[{"TitleName":"Ball Breaker","Publisher":"CRL Group PLC","Author":"Jared Derrett, Jay Derrett, Jon Law, Richard M. Taylor","YearOfRelease":"1987","ZxDbId":"0000383","Reviews":[{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 46, Nov 1987","Price":"£1.25","ReleaseDate":"1987-10-29","Editor":"Barnaby Page","TotalPages":164,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Managing Editor: Barnaby Page\r\nStaff Writers: Richard Eddy, Dominic Handy, Lloyd Mangram, Ian Phillipson\r\nPhotographers: Cameron Pound, Michael Parkinson\r\nOffice: Frances Mable\r\nTechnical Writers: Simon N Goodwin, Jon Bates\r\nAdventure Writer: Derek Brewster\r\nPBM Writer: Brendon Kavanagh\r\nStrategy Writer: Philippa Irving\r\nEducation Writer: Rosetta McLeod\r\nContributors: Robin Candy, Mike Dunn, Paul Evans, Dominic Handy, Nick Roberts, Ben Stone, Paul Sumner\r\nEditorial Director: Roger Kean\r\nProduction Controller: David Western\r\nArt Director: Gordon Druce\r\nIllustrator: Oliver Frey\r\nDesign: Markie Kendrick, Wayne Allen\r\nProcess and Planning: Jonathan Rignall (Supervisor), Matthew Uffindell, Nick Orchard\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Roger Bennett\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Andrew Smales\r\nSubscriptions: Denise Roberts\r\nMail Order: Carol Kinsey\r\n\r\nEditorial and Production: [redacted]\r\n\r\nMail Order and Subscriptions: [redacted]\r\n\r\nADVERTISING\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nTypesetting by The Tortoise Shell Press, Ludlow\r\n\r\nPrinted in England by Carlisle Web Offset, [redacted] - member of the BPCC Group.\r\n\r\nDistributed by COMAG, [redacted]\r\n\r\nNo material may be reproduced whole or in part without written consent of the copyright holders. We cannot undertake to return any written material sent to CRASH unless accompanied by a suitably stamped addressed envelope. Unsolicited written or photo material which may be used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates.\r\n\r\n©1987 Newsfield Limited\r\n\r\nCover by Oliver Frey\r\n\r\n3-D Artwork by Markie Kendrick"},"MainText":"Producer: CRL\r\nRetail Price: £8.95\r\nAuthor: The Zen Room\r\n\r\nInto a 3-D screen drops a ball. You control a bat that can be moved along one edge of the screen to prevent the sphere dropping into the black void which lies behind your bat. Should the ball pass you, then one of your four lives is lost.\r\n\r\nIf you use the bat to deflect the ball onto the barrier of blocks that faces you, most of the blocks can be destroyed, sending the ball rebounding toward your bat. Those blocks that do not submit to the sphere's deadly touch can be destroyed by one of the missiles that you carry - you start the game with ten. Points are awarded for every block destroyed.\r\n\r\nIf the ball passes through a gap in the wall, falling blocks can temporarily halt its return. But the sphere continues to make destructive contact with the rear of the wall till it has opened a passage back to your side of the wall, where once again you must move fast to hit it.\r\n\r\nDifferent blocks have different properties. Some are destroyed from the front; others can only be destroyed from the rear; some offer extra lives or missiles, others change the size of your bat or allow you to exit to the next screen. On higher levels, the destruction of certain bricks activates aliens who can easily remove one of your bat's lives with their lethal touch.\r\n\r\nCOMMENTS\r\n\r\nJoysticks: Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair\r\nGraphics: mainly monochromatic with decorative display panel\r\nSound: good 128 tune and spot FX\r\nOptions: definable keys","ReviewerComments":["Ballbreaker is definitely the best version of Breakout on the market. But is a brilliant rebirth of an age-old concept worth £7.95? I think not. Despite graphics of the highest quality, squash versus computer doesn't stand up against blasting aliens out of the sky: and the sudden appearance of hopping kangaroos and whizzing spikes is a feeble attempt to liven up this game.\r\nBym Welthy\r\n60%","Ballbreaker is based on a brilliant idea - 3-D Breakout. What could be better? Play is difficult, to say the least: the ball is dropped into play, it shoots off toward the edge of the screen and if you're not quick you'll lose your first life. The speed of the ball varies, depending on the number of things moving onscreen and on whether you've collected a speed-up block, and this can be disconcerting. But after a few hours of play Ballbreaker will grab you - honest.\r\nBen Stone\r\n70%","You can go only so far with a concept before the additions take over the original idea, and this is the main problem with Ballbreaker. Working out the 3-D and collision-detection takes the computer so long that the game's playablilty suffers unbelievably. It's vital with Breakout-type games that the speed is kept constant and the rebound angle realistic - Ballbreaker fails on both these counts and this bad design is infuriating. I have nothing against the 3-D idea - it's surprisingly attractive - but changes should be improvements.\r\nPaul Sumner\r\n62%"],"OverallSummary":"General Rating: A playable and new twist on an ageing theme.","Page":"30,31","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Bym Welthy","Score":"60","ScoreSuffix":"%"},{"Name":"Ben Stone","Score":"70","ScoreSuffix":"%"},{"Name":"Paul Sumner","Score":"62","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Ballbreaker - 3-D Breakout!"},{"Text":"Slow and unplayable, or the best of its genre?"}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Presentation","Score":"79%","Text":""},{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"77%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"59%","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictive Qualities","Score":"61%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"64%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Sinclair Issue 24, Dec 1987","Price":"£1.5","ReleaseDate":"1987-11-12","Editor":"Teresa Maughan","TotalPages":124,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Teresa Maughan\r\nArt Editor: Peter George\r\nDeputy Editor: Marcus Berkmann\r\nProduction Editor: Lucy Broadbent\r\nTechnical Editor: Phil South\r\nDeputy Art Editor: Darrell King\r\nContributors: Richard Blaine, Audrey & Owen Bishop, Jonathan Davies, Chris Donald, Mike Gerrard, Gwyn Hughes, ZZKJ, Tony Lee, John Minson, David Powell, Nat Pryce, Rick Robson, Peter Shaw, Rachael Smith, Mischa Welsh, Tony Worrall\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Mark Salmon\r\nAdvertisement Executive: Simon Stansfield\r\nProduction Manager: Sonia Hunt\r\nManaging Editor: Kevin Cox\r\nPublisher: Roger Munford\r\nPublishing Director: Stephen England\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 ©1987 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":"CRL\r\n£8.95\r\nReviewer: Tony Worrall\r\n\r\nWhat an unfortunate title for a game. Kinda brings a tear to the eye - and playing the game may bring on the same result. Ball Breaker is frustratingly hard - maybe they should have called it 'Hardball'. The game, if you didn't already know, is a 3-D Breakout clone. The blocks that have to be thwacked actually look like real blocks. No flat indistinct shapes for this game. Your block sits at one end of the 3-D room, faced by a wall of different valued bricks. Some contain extra lives, others slow down the ball and so on, just like the other Breakout games - but the catch is you can only zap the bottom row of bricks. Anything balanced on top of these blocks then drops to the floor to be collected or zapped again. The higher blocks can't be touched until they reach the ground. This can lead to big problems - especially when a nasty is let loose by the destruction of a block. To complicate matters, some blocks can only be zapped from behind, while some need to be blasted with you handy cannon (but watch that limited ammo!).\r\n\r\nThere are many more, all detailed in the instruction pages accessible from the impeccable menu screens. Tune into the 128 version for a pleasant ditty that plays all through the game, or switch on the 128 'arcade-style' sound effects. These FX give the game a good deal of extra panache. The colour scheme sticks to the inevitable monotones to avoid clashes, but it works well - the play area is detailed enough to stand out. I said the game was hard - boy, is it tough! it took me hours to crack the second screen. The main problem is the forced 3-D perspective. This makes judging the return of the ball tricky in the extreme. Also most of the walls are far too near the player's bat for comfort. This, together with a couple of small bugs I noticed, make Ball Breaker a pig to play. Addictive, yes - nice on the eye, yes - but hard all the same. One for the Arkanoid/Batty crowd only.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Yet another Breakout clone, this time in fabby 3-D. Great if you like this sort of thing - otherwise avoid.","Page":"79","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Tony Worrall","Score":"8","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"9/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"7/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Value For Money","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictiveness","Score":"8/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"8/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 68, Nov 1987","Price":"£1","ReleaseDate":"1987-10-18","Editor":"David Kelly","TotalPages":124,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: David Kelly\r\nDeputy Editor: Graham Taylor\r\nStaff Writer: Jim Douglas\r\nStaff Writer: Tamara Howard\r\nArt Editor: Gareth Jones\r\nAdventure Help: Gordo Greatbelly\r\nZapchat: Jon Riglar\r\nHelpline: Andrew Hewson\r\nContributors: Richard Price, Tony Bridge, Chris Jenkins, Tony Dillon, Gary Rook\r\nHardware Correspondent: Rupert Goodwins\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Mike Corr\r\nSales Executive: Steve Prescott\r\nClassified Sales/Production: Alison Morton\r\nPublisher's Secretary: Debbie Pearson\r\nSubscriptions Manager: Carl Dunne\r\nPublisher: Terry Pratt\r\n\r\nTelephone [redacted]\r\n\r\nSubscription Enquiries [redacted]\r\n\r\nSinclair User is published monthly by EMAP Business & Computer Publications\r\n\r\nCover Illustration: Clive Goodyer\r\n\r\nSinclair User\r\nEMAP Business & Computer Publications\r\n[redacted]\r\n\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 84,699 July-Dec 1986"},"MainText":"Label: CRL\r\nAuthor: Richard Taylor\r\nPrice: £7.95\r\nMemory: 48K/128K\r\nJoystick: various\r\nReviewer: Graham Taylor\r\n\r\nBeing one of those people who quite liked CRLs last bat and ball game Room Ten (lone in a sea of apathy) I guess I'm biased, but in terms of actual forget-about-trendiness-programming technique-or-anything-else fun I think Ballbreaker may be one of the most entertaining games for months.\r\n\r\nThere is a plot, but it is of zero importance - describing Ball Breaker is simple: Breakout in 3D.\r\n\r\nImagine Breakout as played in an Ultimate 3D room layout. Mostly it's straightforward bashing of bricks. There are a few extra treats like maniac lizards that head straight for your bat (fortunately though, you are equipped with the odd missile or two with which to dispatch them.)\r\n\r\nThe ball (or ovoid as CRL insists on calling it) bounces across the screen, knocking out bricks and generally behaving in authentic Breakout fashion - you can even get it trapped behind the wall of bricks and total them dozens at a time. On the 128K version this is accompanied by some very splendid sound effects.\r\n\r\nScreen 1 poses no special problems except that in 3D it's particularly easy to miss the ball when it's first dropped into the arena.\r\n\r\nBy Screen 2 there are a few extra problems to deal with. Sitting on a couple of the bricks are a pair of lizards. When, as you must, you shoot their perch out from under them they get irate and run towards you.\r\n\r\nYou'd better have a pretty good idea where your missile launch button is, think twice and you're lizard meat. At the same time there's this bouncing ball you're supposed to be hitting at some bricks remember?\r\n\r\nThe graphics are tolerable - there isn't a lot you can do to make a brick look interesting. Though some of the bricks are bonuses and others are replaced by animated platforms the technique is still the same - watch the ball and get the bat behind it, use the angles carefully to maximise the destruction.\r\n\r\nThe awesome secret of the success of this game is only that it's fun. There is something in Breakout that always made it addictive, way beyond its simplicity would suggest, and with Ball Breaker CRL has given it enough of a new twist to ensure another burst of longevity.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"A new twist on an old idea - Breakout in 3D. Looks so so but is utterly addictive. Nice one!","Page":"33","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Graham Taylor","Score":"9","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[{"Text":"PROGRAMMERS\r\n\r\nRichard Taylor is 18 and has been programming for CRL since he was 13. He has produced a wide variety of programs from utilities to games.\r\n\r\nSoftography: Fifth (CRL, 1983), Zaraks (CL, 1983), Terrahawks (CRL, 1984)."}],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"9/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]