<Author>David Sanders</Author><Publisher>Zeppelin Games Ltd</Publisher><Reviews><Review><Award>Not Awarded</Award><BlurbText /><CompilationReviewScores /><Denied>false</Denied><Issue><Editor>Richard Eddy</Editor><FlannelPanel>EDITORIAL [redacted] Editor: Richard Eddy Sub Editor: Warren Lapworth Staff Writers: Mark Caswell, Nick Roberts, Lloyd Mangram Art Editor: Mark Kendrick Photography: Michael Parkinson Production and Circulation Director: Jonathan Rignall Systems Operator: Paul (Charlie) Chubb Reprographics: Matthew Uffindell (Supervisor), Robert Millichamp, Robb Hamilton, Tim Morris, Jenny Reddard Group Advertisement Manager: Judith Bamford Advertisement Sales Executive: Christine Moore Advertisement Production: Jackie Morris (Supervisor), Joanne Lewis Mail Order: Carol Kinsey Subscriptions: Caroline Edwards [redacted] Typesetting Apple Macintosh Computers using Quark Express and Bitstream Fonts. Systems Manager: Ian Chubb Colour origination Scan Studios [redacted]. Printed in England by BPCC Business Magazines (Carlisle) Ltd, [redacted]. Distributor COMAG, [redacted] Yearly 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). COMPETITION RULES The 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. 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 on 35mm transparencies is welcome, and if used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates. Copy published in CRASH will be edited as seen fit and payment will be calculated according to the current printed word rate. The views expressed in CRASH are not necessarily those of the publishers. Copyright CRASH Ltd 1991 A Newsfield Publication. ISSN 0954-8661. Cover design and illustration by Oliver Frey</FlannelPanel><HasCoverTape>false</HasCoverTape><Name>Crash Issue 90, Jul 1991</Name><Price>£2.99</Price><ReleaseDate>1991-06-20</ReleaseDate><TotalPages>52</TotalPages></Issue><MainText>Zeppelin Games £2.99 Take Tetris and Connect 4, add a few road signs and a couple of planets, shake well and what have you got? Stack Up! This is one addictive game. Ever since I started playing I haven't been able to put the joystick down - it's that good! The aim of the game is to guide the falling groups of blocks so that they form horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines of three or more of the same colour. Once a stack has been made the blocks disintegrate giving points and moving the blocks above down. You're not restricted to the order the blocks fall in, pressing swap allows the colours to change position so they can be placed just where you want them. Making stacks of four or more is helped by the display at the bottom of the screen. This shows the blocks that are coming up next so you can take them into account when positioning the current one. Each frame has a number of stacks to be completed before you can go on to the next. A normal line of three counts as one stack but lines of four count as two, five as three and so on. Higher levels hold more perils to make the game tougher frames are started with blocks already placed in them, blocks appear randomly, only diagonals count as a stack and the left and right controls become reversed, causing total mayhem! To add a little variety in the graphics you can choose what each block is represented by from a list including road signs, planets and even Greek symbols! Stack Up is a simple and highly playable. Get a copy now and go blocking mad (and I'm taking this copy home with me)!</MainText><OverallSummary></OverallSummary><Page>43</Page><ReviewScores><ReviewScore><Header>Overall</Header><Score>80%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore></ReviewScores><ReviewerComments xmlns:d5p1="http://schemas.microsoft.com/2003/10/Serialization/Arrays" /><Reviewers><Reviewer><Name>Nick Roberts</Name><Score>80</Score><ScoreSuffix>%</ScoreSuffix></Reviewer></Reviewers><ScreenshotText><ScreenshotAndBlurbText><Text>It looks like that falling green sign would help matters but where ever it's put it won't clear any blocks (no three in a row, y'see).</Text></ScreenshotAndBlurbText><ScreenshotAndBlurbText><Text>'You blew it!', indeed. Oh, just one more go...</Text></ScreenshotAndBlurbText></ScreenshotText><TranscriptBy>Chris Bourne</TranscriptBy></Review><Review><Award>Not Awarded</Award><BlurbText /><CompilationReviewScores /><Denied>false</Denied><Issue><Editor>Andy Ide</Editor><FlannelPanel>Editor: Andy Ide More Pregnant Art Editor: Sal Meddings New Art Editor: Andy Ounsted Games Editor: James Leach Staff Writer: Linda Barker Advertising Manager: Simon Moss Deputy Advertising Manager: Philip Davenport Production Coordinator: Melissa Parkinson Publisher: Jane Richardson Promotions Manager: Michele Harris Publishing Assistant: Tamara Ward Group Publisher: Greg Ingham Circulation Director: Sue Hartley Your Sinclair, Future Publishing [redacted] Subscriptions: Computer Posting [redacted] Distribution: MMC [redacted] Cover Illustration: Paul Kidby ISSN 0269 6983 ABC July-Dec 1990 60,368 YS comes to you from the same thrusting company that publishes Commodore Format, ST Format, New Computer Express, Amstrad Action, Classic CD, PC Plus, 8000 Plus, Sega Power, Amiga Format/Power/Shopper, PC Answers & Needlecraft.</FlannelPanel><HasCoverTape>false</HasCoverTape><Name>Your Sinclair Issue 68, Aug 1991</Name><Price>£1.95</Price><ReleaseDate>1991-07-08</ReleaseDate><TotalPages>68</TotalPages></Issue><MainText>Zeppelin £3.99 cass Reviewer: James Leach Tsk. Those Russians, eh? No sooner do they become all friendly and glasnosty, than they drop Tetris on us. And Tetris, as we all know, is the biggest cause of late nights, headaches and damaged joysticks ever. Worse still, it now seems as if the world, his wife, his two daughters and their pet Labrador 'Ludo' are all writing games with that 'addictive puzzle arcade-type element'. And oh what a coincidence! Here comes one now! It's called Stack Up, and it works a weeny bit like this. Coloured squares fall from the top of the screen, three in a line. You can't twist the round, like Tetris, but you can alter the order of the colours. They build up at the bottom, and the idea is to try and match up the colours falling with those below, to produce lines of three or more (which can be diagonal, horizontal or vertical). If you do this, the lines disappear; if you don't, the screen will fill up and you'll be staring complete failure right in the face. So, nothing too different from the Big T so far, just a few nifty little twists. BLOCKHEAD! The game is divided into levels, so even if you're not doing well you can often just hang in there until you get to the next level (where you can start afresh). The later levels have lots of fiendish features, like blank blocks which can't be removed, forcing you to make your coloured lines around them. As you get further up the levels, you start to get random coloured blocks appearing (usually where you least want them). Oh, and in case you're thinking that it all sounds rather easy-peasy, the game itself gets faster and faster as well. (Of course.) Right. That's enough technical, difficult-to-explain stuff. If you really want to know how it all works, go out and buy it. All you need to know is that Stack Up is amazingly good fun to play. Were not talking earth-shaking originality here by any means. Zeppelin have obviously taken a long hard look at Tetris, and quite unashamedly decided to produce a game in exactly the same mould. But where it comes up trumps is in the way they've retained the same addictive quality, but managed to put a facelift on it with the new features. The difficulty level for example is set just about right (pretty important for games like this), and the graphics, while extremely straightforward, are really bright and crisp, and blaze off the screen in nice primary colours. It really is the biz. Hmm. And there isn't a lot else to say about it. Except that if you're even the slightest bit interested in having a go at a puzzle game, then smash that stupid blue piggy-bank you got on your eighth birthday (and that you're rather ashamed of), collect all the half-pennies which you've been putting in ti (even though they're no longer legally accepted) and rush down to your local software emporium to get a copy of Stack Up immediately. If the man hasn't got one, insist that he telephones the distributor to get one sent as soon as possible. (But don't forget to say please.)</MainText><OverallSummary>A Tetris rip-off, but a colourful, addictive and extremely entertaining one. (And dirt cheap too.)</OverallSummary><Page>54,55</Page><ReviewScores><ReviewScore><Header>Life Expectancy</Header><Score>88%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Instant Appeal</Header><Score>84%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Graphics</Header><Score>72%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Addictiveness</Header><Score>89%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Overall</Header><Score>86%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore></ReviewScores><ReviewerComments xmlns:d5p1="http://schemas.microsoft.com/2003/10/Serialization/Arrays" /><Reviewers><Reviewer><Name>James Leach</Name><Score>86</Score><ScoreSuffix>%</ScoreSuffix></Reviewer></Reviewers><ScreenshotText><ScreenshotAndBlurbText><Text>Keep an eye out for those blank diagonal blocks - they're just there to cause you maximum hassle.</Text></ScreenshotAndBlurbText><ScreenshotAndBlurbText><Text>Not doing too well here, actually. Er, let's hope we're near the end of a level!</Text></ScreenshotAndBlurbText><ScreenshotAndBlurbText><Text>Those shapes on the coloured blocks are pretty, aren't they? (They're probably for people with black and white tellies, we'll wager!)</Text></ScreenshotAndBlurbText></ScreenshotText><TranscriptBy>Chris Bourne</TranscriptBy></Review><Review><Award>Not Awarded</Award><BlurbText /><CompilationReviewScores /><Denied>false</Denied><Issue><Editor>Richard Eddy</Editor><FlannelPanel>EDITORIAL OFFICE [redacted] Editor: Richard Eddy Sub Editor: Warren Lapworth Staff Writers: Mark Caswell, Nick Roberts, Lloyd Mangram Art Editor: Mark Kendrick Photography: Michael Parkinson Design Assistant: Paul (Charlie) Chubb Design Consultant: Robin (Goodbye) Candy Reprographics: Matthew Uffindell (Supervisor), Robert Millichamp, Robb Hamilton, Tim Morris, Jenni Reddard Group Advertisement Manager: Judith Bamford Advertisement Sales Executive: Justine Pritchard Advertisement Production: Jackie Morris (Supervisor), Joanne Lewis Editorial Director: Oliver Frey Managing Director: Jonathan Rignall Mail Order: Carol Kinsey Subscriptions: Caroline Edwards [redacted] Yearly subscription rates: UK mainland £22, Eire and Europe £28. Outside Europe (Airmail) £42. 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). Typesetting Newsfield, using Apple Macintosh II computers, running Quark Express and Adobe Illustrator 3.0 with System support from Digital Paint Reprographics [redacted]. Colour origination Scan Studios [redacted]. Printing BPCC Business Magazines (Carlisle) Ltd, [redacted]. Distribution COMAG, [redacted] COMPETITION RULES The 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. 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 on 35mm transparencies is welcome, and if used in the magazine is paid for at our current rates. Copy published in CRASH will be edited as seen fit and payment will be calculated according to the current printed word rate. The views expressed in CRASH are not necessarily those of the publishers. ©CRASH Ltd 1991. This month's cover, Terminator 2 ©1991 & TM Orion Pictures ©Carolco. Cover design by Oliver Frey. Powertape inlay design by Richard Eddy.</FlannelPanel><HasCoverTape>false</HasCoverTape><Name>Crash Issue 91, Aug 1991</Name><Price>£2.2</Price><ReleaseDate>1991-07-18</ReleaseDate><TotalPages>68</TotalPages></Issue><MainText>AND, THE BEST OF THE BUDGET STACK UP Zeppelin Games £2.99 Take Tetris and Connect 4 and you've got a vague idea what Stack Up's like. Simply guide the falling groups of falling blocks so they form horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines of three or more of the same colour. To add variety you can change the style of the graphics to suit yourself. Simple, highly playable and wildly addictive. Go buy.</MainText><OverallSummary></OverallSummary><Page>56</Page><ReviewScores><ReviewScore><Header>Overall</Header><Score>80%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore></ReviewScores><ReviewerComments xmlns:d5p1="http://schemas.microsoft.com/2003/10/Serialization/Arrays" /><Reviewers /><ScreenshotText /><TranscriptBy>Chris Bourne</TranscriptBy></Review><Review><Award>Not Awarded</Award><BlurbText /><CompilationReviewScores /><Denied>false</Denied><Issue><Editor>Garth Sumpter</Editor><FlannelPanel>Editor: Garth 'Cuban Heels' Sumpter Design Editor: Andrea 'Overtime' Walker Design: Yvette 'Vegetable rights & peace' Nicholls Staff Writers: Steve 'Sub burn' Keen, Matt 'Yo babe!' Regan SU Crew: Alan 'Back to my place' Dykes, Graham 'Diamond' Mason Advertisement Manager: Jerry 'Sun tan' Hall Ad Production: Jo 'Trainee' Gleissner Marketing Dept: Marc 'Goodtimes' Swallow, Sarah '0898' Ewing, Sarah 'I've got a secret' Hillard Publisher: Graham 'No expense spared' Taylor Managing Director: Terry 'Organised' Pratt (c)1991 EMAP IMAGES [redacted] DISTRIBUTION: BBC FRONTLINE SU SUBSCRIPTIONS: [redacted] Typesetting by Garthtype. Colour work by Proprint. Reproduction of any part of this magazine without the written consent of Garth, Andrew, Steve, Matt, Allan and Mr Ben will result in something really utterly nasty happening, I can jolly well tell you. Either that or Garth will file down your teeth with an electric cattle prod whilst Matt sings acoustic Des O'Connor numbers and tickles your particulars with a herring. If you want to reproduce our mag after all this then you're a very sick, sick person indeed and should seek medical attention immediately, that's what we do. Oh, just as we were going to press, Yvette, our design assistant, got very poorly and had to go to hospital. We'd all like to wish here a speedy recovery. If you want to send her a line or something to keep her amused while she gets better then cheer her up and write to her in her sick bed. Whoever sends the letter that cheers her up the most will receive £50s worth of games. Till then... byeee!</FlannelPanel><HasCoverTape>false</HasCoverTape><Name>Sinclair User Issue 114, Aug 1991</Name><Price>£1.85</Price><ReleaseDate>1991-07-15</ReleaseDate><TotalPages>52</TotalPages></Issue><MainText>Label: Zeppelin Memory: 48K/128K Price: £2.99 Tape, N/A Disk Reviewer: Alan Dykes Riddle me this... What is easy to comprehend but difficult to figure out? What is completely boring but yet excitingly addictive? The answer is of course a strategy game and Stack Up, the pick of Zeppelin's latest mixed bag of budget releases is a reasonably absorbing example. It's a funny thing about puzzle/strategy games, the descriptions given in the manual or on the box sound unbelievably brilliant, whereas the overall idea of the game sounds repetitive and naff, the reality usually ends up somewhere in between. If you really do want to get to the root of a game the general rule is to remove buzz words (words used to make things sound more exciting) from the manufacturer's description. Stack Up is described as the "Ultimate Arcade Teaser.... In superbly addictive quantities". Spot the buzz words. This "Arcade Teaser" (that's more like it eh?) is reminiscent of other colour block building games such as Klax and follows the general rule of simplicity. The aim is to position a variety of randomly mixed coloured cubes, which are being dropped in horizontal groups of three, into diagonal, vertical or horizontal lines of the same colour blocks. Each level has blocks descending at ever increasing speeds, with playing screens after level two having an initial random scattering of blocks before play even begins. Many other obstacles also appear on later levels. Scores can be multiplied by setting up chain reactions and there are bonuses for having lots of lovely empty space at the end of each level. Stack Up is not easy!</MainText><OverallSummary>Stack up needs quick thinking and quick reactions. It's not too difficult but can become addictive for a short period of time. P.S... It's not for the colour-blind.</OverallSummary><Page>38</Page><ReviewScores><ReviewScore><Header>Graphics</Header><Score>79%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Sound</Header><Score>70%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Playability</Header><Score>78%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Lastability</Header><Score>75%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore><ReviewScore><Header>Overall</Header><Score>76%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore></ReviewScores><ReviewerComments xmlns:d5p1="http://schemas.microsoft.com/2003/10/Serialization/Arrays" /><Reviewers><Reviewer><Name>Alan Dykes</Name><Score>76</Score><ScoreSuffix>%</ScoreSuffix></Reviewer></Reviewers><ScreenshotText /><TranscriptBy>Chris Bourne</TranscriptBy></Review><Review><Award>Not Awarded</Award><BlurbText /><CompilationReviewScores /><Denied>false</Denied><Issue><Editor>Richard Eddy</Editor><FlannelPanel>THIS IS CRASH, THEY ARE: Editor: Richard Eddy Assistant Editor: Luck Hickman Software Co-ordinator: Nick Roberts Staff Writers: Mark Caswell, Lloyd Mangram Publisher: Oliver Frey Art Editor: Mark Kendrick Assistant Designer: Paul 'Charlie-Farlie' Chubb Photography: Michael Parkinson Group Advertisement Manager (Computer Leisure): Cathy Cosic Sales Executive: George Keenan Advertisement Production: Jackie Morris (Supervisor), Joanne Lewis Reprographics: Matthew Uffindell (Supervisor), Robert Millichamp, Robb Hamilton, Tim Morris Managing Director: Jonathan Rignall Circulation Director: Nigel Ireland Mail Order: Carol Kinsey Subscriptions: Caroline Edwards (Yearly subscription rates: UK mainland £26, Eire and Europe £32. Outside Europe (Airmail) £46 (But see this special offer!). US/Canada subscriptions and back issues enquiries Barry Hatcher, British Magazine Distributors Ltd [redacted]. Yearly subscription rates US $47.00, Canada $57.00. Typesetting Newsfield, using Apple Macintosh II computers, running Quark Express and Adobe Illustrator 3.0, with system support from Maccent [redacted]. Colour origination Scan Studios [redacted]. Printing BPCC Business Magazines (Carlisle) Ltd, [redacted]. Distribution COMAG, [redacted] COMPETITION RULES The 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 at the normal address). 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. 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. Copy published in CRASH will be edited as seen fit and payment will be calculated according to the current printed word rate. The views expressed in CRASH are not necessarily those of the publishers. Newsfield Ltd, CRASH [redacted] ISSN 0954-8661 ©CRASH Ltd 1991. This month's cover: G-Loc. Cover design by Oliver Frey. Powertape inlay design by Richard Eddy.</FlannelPanel><HasCoverTape>false</HasCoverTape><Name>Crash Issue 93, Oct 1991</Name><Price>£2.2</Price><ReleaseDate>1991-09-15</ReleaseDate><TotalPages>68</TotalPages></Issue><MainText>AND, THE BEST OF THE BUDGET STACK UP Zeppelin Games £2.99 Take Tetris and Connect 4 and you've got a vague idea what Stack Up's like. Simply guide the falling groups of blocks so they form horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines of three or more of the same colour. To add variety you can change the style of graphics to suit yourself from four different types. Simple, high-playable and wildly addictive. Go buy.</MainText><OverallSummary></OverallSummary><Page>65</Page><ReviewScores><ReviewScore><Header>Overall</Header><Score>80%</Score><Text></Text></ReviewScore></ReviewScores><ReviewerComments xmlns:d5p1="http://schemas.microsoft.com/2003/10/Serialization/Arrays" /><Reviewers /><ScreenshotText /><TranscriptBy>Chris Bourne</TranscriptBy></Review></Reviews><TitleName>Stack Up</TitleName><YearOfRelease>1991</YearOfRelease><ZxDbId>0004803</ZxDbId>