[{"TitleName":"Earthlight","Publisher":"Firebird Software Ltd","Author":"Ian Ellery, Pete Cooke","YearOfRelease":"1988","ZxDbId":"0001565","Reviews":[{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 53, Jun 1988","Price":"£1.25","ReleaseDate":"1988-05-26","Editor":"Steve Jarratt","TotalPages":116,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"EDITORIAL\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nEditor: Steven Jarratt\r\nSoftware Editor: Dominic Handy\r\nStaff Writers: Katharina Hamza, Nick Roberts, Lloyd Mangram, Mark Caswell\r\nTechnical Writers: Jon Bates, Simon N Goodwin\r\nEditorial Assistant: Frances Mable\r\nPhotography: Cameron Pound, Michael Parkinson (Assistant)\r\nContributors: Julian Rignall Paul Evans, Roger Kean, Raffaele Cecco, Rosetta McLeod, Brendon Kavanagh, Paul Sumner, Robin Candy\r\n\r\nPRODUCTION\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nArt Director: Mark Kendrick\r\nAssistant Art Director: Wayne Allen\r\nDesign & Layout: Yvonne Priest, Melvyn Fisher\r\nPre-Print Manager: Jonathan Rignall\r\nReprographics/Film Planning: Matthew Uffindell, Nick Orchard, Ian Chubb, Robert Millichamp\r\n\r\nPublishing Controller: David Western\r\nEditorial Director: Roger Kean\r\n\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Roger Bennett\r\nSales Executive: Andrew Smales\r\nAssistant: Jackie Morris [redacted]\r\n\r\nMail Order: Carol Kinsey\r\nSubscriptions: Denise Roberts\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nTypesetting by The Tortoise Shell Press, Ludlow. Colour origination by Scan Studios [redacted]. Printed in England by Carlisle Web Offset, [redacted] - member of the BPCC Group. Distribution by COMAG, [redacted]\r\n\r\nCOMPETITION RULES\r\nThe Editor's decision is final in all matters relating to adjudication and while we offer prizes in good faith, believing them to be available, if something untoward happens (like a game that has been offered as a prize being scrapped) we reserve the right to substitute prizes of comparable value. We'll do our very best to despatch prizes as soon as possible after the published closing date. Winners names will appear in a later issue of CRASH. No correspondence can be entered into regarding the competitions (unless we've written to you stating that you have won a prize and it doesn't turn up, in which case drop Frances Mable a line at the [redacted] address). No person who has any relationship, no matter how remote, to anyone who works for either Newsfield or any of the companies offering prizes, may enter one of our competitions.\r\n\r\nNo material may be reproduced whole or in part without the written consent of the copyright holders. We cannot undertake to return anything sent into CRASH including written and photographic material, software and hardware - unless it is accompanied by a suitably stamped addressed envelope. Unsolicited written or photo material is welcome, and if used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates.\r\n\r\nTotal: 96,590\r\nUK/EIRE: 90,822\r\n\r\n©CRASH Ltd, 1988\r\n\r\nCover Design & Illustration by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Producer: Firebird\r\nRetail Price: £7.95\r\nAuthor: Pete Cooke\r\n\r\nSlaatn, an ordinary alien from the planet Acturian, is on a routine intergalactic garbage collecting mission. Suddenly he's drawn off course by a strong sideways force emanating from Earth and is forced to make an unscheduled landing on the moon. Alone and friendless, Slaatn has only one chance of escape: he must neutralise the moon's box-like transmitters and eliminate the offending force field.\r\n\r\nThe mission takes place over four levels, each of which is divided into eight zones to be tackled in any order. The moon's 3-D, horizontally scrolling checker-board surface consists of a series of regular squares pitted with craters, and marked by upright obstacles. The planet earth, rotating in distant space, is clearly visible, and bathes the moon in its eerie glow.\r\n\r\nSlaatn has managed to steal a saucer-like alien craft which begins each round perched on a hemispherical platform base. Hovering above or skimming along the moon's surface and making use of occasional transporter platforms, Slaatn must collect a specified number of transmitters before returning to base. Alien saucers, spheres and podships do not hesitate to attack. However, Slaatn's ship is equipped with shields, fuel and missiles. Before entering each zone, the player can alter the ratio of these supplies; opting for more fuel, for example, means a reduction in the number of missiles carried.\r\n\r\nCollision with aliens or obstacles damages shields, and staying too long on the planet's surface inevitably results in a loss of fuel. Should shields fail completely or fuel run, out one of three lives is lost. A status panel at the top of the screen shows shield and fuel panels - which flash when dangerously low - current zone, score, lives left, present level and missiles remaining.\r\n\r\nReturning to base before all the transmitters have been collected gives an instant breakdown of Slaatn's performance so far, including the number of transmitters still to collect and the number and type of aliens still alive.\r\n\r\nOnce Slaatn has cleared all the zones and returned to base he is whisked onto the next level. The more transmitters he collects the more realistic the possibility of his escape from this dark and dangerous moon becomes.\r\n\r\nCOMMENTS\r\n\r\nControl keys: Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair\r\nGraphics: impressive 3-D effect with realistic shadows\r\nSound: superb 128K title tune. Good spot effects on both versions\r\nOptions: definable keys, colour/mono, sound on/ off, selectable panel colour, three quarters view off/on, border FX off/on, separate 128K version","ReviewerComments":["The comfortless surface of the moon bathed in a weird and eerie light is excellently portrayed in Pete Cooke's latest game. Parallax scrolling and realistically changing shadows create a polished and professional 3-D effect. The perspective is still not fine enough to make pinpointing of a craft's exact position possible, but on most levels the planet's grid-like surface avoids any problems of alignment. You simply line up your own craft with the enemy's to make sure of a direct hit. The presentation is faultless and the sound is atmospheric; a few carefully composed spot effects can be just as effective as a more complicated soundtrack. The controls of Slaatn's craft are smooth and generally quick to respond. Adventurous aliens should find plenty to keep them occupied. Negotiating a fleet of alien podships, while trying to collect a box and avoid a dangerous, deadly obstacle as you watch your fuel counter flashing low, requires more than the average measure of intergalactic spirit. Whether you're confident or just curious, it's one of those games you just shouldn't miss.\r\nKati Hamza\r\n90%","When I heard that Pete Cooke was doing a shoot 'em up I feared the worst. Was Pete Cooke finally selling out and copying other people's ideas? Certainly not! I couldn't have been more wrong. Earthlight (like Knight Lore and Manic Miner) can easily make claims of 'breaking new barriers' and having 'innovative gameplay' - the whole perspective of the game is so original. The basic concept of the game follows Uridium very closely - albeit from a different angle - and contains the same addictive gameplay and detailed graphics of Hewson's space shoot 'em up. Pete Cooke has always been known for the true perspective of his games (Ski Star 2000 and Micronaut One are prime examples) but Earthlight is not only accurate it is also fast. Any old fool can fly around each zone at horrendous speeds firing aimlessly, but the real skill is knowing when to add that extra burst of speed and when to dodge the enemy or shoot it - EVERYTHING is limited and must be preserved! Mindless fools need not bother with Earthlight - it requires skill and restraint. It'll take much time and energy but is well worth persevering with.\r\nPaul Sumner\r\n90%","Earthlight is yet another one of Pete Cooke's masterpieces to put of your shelf, along with Tau Ceti and Academy. The game is excellently presented right from the start, and the graphics and sound (especially on the 128K) make it instantly addictive. Behind the game is a wickedly simple idea, but the way Pete has interpreted it makes it worthy of a Smash. The main scrolling area is seen in 3-D, and each level holds its own colours. But if you don't like the ones Pete has chosen then a quick trip to the CONFIGURE GAME option allows you to change them and other aspects of the game. The controls are confusing for a while because you have to increase and decrease the height of the ship as well as go forward, backwards, left and right. But after a couple of goes it all becomes easier and you can start and collect the cubes. Earthlight is much more than eight sectors of addictiveness - buy it today.\r\nNick Roberts\r\n91%"],"OverallSummary":"General Rating: Could (hopefully) set a whole new trend in shoot 'em ups.","Page":"10,11","Denied":false,"Award":"Crash Smash","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Kati Hamza","Score":"90","ScoreSuffix":"%"},{"Name":"Paul Sumner","Score":"90","ScoreSuffix":"%"},{"Name":"Nick Roberts","Score":"91","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Giant steps are what you take..."},{"Text":"It's your move."},{"Text":"One lump or two?"},{"Text":"Tackling the shoot 'em up from a completely new angle."},{"Text":"Two zones done, but six to go."}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Presentation","Score":"95%","Text":""},{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"87%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"92%","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictive Qualities","Score":"91%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"90%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Sinclair Issue 31, Jul 1988","Price":"£1.5","ReleaseDate":"1988-06-14","Editor":"Teresa Maughan","TotalPages":108,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Teresa Maughan\r\nArt Editor: Darrell King\r\nDeputy Editor: Marcus Berkmann\r\nTechnical Editor: Phil South\r\nProduction Editor: Jackie Ryan\r\nDesigner: Catherine Higgs\r\nContributors: Richard Blaine, Ciaran Brennan, Jonathan Davies, Mike 'Skippy' Dunn, Mike Gerrard, Gwyn Hughes, Sean Kelly, Graeme Kidd, David McCandless, Duncan McDonald, David Powell, Nat Pryce, Peter Shaw, Rachael Smith, Ben Stone\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Mark Salmon\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Simon Stansfield\r\nAdvertisement Director: Alistair Ramsay\r\nProduction Manager: Judith Middleton\r\nMarketing Manager: Bryan Denyer\r\nArt Director: Hazel Bennington\r\nPublisher: Kevin Cox\r\nPublishing Director: Roger Munford\r\nFinance Director: Colin Crawford\r\nManaging Director: Stephen England\r\nChairman: Felix Dennis\r\n\r\nPublished by Dennis Publishing Ltd, [redacted] Company registered in England.\r\nTypesetters: Carlinpoint [redacted]\r\nReproduction: Graphic Ideas, London\r\nPrinters: Chase Web Offset [redacted]\r\nDistribution: Seymour Press [redacted]\r\n\r\nAll material in Your Sinclair ©1988 Felden Productions, and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written consent of the publishers. Your Sinclair is a monthly publication."},"MainText":"Firebird\r\n£7.95\r\nReviewer: Jonathan Davies\r\n\r\nWhen the latest offering from Pete Cooke, the man who wrote everything from Urban Upstart to Micronaut One lands on your desk, you'd better sit up and pay attention. Done that? Right, here's what it's all about.\r\n\r\nSlaatn from Arcturus II has problems, not least of which is that unfortunately un-pronouncable name he's been lumbered with. More pressing, though, is that as the Arturan battle fleet (of which Slazzer's a member), was on its way to befriend the Earth, it was seized by a strange force. They started to be dragged towards the planet, and while the majority of them managed to blast to freedom, our hero crash-landed on the moon.\r\n\r\nAs is usual in these situations, rather than hang around and admire the scenery, Slaatn wants to get the hell out. Far from easy, especially as before he can escape he'll have to nobble the transmitters which are holding the ship down. These are scattered around several Earth bases, each guarded by a bunch of robotic heavies.\r\n\r\nThe game gets off to a good start, with a nice bitta Vivaldi to set the scene and hundreds of options and sub-options for people who enjoy tweaking things. After fiddling with these to your heart's content, inevitably ending up with them the same way as when you started, you launch into the first of four levels. These are each broken up into eight zones, which you may play in any order you wish.\r\n\r\nAlthough Mr Cooke's games have always ranked highly playability-wise, he's tended to concentrate on graphical innovation to impress the socks off the public. Earthlight follows this tradition, in that while they may not look terribly original to the casual onlooker, the graphics feature a number of very novel touches.\r\n\r\nThe surface of the moon (covered in chequered lino for some reason), scrolls along at the bottom of the screen, with the earth gyrating majestically above. (Ooh - what poetry!) This causes shadows to be cast by the various blobs that litter the ground, which change according to their position in relation to the sun. Quite clever really, as the blurb goes to great lengths to point out.\r\n\r\nYour ship blasts off from its pad, and by careful manipulation of the keys (all re-definable, of course), you can get it to whizz up, down, left, right and also in and out of the screen, dodging the droids as they come in for the attack.\r\n\r\nFortunately you've got plenty of missiles to chuck around, which are selected at the expense of shields and fuel before you start. Aim carefully, and you should find it fairly easy to dismiss the foe before they do you too much damage. Some chase you around, while others follow set patterns (these are often the hardest to get past, especially if you've run out of missiles).\r\n\r\nIf you're wondering where all the depth we've been accustomed to in these games has gone, well there isn't much. For a change it's more or less a pure blaster, with no maps to make, puzzles to solve or other such strenuous activities. As long as you get the right balance of fuel and weapons at the beginning, your blood-thirsty instincts can then take over.\r\n\r\nThe overall impression I got is one of neatness. Nice tidy menu screens, well-spoken sprites and not a misplaced pixel in sight. Even things like the character set are polite, discrete, but do their job with a subtle smattering of finesse. Polished! I could practically see me face in it, as the nurses in the local intensive care ward will tell you.\r\n\r\nI would've said that a touch more variety could have been incorporated, but Earthlight still kept me absorbed for hours. The plight of Slaatn can't be ignored until he's off that moon and safely back with his Arcturan chums, and I'm darned well going to do my best to help him.\r\n\r\nAlthough not quite as inspired an effort as the author's previous works, Earthlight is an enjoyable romp among the craters of our satellite. What are you waiting for? The Federation of Arcturus II needs you!","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"A scroller that's a cut above the rest. Most stimulating, thank you!","Page":"46,47","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Jonathan Davies","Score":"8","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Ah ha! Not a dreadful Scandinavian pop group, but an exclamation of surprise, meaning that those little boxes on the ground are the transmitters we're after. They should be easy to pick up too, 'cos I've already zapped all the aliens on this level. (Admittedly by crashing into them, hem hem!)"},{"Text":"We've just blasted off from our dinky little launch pad, and already the aliens are on our tail. Sensors indicate that we've got a full complement of missiles, fuel and shields on board, so either I'm extremely good at this, or we've only just started the game. Guess which!"}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"9/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Value For Money","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictiveness","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"8/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 74, May 1988","Price":"£1.5","ReleaseDate":"1988-04-18","Editor":"Graham Taylor","TotalPages":100,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"aEditor: Graham Taylor\r\nStaff Writer: Jim Douglas\r\nStaff Writer: Tamara Howard\r\nArt Editor: Gareth Jones\r\nDesigner: Andrea Walker\r\nAdventure: The Sorceress\r\nZapchat: Jon 'Mr Blagger' Riglar\r\nTechnical: Andrew Hewson, Rupert Goodwins\r\nContributors: Tony 'a fiver if my name goes first in the list' Dillon, Chris 'Can't you trust me for the dosh?' Jenkins\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Katherine Lee\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Alison Morton\r\nAd Production: Emma Ward\r\nPublisher's Assistant: Debbie Pearson\r\nPublisher: Terry Pratt\r\nMarketing: Clive 'If anybody asks I'm at lunch' Pembridge\r\n\r\nPhone: [redacted]\r\nFax: [redacted]\r\nSubscriptions: [redacted]\r\nBack Issues: [redacted]\r\nEditorial and Advertisement Offices: [redacted]\r\n\r\nThis Month's Cover: Brian Talbot\r\n\r\nPrinted by Nene River Press, [redacted]\r\nDistributed by EMAP Publications Ltd.\r\n\r\n©Copyright 1988 Sinclair User ISSN No 0262-5458"},"MainText":"Label: Firebird\r\nAuthor: Pete Cooke\r\nPrice: £7.95\r\nMemory: 48K/128K\r\nJoystick: various\r\nReviewer: Graham Taylor\r\n\r\nPete Cooke hasn't had much of a time with really.\r\n\r\nMicronaut 1, whilst a jolly wonderful game, disappeared about the same time Nexus did. Now we have Earthlight - probably the closest thing to a straight zap-'em-up Pete has ever done.\r\n\r\nIt isn't just a shooty-shooty of course. For one thing it's pretty enormous, with lots of different zones and levels. For another, there are quite a few different strategies you can use to win - blasting things to bits being one of the more useful ones.\r\n\r\nThe plot is all about disabling transmitters to switch off a force field which will enable Slaatn (an everyday sort of alien) to escape to freedom. Forget all that stuff and imagine this instead. You've got this wizzy space craft, you have to pick up these sugar cubes, and all these other aliens try to blast you into little pieces. Some aliens can be destroyed by one blast from your photon cannon, others, particularly the nasty quick darty little ones, take two or more.\r\n\r\nThere are several levels and each is divided into nine zones. In each zone there are a number of transmitters (sugar cubes) and a number of aliens. Before entering each level you can adjust ship control levels which represent Shield Power, Energy and Missiles. The problem is that if you have a lot of one item you don't get so much of another.\r\n\r\nWhat strategy there is involves getting to know the levels and judging what kind of balance of defences, time and firepower you need. For example, one level is very small (if you figure out what to do SECRET CLUE) but chock full of horrible aliens, therefore you need lotsa missiles and lotsa defences but not so much energy.\r\n\r\nGraphically the game reminds me of a sort of edge-on Uridium or Ballblazer. The planet surface is a grid drawn in perspective littered with craters. The actual ships are drawn using a variety of different sprite sizes - by flipping ultra-fast between these sprites the illusion of the ship moving 'into the distance' or 'out of the screen' is nicely achieved.\r\n\r\nThere isn't that much to see in the game - later levels have different aliens, but the essential landscape remains the same, or at least similar. But it's fast and pretty slick - controlling the spaceship feels quite a bit like the hurtling around in the Uridium battlecruiser. It's easy to go very fast but it's also get pretty difficult to stop, and you usually end up smashed into a passing tree. (These are tall trees on this moon). The explosions are great! Though as often as not, once your ship has plummeted to the ground you don't get a chance to lift off again before wandering aliens wipe out the rest of your defences.\r\n\r\nAlien movement patterns are pretty complex and varied. Some just zoom around aimlessly (like Capri drivers). Others just look like they're zooming around aimlessly. They'll full you into a false sense of security and Wammo! Just as you were about to get the last sugar cube it's game over for you.\r\n\r\nSound is fairish on 48K but the 128K version plays a pretty nifty version of Vivaldi - a change from the standard electro stuff currently fashionable.\r\n\r\nI really like Earthlight, I can see that for some people there probably isn't enough variety in the screens, but I reckon it makes up for that in speed and sheer fiendishness. There's just enough strategy to ensure some longevity without it all getting horribly complicated. For zapping purists who don't need too many trappings, just slick effective programming and lotsa speed, this is a winner!","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Sophisticated zapping for purists. Just enough strategy to give it some longevity.","Page":"74,75","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Graham Taylor","Score":"8","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[{"Text":"PETE COOKE'S PLAYING TIPS\r\n\r\nStart on Zone 1 - it's probably the easiest.\r\n\r\nWhen you first enter a zone just look around and work out how many sugar cubes there are to pick up - how many aliens etc - then quit the level and reset your ship's configuration.\r\n\r\nDon't be afraid of abandoning a zone - it is possible to get completely stuck so you can't win.\r\n\r\nDon't waste bullets - in some cases you will have barely enough to complete the level. Homing aliens are not so bad if you keep your cool - at some point they will be in an exact line with you, BLAST 'EM. Far more dangerous are the randomly moving aliens DON'T LET THESE GET BEHIND YOU!!"},{"Text":"PROGRAMMERS\r\n\r\nPete Cooke has concentrated on sophisticated arcade games most recently and has produced a number of highly acclaimed titles. Invincible Island (Richard Shepherd), Urban Upstart (Richard Shepherd), Inferno (Richard Shepherd), Ski Star 2000 (Richard Shepherd), Juggernaut (CRL), Tau Ceti (CRL), Room Ten (CRL), Academy (CRL), Micronaut 1 (Nexus)"}],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"8/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment) Issue 10, Jul 1988","Price":"£1.5","ReleaseDate":"1988-06-03","Editor":"Peter Connor, Steve Cooke","TotalPages":132,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Future Publishing [redacted]\r\nTelephone [redacted], Fax [redacted], Telecom Gold 84:TXT152, Prestel/Micronet [redacted]\r\n\r\nCo-editors: Peter Connor, Steve Cooke\r\nReviews Editor: Andy Wilton\r\nProduction Editor: Rod Lawton\r\nStaff Writer: Andy Smith\r\nArt Editor: Trevor Gilham\r\nArt Team: Angela Neale, Sally Meddings\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Jonathan Beales\r\nAdvertising Sales Executive: Jennie Evans\r\nPublisher: Chris Anderson\r\n\r\nSUBSCRIPTIONS\r\nAvon Direct Mail [redacted]\r\n\r\nSPECIAL OFFERS\r\n(Christine Stacey) [redacted]\r\n\r\nCOLOUR ORIGINATION\r\nWessex Reproduction [redacted]\r\n\r\nDISTRIBUTION\r\nSM Distribution [redacted]\r\n\r\nPRINTING\r\nChase Web Offset [redacted]\r\n\r\nCopyright - FUTURE PUBLISHING LTD 1988 - No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without our permission."},"MainText":"Firebird would like to fly you to the moon.\r\n\r\nThe moon may not be made of cream cheese but a large portion of the surface would appear to be chequered. That's if Pete Cooke's latest game is anything to go by (Pete's the chap who brought us Tau Ceti, Academy and Micronaut One).\r\n\r\nIn the game you play Slaatn, a common or garden alien who was happily blasting his way through the solar system until his ship was dragged off course and forced to land on the moon. Slaatn's only hope of escape is to disable the moon-based transmitters that made the force field that forced him down in the first place.\r\n\r\nThe game breaks down into four levels, each consisting of eight zones. Each zone contains a set number of transmitters (small boxes on the surface) which the player must pick up with his ship to clear the zone. No problem - simply fly into them. Dodging the surface features - varying in shape and size from telegraph pole-like thingies to craters, plus the various droids - is a problem though The landscape scrolls sideways while your ships stays in the centre of the screen, though you can move it from foreground to background to dodge obstacles.\r\n\r\nAt the start of each zone you can alter the ratios between the ship's fuel, shield strength and ammunition levels. Some zones have the transmitters widely spaced so you'll have to do make do with less ammunition and shield strength for the extra fuel you'll need to reach them and still return. For other zones you'll need plenty of ammo to blast your way through hosts of droids.\r\n\r\nEarthlight boasts some stunning graphics and sound effects and a big task to complete, but each zone is very much like the last and it soon becomes something of a slog to complete the levels.\r\n\r\nReviewer: Andy Smith\r\n\r\nRELEASE BOX\r\nSpec, £7.95cs, Out Now\r\nNow other versions planned\r\n\r\nPredicted Interest Curve\r\n\r\n1 min: 70/100\r\n1 hour: 80/100\r\n1 day: 85/100\r\n1 week: 70/100\r\n1 month: 30/100\r\n1 year: 15/100","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Good, playable stuff that unfortunately suffers from lack of variety.","Page":"63","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Andy Smith","Score":"725","ScoreSuffix":"/1000"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Zone seven on level one - collect that transmitter (the small box), head for home and you'll have completed a zone."}],"BlurbText":[{"Text":"SPECTRUM VERSION\r\n\r\nThe graphics are first rate, as are the sound effects, and the game plays very well. There's just not enough variety in the zones to keep you going though."}],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"9/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Audio","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"IQ Factor","Score":"3/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Fun Factor","Score":"7/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Ace Rating","Score":"725/1000","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"The Games Machine Issue 8, Jul 1988","Price":"£1.25","ReleaseDate":"1988-06-16","Editor":"Oliver Frey","TotalPages":124,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"EDITORIAL\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nEditor: Oliver Frey\r\nAssistant Editor: Nik Wild\r\nSoftware Co-ordinator: Richard Eddy\r\nStaff Writer: Robin Hogg, Stewart Wynne\r\nEditorial Assistant: Frances Mable\r\nPhotography: Cameron Pound, Michael Parkinson (Assistant)\r\nContributors: Jon Bates, Robin Candy, Mel Croucher, Robin Evans, John Gilbert, Roger Kean, Barnaby Page, Marshall M Rosenthal, Rob Steel, John Woods\r\n\r\nPRODUCTION\r\n[redacted]\r\nArt Director: Markie Kendrick\r\nAssistant Art Director: Wayne Allen\r\nDesign & Layout: Yvonne Priest, Melvin Fisher\r\nPre-Print Manager: Jonathan Rignall\r\nReprographics/Film Planning: Matthew Uffindell, Nick Orchard, Ian Chubb, Robert Millichamp\r\nPublishing Controller: David Western\r\nEditorial Director: Roger Kean\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Roger Bennett\r\nSales Executive: Andrew Smales, Sarah Chapman\r\nAssistant: Jackie Morris [redacted]\r\n\r\nMAIL ORDER\r\nCarol Kinsey\r\n\r\nSUBSCRIPTIONS\r\nDenise Roberts\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nTypeset by the Tortoise Shell Press, Ludlow. Colour origination by Scan Studios [redacted]. Printed in England by Carlisle Web Offset [redacted] - a member of the BPCC Group. Distribution effected by COMAG, [redacted].\r\n\r\nCOMPETITION RULES\r\nThe Editor's decision is final in all matters relating to adjudication and while we offer prizes in good faith, believing them to be available, if something untoward happens (like a game that has been offered as a prize being scrapped) we reserve the right to substitute prizes of comparable value. We'll do our very best to despatch prizes as soon as possible after the published closing date. Winners names will appear in a later issue of THE GAMES MACHINE. No correspondence can be entered into regarding the competitions (unless we've written to you stating that you have won a prize and it doesn't turn up, in which case drop Fran Mable a line at the PO Box 10 address). No person who has any relationship, no matter how remote, to anyone who works for Newsfield or any of the companies offering prizes, may enter one of our competitions.\r\n\r\nNo material may be reproduced in part or in whole without the written consent of the copyright holders. We cannot undertake to return anything sent into THE GAMES MACHINE - including written and photographic material, hardware or software - unless it's accompanied by a suitably stamped, addressed envelope. Unsolicited written or photographic material is welcome, and if used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates.\r\n\r\n©Newsfield Ltd, 1988\r\n\r\nCover Illustration by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Spectrum 48/128 Cassette: £7.95\r\n\r\nLOONY ESCAPADES\r\n\r\nPete Cooke, author of Earth Light needs little introduction. Tau Ceti, Academy and Micronaut One have all been big hits which have pushed the Spectrum to new limits. Having moved from CRL to Firebird via the now defunct Nexus, Cooke shows no sign of having lost his innovative approach to the Spectrum.\r\n\r\nA squadron of the Arcturan Space Fleet was on routine mission, collecting intergalactic garbage for zumtum reprocessing, when an inconsequential blue/green planet caught its attention. Despite the primitive nature of the planet's civilisation, the fleet's Commander fell it was suitable for joining the Arcturan Federation of Lesser Beings. However as the fleet approached the planet it suddenly came under attack from a strange force based on the planet's moon. One by one the fleet's ships were dragged down and smashed on the harsh lunar landscape. Some planets, it seems, are so paranoid they just have no sense of hospitality...\r\n\r\nYet miraculously one lonely, and very average Arcturan survived. His name was Slaatn and before he could be as mercilessly murdered as the rest of his comrades, he managed to steal an alien ship. To escape from the moon he must disable all the force field generators. These box-shaped objects are scattered over four levels, each with eight zones to be played in any order to complete the level.\r\n\r\nAt the start of each zone mission there's an opportunity to rebalance your payload of fuel, shield power and missiles - increasing one automatically decreases the others. This can be very important because in some zones there's a lot of boxes and few robots, making fuel crucial, while in others missiles and shields are vital. There's no way of telling prior to starting a zone what it is like, but zones can be aborted at any time, losing only the point score for that zone and not the game as a whole. This ability obviously makes deaths easier to avoid, but the game remains very tough since each zone still must be played to the finish without loss of life - which resets the zone.\r\n\r\nLETHAL ROBOTS\r\n\r\nWhen the mission begins, the ship rests on a launch plinth and pressing up causes it to rotate as if unscrewing before coming under control. After all the boxes have been collected, the ship returns to its plinth to complete the level - or before then merely receive information on the number of boxes and robots remaining in the zone. Unfortunately the tricky nature of docking, and especially the second or so it takes to rotate down can make the ship unduly vulnerable to enemy attack.\r\n\r\nEach zone's landscape, illuminated by the earth rotating above, recedes in convincing 3-D to a not-too distant horizon. Four horizontal grid lines usually (not all zones have them) provide helpful points of reference as the saucer-like ship moves into the distance, shrinking as it does so. The gridlines are particularly useful for judging the position of various tree-like structures and fatally rock mounds, though the latter can be flown over simply by increasing height.\r\n\r\nMore active opposition to your quest is provided by various robots. The dumber ones simply move into and out of the landscape, like moving gates, while slightly more intelligent robots guard boxes by rotating around them. The most lethal robots are the homing kamikaze type which have to be shot. Most robots automatically alter height to attack your ship. Collisions cause the ship to spin to the ground and lose shield power, but while spinning the ship can still be hit by other robots - both frustrating and fatal. When the shield is exhausted a life is lost and all boxes collected in the zone are returned to their original positions.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Graphically Earth Light is very good, with superb parallax scrolling affecting even the shadows. In play the graphics can't quite conceal a slight repetitiveness of action: even with superb 3-D shooting, a few aliens and collecting boxes isn't superb arcade action. Nevertheless played as a whole, with lives vital for any hope of completing the entire game, Earth Light is a compelling challenge, if not quite in the Tau Ceti class. For 128 owners there's the added bonus of a tune by Vivaldi and some good sound FX.","Page":"52","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Slaatn bounces off a piece of scenery in his attempt to find all the gravity boxes located on the moon."}],"BlurbText":[{"Text":"\"...a compelling challenge, if not quite in the Tau Ceti class.,\""},{"Text":"OTHER FORMATS\r\n\r\nPete Cooke's big arcade games have all been converted for most popular formats, and we expect this to be the same, however, there's no new of other formats yet."}],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"81%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]