[{"TitleName":"Heathrow Air Traffic Control","Publisher":"Hewson Consultants Ltd","Author":"Mike Male","YearOfRelease":"1983","ZxDbId":"0002270","Reviews":[{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 2, Mar 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-02-23","Editor":"Roger Kean","TotalPages":112,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Roger Kean\r\nDesigner: Oliver Frey\r\nConsultant Editor: Franco Frey\r\nStaff Writers: Lloyd Mangram, Rod Bellamy\r\nAdvertisement Manager: John Edwards\r\nProduction Designer: Michael Arienti\r\n\r\n©1984 Newsfield Ltd.\r\n\r\nCrash Micro is published monthly by Newsfield Ltd. [redacted]\r\n\r\nNo material may be reproduced in whole or in part without written consent from the copyright holders.\r\n\r\nMono printing, typesetting & finishing by Feb Edge Litho Ltd. [redacted]\r\nColour printing by Allan-Denver Web Offset Ltd. [redacted].\r\nColour origination by Scan Studios, [redacted]\r\nDistributed by Wells Gardner, Darton & Co. [redacted]\r\n\r\nSubscriptions: 12 issues £9.00 UK Mainland (post included)\r\nEurope: 12 issues £15 (post included).\r\nSingle copy: 75p\r\n\r\nIf you would like to contribute to CRASH please send articles or ideas for projects to the above address. Articles should be typed. We cannot undertake to return them unless accompanied by a stamped addressed envelope\r\n\r\nCover Illustration:Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Producer: Hewson Consultants, 16K\r\n£7.95\r\nAuthor: Mike Male\r\n\r\nIf you get a little queasy flying, you could always have a go on the ground as an air traffic controller - in this case at the busy Heathrow airport. You must direct incoming flights from the holding stacks safely onto the runway. Your instruments include radar, showing the aircraft call signs, blips and trails; displays giving the altitude and bearing, heading and speed and size of the aircraft. There are 7 levels of play including a demo mode, and you can progress to handling mixed traffic restricted airspace and outbound flights, as well as cope with emergencies like unknown aircraft intruding, radio failure, loss of runway and on board instrument failure. After this you'll never fly again. Recommended.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"62","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 4, May 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-04-19","Editor":"Roger Kean","TotalPages":128,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Roger Kean\r\nConsultant Editor: Franco Frey\r\nProduction Designer: David Western\r\nArt Editor: Oliver Frey\r\nClient Liaison: John Edwards\r\nStaff Writer: Lloyd Mangram\r\nContributing Writers: Matthew Uffindel, Chris Passey\r\nSubscription Manager: Denise Roberts\r\n\r\n©1984 Newsfield Ltd.\r\nCrash Micro is published monthly by Newsfield Ltd. [redacted]\r\n\r\nTelephone numbers\r\nEditorial [redacted]\r\nSubscriptions [redacted]\r\nAdvertising [redacted]\r\nHot Line [redacted]\r\nNo material may be reproduced in whole or in part without written consent from the copyright holders.\r\n\r\nColour origination by Scan Studio, [redacted]\r\nPrinted in England by Plymouth Web Offset Ltd, [redacted].\r\nDistribution by Comag, [redacted]\r\nAdditional setting and process work by The Tortoise Shell Press, [redacted].\r\n\r\nSubscriptions: 12 issues £9.00 UK Mainland (post free)\r\nEurope: 12 issues £15 (post free).\r\n\r\nWe cannot undertake to return any written or photographic material sent to CRASH MICRO unless accompanied by a stamped addressed envelope.\r\n\r\nCover by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Producer: Hewson Consultants, 16K\r\n£7.95\r\nAuthor: Mike Male\r\n\r\nIf you get a little queasy flying, you could always have a go on the ground as an air traffic controller - in this case at the busy Heathrow airport. You must direct incoming flights from the holding stacks safely onto the runway. Your instruments include radar, showing the aircraft call signs, blips and trails; displays giving the altitude and bearing, heading and speed and size of the aircraft. There are 7 levels of play including a demo mode, and you can progress to handling mixed traffic restricted airspace and outbound flights, as well as cope with emergencies like unknown aircraft intruding, radio failure, loss of runway and on board instrument failure. After this you'll never fly again. Recommended.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"66","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 58, Jan 1987","Price":"£1","ReleaseDate":"1986-12-18","Editor":"David Kelly","TotalPages":132,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: David Kelly\r\nDeputy Editor: John Gilbert\r\nSenior Staff Writer: Graham Taylor\r\nStaff Writer: Jim Douglas\r\nDesigner: Gareth Jones\r\nAdventure Help: Gordo Greatbelly\r\nZapchat: Jon Riglar\r\nHelpline: Andrew Hewson\r\nContributors: Richard Price, Andy Moss, Gary Rook\r\nHardware Correspondent: Rupert Goodwins\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Louise Fanthorpe\r\nSenior Sales Executive: Jacqui Pope\r\nProduction Assistant: Alison Morton\r\nAdvertisement Secretary: Linda Everest\r\nSubscriptions Manager: Carl Dunne\r\nPublisher: Terry Pratt\r\n\r\nTelephone [redacted]\r\n\r\nSinclair User is published monthly by EMAP Business & Computer Publications\r\n\r\nCover Illustration: Courtesy of 2000AD magazine\r\n\r\nIf you would like to contribute to Sinclair User please send programs or articles to:\r\nSinclair User\r\nEMAP Business & Computer Publications\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nOriginal programs should be on cassette and articles should be typed. Please write Program Printout on the envelopes of all cassettes submitted. We cannot undertake to return cassettes unless an SAE is enclosed. We pay £20 for each program printed and £50 for star programs.\r\n\r\nTypeset by PRS Ltd, [redacted]\r\nPrinted by Nene River Press, [redacted]\r\nDistributed by EMAP Publications Ltd.\r\n\r\n©Copyright 1986 Sinclair User ISSN No 0262-5458\r\n\r\nABC 90,215 July-Dec 1985"},"MainText":"AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL\r\nLabel: Hewson\r\nPrice: £9.95\r\nMemory: 48K/128K\r\n\r\nTake over control of two of the worlds major airport: London Heathrow and Schiphol Amsterdam. The screen display may look docile but you're in the hot seat from which the landing instructions for a host of jumbos and light aircraft are issued.\r\n\r\nYou're not in the pilots seat this time but make just one slip in stacking those aircraft before landing and you could have a major disaster on your hands. Fortunately, the game has eight play options which help you to train in your new job.\r\n\r\nThe most simple options include Basic Vectoring where you must guide a selection of aircraft onto your strip, while the most difficult include emergency landings and stacking. If none of those seem easy the author, who also wrote Nightflite II and is an air traffic controller at Heathrow, has included a demonstration which shows how the screen is layed out and the types of command you need to know.\r\n\r\nLike many computer simulations it's not graphically impressive but it's the most powerful and authentic simulator of the lot.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"54","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Big K Issue 5, Aug 1984","Price":"£0.85","ReleaseDate":"1984-07-20","Editor":"Tony Tyler","TotalPages":100,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Tony Tyler\r\nAssisted By: Richard Burton\r\nArt Editor: Ian Stead\r\nFeatures: Nicky Xikluna\r\nContributors: Andy Green; Kim Aldis; Paul Walton; Steve Keaton; Patrick Martin; Richard Taylor; Bernard Turner; David Rimmer; Richard Cook\r\nCartoons: Tony Benyon\r\nGroup Art Editor: Doug Church\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Robin Johnson [redacted]\r\nPublisher: Barry Leverett\r\nEditorial Address: [redacted]\r\nTelephone: [redacted]\r\n\r\nPublished approximately on the 20th of each month by IPC Magazines Ltd. [redacted]. Monotone and colour origination by G.M. Litho Ltd [redacted]. Printed in England by Chase Web Offset, Cornwall. Sole Agents: Australia and New Zealand, Gordon& Gotch (A/sia) Ltd.; South Africa, Central News Agency Ltd. BIG K is sold subject to the following conditions, namely that it shall not, without the written consent of the Publishers first given, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise disposed of by way of trade at more than the recommended selling price shown on the cover, and that it shall not be lent, resold or hired out or otherwise disposed of in a mutilated constitute or any unauthorised cover by way of trade or affixed to as part of any publication or advertising, literary or pictorial matter whatsoever. IPC MAGAZINES 1984."},"MainText":"ROGER, GOLF ZULU TURN LEFT... ER...\r\n\r\nMAKER: Hewson Consultants\r\nMACHINE: BBC Model B, Electron, Spectrum 48K\r\nFORMAT: cassette\r\nPRICE: £7.95\r\n\r\nFirst thing that happens is you crash a lot of aircraft and kill a lot of people. Sounds good, huh? Well all you aspiring homicidal maniacs out there better think again. The object of the exercise is to land the aircraft safely and NOT kill the people. Of course if you've got a real vicious streak you can have great fun directing all the traffic to the middle of the screen then sit back and watch the resulting carnage. That's if you can get the hang of it first. Believe me, it ain't easy.\r\n\r\nHeathrow is a simulator. Not a flight simulator, but an air traffic control simulator. First there's the instructions to plough through. Complicated? Imagine a four year old learning machine code.\r\n\r\nThe game takes you through seven levels, from total none-brain air traffic controller to super ultra zippo air traffic controller, with a demonstration somewhere in the middle. When you start getting competent (maybe three years from now) you can start covering things like Vortex Spacing (Eh?), and emergency procedures, this is a faithful simulation of the problems facing an air traffic controller and it would come as no surprise to learn that there's a room full of nervous wrecks somewhere in Heathrow with a label on the door, 'Ex-air traffic controllers'.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"18","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Kim Aldis","Score":"2","ScoreSuffix":"/3"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"2/3","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Computer Issue 7, Jul 1983","Price":"£0.7","ReleaseDate":"1983-06-16","Editor":"Toby Wolpe","TotalPages":220,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Toby Wolpe\r\nAssistant Editor: Meirion Jones\r\nStaff Writer: Simon Beesley\r\nSub-Editor: Paul Bond\r\nEditorial Secretary: Lynn Cowling\r\nEditorial: [redacted]\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Philip Kirby\r\nAssistant Advertisement Manager: Peter Rice\r\nAdvertisement Executives: Bill Ardley, Nigel Borrell\r\nMidlands Office: Vic Sheret\r\nNorthern Office: Ron Southall\r\nAdvertisement Secretary: Jeanette Mackrell\r\nClassified: Claire Notley\r\nPublishing Director: Chris Hipwell\r\n\r\n©Business Press International Ltd 1983\r\n\r\nYour Computer, [redacted]\r\nSubscriptions: U.K. £9 for 12 issues.\r\n\r\nPrinted in Great Britain for the proprietors of Business Press International Ltd, [redacted].\r\nISSN 0263-0885\r\nPrinted by Riverside Press Ltd, [redacted], and typeset by Instep Ltd, [redacted]"},"MainText":"FROM DEEP-SPACE ADVENTURES TO WORLDLY BOARD-GAMES IN MEIRION JONES' SURVEY\r\n\r\nLess than a year ago the appearance of Scrabble on disc for the Apple caused consternation among micro owners. The program defeated three-quarters of the humans who challenged it to a dual of words. At least Scrabblers could comfort themselves with the knowledge that they had been beaten by a £750 disc-based system. Now Psion has taken even that consolation away by launching an improved version of the game with a bigger dictionary and better graphics which will run on a £150 system - the 48K Spectrum and a cassette recorder.\r\n\r\nThis illustrates the rate at which Spectrum software is improving. The latest releases include clever implementations of board- games like monopoly and arcade favourites such as Scramble, long and complicated Adventures with names like Knight's Quest and combinations of arcade and Adventure like Pixel's Trader. While serious and educational material software is still thin on the ground, programs like Hewson's Countries of the World show how much useful information can be packed into the Spectrum.\r\n\r\nMORE ORIGINALITY\r\n\r\nUnfortunately the standard is not uniformly high. Sometimes imagination is lacking. Bridge software still insists on marketing what it calls \"an exciting game for two to six players\". Yes, you guessed, it is boring old Hangman.\r\n\r\nAt other times graphics are weak. Micromega sells a version of Roulette which features a roulette wheel which looks more like a flying saucer on an off day. There is still too high a percentage of unloadable tapes and of tapes which you wished had been unloadable. Davic Games Tape 1, for instance, features a game which has Tooth Monsters instead of ghosts, which is probably the dullest-ever version of Pac-Man. The Tooth Monsters themselves are about as threatening as a pair of jelly babies.\r\n\r\nIf you want real tooth monsters try Imagine's excellent Molar Maul. This is a real nerve-tingler from the moment that an enormous set of gleaming teeth appears on the screen like something out of jaws. Armed only with a toothbrush and toothpaste you have to defend these dentures from swarms of evil bacteria.\r\n\r\nThese germs go by the name of Dentorium Kamikazium which allows Imagine to talk about \"the DK Menace\" - a triple pun partly at the expense of Imagine's Ipswich-based rivals DK'tronics.\r\n\r\nImagine's punsters are at work again on the cover of Arcadia where we are told we are fighting against the \"deadly menace of the Atarian empire\". Perhaps this explains why Sinclair owners have shown such enthusiasm for Arcadia because the game itself is just a lacklustre version of Galaxians. Much better is Imagine's Schizoids.\r\n\r\nIf, like me, you have always wanted to be a bulldozer, Schizoids is the game for you. You are a bulldozer in outer space and your job is to push tumbling cubes and pyramids into a nearby black hole without falling in yourself. Perhaps this nearby anomaly in the space-time continuum affects the wavelength of light. At any rate the game itself is only in black and white.\r\n\r\nPixel is another company which cannot resist veiled messages. Trader is part space Adventure and part arcade game. The Adventure, trading commodities between different worlds, is more convincing than the crude skill tests such as finding the right orbit when approaching a planet.\r\n\r\nTrader may well be bought as much for its attractive packaging - which includes a survival guide for the would-be Trader - as for the game itself. After buying supplies for your first trip you set out for the planet Psi where the inhabitants - yes, Psions - who look like a cross between Clive Sinclair's beard and a muppet ask you tiresome questions such as \"What is the formula for carbon monoxide?\" or \"What is your first name?\". Entering \"Clive\" as an answer elicits the response \"What a strange name\". So, for that matter, does any other reply.\r\n\r\nIf disaster should strike, a caption will appear saying \"Is this the end...?\" The answer is \"No\" because Trader is a trilogy so there are another two complete parts to load from the tape. There are many more traditional text Adventures of the \"Go south, open door, take gold\" variety but the narrowness of the replies they will accept is often irritating.\r\n\r\nDOWN THE MINES\r\n\r\nMikrogen's Mines of Saturn starts with a cheery \"Have fun\" and then proceeds to ask questions like \"Tunnels lead N, S, E and W - what will you do?\" Attempts to answer \"N\" or \"go N\" or even \"go n\" will not wash. It must be \"go North\" or nothing. At least Phipps' Knight's Quest has a 120-word vocabulary to help you on your damsel-ridden way to a castle in the air.\r\n\r\nEverest by Richard Shepherd Software is more of a strategy game than a straight Adventure. You have to take enough food and rope to climb the mountain and cope with every hazard. I enjoyed the climb but I never reached the summit - partly because the Sherpas are not what they used to be.\r\n\r\nWhen Sir Edmund Hillary climbed Everest for the first time he managed to find a Sherpa called Tensing. The time when you visit a Nepalese hill village to recruit porters you are asked to choose between Sherpas with names like Keith, Brian, Ron, Tim and Paul. Presumably they are ex-hippies, lost on the road to Katmandu.\r\n\r\nThings obviously still are what they used to be down at Mikrogen. If Andy Capp sends you into fits of laughter Mad Martha might just raise a smile. It is the same old story, boy meets girl, well, hen-pecked husband meets axe-happy wife - all very predictable. Mikrogen also sells arcade games like Cosmic Raiders - a competent impersonation of Defender with a long-range screen and grabbers.\r\n\r\nMelbourne House's variation on the same theme is called Penetrator. The display looks more like the arcade version of Scramble. A training facility to help you build up specific game skills is a good idea. C-Tech's Rocket Raider is yet another competent variant on similar lines.\r\n\r\nArtic offers a suicidally fast asteroids game called Cosmic Debris. Still in the arcades, both Elfin Software and Quicksilva produce robot battles which are of the Pac-Man-meets-Tanks variety.\r\n\r\nElfin's Tobor has the more exciting opening titles but loses on points to Quicksilva's QS Frenzy whose exotic science-fiction plot seems to offer a better justification for the game.\r\n\r\nSpeaking of Tanks, DK'tronics 3D Tanx was one of my favourite programs in the whole batch. You can track you gun barrel from side to side and adjust the elevation as you lob your shells at four lines of moving tanks which can fire back at you. Although the opposing tanks at first appear to be crawling across a structure that looks more like Brighton's West Pier than a battleground, this is one of my four games you might catch me paying to play in an arcade.\r\n\r\nJOIN THE PROFESSIONALS\r\n\r\nArtic's Combat Zone is another ambitious attempt at a Tank game. Your target and the landscape - a few pyramids on an invisible plane - look like refugees from Psion's Vu-3D program. They are very simple three-dimensional shapes but they change position smoothly and realistically as if you were walking past them in some world inside your Spectrum.\r\n\r\nYou and your opponents fire fragments of cubist paintings at each other but the abstraction is not so important as the fact that you are playing the first real Spectrum game in three dimensions - Vu-3D itself is a Psion program which allows you to build up three dimensional objects on the screen and then rotate them, or float them towards you and back again. In effect it is a crude version of the mainframe programs which create the effects for films like Tron.\r\n\r\nET makes an appearance too in an Abbex Adventure with voices called ETX. Unfortunately after loading pages of instructions about how I should phone home ending with the advice that I should treat any MI5 man who appeared as an enemy, the tape self-destructed.\r\n\r\nThis left me with an unnerving impression of \"the strength of Britain's security services.\r\n\r\nThe secret police are certainly important in DK'tronics strategy game called Dictator. The setting is a banana republic. The instructions ominously point out that \"your rule is measured in months\". You have to balance political factions, army, secret police, peasants, landowners, guerillas and superpowers if you are to survive.\r\n\r\nBreaking into embassies would doubtless be all in a day's work for a dictator. So for all prospective saviours of the nation, Sinclair's Embassy Assault will come in useful. It is very much like those maze games which present your view. standing in the maze. Instead of trying to avoid a minotaur, this time you are looking for secret codes and the like.\r\n\r\nAll this is enough to send you back into the arcades but Jet Pac's creators have moved from the arcades into home computing.\r\n\r\nUltimate Play the Game's Jet Pac puts you into the position of an astronaut who has to build a rocket from the pieces he can find sitting on clouds around the screen. The scenario is not entirely convincing but it makes for a good game. The same cannot be said of the simulations by CCS.\r\n\r\nCCS's representations of the oil business, Dallas, running a printers, Print Room, and of international aviation, Airline, may be realistic but they are not very exciting. Although these were originally designed as training for middle management, livelier presentation would not necessarily have made them less useful. Hewson's simulations of air-traffic control, Heathrow, and the Nightflite flight simulator are more convincing.\r\n\r\nBoard-games seem to transfer particularly well to the Spectrum. Psion's Scrabble has already been recommended. With its four levels of play and 11,000-word dictionary it can offer almost as tough opposition as you could want. There are also two different approaches to that old favourite Monopoly.\r\n\r\nAutomonopoli offers a continuous display of the part of the board around your current position. This display moves smoothly when the dice are thrown. Do Not Pass Go from Workforce has a less interesting display but at least shows the whole board all the time. Automonopoli allows you to personalise the program with the names of players and both programs give the option of being either a board for humans to play on or of letting the computer join in as a player. In each case the computer becomes a soft opponent once you have reached the stage of building houses and hotels.\r\n\r\nIf you have ever wandered into a rundown dockland hotel or pub and been confronted by the sort of balding drunk who says he used to sail the seven seas and boasts that he can name the capital of any country you care to choose, I can reveal his secret. At home he has a Spectrum with Hewson's Countries of the World up and running on it.\r\n\r\nAt the touch of a button it will remind you that N'djamena is the capital of Chad or that Yaounde is the capital of Cameroon. In the corner of the pub someone with probably be playing a video game not unlike Firebirds.\r\n\r\nSoftek's Firebirds is a Galaxians-type game distinguished by good croaking noises from the birds. Still on the subject of sound effects Workforce's Jaws Revenge is very noisy and fun. The graphics are great. You are a shark and you are after the divers and- boats which are after you.\r\n\r\nMined Out from Quicksilva is a very strange version of Mines. It is subtitled \"Rescue Bill the worm from certain old age\" and if you find a way through the first minefield you then have to rescue damsels in distress. Someone at Quicksilva has been playing too many Adventure games and it is beginning to show.\r\n\r\nThe last words on the cassette packet read \"the image fades to soft focus which is replaced by waves falling on a rocky shore, except in Bill's dream there are no waves or soft focus...\" It is certainly time that software cassettes carried a government health warning.\r\n\r\nCompany: Abbex\r\nGame: ETX\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Artic\r\nGame: 3D Combat Zone\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Artic\r\nGame: Cosmic Debris\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Automata\r\nGame: Automonopoli\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £6\r\n\r\nCompany: Bridge\r\nGame: Lynchmob\r\nMemory: 16K\r\nPrice: £6.50\r\n\r\nCompany: CCS Software\r\nGame: Dallas\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £6\r\n\r\nCompany: C-Tech\r\nGame: Rocket Raider\r\nMemory: 16K\r\nPrice: £6.50\r\n\r\nCompany: DK'Tronics\r\nGame: 3D Tanx\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: DK'Tronics\r\nGame: Dictator\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Elfin\r\nGame: Tobor\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £7.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Hewson\r\nGame: Heathrow\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £7.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Hewson\r\nGame: Countries of the World\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Imagine\r\nGame: Molar Maul\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.50\r\n\r\nCompany: Imagine\r\nGame: Arcadia\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.50\r\n\r\nCompany: Imagine\r\nGame: Schizoids\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.50\r\n\r\nCompany: Melbourne House\r\nGame: Penetrator\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £6.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Micromega\r\nGame: Roulette\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Mikrogen\r\nGame: Cosmic Raiders\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Mikrogen\r\nGame: Mines of Saturn\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Mikrogen\r\nGame: Mad Martha\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £6.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Phipps\r\nGame: Knight's Quest\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Psion\r\nGame: Scrabble\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £15.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Psion\r\nGame: Vu-3D\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £9.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Quicksilva\r\nGame: Frenzy\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Quicksilva\r\nGame: Trader\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £9.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Quicksilva\r\nGame: Mined Out\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Richard Shepherd\r\nGame: Everest Ascent\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £6.50\r\n\r\nCompany: Sinclair Research\r\nGame: Embassy Assault\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £4.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Softek\r\nGame: Firebirds\r\nMemory: 16K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Ultimate Play The Game\r\nGame: Jet Pac\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.50\r\n\r\nCompany: Workforce\r\nGame: Do Not Pass Go\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £6.95\r\n\r\nCompany: Workforce\r\nGame: Jaws Revenge\r\nMemory: 16/48K\r\nPrice: £5.95","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"62,63,66","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Meirion Jones","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 6, Jul 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-06-21","Editor":"Roger Kean","TotalPages":112,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Roger Kean\r\nConsultant Editor: Franco Frey\r\nProduction Designer: David Western\r\nArt Editor: Oliver Frey\r\nClient Liaison: John Edwards\r\nAdventure Editor: Derek Brewster\r\nStaff Writer: Lloyd Mangram\r\nContributing Writers: Matthew Uffindel, Chris Passey\r\nSubscription Manager: Denise Roberts\r\n\r\nTelephone numbers\r\nGeneral office [redacted]\r\nEditorial/studio [redacted]\r\nAdvertising [redacted]\r\n\r\nHot Line [redacted]\r\n\r\n©1984 Newsfield Ltd.\r\nCrash Micro is published monthly by Newsfield Ltd. [redacted]\r\n\r\nNo material may be reproduced in whole or in part without written consent from the copyright holders.\r\n\r\nPhotosetting by SIOS [redacted]\r\nColour origination by Scan Studios, [redacted]\r\nPrinted in England by Carlisle Web Offset Ltd (Member of the BPCC Group), [redacted].\r\nDistribution by COMAG, [redacted]\r\n\r\nSubscriptions: 12 issues £9.00 UK Mainland (post free)\r\nEurope: 12 issues £15 (post free).\r\n\r\nWe cannot undertake to return any written or photographic material sent to CRASH MICRO unless accompanied by a stamped addressed envelope.\r\n\r\nCover by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Air traffic controllers spend most of their working lives studying television screens. If this is the case, you might ask, surely this is one function that should be easy to simulate on a computer? And you'd be right.\r\n\r\nIn this simulation 'blips' come up on the screen and you direct the aircraft they represent to land on the runaway at Heathrow airport, and most realistic it is too! Even the familiar 'tail' of the signal is reproduced to enable you to see the direction of the aircraft. In fact the only major item missing is the static-filled crip exchanges between the controller and the aircraft's crew, but even this is displayed at the bottom of the screen!\r\n\r\nDon't panic if the instructions included on the inlay card appear complicated and are difficult to absorb - the program gives you a chance of watching the computer demonstrate how it's done, before you tackle the job by yourself. Mind you, after becoming proficient at the exercises I'm not convinced the computer makes such a good job of it after all!\r\n\r\nBasically, the idea is simple - as the aircraft signals appear on the screen, circling or 'holding' at one of four beacons at varying distances from Heathrow and conveniently referenced alongside, you guide them by means of inputting compass bearings along with controlling their speed and height levels, to land on a runway at Heathrow, approaching in either an eastward of westward direction. All the necessary data concerning each aircraft - the heading, height and speed you have instructed them to follow - is neatly shown on an easy reference display at one side of the screen.\r\n\r\nSo if it's that simple, where's the challenge, I hear you ask.\r\n\r\nSelect from a comprehensive menu. For example, a mixed bag of small, light aircraft and large Jumbo jets, compulsory height separation, rogue aircraft, sudden emergencies, etc, and the going gets really rough! Fortunately, the inputting of the instructions to the aircraft is easy and straight forward: this is essential because the airspace around Heathrow can soon get very very congested and all one's attention needs to be devoted to those 'blips' on the screen, not the keyboard. A nice helpful touch provided is that once an aircraft is 'locked on' to the correct glidepath for a successful landing this information is notified to you, so enabling you to forget that particular problem and free you to concentrate on the hordes of others approaching fast.\r\n\r\nHeathrow A.T.C. is a fascinating simulation, demanding fierce concentration, an orderly mind and is very addictive. You even receive a rating after each exercise. The program can give you hours of enjoyment and if you're fed up with or want a change from those wham sphlat high-speed arcade games and want a quiet, thoughtful action game then this is the one for you.\r\n\r\nCriticism? Yes, but a reserved one. The time restriction on each exercise is only 25 minutes, and, believe me, it seems nearer 10 minutes with all that work on your hands. But there again - should Delta Four 'hold' at Biggin Hill beacon for hours while I sort out the unholy mess that I created in the first place?","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"84","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Alan Green","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Micro Adventurer Issue 10, Aug 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-07-19","Editor":"Brendon Gore","TotalPages":48,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Brendon Gore\r\nAssistant Editor: Martin Croft\r\nSoftware Editor: Graham Taylor\r\nMaster Adventurers: Tony Bridge, Mike Grace\r\nEditorial Secretary: Geraldine Smyth\r\nAdvertisement Manager: David Lake\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Simon Langston\r\nAdministration: Theresa Lacy\r\nManaging Editor: Brendon Gore\r\nPublishing Director: Jenny Ireland\r\nTelephone number (all departments): [redacted]\r\nUK Address: [redacted]\r\nUS Address: [redacted]\r\nSubscriptions: UK £10.00 for 12 issues, overseas surface (excluding US and Canada) £16 for 12 issues, US and Canada air-lifted US$33.95 for 12 issues.\r\n\r\nMicro Adventurer is published monthly by Sunshine Books, Scot Press Ltd. Typesetting by In-Step Ltd, [redacted]. Printed by Eden Fisher (Southend) Ltd, [redacted]. Distributed by SM Distribution, [redacted].\r\n\r\nISSN 0265-4156\r\n\r\nRegistered at the Post Office as a newspaper.\r\n\r\n© Sunshine Books 1984"},"MainText":"THE WILD BLUE YONDER\r\n\r\nKevin Bergin pilots Spectrum and BBC flight simulators.\r\n\r\nPicture scene: \"I say, Biggles old chap, the weather's triff - how about a spin in the old crate, what?\"\r\n\r\n\"Sorry to be a bore, Ginger old worm, but I've got a spot of gippy tummy - must have been last night's bubble-and-squeak, don't you know?\"\r\n\r\n\"Bad show, Biggles, old fruit. Tell y'what, I think I might just have a quick shufti round the old cabbage patch for the Hun. Be a good fella and load in the jolly old prog, what?\"\r\n\r\n\"Right-ho, Ginger tally ho!\"\r\n\r\nEven with a ZX81 Ginger would have had to decide which flight simulator to use. If you own a Spectrum, BBC or Atari micro, the choice is even wider. This review aims to help you pick the best for your flights of fantasy.\r\n\r\nThe good old lo-res, black and white ZX8l is not a machine that springs readily to mind when talking of flight simulators; but it was for this machine that one of the greatest programs yet written was produced. Psion's Flight Simulation was great in the sense that graphics like this had not been seen on the ZX81 before. It was also fun! But don't think that it was easy brilliant machine-coding ensured that Psion's plane, a twin-engined light aircraft, behaved very like the real thing.\r\n\r\nThe view from the cockpit shows the horizon, and as the plane dives, climbs and banks, so the horizon moves in a very realistic way. The instruments in front of the pilot include dials, digital readouts and bar displays; they show such information as speed, height, and fuel, and an artificial horizon as well as a comprehensive navigation system. Several beacons are dotted around the Psion landscape, and these all help the pilot to pinpoint the runway on which he must finally land.\r\n\r\nOVERSHOT\r\n\r\nAs the plane nears the landing strip, it appears in view. The ZX's low resolution means that the lines of the runway must take the form of white pixels against the black background - but still, disbelief is suspended, so well-presented is the environment. As the plane approaches the runway, the perspective gradually changes, and the ground really does seem to reach up to meet the descending aircraft. It is even possible to overshoot the runway, and swoop round and round the airport, with the lines of the runway remaining coherent all the time.\r\n\r\nIf the pilot has time, there is a further option ask to see a map (press the M key), and the view from the window is replaced by a plan view of the \"play\" area. This gives you an idea of where the plane is in relation to the runway.\r\n\r\nThe controls are comprehensive; to make the plane bank, dive and climb, the cursor keys are used, and other keys are pressed to raise and lower the landing gear and flaps, apply and release the brakes, adjust the throttle and rotate amongst the beacons to facilitate taking bearings. There is no rudder control, but all in all, the plane flies quite realistically, although it seems very well balanced - set to level flight, it will happily purr away until the fuel runs out. Precision aerobatics are not really possible, though the controls are very responsive when it comes to necessary manouevres. There is a small question about the flaps put them down above a certain speed, and the plane crashes. This wouldn't happen in real-life, of course; similarly, a stall at a safe height is also fatal for the pilot in Psion's program. The ultimate thrill in this program, though, is the final landing.\r\n\r\nFlight Simulation became the yardstick by which other ZX81 programs were measured (programs of any kind, that is, 'not only flight programs), and other flight simulators had a very hard job to compete. Hewson released its Pilot not long after Psion's program. Written in Basic, it didn't have the smooth responses typical of the earlier program. Rather than the keyboard being scanned, and the display being updated accordingly every nanosecond, Hewson's program works through the routines (this all takes about two seconds) - pumping away furiously at a control key while waiting for the keyboard to wake merely results in over-correction, and another sickening plunge until the thing can be brought under control. No fine-tuning here! Hewson avoids the problems of coding the horizon by setting the whole simulation at night! Thus the range of hills which is such a hazard is not actually seen just felt as you crash into it.\r\n\r\nAs for flying - once the pilot is accustomed to the annoying slowness of input from the keyboard, then the basics can be accomplished. Banking, climbing and diving are possible, as well as a rudimentary rudder control that adjusts the heading by one degree each time it is pressed. There is no map during the flight this time, but there is a \"flight profile\" at the end (when you've crashed), which shows all the mistakes you have made.\r\n\r\nWhen the Spectrum was released, the colour and enhanced graphics capabilities ensured that, sooner or later, flight simulator programs would start to appear. Sure enough, they did! Psion and Hewson both released new versions of their simulators.\r\n\r\nFor the Spectrum Pilot, Hewson again turned to author M Male, and, again, the program was in Basic. The instrument panel (drawn in white on blue) includes a large circular Air Direction Finder (ADF), which is permanently tuned to a ground beacon, and gives an indication of the plan's position relative to the beacon. Other instruments include a large, square Artificial Horizon, and the instrument Landing System which gives an indication of the plane's attitude when landing, so that the pilot has a continual read out of the plane's position on the approach glide path. Readouts, like Airspeed, Heading, Altitude and so on, are in digital form. Again, an end-of-mission map is available for reference.\r\n\r\nThen Hewson released Niteflite II, taking the place of Pilot. This made better use of colour, with the instrument panel being drawn in several colours (although the Artificial Horizon suffered a little in its resolution), and a rather more stylish \"select option\" screen. On-screen information was more comprehensive, with detailed readouts on the cloud-base, wind direction and so on. Also among changes for the better was the provision of brakes, taxiing on the runway, a (signed) assessment card of the pilot's performance, and much better instructions, \"talking-through\" salient points.\r\n\r\nThe major difference, however, was that input had been dramatically speeded-up, so that keyboard input was almost (not quite) immediate - and provision was made for joysticks. There is still, however, no credible feel of flying; stalling, at any height, is immediately fatal, as is putting down the undercarriage or flaps above a certain speed.\r\n\r\nPsion's new version of Flight Simulation was the first true simulation for the Spectrum. Only three options are offered the user - Final Approach, Takeoff or in Flight. Again, the aircraft in question is a small, high-performance, twin-engined, propeller-driven airplane, and the view is from the cockpit window. Anyone who had seen the ZX81 version would be immediately at home with the Spectrum version - the horizon is now drawn in higher resolution, as is the comprehensive instrument panel.\r\n\r\nAgain, the feeling of actually flying is intense, and the keyboard is immediately responsive to any keypress. The Map is available here, too, but now it is in much more detail and shows two runways: Club is a small airfield with a rather short landing strip, while Main is an international airport with a much longer runway (much easier to land on). Also on the Map are a couple of lakes, and several beacons. These beacons can be used to attempt navigation to any point on the map. While the Map is on screen, the instrument display disappears, making it necessary to switch continually between the two displays while in flight.\r\n\r\nTHRILLING\r\n\r\nWhat makes Psion's program so thrilling is that the lakes and runways are seen in true perspective as the plane approaches them. Unfortunately, while the sky is light blue, the ground is a disappointing uniform dark blue, with the lakes in light blue.\r\n\r\nAerobatics can be indulged in - looping the loop is quite possible. Put down the landing-gear while in flight, though, or lower the flaps too far, and the plane suffers damage, maybe even fatal damage, as in so many of these micro-based simulators. Try dive-bombing the lakes or runways, however, and you'll swear that you are in a real plane - fantastic!\r\n\r\nFighter Pilot, from Digital Integration (written by D K Marshall), is an unashamed tribute to Psion's Flight Simulation. Here is a Map, showing, in this instance, four runways (BASE, TANGO, DELTA and ZULU), and several beacons which flash as they are selected by the pilot here, too, are mountains which must be avoided. Looking out of the cockpit's window shows light blue sky with, this time, a uniform yellow ground (no lakes, though, in DIland).\r\n\r\nYour aircraft is an F1 Eagle, the USAF air-superiority fighter, with two turbofan Whitney engines, complete with re-heat. Sounds pokey, and it is! Selecting the Takeoff mode (there are several other Modes, and several levels of difficulty), allows you to use the performance to the full. Unlike the other programs we've seen so far, the brakes, realistically, have to be held on rev up to above the red line, brakes off, and away you go, hurtling down the runway and up into the sky in a near-vertical climb.\r\n\r\nWithin a few seconds, you will be travelling at 600-odd knots (maximum speed is 1,440 knots at 60,000 feet, 800 knots at sea level), and you will already be at a height of 25,000 feet or so. What a contrast to Hewson's 80 knots at a puny 100 feet! Throw the F1 about the sky as much as you like - it's extremely difficult to control until a lot of practice is put in, but I imagine that it is a lot like flying the real thing (a Cessna is the closest I've got!).\r\n\r\nThe instrumentation is the most useful of all the programs so far - the Artificial Horizon looks authentic, with instant feedback, and the Roll and Pitch indicator is very useful in fine-tuning the plane's attitude. Navigation is simplicity itself. Select the Map, on which you will find all the salient features of the landscape along with the four landing strips. While the map is on-screen, the instrument panel remains at the bottom of the display; unlike many other simulations, it's perfectly possible to fly on instruments only, thanks to instant and continual updates. Pressing the N key displays the Next beacon you require - it will start flashing on the map, and its bearing is shown, along with your current heading, on the radar screen on your instrument panel.\r\n\r\nA flashing cross shows the position of this beacon relative to your current heading steer toward the beacon, until the cross swings directly ahead of the little plane on the radar screen. Above the screen is your new heading, and the distance from the beacon. If you are going to land, the instrument Landing System becomes operative within five miles of the runway, and this allows the pilot to fly down the correct approach path to the runway. Though this may sound easy, it isn't - I have to admit that I still haven't effected a successful landing!\r\n\r\nThis program would be a sensation, and a very accurate simulation, but there is much more - on the opening Option Screen, you will notice two selections that don't appear on others in this review. As the plane you fly is a fighter, all this training would be useless if it couldn't be put to some real use, and this is what you get in the Combat modes.\r\n\r\nIn the Combat Training mode, your task is to find the enemy (looking much like a medium bomber) and destroy him. A cross-hair target and a readout of your remaining ammo help you, and the enemy will not fire back. Once you've had enough practice, it's on to the real thing, and this time the enemy will fire back if he has the opportunity. Things develop into a real dog-fight! Enemy planes are not visible until you are within a one-mile range - they will be at around a 5,000 feet altitude, and you must match height and speed in order to fight effectively. The enemy plans are not just there to be shot at, but also to seek and destroy your runways. As you'll need these to refuel and rearm, it is necessary to protect them at all costs.\r\n\r\nACCOMPLISHED\r\n\r\nAll in all, Fighter Pilot is a very accomplished program. A superb fighting machine with very sensitive controls, state-of-the-art navigational aids, and a worthy opponent - what more could the Spectrum owner ask of a Flight Simulator?\r\n\r\nBefore we leave the Spectrum, it is worth mentioning another Hewson program Heathrow. This is another simulation, but this time from the point of view of those on the ground. Air Traffic Control would seem to be an ideal candidate for computer control, and this program gives you some idea of what it must be like to juggle with all those incoming Jumbos and Concordes. As with its Flight Simulator, Nightflite, Hewson has elected to cater for both the 16K and 48K Spectrum from within one program, thus making the thing not quite as complex, maybe, as many people would like.\r\n\r\nHowever, with the continually updated radar display, and multiple bar-charts showing aircraft headings, altitudes and so on, there is quite enough to digest for me! The instructions are complex, the display is complex - the whole program is a detailed simulation, including radio failure, emergencies, rogue aircraft and so on, and is recommended for the Spectrum-owner who wants to see what havoc may be caused by his stumbling around in other programs.\r\n\r\nOn now to the Atari. Strangely enough, this machine, in every other sphere of \"games\" programs so much better than the Spectrum, has been poorly served when it comes to Flight Simulators. One of the first came from APX, the Atari Program Exchange, and is a 747 Simulator. Written in Basic by William J Graham, it is poor when, set against the best for the Spectrum.\r\n\r\nThe only option is Final Approach, although the pilot may select Auto-pilot if so, all that remains for him to do is to decrease the engine revs when prompted, in order to keep the aircraft on the correct glide path. Maneuvering is effected by joystick, and as the landing gear is lowered by pushing the stick to the right while pressing the fire button, this immediately sends your airplane off to the right. As little as 10 degrees off-course means that you have a mid-air collision. The instrument panel consists only of digital readouts (no circular dials here), although the runway is shown in a sort of 3D.\r\n\r\nThe sensation of flying is not particularly strong (and maybe isn't in a real Jumbo), and the program is rather more of an intellectual exercise in number-juggling. Like the vast majority of Atari programs, however, the APX Flight Simulator is, for some reason, extremely addictive, and you will find yourself returning to it again and again, as it seems so simple and yet so infuriatingly difficult to beat. The documentation is extensive, and includes a detailed \"talk-down\", so that even the first-timer has an even chance.\r\n\r\nSubLogic's Flight Simulator iI, which has been advertised for some time now as being available, will be the most exciting development in Atari flight simulators.\r\n\r\nThousands of people are eagerly awaiting the program, on both sides of the Atlantic, and no-one, as far as I am aware, has seen it at the time of writing (June '84). It has achieved fame on the IBM machine as a yardstick of compatibility, and is justly held in high regard. It includes a World War I Air Ace scenario, with dogfights versus the Red Baron! Instrumentation and facilities are comprehensive, and the flying area includes the whole of the United States, with 80 airfields from Los Angeles to New York, user-defined weather and the time of day all making their impression. It will be expensive, but, also, the only \"real\" Flight Simulator on the Atari.\r\n\r\nThe BBC machine is not one that is favoured with too many Flight Simulators in fact, I have just two to look at this month. The first is 737 Flight Simulator from Salamander. This comes on a cassette which includes a version for tape loading, together with a version which can be saved to disk. The program is in two parts - the first allows the user to select all the parameters, such as designing an airfield, selecting take-off or starting in mid-flight, choosing between daytime and nighttime flight, and so on.\r\n\r\nAfter this initial set-up period, the \"business\" part of the program is loaded, and the pilot finds himself sitting at the end of a runway, looking over the well-appointed instrument panel (everything you need is here and you'll need it). This assumes that the Take-off option has been selected - and a shock is in store! After take-off, the horizon suddenly disappears the cloud base is at 35 feet!\r\n\r\nMUCK\r\n\r\nI personally wouldn't want to fly in muck like that, but Salamander gives you no option, so continue we must - and on the way back, you'll find that the clouds have miraculously rolled back to 400 feet. Having struggled into the (very low) cloud, the pilot will obviously not see very much out of the window (a good wheeze, this, which helps programmers out of a tight spot) - instead, the display is replaced by a radar screen. Suddenly, you are now an Air Traffic Controller. Against a blue background, the track of your aircraft is depicted in red, and, flying on instruments only, you must steer your plane into a landing.\r\n\r\nFor some reason, it seemed a lot easier to land the 737 after selecting the Final Approach option, than it was after a cross-country navigation exercise. But the controls are very responsive, despite the fact that only one key at a time is read. So, you won't be able to lower the undercarriage while throttling back, while lowering the flaps. Each task has to be tackled in turn, and the pilot needs to be an ambidextrous octopus in order to negotiate the 20 or so keys that have to be manipulated.\r\n\r\nHowever, there is a very helpful \"BEEP\" option (which may be turned off) which informs the pilot of acceptance of his executive action. The Beep pales into insignificance, though, beside the whine of the engines, which increase in pitch as the throttle is opened, finally reaching the point when nothing short of a strategically-placed pillow mutes the shriek.\r\n\r\nLooping-the-loop and other interesting pastimes are not available on Salamander's airliner - but those pilots who like watching the instrument panel should have a good time.\r\n\r\nNow, let's step back to Aviator, from Acornsoft. Let's be charitable, and say that the early releases from this company were \"toes in the water\" to feel the temperature - the more recent programs show very much more promise. And this is evident in Aviator.\r\n\r\nAlthough the memory constraints of the BBC machine, I imagine, mean that the display consists of white \"wire\" lines, on a black background, the loss of colour is not noticed after a while. The aircraft you are flying now is a World War II Spitfire Mk3. Of all the planes in this War, the Spitfire is the best known today, and to be in the seat of this one is a real change from the Eagles and Jumbos of the other programs here.\r\n\r\nAn excellent manual, complete with detachable map of the countryside, and another sheet showing the keys to use, prepares the user for the experience to come. When the flight starts, the instruments are slowly drawn - no round instruments here, but octagonal - and the view from the cockpit window of the runway stretching before you. Start up and the very realistic sound of a prop engine is heard. Rev up, ease off the brakes, and away.\r\n\r\nTORQUE\r\n\r\nThe Beeb Spitfire is the most realistic of all the aircraft we have looked at in this review. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than in the first moments, when you, the pilot, are beginning the take-off. Although the Spitfire suffered from tending to drift to the right (as the torque of the spinning propeller pulled the aircraft's nose from the straight-ahead), the slight left rudder that would be necessary in real life is not needed here. As speed increases, the tail gently lifts off the ground, and the \"joystick\" has to be slowly eased back in order to keep the propeller from digging a nice little trough along the runway. The Spitfire in flight is very responsive, just as in real life.\r\n\r\nAs with most of the other simulators, it takes a great amount of practice before a smooth flight can be undertaken, and, especially in the first few moments of the flight, it can be all too easy to stall the machine, and spin into the ground (it's not a long job, thank goodness, to start again!). One of the main drawbacks with the Spitfire, and one that caught many trainee pilots unawares, was the narrow track of the landing gear - a slight crosswind, causing the Spitfire to \"crab\" sideways on landing, would place a great strain on the steering characteristics of the landing gear, and easily cause a ground-loop. I haven't had enough practice, yet, to be able to get close to touching down, but I have a feeling that this detail will not be programmed into Aviator. In most other details, however, the BBC Spitfire behaves pretty much like the original - which was a honey, and one of the best aircraft ever built.\r\n\r\nThe landscape consists of several trapezoid shapes, representing fields, and each of a different shape, thus allowing for some sort of recognition as you pass overhead. It's extremely difficult to tell one shape from another, but it is essential to learn how to do it - there are no beacons or other navigational aids in the Spitfire. You can also fly through the streets of a small town or under a bridge. For these various feats, points are scored - more if you can do them upside down.\r\n\r\nThere is the added fillip in Aviator of combat - but not with Messchersmitt 109s. In a weird bit of lateral thinking, Acornsoft has seen fit to pit the Spitfire against strange alien spaceships shaped like elongated triangles. It seems rather incongruous to have to fight these. However, you can behave realistically turn away after firing, and the shells will continue toward the spot originally aimed at.\r\n\r\nThe combat part of this program, though, is not important (no way could anyone play this game as some sort of antique Space Invaders!), while the flying part is - and Aviator is certainly among the best to be seen so far on a microcomputer.\r\n\r\nFRINGE\r\n\r\nIt is worth mentioning those \"fringe\" programs that require a certain amount of flying skills. These include, for the Spectrum, Zzoom and Omega Run (both place the player in the cockpit of a rather mystical aircraft - actually a \"skimmer\" in the case of Zzoom) and Fort Apocalypse and Chopper Rescue for the Atari and Commodore, which require the player to fly a helicopter remotely. Although these programs are nothing like real simulators, they are worth looking at if you get a thrill from handling fast, maneuverable machinery.\r\n\r\nThe Flight Simulators we have looked at here seem to fall into one of two types. There is the \"seat-of-the-pants\" type, of which Aviator is a prime example, and the \"fly-by-instruments\" type, such as the APX Simulator and Jumbo Jet Pilot. Programs in the latter category tend to be intellectual exercises in which many details have to be balanced against each other. The feeling of flying is not particularly great, except for any view that you may have through the \"cockpit\" window. It is this sort of program that tends to place a heavy emphasis, rather unrealistically, on stress limits, so that lowering the undercarriage, for example, above a certain speed will immediately wreck the plane.\r\n\r\nThe other kind of Simulator lets the pilot pay more attention to the actual flying, and allows aerobatics, and also includes a certain leeway in structural limitations. The Spitfire program for the BBC is an extraordinarily accurate simulation, and, incidentally, addictive. The Fl Eagle program, for the Spectrum, is thrilling the pilot can almost feel the kick in his back as the throttle is pushed into the red, and the plane hurtles, at Mach 2, to 50,000 feet in just a minute or so.\r\n\r\nWhich one you prefer, Biggles, must be your decision.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"12,13,14,15","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Kevin Bergin","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Personal Computer News Issue 19, Jul 1983","Price":"","ReleaseDate":"1983-07-21","Editor":"Cyndy Miles","TotalPages":90,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"CHARACTER SET\r\n\r\nEditorial\r\nEditor: Cyndy Miles\r\nAssistant Editor: Geof Wheelwright\r\nProduction Editor: Keith Parish\r\nSub-Editor: John Lettice\r\nNews Editor: David Guest\r\nNews Writers: Ralph Bancroft, Wendie Pearson\r\nSoftware Editor: Shirley Fawcett\r\nSystems Editor: Max Phillips\r\nHardware Editor: Richard King\r\nPeripherals Editor: Ian Scales\r\nListings Editor: Sandra Grandison\r\nEditor's Assistant: Harriet Arnold\r\nArt Director: Jim Dansie\r\nArt Editor: David Robinson\r\nAssistant Art Editor: Floyd Sayers\r\nArt Assistant: Dolores Fairman\r\nPublisher: Fiona Collier\r\nPublishing Manager: Mark Eisen\r\nPublishing Assistant: Jane Green\r\n\r\nAdvertising\r\nAdvertisement Director: John Cade\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Nic Jones\r\nAssistant Advertisement Manager: Sue Hunter\r\nSales Executives: Robert Stallibrass, Matthew Parrot, Bettina Williams, Ian Whorley, Sarah Barron, Roxanna Johnston, Christian McCarthy\r\nProduction Manager: Eva Wroblewska\r\nAdvertisement Assistant: Jenny Dunne\r\nSubscription Enquiries: Gill Stevens\r\nSubscription Address: [redacted]\r\nEditorial Address: [redacted]\r\nAdvertising Address: [redacted]\r\n\r\nPublished by VNU Business Publications\r\n[redacted]\r\n© VNU 1983. No material maybe reproduced in whole or in part without written consent from the copyright holders.\r\nPhotoset by Quickset, [redacted]\r\nPrinted by Chase Web Offset, [redacted]\r\nDistributed by Seymour Press, [redacted]\r\nRegistered at the PO as a newspaper\r\n\r\nCover photography by Richard Evans"},"MainText":"NAME: Heathrow\r\nSYSTEM: Spectrum 16 or 48K\r\nPRICE: £7.95\r\nPUBLISHER: Hewson Consultants\r\nFORMAT: Cassette\r\nLANGUAGE: Machine code\r\nOUTLETS: Dealers, and mail order from [redacted]\r\n\r\nHAPPY LANDINGS\r\n\r\nAnyone who has ever spent hours stacked in a holding pattern over a busy airport should play Heathrow, just to see what air traffic controllers have to put up with. But the satisfaction you'll get from mastering this game is worth every effort.\r\n\r\nEvery possible variable has been programmed into this game and it's up to you to acquaint yourself with keeping an airport disaster-free.\r\n\r\nOBJECTIVES\r\n\r\nThe goal is to land eight aircraft, or as many as possible, in 25 minutes. This sounds simple enough but you must go through a complex series of steps before you can hope to land one.\r\n\r\nWhat's almost as important is keeping track of the detailed information on the screen about each plane's altitude, speed, direction, and classification. Reading the instructions alone takes about half an hour.\r\n\r\nAnd besides coping with aircraft traffic, you've got to be ready for any emergency.\r\n\r\nIN PLAY\r\n\r\nThe designers of Heathrow have provided players with a practice program that allows you to familiarise yourself with the blips and beeps that appear on screen. These make no sense to the novice at first, but by following the very well written introduction, the symbols are soon understood.\r\n\r\nPress the V key to stop the action and examine a segment of the game. Pressing W resumes play, and if you want a quick run-through of a typical play sequence you press X and the planes suddenly seem to have received a massive dose of amphetamines.\r\n\r\nThe first time I tried Heathrow my aircraft, plane F, left the airport's airspace altogether. While the legend 'Plane F has left airspace' flashed insistently I frantically searched the instruction manual to find a way to bring my plane back.\r\n\r\nAfter much trial and tribulation an air disaster was averted.\r\n\r\nNo matter how carefully you study the instructions there's always a surprise lurking around the corner.\r\n\r\nAfter my introductory session I scored zero in plane-landing but 97 percent in safety. In other words, poor old Plane 'F' is still up there somewhere.\r\n\r\nIn keeping with the rest of the game, scoring and overall achievement tabulations are well laid out.\r\n\r\nVERDICT\r\n\r\nHeathrow is not a game to pick up idly and cast aside. It is perhaps annoyingly complex at first but will attract players because its subtleties take a long time to explore. Just don't play if you're planning on flying in the near future.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"54","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Steve McClure","Score":"4","ScoreSuffix":"/5"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Lasting Appeal","Score":"5/5","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"3/5","Text":""},{"Header":"Use Of Machine","Score":"3/5","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall Value","Score":"4/5","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]