[{"TitleName":"Chopper X-1","Publisher":"R&R Software Ltd","Author":"Sidewinder Micro-Systems","YearOfRelease":"1983","ZxDbId":"0000949","Reviews":[{"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: R&R Software\r\nMemory Required: 16K\r\nRetail Price: £5.95\r\nLanguage: Machine code\r\n\r\nHelicopter games seem to have been popular recently. In this new game you are commander of a chopper gunship, and your task is to destroy invading aliens. These come in the form of SPINAD, best described as flapping Y shaped things, SPORE and FUSA. The Spinad have a zig-zag formation, moving slowly across the screen from right to left. Your chopper is stationed on the left and only moves up and down. The Fusa burrow into the earth and then fire out Spores. The other hazard is the weather - it's raining that old arcade favourite, meteors which travel diagonally down the screen. Being hit by anything, of course, means a loss of life.\r\n\r\nCOMMENTS\r\n\r\nControl keys: 6/7 = down/up 0 = fire, 9 = smart bomb\r\nJoystick: Kempston, Mikrogen, AGF, Protek, cursor clip on\r\nKeyboard play: responsive\r\nColour: average\r\nGraphics: average, nice and big though\r\nSound: very good\r\nSkill levels: 1\r\nLives: 3","ReviewerComments":["The effect of your travelling over a landscape is done by very slowly scrolling the ground beneath the helicopter, but it doesn't really create the sense of flying. Your rocket fire is reasonably potent and there are two smart bombs when all else fails, but in the end there just isn't very much to this game apart from shooting or dodging the aliens on their predictable path. They get through to you not because you may lack the skill, but because like any good Casino, the odds are stacked slightly in favour of the aliens. \r\r\nUnknown","The graphics and sound are both good and the game is rather challenging as you can only move up and down. But other than shooting aliens, there doesn't seem to be a lot to it. The game is above average; it's an 'okay' game to play but didn't have much in the way of addictive qualities.\r\r\nUnknown","The first thing that struck me on playing Chopper X-1 was a sense of disappointment. The cover of the inlay promises a lot, but the game doesn't deliver. All you do is go up and down, dodge meteors and aliens and try to shoot them. Whilst the graphics are reasonably neat and smooth, they aren't all that exciting either. I think I've come to expect more from a Spectrum game, even a 16K one than this offers.\r\nUnknown"],"OverallSummary":"General Rating: A good idea, but not very exciting to play.","Page":"90","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Unknown","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""},{"Name":"Unknown","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""},{"Name":"Unknown","Score":"","ScoreSuffix":""}],"ScreenshotText":[{"Text":"Dancing bow-ties threaten your Chopper X-1."}],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Use of Computer","Score":"80%","Text":""},{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"56%","Text":""},{"Header":"Playability","Score":"50%","Text":""},{"Header":"Getting Started","Score":"75%","Text":""},{"Header":"Addictive Qualities","Score":"38%","Text":""},{"Header":"Value For Money","Score":"43%","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"57%","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]},{"Issue":{"Name":"Personal Computer Games Issue 6, May 1984","Price":"£0.75","ReleaseDate":"1984-04-19","Editor":"Chris Anderson","TotalPages":168,"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\nScreenshots: Chris Bell\r\nCover Illustration: Pat Weedon\r\nGroup Editor: Cyndy Miles\r\nArt Director: Jim Dansie\r\nGroup Publisher: John Cade\r\nPublisher: Mark Eisen\r\nAssistant Publishing Manager: Sue Clements\r\nPublishing Secretary: Jenny Dunne\r\nAdvertising Manager: Herbert Wright\r\nAssistant Advertisement Manager: Jan Martin\r\nGroup Advertisement Manager: Mike Caroll\r\nAdvertisement Production: Simon Carter\r\nAdvertisement Assistant: Coraline Turner\r\nSales Executives: Joey Davies, Marion O'Neill\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 16/48K\r\nJOYSTICK: Optional\r\nSUPPLIER: R&R Software\r\nPRICE: £5.50\r\n\r\nFasten your safety belts for yet another Spectrum shoot-'em-up.\r\n\r\nThis time you're on board a helicopter pitted against waves of 'Spinad, Spore and Fusa' which look respectively like waggling scissors, red boxes, and blue octopuses.\r\n\r\nYou can move your machine up or down as it moves slowly across a boring green landscape. But you'll need one finger constantly on the fire button.\r\n\r\nThe Spinad, which are the most numerous, bounce diagonally toward you in large numbers. Meanwhile the occasional Fusa, which floats down screen, must be destroyed before reaching the ground or it will mutate into Spores which attack you from behind.\r\n\r\nAs a last resort you can use one of your two smart bombs to obliterate everything on screen. But you have only two.\r\n\r\nThe sound is surprisingly good for the Spectrum. and all in all this is a reasonable game for 16K.","ReviewerComments":[],"OverallSummary":"","Page":"77","Denied":false,"Award":"Not Awarded","Reviewers":[{"Name":"Chris Anderson","Score":"5","ScoreSuffix":"/10"}],"ScreenshotText":[],"BlurbText":[],"TranscriptBy":"Chris Bourne","ReviewScores":[{"Header":"Graphics","Score":"5/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Sound","Score":"7/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Originality","Score":"2/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Lasting Interest","Score":"5/10","Text":""},{"Header":"Overall","Score":"5/10","Text":""}],"CompilationReviewScores":[]}]}]