[{"TitleName":"Plasma Ball","Publisher":"Atlantis Software Ltd","Author":"Chris Edwards, Gavin Wade","YearOfRelease":"1989","ZxDbId":"0003757","Reviews":[{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 64, May 1989","Price":"£1.25","ReleaseDate":"1989-04-27","Editor":"Stuart Wynne","TotalPages":92,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"EDITORIAL\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nEditor: Stuart Wynne\r\nAssistant Editor: Phil King\r\nStaff Writers: Mark Caswell, Lloyd Mangram, Nick Roberts\r\nContributors: Ian Cull, Mike 'Skippy' Dunn, Paul Evans, Robin Hogg, Ian Lacey\r\nEditorial Assistants: Caroline Blake, Vivienne Vickress\r\nEditorial Consultant: Dominic Handy\r\n\r\nPRODUCTION\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nSenior Designer/Illustrator: 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: Robert Hamilton, Robert Millichamp, Tim Morris, Jenny Reddard\r\n\r\nEditorial Director: Oliver Frey\r\nPublisher: Geoff Grimes\r\nAdvertisement Director: Roger Bennett\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Neil Dyson\r\nSales Executives: Sarah Chapman, Lee Watkins\r\nAssistant: Jackie Morris [redacted]\r\nGroup Productions Executive: Richard Eddy\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\n©CRASH Ltd, 1989\r\n\r\nISSN 0954-8661\r\n\r\nCover Design & Illustration by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"£1.99\r\nAtlantis\r\n\r\nIn Plasma Ball you play the part of a small sphere of energy trapped on the planet Odessia Millennia, which is made up of 50 levels of isometric mazes. Needless to say there's lots of baddies, touch 'em and you lose energy, but lightning bolts restore it. There's also energy draining tiles, bottomless pits and bonus stars.\r\n\r\nThe first thing you notice about this game is the difficulty one experiences in controlling the wildly bouncing plasma ball, it took me several goes to tame the thing. Not that I'm saying the game is bad, once even partial control is gained the zippy little plasma ball is busy doing his stuff destroying the meanies and getting ever nearer to his goal. Plasma Ball will keep you occupied for a fair while, if you don't first throw the computer out of the window in frustration.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"29","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"69%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Sinclair Issue 43, Jul 1989","Price":"£1.6","ReleaseDate":"1989-06-16","Editor":"Matt Bielby","TotalPages":92,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Matt Bielby\r\nArt Editor: Catherine Higgs\r\nDeputy Editor: Jackie Ryan\r\nProduction Editor: Andy Ide\r\nSenior Staff Writer: Duncan MacDonald\r\nEditorial Assistant: David Wilson\r\nDesigner: Thor Goodall\r\nTechnical Consultant: David McCandless\r\nContributors: Marcus Berkmann, Richard Blaine, Jonathan Davies, Phoebe Evans, Mike Gerrard, Sean Kelly, Peter Shaw, Rachael Smith, Phil South, Wag\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Alison Morton\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Stephen Bloy\r\nAdvertisement Director: Alistair Ramsay\r\nProduction Manager: Judith Middleton\r\nAdvertisement Production: Claire Baker\r\nMarketing Manager: Bryan Denyer\r\nCirculation Manager: June Smith\r\nAssociate Producer: Teresa Maughan\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\nPrinted By: Riverside Press [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":"PLASMA BALL\r\nAtlantis\r\n£1.99\r\nReviewer: Marcus Berkmann\r\n\r\nNeatly programmed but essentially dull shoot 'em up based around a 3-D isometric grid. With your little plasma ball, you shoot positive energy at negative ions (they don't like it much, fortunately) and then, at the end of each mini-wave, you shoot even more positive energy at 'IT', a large thingy that follows you around the screen like the rozzers when you're doing 125 in a built-up area. If this sounds just like the usual plot to every shoot 'em up, except transferred from the usual scrolling format to a Head Over Heels room, you'd be dead right - except that Plasma Ball lacks the variety and pretty graphics of all but the meanest zapper. Nevertheless, the movement of your ball - inertia-based - is satisfyingly smooth, which for hardened pyschotics may make up for the game's other flaws. Not for me though.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"50","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Marcus Berkmann","Score":"54","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"54%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 86, May 1989","Price":"£1.6","ReleaseDate":"1989-04-18","Editor":"Jim Douglas","TotalPages":100,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Meet the SUings\r\n\r\nGRAHAM \"nasty weazley type\" SUing (Editor)\r\nThe story so far: After being dropped by Alison SUing for a younger lurver Graham decides to wreak his revenge by being generally dastardly to his whole family. He sets traps for them but unfortunately they ALL backfire and he is drowned in the indoor pool, sizzled in the back yard barbeque, shot on his way to the office and strangled by chicken wire in the hay loft. 'Amazingly' he survives the lot and boy is he angry? Who will he direct his beastly horribleness at next?????\r\n\r\nALISON \"pouting foxtress\" SUing (Production Editor)\r\nThe story so far: Alison has at least escaped the evil clutches of Graham. The divorce is settled and she has half his fortune and so with wild abandon she gets stuck into every male in the house, cousins, uncles, great grandfathers, no man is safe from this wanton hussy. But Alison has a sordid secret past of illegitimate children, bike sheds and baths full of spaghetti bolognaise. Will she be found out?????\r\n\r\nJIM \"hopeless boozer\" SUing (Deputy Editor)\r\nThe story so far: Jim wakes up in a puddle of gin on the carpet of a motel room somewhere in Detroit. He cannot remember how he got there and decides that 13 bottles of vodka should bring back his memory. He wanders back to the SUing ranch to find the place deserted. Has his 'loving' family moved away without telling him, or are they just down the local liquor store stocking up ready for Jim's return?????\r\n\r\nTIM \"flashback\" SUing (Art Editor)\r\nThe story so far: Tim is pictured here in black and white as he appeared when the series started many moons ago. He is Graham's step brother from his mother's fourth marriage and disappeared in a dream-sequence in the indoor hot tub last Christmas. Has he really gone for good or is he maybe - hiding in the septic tank waiting to make his comeback?????\r\n\r\nAdventure: The Sorceress\r\nZapchat: Jon Riglar\r\nTechnical: Andrew Hewson, Rupert Goodwins\r\nContributors: Tony 'chubbs' Dillon, Chris 'alien gonk' Jenkins\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Katherine Lee\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Martha Moloughney\r\nAd Production: Emma Ward\r\nPublisher's Assistant: Debbie Pearson\r\nPublisher: Terry 'Mr Laid-back' Pratt\r\nMarketing: Clive 'shy and reserved' Pembridge\r\n\r\nPhone: [redacted]\r\nFax: [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 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: Atlantis\r\nAuthor: In-house\r\nPrice: £1.99\r\nMemory: 48K/128K\r\nJoystick: various\r\nReviewer: Chris Jenkins\r\n\r\nIt's a tough life as a ball of high-energy plasma. Advantages such as never having to go to the lavatory are offset by the difficulty of, say, reaching something on top of the wardrobe or opening a tin of peas.\r\n\r\nFortunately you don't have to perform either of these tasks in Plasma Ball - in fact, you don't have to do much at all, which is probably what's wrong with it. However, for £1.99 it's not a bad effort.\r\n\r\nOn a series of space platforms on the planet Odessia Mellenia (I only know the name 'cos it's written in the instructions, not because there are huge neon signs saying \"Welcome to Odessia Mellenia, Please Drive Carefully), you have to fight your way through the natives to return to your home planet. The tetrahedrotrapezoidopolygonal (roughly diamond-shaped) platforms are pretty hard to steer around - whether you're using joystick of keyboard, once you start moving your plasma ball, it's easy to career over the edge and lose a life. However, there are low and high ball response options, so you can choose which suits you best.\r\n\r\nOnce you've managed to practise controlling the ball, your aim is to bump off the baddies on each level by blasting them with positive energy. To do this you hold down the fire button and release it as your power meter (at the bottom right) builds to maximum strength. A blast of energy heads off in the direction you're moving, doing nasty injuries to the negative ions and IT creatures holding you captive. At the end of each level there's a super ion which takes several hits to destroy - then it's on to the next level.\r\n\r\nLater levels feature energy draining tiles, bottomless pits, ice tiles which make you skid around like Jim after half a shandy, lightning bolts which give you energy, and bonus stars which you must collect for extra energy on the bonus levels.\r\n\r\nWith fifty levels to complete, you'll probably be fed up of Plasma Ball before you come within sight of the end.\r\n\r\nThe sound effects aren't anything remarkable, but because the isometric graphics are quite nice, the end level nasties are suitably repulsive and it's dead cheap. I'm inclined to suggest you give it a buzz.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Cheap 'n' cheerful bouncy ball blast-'em-up.","Page":"40","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Chris Jenkins","Score":"61","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"60%","Text":""},{"Header":"Sound","Score":"50%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"60%","Text":""},{"Header":"Lastability","Score":"65%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"61%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]