[{"TitleName":"Robot Riot","Publisher":"Silversoft Ltd","Author":"Patrick J. Richmond","YearOfRelease":"1983","ZxDbId":"0004191","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: Silversoft\r\nMemory Required: 48K\r\nRetail Price: £5.95\r\nLanguage: Machine code\r\nAuthor: Patrick Richmond\r\n\r\nWorking for the Acme Robot Manufacturing Co. is not an easy business when the robots keep running riot. You're in the control room one day when you notice the robots are out and playing dangerously. The only answer is to send out the Bomber!\r\n\r\nSilversoft have taken a well worn theme, turned it on its head, and come out with a new type of game. For want of a better comparison this is a backward 'Pac Man' type game. Instead of eating dots, here you lay them.\r\n\r\nThe screen represents the factory corridors, a reasonably complex maze. When the game starts the bomber, 'you', must move round the corridors laying mines. To complete the screen every corridor must be laid. This tempts the king robot out of his central lair, so that you can get in and progress to the next level. What you're up against is a handful of different robots (ghosts backwards?) which start to materialise in the four corners, until the screen is running with them. Fortunately there is also a power mite, which replenishes your rapidly fading supply when you run over it. As soon as you do, another materialises somewhere else. Another unpleasant problem is that all round the central enclosure the corridors are cut off by several sliding doors which open and close. Not only does this hinder your mine-laying program, it also can get you nastily trapped if you're not careful.\r\n\r\nCOMMENTS\r\n\r\nControl keys: very good, L/K left/right, K/M up/down\r\nJoystick: Kempston\r\nKeyboard play: responsive\r\nColour good\r\nGraphics: good\r\nSound: continuous, average\r\nSkill levels: 1\r\nLives: 3\r\nScreens: multiple","ReviewerComments":["An original idea, and a good one at that. A bit slow at first, but as the game progresses the action gets livelier. Quite tense, when having laid the last mine, you have only 30 seconds to get into the control room once the king robot is out.\r\nUnknown","It's similarity to 'Pac Man' is a bit off-putting at first, but I warmed quite rapidly to this game after 10 minutes playing. Although it isn't exactly fast, it turns out to be quite demanding on the player. Perhaps better suited to younger players than hardened addicts, but actually quite addictive anyway. Nice colours and amusingly animated characters.\r\nUnknown","A good use of colour and nice, smooth graphics combined with the continuous sound, make this into a good-average game. An advance on 'Pac Man', it is one of those maze games that will probably appeal to many. I didn't find it all that addictive, although very playable after a few minutes. The opening and shutting doors, adds a touch of drama too, especially as it can put you In a tight spot, and frustratingly cut you off at the last second from your power mite! Not bad at all.\r\nUnknown"],"OverallSummary":"General Rating: Above average, very good for younger players.","Page":"100","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Unknown","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""},{"Name":"Unknown","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""},{"Name":"Unknown","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"The robots are revolting - but the game's okay!"}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Use of Computer","Score":"65%","Text":""},{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"68%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"75%","Text":""},{"Header":"Getting Started","Score":"78%","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictive Qualities","Score":"68%","Text":""},{"Header":"Value For Money","Score":"65%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"70%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Spectrum Issue 3, May 1984","Price":"£0.85","ReleaseDate":"1984-04-09","Editor":"Roger Munford","TotalPages":122,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Roger Munford\r\nManaging Editor: Bruce Sawford\r\nDeputy Editor: Tina Boylan\r\nEditorial Assistant: Pete Shaw\r\nSoftware Consultant: Gavin Monk\r\nSub Editor: Nik Lumsden\r\nContributors: Phil Manchester, Ian Beardsmore, Ron Smith, Mike Mepham, Sandy Dewhurst, Colin Young, Andrew Wright, Richard Archdeacon, Stephen Adams, Damir Skrgatic, Dilwyn Jones, Simon Goodwin, Toni Baker, SQ Factor\r\nArt Editor: Jimmy Egerton\r\nArt Assistant: Steve Broadhurst\r\nGroup Advertisement Manager: Jeff Raggett\r\nAdvertisement Managers: Shane Campbell, Gill Harris, Jason Wood\r\nProduction Editor: Derek Cohen\r\nTypesetters: Beverley Douglas, Maggie Kayley, Velma Miller\r\nProduction Manager: Sonia Hunt\r\nGroup Art Director: Perry Neville\r\nPublisher: Stephen England\r\nDistribution Manager: Colin James\r\n\r\nPublished by Sportscene Specialist Press Ltd, [redacted] Company registered in England. Telephone (all departments): [redacted]\r\nReproduction: Graphic Ideas, London\r\nPrinters: Chase Web Offset [redacted]\r\nDistribution: Seymour Press [redacted]\r\n\r\nAll material in Your Spectrum ©1984 Felden productions, and may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written consent of the publishers. Your Spectrum is a monthly publication.\r\n\r\nCover photography by Ian McKinnell"},"MainText":"ROBOT RIOT\r\nSilversoft\r\n£5.95\r\n\r\nRioting robots run amok in this maze game, and your job is to stop them as quickly as possible by carefully controlling your robot to plant bombs that will destroy the mutinous menaces.","ReviewerComments":["This is essentially a Pacman game in reverse. Instead of eating dots, the player has to lay them. The theme is original and highly addictive, but in play, feels a little too slow for comfort, and the keys aren't too responsive.\n\n\r\nTony Samuels\r\n7/10","The player's robot is very controllable, and the first level starts at a reasonable speed - which increases with successive levels. With superb graphics and colour, this must surely be the best Pacman game ever.\n\n\r\nMark Knight\r\n8/10","Everything involved in this game is excellent, from the impressive on-screen scoring to the cassette inlay. This is undoubtedly Silversoft's best.\r\nJohn Hall\r\n9/10"],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"67","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Tony Samuels","Score":"7","ScoreSuffix":"/10"},{"Name":"Mark Knight","Score":"8","ScoreSuffix":"/10"},{"Name":"John Hall","Score":"9","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":null,"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 3, Apr 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-03-16","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: Silversoft, 48K\r\n£5.95 (2)\r\nAuthor: Patrick Richmond\r\n\r\nIn a sense this is the opposite of a 'Pac Man' game in as much as you are laying dots in the maze instead of gobbling them up. The story is that the robots have run amok in the corridors of the Acme Robot Manufacturing Co and you must guide the robot bomber through the maze, laying mines. The amokful robots materialise in the four corners, becoming more numerous the longer you take to accomplish your mission - they must be avoided at all costs of course. Your power supply drains rapidly, but there are power mites also materialising which replenish your supply if they are run over. The object is to lay mines in every corridor and entice the king robot out of the central control room so you can get in. An additional problem is that some corridors are equipped with sliding doors which keep shutting. The game has attractive graphics and manages to be surprisingly addictive in play. It's given an old format a new lease of life. Good control keys, joystick: Kemston, above average, overall CRASH rating 70% m/c.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"70","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"70%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 27, Jun 1984","Price":"£0.85","ReleaseDate":"1984-05-17","Editor":"Bill Scolding","TotalPages":148,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Bill Scolding\r\nDeputy Editor: John Gilbert\r\nConsultant Editor: Mike Johnston\r\nManaging Production Editor: Harold Mayes MBE\r\nStaff Writer: Chris Bourne\r\nIllustrator/Designer: Craig Kennedy\r\nGroup Advertisement Manager: John Ross\r\nProduction Assistant: Dezi Epaminondou\r\nEditorial Assistant: Colette McDermott\r\nManaging Editor: Nigel Clark\r\nAssistant Managing Director: Barry Hazel\r\nManaging Director: Terry Cartwright\r\nChairman: Richard Hease\r\n\r\nSinclair User is published monthly by ECC Publications Ltd.\r\n\r\nTelephone\r\nAll departments\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nIf you would like to contribute to Sinclair User please send programs, articles or ideas for hardware projects to:\r\nSinclair User and Programs\r\nECC Publications\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nPrograms should be on cassette and articles should be typed. We cannot undertake to return them unless a stamped-addressed envelope is included.\r\n\r\nWe will pay £10 for the copyright of each program published and £50 per 1,000 words for each article used.\r\n\r\n©Copyright 1984\r\nSinclair User\r\nISSN NO. 0262-5458\r\n\r\nPrinted and typeset by Cradley Print PLC, [redacted]\r\n\r\nDistributed by Spotlight Magazine Distribution Ltd, [redacted]"},"MainText":"ROBOTS ARE REVOLTING\r\n\r\nMemory: 48K\r\nPrice: £5.95\r\nJoystick: Kempston\r\n\r\nRobot Riot from Silversoft centres on a revolt of the robots in which the only way to regain control of the building is to lay bombs over the entire floor area and thus force the King robot to escape from his central control room. That is not the end, however, as it will escape only to another floor, where you must start laying bombs again.\r\n\r\nAnyone who has played Pac-man or any of its many derivatives will be familiar with this game, where the main difference from the original is that instead of eating dots you are laying a trail of them.\r\n\r\nYou lose a life whenever you run out of power but in yet another familiar touch the regular consumption of power mites will prevent the disaster.\r\n\r\nOne interesting feature is the way the game starts with an introduction to the various robots, with details of their speed, intelligence and destructive powers. Apart from that, Robot Riot can in no way claim originality but it manages to be absorbing and addictive, especially if you enjoy maze scenarios, and the robot graphics are lively.\r\n\r\nExperienced players may find it slow and it is a pity that each time you lose a Life you have to return to the start, instead of continuing from where you left off, making the game more frustrating than it need be.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"34","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Gilbert Factor","Score":"6/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Big K Issue 2, May 1984","Price":"£0.85","ReleaseDate":"1984-04-20","Editor":"Tony Tyler","TotalPages":100,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Tony Tyler\r\nAssisted By: Richard Burton\r\nContributors: Paul Walton (Features); Paul Rambali (Arcades); Andy Green (Technical); Jenny Parrott; John May; Steve Keaton; David Rimmer; Richard Taylor; Bernard Turner; David Ellis; David Eastbury; Tony Benyon\r\nArt/Design: Central Art Studio\r\nGroup Art Editor: Doug Church\r\nGroup Advert Controller: Luis Bartlett\r\nPublishing Director: John Purdie\r\nEditorial Address: [redacted]\r\nTelephone: [redacted]\r\nAdvertising: Robin Johnson [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":"MAKER: Silversoft\r\nMACHINE: Spectrum 48K\r\nFORMAT: cassette\r\nPRICE: £5.95\r\n\r\nRobot Riot is Pac Man in reverse.\r\n\r\nThe object of the game is to lay mines along the corridors of a robot factory, where the robots are running amok and the 'King Robot' has taken over the control room, not only on your floor but throughout the whole building. Once the total floor area has been mined, the King Robot will try to escape by leaving the control room and you must enter the control room. This ensures that all robots are destroyed on the floor and that you can travel to the next.\r\n\r\nSounds easy? Well, you do have to keep up your energy levels by collecting power mites which are also travelling around the corridors, and different types of robots will either paralyse or kill you if contact is made and more of them appear as time goes on.\r\n\r\nAs often is the case, the simple games are the best and this game will get the adrenalin flowing and give you plenty of entertainment.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"78","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"David Crossweller","Score":"2","ScoreSuffix":"/3"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"2/3","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Personal Computer Games Issue 4, Mar 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-02-16","Editor":"Chris Anderson","TotalPages":184,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Chris Anderson\r\nProduction Editor: Roderick George\r\nArt Editor: Ian Findlay\r\nTechnical Editor: Stuart Cooke\r\nStaff Writers: Steve Cooke, Peter Connor\r\nEditorial Assistant: Samantha Hemens\r\nSoftware Consultant: Tony Takoushi\r\nCartoons: Kipper Williams\r\nProgram Control Guardians: Jeff Riddle\r\nGame-of-the-month poster: Mark Watkinson\r\nScreenshots: Chris Bell\r\nCover Photography: Ko Kon Chung\r\nGroup Editor: Cyndy Miles\r\nArt Director: Jim Dansie\r\nPublishing Manager: Mark Eisen\r\nAssistant Publishing Manager: Sue Clements\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Herbert Wright\r\nAssistant Advertisement Manager: Jan Martin\r\nAdvertisement Production: Simon Carter\r\nSales Executives: Joey Davies, Marion O'Neill, Louise Hedges\r\n\r\nPublished by VNU Business Publications, [redacted]. Typesetting by Spectrum Typesetting, [redacted] Origination by Fourmost Colour [redacted]. Printed and bound by Chase Web Offset [redacted]. © VNU Business Publications 1984."},"MainText":"MACHINE: Spectrum 48K\r\nJOYSTICK: Kempston, Optional\r\nCATEGORY: Arcade\r\nSUPPLIER: Silversoft\r\nPRICE: £5.95\r\n\r\nPac-Man variant in which you lay down bombs in a maze while being chased by robots. Perfectly good fun - unless you already have one of the other 2 million Pac-Mans for the Spectrum.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"78","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Chris Anderson","Score":"5","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"4/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Sound","Score":"2/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Ease Of Use","Score":"5/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Originality","Score":"3/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Lasting Interest","Score":"5/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"5/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]