[{"TitleName":"Obliterator","Publisher":"Melbourne House","Author":"Ed Knight, John Brennan, Paul Murray, Roger Dean","YearOfRelease":"1989","ZxDbId":"0003478","Reviews":[{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 62, Mar 1989","Price":"£1.25","ReleaseDate":"1989-02-23","Editor":"Dominic Handy","TotalPages":100,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"EDITORIAL\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nEditor: Dominic 'bye bye' Handy\r\nAssistant Editor: Stuart 'here I come' Wynne\r\nStaff Writers: Mark Caswell, Philip King, Lloyd Mangram, Nick Roberts\r\nContributors: Raffaele Cecco, Mel Croucher, Ian Cull, Mike Dunn, Paul Evans, Ian Lacey, Barnaby Page\r\nEditorial Assistants: Caroline Blake, Vivienne Vickress\r\n\r\nPRODUCTION\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nSenior Designer: Wayne Allen\r\nDesigners: Melvin Fisher, Yvonne Priest\r\nPhotography: Cameron Pound, Michael Parkinson\r\nProduction Manager: Jonathan Rignall\r\nReprographics Supervisor: Matthew Uffindell\r\nProduction Team: Robert Hamilton, Robert Millichamp, Tim Morris\r\n\r\nEditorial Director: Roger Kean\r\nPublisher: Geoff Grimes\r\nAdvertisement Director: Roger Bennett\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Neil Dyson\r\nSales Executives: Sarah Chapman, Andrew Smales, Lee Watkins\r\nAssistants: Jackie Morris [redacted]\r\n\r\nMail Order: Carol Kinsey\r\nSubscriptions: Denise 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] - 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 the Sticky Solutions Department 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. No 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\nTo DW and DH, thanks for all the good times!\r\n\r\n©CRASH Ltd, 1989\r\n\r\nISSN 0954-8661\r\n\r\nCover Design & Illustration by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Obliterating without a blitter\r\n\r\nProducer: Melbourne House\r\nGlossy Packaging Costs: £9.99 cass\r\nAuthor: Paul Murray\r\n\r\nThe Federation Star Fleet has been reduced to debris and once again the Earth lies at the mercy of an enormously powerful alien spaceship. 'But why?' you may well wonder, what have we done that makes everyone hate us. Well, I'll tell you, it's because we're stupid. Just look at this game. Originally a mediocre, rather sluggish 16-bit arcade adventure, remarkable only for its graphics, now it's been convened to the Spectrum to become even more mediocre.\r\n\r\nThe hero who can save Earth (but really shouldn't), is Drak. He's the last of some superwarriors called Obliterators. You take control after he's been beamed aboard the alien ship with only a pistol to defend himself. There are five tasks to complete: disable four key parts of the ship, then nick something to activate the escape shuttle before the ship explodes.\r\n\r\nDrak can be moved left and right in the conventional manner or, by moving the highlighted cursor along icons at the foot of the screen, do more complex things like jumping, rolling over, etc. Pressing SPACE shows weapons collected, components half-inched, shield level and score.\r\n\r\nNeedless to say the spaceship is packed with aliens and automated defence systems. Success depends on selecting the right combination of icons so you might, for example, run, jump, roll over and shoot. On the 16-bit machines the slowness of things allowed you to admire the graphics, here they only serve to irritate. The graphics aren't bad, but neither are they good enough to make up for frustrating gameplay. The icon control system, for example, allows a wide-range of moves but in tight situations is too awkward. This doesn't spoil play altogether, but if you have little patience, I'd advise you to give Obliterator a miss.\r\n\r\nPHIL 60%\r\n\r\nTHE ESSENTIALS\r\nJoysticks: Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair\r\nGraphics: Drak's many movements are well animated\r\nSound: atmospheric 128K ingame tune","ReviewerComments":["Despite what Phil says I think this is a pretty good game. I really enjoyed using the icons to put together some complex moves. Drak is nicely animated, the backdrops are good and enemies colourful. The 128K tune is acceptable and while I didn't find it as playable as Barbarian, Obliterator is worth a look.\r\nMark Caswell\r\n80%"],"OverallSummary":"General Rating: It's all down to personal taste, but patient players will enjoy it more than others.","Page":"64,65","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Phil King","Score":"60","ScoreSuffix":"%"},{"Name":"Mark Caswell","Score":"80","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Drak in a quick draw contest with alien fiend."}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Presentation","Score":"74%","Text":""},{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"78%","Text":""},{"Header":"Sound","Score":"80%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"68%","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictive Qualities","Score":"65%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"70%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Sinclair Issue 40, Apr 1989","Price":"£1.6","ReleaseDate":"1989-03-16","Editor":"Teresa Maughan","TotalPages":108,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Cleaner: Colin\r\nEditor: Teresa Maughan\r\nArt Editor: Catherine Higgs\r\nDeputy Editor: Matt Bielby\r\nProduction Editor: Jackie Ryan\r\nStaff Writer: Duncan MacDonald\r\nDesigner: Thor Goodall\r\nEditorial Assistant: David Wilson\r\nTechnical Consultant: David McCandless\r\nContributors: Marcus Berkmann, Ben Bracken, Ciaran Brennan, Jonathan Davies, Mike Gerrard, Sean Kelly, Catherine Peters, Rachael Smith, Phil South\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Stephen Bloy\r\nAdvertisement Director: Alistair Ramsay\r\nProduction Manager: Judith Middleton\r\nAdvertisement Production: Katherine Balchin\r\nMarketing Manager: Bryan Denyer\r\nPublisher: Terry Grimwood\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 ©1989 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":"Melbourne House\r\n£9.99\r\nReviewer: Matt Bielby\r\n\r\nObliterator is a bit of a corker from Psygnosis. It's a mappers delight, featuring endless corridors packed with maurauding aliens of various sorts, plus guns and components that you have to pick up to complete your mission.\r\n\r\nYour task is to escape an alien infested space craft before it blows up - a task made harder because you have to rebuild your shuttle from scattered components before you do so. Your largish sprite lollops around the ship, going up ladders or through teleports as the mood takes him. Some of the backgrounds and monsters are rather well designed - as they were on the spectacular 16 bit versions - but the game has the same faults: slightly jerky animation and limited scrolling.\r\n\r\nNot only that, but you soon get the feeling that there's not very much to do except keep running around blowing those muthas into next week. I don't know about you, but I found this tends to pall after a while. Once you've completed the game you're unlikely to come back for afters.\r\n\r\nWhat a shame, because it's well packaged, looks quite good and the unusual control system works very well once you've got used to it.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Looks better than it tastes. An uninspired shoot em up.","Page":"94","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Matt Bielby","Score":"6","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Icon strip: using the fire option here Spec-chums, but check the column (Oo-er) on the left for clues to the other ones."},{"Text":"Lift down: better use this fast matey or that alien meanie's going to blow your ass away (But I don't even have a donkey. Ed)"},{"Text":"Teleport doorway: it's a handy way of whizzing around the ship or nipping out of trouble."},{"Text":"What he should be doing here is rolling about on the floor (Excuse me? Ed) That way the alien won't be able to hit him. (Oh. Ed)"},{"Text":"You'll need a map to finish off Obliterator. This one won't do, but it'll give you a rough idea about what you're aiming for."}],"BlurbText":[{"Text":"OUT OF CONTROL\r\n\r\nA word in your shell-like about the controls. At first I though 'Eek! This looks a bit tricky, what with movement controlled by one hand on the keyboard, while the other must nimbly flip across a baffling strip of icons to deftly pick from among other actions. This stump me and no mistake.'\r\n\r\nIn fact, it's really easy. On the left hand side are the up, down, left, right icons, with halt next to that. Into, which you use to go into teleports or doorways is next, followed by (Xmas tree shaped) jump. The twin lightning strikes are the shoot icon (using this and the keyboard, you can choose between which of the guns to use) and beyond that are defend (use this while running to roll under alien bullets - useful, huh?) and action (pick up or use what you're carrying).\r\n\r\nTrickiest bits are when you must use two different actions - say jump and shoot - to kill a monster, and have to switch between the two before it kills you. Once this is mastered, you're 'laughing'."}],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"6/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Value For Money","Score":"5/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictiveness","Score":"6/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"6/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 84, Mar 1989","Price":"£1.6","ReleaseDate":"1989-02-18","Editor":"Graham Taylor","TotalPages":100,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Graham 'logic' Taylor\r\nDeputy Editor: Jim 'native wit' Douglas\r\nProduction Editor: Alison 'thorough' Skeat\r\nArt Editor: Tim 'brute force' Noonan\r\nAdventure: The Sorceress\r\nZapchat: Jon Riglar\r\nTechnical: Andrew Hewson, Rupert Goodwins\r\nContributors: Tony 'saucy' Dillon, Chris 'whingey' Jenkins\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Katherine 'top girlie' Lee\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Martha Moloughney\r\nAd Production: Emma 'choccy face' Ward\r\nPublisher's Assistant: Debbie Pearson\r\nPublisher: Terry 'location unknown' Pratt\r\nMarketing: Clive 'starless and bible black' Pembridge\r\n\r\nPhone: [redacted]\r\nFax: [redacted]\r\nEditorial and Advertisement Offices: [redacted]\r\n\r\nThis Month's Cover: Jerry 'Mr Amiable' Parks\r\n\r\nPrinted by Nene River Press, [redacted]\r\nDistributed by EMAP Publications Ltd.\r\n\r\n©Copyright 1989 Sinclair User ISSN No 0262-5458\r\n\r\nSubscription Enquiries: [redacted]\r\n24 Hour Order Line: [redacted]\r\nBack Issues: Back Issues Department (SU), [redacted]"},"MainText":"Label: Melbourne House\r\nAuthor: Icon Design\r\nPrice: £8.95\r\nMemory: 48K/128K\r\nJoystick: various\r\nReviewer: Tony Dillon\r\n\r\nRemember Barbarian - No, not the hack and slash two player beat-'em up from Palace, the arcade adventure from Psygnosis, released by Melbourne House not so long ago. Obliterator is the official follow up and magically (opo-ee oo) transports you from the barbarian caverns of the predecessor to a huge alien space craft. You are now the last of the Obliterators, and the destruction of the ship and the safety of mankind lies in your hands.\r\n\r\nYour general and basic aim is to destroy the ship and escape with your life. Well, it'd be a bit pointless escaping without it wouldn't it? To do that, you first have to find and remove four separate components. One to disable the plasma drive, one to disable the shields, one to disable the main weapons system and one to shut down the computers. The final piece you have to find is the shuttle activation datapack so that you can get the shuttle out of there. Of course, you have to find the shuttle.\r\n\r\nIn keeping with the original, Obliterator carries basically the same control method as Barbarian, left and right on the joystick make the character run in that particularly direction if he can. Up and down, however, causes a highlight to travel across a bar of icons at the bottom of the screen. Fire activates the currently selected icon. Pressing space puts you through to a sub menu which handles the basic manipulation of weapons (which one is currently activated) as well as giving you your score and energy level.\r\n\r\nThe icons, from left to right are; Walk left. I wonder what this one does. Move up. Lets your character move up in a lift if you are standing inside one. Move down. See move up. Walk right. Makes your character breakdance. (Really? - GT) Stop all movement. Makes your character transform into a green Volvo estate and then propose to the first alien he meets and promise undying love and (DILLON. THIS IS GETTING STUPID. STOP IT AT ONCE - AS) Move through door. Makes you character move through door if he's standing outside one. jump. Makes him jump. Fire. Makes him shoot currently activated weapon. Roll. Makes turn do a forward roll if he's moving at the time you activate the icon. The final icon lets you pick up anything collectable.\r\n\r\nA generous assortment of nasties line the glinting steel corridors of the ship. These range from harmless little drills that race along the floor and have to be jumped over, to large froglike things in battle armour that hover and fire at you. Roof mounted cannons line some of the ceilings and, boy, are they nasty.\r\n\r\nFighting back is fun. The angle you fire your gun back at is determined by the length of time you hold down the fire button, ranging from parallel to the ground through to the perpendicular. The more powerful the weapon you carry, the less shots it takes to blow away the nasties, which you need to take care of because the shots are very limited.\r\n\r\nGraphics are pretty fab. Colour has been used really well. No, that's not colour clash, that's the green glow given off by your laser generated forcefield. Oh all right. It is colour clash. All the sprites are really nicely detailed and animated. In fact, the animation is better than the original Amiga version. That's one in the eye for 16 bit.\r\n\r\nThe sound is all right, but nothing really special. Just spot effects really. The 128K spot effects are nicer than the 48K spot effects, however.\r\n\r\nI like Obliterator more than I liked Barbarian. Another first rate 16 to 8-bit conversion by Ver House, and I look forward to seeing many more.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"8-bit conv of 16-bit arcade adventure. It's ok as it goes.","Page":"88,89","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Tony Dillon","Score":"79","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"83%","Text":""},{"Header":"Sound","Score":"70%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"70%","Text":""},{"Header":"Lastability","Score":"82%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"79%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment) Issue 19, Apr 1989","Price":"£1.5","ReleaseDate":"1989-03-02","Editor":"Graeme Kidd","TotalPages":140,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Future Publishing [redacted]\r\nTelephone [redacted], Fax [redacted], Telecom Gold 84:TXT152\r\n\r\nEditor: Graeme Kidd\r\nReviews Editor: Bob Wade\r\nStaff Writers: Steve Jarratt, Andy Smith\r\nProduction Editor: Damien Noonan\r\nConsultant Editor: Brian Larkman (Graphics)\r\nAdventure Editor: Steve Cooke\r\nContributors: Simon N Goodwin, Tony Takoushi, Zog\r\nArt Editor: Trevor Gilham\r\nAssistant Art Editor: Angela Neale\r\nProduction: Diane Tavener, Claire Woodland, Vivien Dean, Naomi Steer, Louise Cockroft\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Simon Stansfield\r\nAdvertising Sales Executive: David Lilley\r\nPublisher: Kevin Cox\r\n\r\nCover by Simon Thorp\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\n© FUTURE PUBLISHING LTD 1989\r\n\r\nNo part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without our permission.\r\n\r\nWith thanks to Paranoid Clive for all the inside information."},"MainText":"Melbourne House, £9.99cs, £14.99dk\r\nST version reviewed Issue 9 - ACE rating 570\r\n\r\nObliterator was not one of the world's greatest arcade adventures when it first appeared on 16-bit machines, and to give Melbourne House credit, they have managed to convert it wonderfully to the Spectrum. Unfortunately it's still not a wonderful game and frustrates more than it entertains.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"85","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Ace Rating","Score":"530/1000","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"The Games Machine Issue 18, May 1989","Price":"£1.5","ReleaseDate":"1989-04-20","Editor":"Roger Kean","TotalPages":108,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"EDITORIAL AND HEAD OFFICE\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nEditor: Roger Kean\r\nFeatures Editor: Barnaby Page\r\nStaff Writers: Robin Hogg, Warren Lapworth, Robin Candy\r\nEditorial Assistants: Vivien Vickress, Caroline Blake\r\nPhotography: Cameron Pound, Michael Parkinson (Assistant)\r\nContributors: Mel Croucher, Don Hughes, Marshal M Rosenthal (USA), John Woods\r\n\r\nPRODUCTION DEPARTMENT\r\n[redacted]\r\nProduction Manager: Jonathan Rignall\r\nSenior Designer: Wayne Allen\r\nReprographics Supervisor: Matthew Uffindell\r\nDesign Assistants: Yvonne Priest, Melvin Fisher\r\nProduction Team: Robert Millichamp, Robert Hamilton, Tim Morris, Jenny Reddard\r\n\r\nADVERTISING AND ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENTS\r\nEditorial Director: Roger Kean\r\nPublisher: Geoff Grimes\r\nGroup Advertisement Director: Roger Bennett\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Neil Dyson\r\nAdvertisement Sales Executives: Sarah Chapman, Lee Watkins\r\nAssistant: Jackie Morris [redacted]\r\nGroup Promotions Executive: Richard Eddy\r\nMail Order: Carol Kinsey\r\nSubscriptions: [redacted]\r\n\r\nTypeset by the Tortoise Shell Press, Ludlow and on our Apple Macintosh II running Quark Xpress 2.0. 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 TGM. 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 Viv Vickress 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 TGM - including written and photographic material, hardware or software - unless it's accompanied by a suitably stamped, addressed envelope. We regret that readers' postal enquiries cannot always be answered. Unsolicited written or photographic material is welcome, and if used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates. Colour photographic material should be 35mm transparencies wherever possible. The views expressed in TGM are not necessarily those of the publishers.\r\n\r\n©TGM Magazines Ltd, 1989\r\nA Newsfield Publication ISSN 0954-8092\r\n\r\nCover Design and Illustration by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Spectrum 48/128 Cassette: £9.99, Diskette: £14.99\r\nAmstrad CPC Cassette: £9.99, Diskette: £14.99\r\n\r\nAs was the case with Psygnosis's Barbarian, Obliterator's appeal lay with the quality of graphics and sound on the 16-bit originals.\r\n\r\nDrak is blocky on the Amstrad, animated badly and slowly, against backgrounds of a bright and jagged appearance. On the Spectrum. the hero walks strangely but smoothly, and despite some clash, the graphic detail is adequate. The Amstrad music and effects are annoyingly crude, but although the Spectrum's music is monotonous, its sound effects are very good.\r\n\r\nThe real problem with 8-bit Obliterator lies in its control system. Because the icons are cycled through using up/down, this slows the speed at which you can react - and its also easy to accidentally change a selected icon. This is a large but ultimately unthrilling 8-bit game.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"59","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Tougher controls make Spectrum Drak harder to manipulate."}],"BlurbText":[{"Text":"AMSTRAD CPC\r\n\r\nOverall: 56%"},{"Text":"ATARI ST Overall: 65% TGM007\r\nAMIGA Overall: 70% TGM007"}],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"61%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]