[{"TitleName":"Solar Empire","Publisher":"Players Premier","Author":"Charles Goodwin, Tim White","YearOfRelease":"1990","ZxDbId":"0004627","Reviews":[{"Issue":{"Name":"Crash Issue 82, Nov 1990","Price":"£1.85","ReleaseDate":"1990-10-18","Editor":"Oliver Frey","TotalPages":60,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"EDITORIAL\r\n[redacted]\r\n\r\nEditor: Oliver Frey\r\nFeatures Editor: Richard Eddy\r\nStaff Writers: Mark Caswell, Nick Roberts, Lloyd Mangram\r\nArt Editor: Mark Kendrick\r\nPhotography: Michael Parkinson\r\nProduction and Circulation Director: Jonathan Rignall\r\nSystems Operator: Paul (Charlie) Chubb\r\nReprographics: Matthew Uffindell (Supervisor), Robert Millichamp, Robb Hamilton, Tim Morris, Jenny Reddard, Lisa McCourt\r\nGroup Advertisement Manager: Judith Bamford\r\nAdvertisement Sales Executive: George Keenan\r\nAdvertisement Production: Jackie Morris (Supervisor), Joanne Lewis\r\nMail Order: Carol Kinsey\r\nSubscriptions: Caroline Edwards [redacted]\r\n\r\nTypesetting Apple Macintosh Computers using Quark Express and Bitstream Fonts.\r\n\r\nSystems Manager: Ian Chubb\r\n\r\nColour origination by Scan Studios [redacted]. Printed in England by BPCC Business Magazines (Carlisle) Ltd, [redacted] - a member of the BPCC Group.\r\n\r\nDistribution by COMAG, [redacted]\r\n\r\nYearly subscription rates: UK £17.20 Europe £24.00, Air Mail overseas £37. US/Canada subscriptions and back issues enquiries Barry Hatcher, British Magazine Distributors Ltd [redacted]. Yearly subscription rates US$47.00, Canada CAN$57.00 Back Issues US$5.20, Canada CAN$6.20 (inclusive of postage). \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 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 us a line). No person who is related, no matter how remotely, to anyone who works for either Newsfield or any of the companies offering prizes, may enter one of our competitions.\r\n\r\nNo 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 on 35mm transparencies is welcome, and if used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates. Copy published in CRSH will be edited as seen fit and payment wil be calculated according to the current printed word rate. The views expressed in CRASH are not necessarily those of the publishers.\r\n\r\nCopyright CRASH Ltd 1989 A Newsfield Publication. ISSN 0954-8661. Cover Design by Oliver Frey"},"MainText":"Players Premier\r\n£2.99\r\n\r\nWith a plot to enslave the entire galaxy, the evil Dargons must be stopped as they invade ours! Dargon Ringworlds (like a planet on a spaceship) are sent into conquer populated worlds and then use them as a base to conquer other worlds. You have to stop 'em quick before they take over every ruddy planet!\r\n\r\nRingworlds are destroyed with a photon torpedo. Then, to liberate an occupied planet you have to capture a shooting star and steer or tow it towards the planet. Release the star onto the planet and it destroys the Dargons and liberates that world. Oh, and there are loads of alien thingies all over the place to shoot too.\r\n\r\nGameplay is essentially an eight-way scrolling shoot-'em-up but with a yucky 'intellectual aspect' thrown in. There are billions (quite a few - Ed) of dials to keep an eye on and to succeed must be followed correctly; the status panels (on the left and right hand sides) are continually blasting you with information which takes away most of the fun you might have in carelessly blasting everything! Solar Empire is a funny mix of gameplay - you want to play it fast and furiously, when you should be playing it a bit strategically. Except you can't play it at all on the +2A, because it's not compatible.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"56","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Richard Eddy","Score":"60","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"60%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Sinclair Issue 61, Jan 1991","Price":"£1.85","ReleaseDate":"1990-12-06","Editor":"Matt Bielby","TotalPages":108,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Matt Bielby\r\nArt Editor: Sal Meddings\r\nProduction Editor: Andy Ide\r\nStaff Writer: Linda Barker\r\nDesign Assistant: Andy Ounsted\r\nContributors: Robin Alway, Marcus Berkmann, Jonathan Davies, Cathy Fryett, Mike Gerrard, Kati Hamza, Paul Lakin, Jon North, Rich Pelley, Keith Pomfret, David Wilson\r\nAdvertising Manager: Simon Moss\r\nPublisher: Greg Ingham\r\nAssistant Publisher: Jane Richardson\r\nPublishing Assistant: Michele Harris\r\nCirculation Director: Sue Hartley\r\nManaging Director: Chris Anderson\r\nProduction Manager: Ian Seager\r\nProduction Coordinator: Melissa Parkinson\r\nSubscriptions: Computer Posting [redacted]\r\nMail Order: The Old Barn [redacted]\r\nPrinters: Riverside Press [redacted]\r\nDistributors: MMC [redacted]\r\n\r\nYour Sinclair is published by Future Publishing Ltd [redacted]\r\n\r\n©Future Publishing 1990. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written permission."},"MainText":"SOLAR EMPIRE\r\nPlayers\r\n£2.99\r\nReviewer: Rich Pelley\r\n\r\nThe inlay reckons this is called Solar Empire, but when you load it up it calls itself Synergy. How extremely strange.\r\n\r\nAnyway, spooky name changes aside, this one is rather good - even if it's down to the sheer simplicity of the thing. The graphics are simple (but effective), as is the gameplay. You're a wiggly snake-like ship which has to fly around eight vertically-scrolling space levels (selected from the main menu), moving around the screen and blasting baddies as they fly towards you. Every so often you'll come across a large circle (which is, as it happens, a moonsized asteroid), which you have to try to crash into to get to collide with nearby planets in order to liberate another planet, which is quite handy really seeing as the galaxy has just been taken over by the evil Dargons. Understood? I'm sure you get the gist.\r\n\r\nAll sorts of add-ons are available too - tractor beam, long range scanner or collectable repair and upgrade pod, anyone? Yep, a definite gameplayer's delight.\r\n\r\n(Oh, incidentally - what exactly is a Synergy when it's at home?)","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"85","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Rich Pelley","Score":"79","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Oh look, lots of lovely fireworks. (Well, a couple anyway.)"}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"79%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Sinclair User Issue 105, Nov 1990","Price":"£1.85","ReleaseDate":"1990-10-18","Editor":"Garth Sumpter","TotalPages":84,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"Editor: Garth Sumpter\r\nActing Dept Editor: Gary 'Wide Boy' Liddon\r\nDesigners: Jenny Abrook, Gareth 'Boyo' Jones\r\nAdvertisement Manager: Jim 'Brummie Git' Owens\r\nAd Production: Emma 'Cor Blimey' Ward\r\nMarketing Manager: Dean Barrett\r\nMarketing Assistants: Sarah 'JR' Ewing, Sarah 'No vices' Hilliard\r\nPublisher: Graham 'Interesting' Taylor\r\nManaging Director: Terry '....er..' Pratt\r\n\r\n©1990 EMAP Images, [redacted]\r\n\r\nTypesetting by G'n'G, output to a 20260 Liddontype\r\nColour work: Pro Print.\r\nPrinted by Kingfisher Web Ltd, Peterborough.\r\nDistributed: Frontline.\r\n\r\nIf any part of this magazine is reproduced without permission you're in BIG trubs sonny!"},"MainText":"Strangely strange are the ways of the computer programmer; fueled on coffee and doughnuts they will plug away for years producing nothing but tedious platforms-and-ladders games and horizontally-scrolling shoot-'em-ups, then with no warning their brains will go all wonky and they produce something completely peculiar.\r\n\r\nSolar Empire is obviously the result of just such wonkiness; on the surface a space shoot-'em-up of galactic conquest, it looks and plays more like a cheese-induced nightmare.\r\n\r\nThe evil Dargons have enslaved the galaxy, and you as commander of the liberation fleet have to fight them off and liberate captured planets. The multi-way scrolling screen represent star-scattered space, and pointers around the sides show the direction and distance to the nearest captured planet, sun, free planet and alien ship. You have to intercept the alien Ringworlds and zap them; collect fireballs which can be fired at captured worlds to liberate them; and rendezvous with suns to recharge your energy.\r\n\r\nThe weirdest thing is that your ship resembles a string of fishing floats, curling and spinning around as you fling it through the ether. You can add extra laser platforms and energy pods, and when you're stationary you can press the space bar to access a galactic map.\r\n\r\nVery very strange indeed. Check it out and prepare to be boggled (but don't bother if you have a Spectrum 42A - for some reason it doesn't work on this version of the machine).","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Strangely odd snake of doom in space weirdie bizarre epic.","Page":"61","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Chris Jenkins","Score":"70","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"58%","Text":""},{"Header":"Sound","Score":"69%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"78%","Text":""},{"Header":"Lastability","Score":"70%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"70%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]