10

MACHINE: Spectrum/CBM 64 SUPPLIER: Creative Sparks PRICE: Spectrum £6,95, CBM 64 £7.95 (Spectrum version uses Sinclair, AGF/Protek, Kempson or Fuller joysticks) First, let's set the scene. London has been enjoying a brief respite from the evil attentions of the power mad Baron Silas Greenback - arch-enemy of Dangermouse. Our hero is relaxing in his Mayfair penthouse flat - situated in a pillar box in Baker Street. He is sitting quietly reading Cheesemaker Weekly and beginning to think that Greenback has given up his quest for total world domination when, suddenly, the videophone bursts into life. It's Colonel K, head of security and Dangermouse's boss! "News has just come in from Peruvian Intelligence that the mad Baron and his gang of international villains have spent the last fortnight in the depths of the jungle, building a 32k RAM, DMOS, ROM electrically erasable mega micro-mouse hardware unit," growled Colonel K. "Eh? What's that?" says Danergmouse, looking baffled. Colonel K answers his top agent's question. "The letters stand for Real Artificial Mouse, Dangermouse Operating System, Really 'Orrible Mouse. In other words, it's an android Dangermouse!" "What!" says Dangermouse, leaping up from his easy chair. "It can impersonate you and infiltrate our intelligence service to help Greenback's quest for ultimate power," Colonel K explains. "Unless you can reach Greenback's secret workshop in time and stop this evil creation being activated!" "Right! I'll leave right away sir," Dangermouse says briskly. "Penfold! Get the aerocar ready immediately. We're going to Peru!" Penfold, Dangermouse's trusty assistant, dashes off to start up the wondercar - and that's where YOU come in! You must help Dangermouse fly the aerocar to the Peruvian jungle, avoiding Greenback's squadrons of flying robots which attempt to hold our hero back. There's a limited amount of time before the android mouse is activated - so you must work fast. Once you've reached the jungle, Dangermouse has to negotiate crocodile swamps and a hungry puma which blocks his path. Then Dangermouse can make his way to Greenback's secret workshop where must stop Greenback activating the android mouse. If he runs out of time, the android will be released and Greenback will control the world! Phew! The first screen features some nice graphics. Dangermouse and Penfold are flying toward Peru in the aerocar. Toward them come the nicely drawn variety of Greenback robots. Dangermouse has to fight them off by firing musical notes from the aerocar's special juke-box. The juke-box has to be told which type of robot it's firing at. Get the note wrong and a robot will hold you up. At first, this is done automatically but, at certain stages of the game, you must operate the robot repellent device manually to score hits. In the final and most graphically impressive part of the game, we find Dangermouse in Greenback's workshop. The android mouse is about to be activated. Greenback's sidekick, Stiletto, is programming the android using the On-Off Electrical Key (OO ECK!) and there are only a few minutes left before the task is complete. DM and Penfold arrive at the base to find the program control box completely surrounded by an electrified floor. DM must stop the programming by extinguishing a row of yellow lights in the control box. To do this, he must use his highly developed index finger to manipulate buttons in the box - while hopping about over the electrified floor! Meanwhile, Penfold is being chased around by Nero, Greenback's caterpillar friend! Dangermouse in Double Trouble is a fun game to play. The theme is original and well executed and it will be quite some time before you're able to beat Greenback, playing at the Top Agent level. The graphics on the final screen are stunning on the Spectrum version and even better on the Commodore 64. Here at C&VG, we're sure you'll enjoy playing this game and will keep coming back for more - just like Greenback! Creative Sparks says that this could be the first in a series Dangermouse games. We're looking forward to the next one!

Which super-rodent strikes fear into the hearts of even the most hardened villain? Which mega-mouse would be able to defeat even the newest hi-tech mouse-trap? And which secret agent is starring in a brand new computer game? Dangermouse, that's who! This furry fellow was an instant hit with TV audiences everywhere when his cartoon adventures came to the small screen. Now you can help Dangermouse save the world once again by getting old of a copy of his first computer adventure called Dangermouse In Double Trouble - or why not try to win one in our Dangermouse competition, which you'll fin on page 15? Meanwhile, here's C&VG's EXCLUSIVE review of this brand new game...