[{"TitleName":"Blazing Thunder","Publisher":"Hi-Tec Software Ltd","Author":"Dave Thompson, Richard Morton","YearOfRelease":"1990","ZxDbId":"0000564","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":"Hi-Tec Software\r\n£2.99\r\n\r\nThere you were in the middle of a tank battle in the future when suddenly - bang! - you go and rip a hole in the space time continuum, and now you find yourself fighting a battle, but far back in the mists of time!\r\n\r\nBlazing Thunder is a vertically scrolling blast-'em-up which plays a bit like Ikari Warriors. The graphics are all well drawn with a variety of enemies and backgrounds to play against. Though monochrome, the colour used changes each level the further you go the better the weapons you can collect.\r\n\r\nThere are no outstanding features to the game really, you just trundle your tank around the levels shooting anything that looks threatening until you come to the end of the level where a huge enemy awaits.\r\n\r\nIt's all on the difficult side really - no matter how careful you are there's always a giant soldier who pops up and shoots at you! Fun for a while but lacking lastability.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"52","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Nick Roberts","Score":"63","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"63%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Your Sinclair Issue 85, Jan 1993","Price":"£2.5","ReleaseDate":"1992-12-13","Editor":"Linda Barker","TotalPages":52,"HasCoverTape":false,"FlannelPanel":"YOUR SINCLAIR\r\nABC 40,648\r\n\r\nEditor: Linda Barker\r\nArt Editor: Andy Ounsted\r\nStaff Writer: Jon Pillar\r\nEditorial Contributors: Steve Anderson, Craig Broadbent, Dave Golder, Tim Kemp, Stuart Campbell, Simon Cooke\r\nArt Contributors: Nick Davies, Phil McCardle\r\nCover Artwork: Mike Roberts\r\nSenior Sales Executive: Jackie Garford\r\nProduction Co-ordinator: Lisa Read\r\nProduction Technicians: Chris Stocker\r\nScanning: Simon Windsor, Jon Moore, Simon Chittenden\r\nPublisher: Colin Campbell\r\nPromotions Manager: Michelle Harris\r\nPromotions Assistant: Tamara Ward\r\nGroup Publisher: Greg Ingham\r\nCirculation Director: Sue Hartley\r\n\r\nYour Sinclair, Future Publishing [redacted]\r\n\r\nManaging Director Chris Anderson\r\n\r\nPrinters: Riverside Press [redacted]\r\nSubscriptions: Future Publishing Ltd. [redacted]\r\n\r\n©Future Publishing 1992. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of W Scribo.\r\n\r\nISSN 0269 6983\r\n\r\nYour Sinclair has got more gold glitter in its little fingernail than Commodore Format, Amstrad Action, Amiga Format, PCW Plus, PC Answers, Mega, Super Play, PC Plus, Sega Power, Amiga Power, Amiga Shopper, Classic CD, Needlecraft, Cycling Plus, Photo Plus, Mountain Biking UK, PC Format, Public Domain, ST Format, Total! and Today's Vegetarian put together."},"MainText":"Hi-Tec\r\n£3.99 cassette\r\n[redacted]\r\nReviewer: Jon Pillar\r\n\r\nOld games never die, they just get remade. Commando is still (still!) one of the most playable games on the Speccy - a triumph of design. What many people failed to notice was it was a smart feat of programming as well - umpteen little blokeys hacking around the screen at once, full-screen colour scrolling, a fair lick of speed... ooo, lovely. Keith Burkhill's finest hour. (That's assuming he wrote the thing of course. My memory's a bit hazy on this point.)\r\n\r\nBlazing Thunder substitutes a clanky tank for the battle-crazed soldier character you controlled, but in every other respect it's Commando. Except for the colour scrolling. And the speed. And the playability, and so on. Actually, that's a bit unfair on it - Blazing Thunder plays pretty funkily in its own right, and even has traditional end-of-level baddies. (Instead of huge enemy vehicles and suchlike, Commando had a series of fortresses whose doors you had to blow open whereupon scores of baddies poured out. Aie!) It's just that after about half of Level One you've seen the whole game. And besides, it's a little silly that this amazing death-dealing tankish machinery can damaged by running over a small and dodgily-animated solider. (Ugh. Ed) Still, only in Speccy games eh? It's the wonder of modern technology.\r\n\r\nBIS ZUM BITTEREN ENDE\r\n\r\nAs with so many respectable but nowt-to-get- excited-about games, it's awfully hard to put your finger on exactly why playing is such a take it or leave it affair. The programming is competent, there are tonnes of opponents and bullets fly thick and fast. It's not startlingly grabworthy.\r\n\r\nMuch of the problem is the fact you've got energy and lives rather than just lives - as with every other game that uses the same approach, you trundle without bothering to avoid anything until suddenly you drop in your tracks. (Ho blimmin' ho. Ed) What's wrong with one-hit-and-you're-dead, eh? I mean, when I was in the Boer War there was none of this energy business. I said to General Wreath, 'Genny,' I said, 'You don't want to advance on the Northern Front. You want to go home and forget the whole thing.' But did he listen? No. (Because he doesn't exist. And you weren't there. And there was no such thing as the Northern Front. I'm sorry, but you simply have to leave your fantasy world and face reality. Ed). Oh dear (Sobs uncontrollably.)\r\n\r\n(Erm, it looks as if Jon is indisposed for the remainder of this review. So I'll have to take over. Where was he? Ah yes. That horrible energy system takes away all sense of danger, so even when you're battling across ricketty bridges, surrounded by the enemy and pinned down by a nasty mortar, there's no excitement. None. What a waste. Mind you, it does perk up when you're suddenly confronted by the incredibly huge end-of-level baddies, but, erm, they're actually a doddle to beat. So a bit of a missed opportunity all round really. Oh, do stop crying. Ed)","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"Uppers: You can't really gou wrong with a Commando clone...\r\n\r\nDowners: ...although Blazing Thunder comes close to managing it.\r\n\r\nNo different from any other vertical shooter.","Page":"17","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Jon Pillar","Score":"54","ScoreSuffix":"%"}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"After only five minutes of digging away at the sand with a teaspoon, Gregory had found oil. He was very upset. His brother, Rasputin, had struck oil after only two minutes..."},{"Text":"It had been ten years since the last rainstorm. The walls had been deeply eroded, onion weathering had taken its toll on the stones and the plants were visibly wilting."}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Overall","Score":"54%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]