Evening, CPCers. I just thought I'd pop these pics on before heading topside as I'm returning to work tomorrow (bad back permitting) but at least at long last I did manage to have a bit of a thrash on Richie's 464. Before we software review, let's first take a little peek at what Vyper sent old Baz to check out the hardware and any accessories required to fire up one of these fabled Amstrad aces: AMSTRAD ACTION - we've got the machine, the manual, the power and SCART video leads plus some games and a jossie to have a thrash with... game on! However, as Richie points out - "remember it's not an 800XL!" LOL. The Amstrad is a neat-looking "all in one" machine in that the tape deck is integrated and, if you have the CPC monitor, that plugs in direct and provides the CPCs power. The keyboard is as good as any 80s micro; it is well-styled, very responsive and a joy to type on and includes a numeric keypad... OK, here we go, what did I play and what did I think of the titles reviewed compared, if there are equivalents, on other systems? First up... 1) Harrier Attack - Durell / Amsoft Now this horizontal scrolling blaster has been reviewed in the past on Atari Sector running on the Oric, Spectrum and C-64 so how did the Amstrad version shape up? Final verdict: Did it shape up? No, I felt it shipped out as it wasn't as smooth as the C-64 version but IMHO beats the Speccy release and I would say is about the same as the Oric version although I might just give the Oric game play and greater screen playing area that tiny bit of superiority over the CPC version as I expected more (from a better spec machine) and remembered it playing better "back in the day" but the scrolling seemed a little jerky and just goes to show how our memories can play tricks on us. I used to like this version but not so much now... but of course I'm bound to be a tad Tangerine-biased! 2) Rescue on Fractalus - Lucasfilms After the "not as good as the Atari version" loading screen what did the actual game play like, Baz, as CPU speed can be an issue on the other 8bit versions with all that fractal-generated mountainous landscape? Well, it's time for me to get the hell outta here, before the Jaggis get me, and gan topside so find out next time, Amstrad gamesters! I'll just leave you with this final screenshot to whet your appetites: Some definite similarities here to the cockpit layout of your Ethercorp rescue ship as seen in the Atari and C64 versions. The main thing is, I'm beginning, today, to have a blast on Richie's machine and more software will be game tested soon to give me a better idea to see if the CPC will win me over as clearly it is a quality micro. Once more, many sincere thanks to Vyper Richie for providing me with a test machine to play on.
OK, just a quick clip update for anyone following the Amstrad action: Rescue on Fractalus getting a run out on the CPC - does it play smoother, slicker, better than the Atari & C64 versions? Tell us what you think.
