Amiga Computing - Commodore Is Awesome

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Ai can
A1500
slot, a
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ou can
isplay
troller,
nd you
otprint.
S games who's plot reads like
drunken I gamesters hallucinations
You M see, up there in the future, l•
there is one, wars are no longe:
fought
U
out on the battlefield, with
people L getting dirty, cold, and then
blown C intofleshy components.
R
Instead the interested parties
boot up their copies of Populous X
A
and wage war via computer. Well,
inot
quite. They do wage war, but
s using simulated forces. Simulcraft.
o
as they are known are thebasic
instrument of destruction.
n
So what's all this got to do with
e me I can hear you asking (I have
overy
large ears). Well, who would
f believe it but the computer running
these war games has decided to get
tin
on the act for real, by sending
hout
simulcraft into the real world.
oIt
can do this because of the enor-
s
mous energies contained within
the system.
e
Er. yes. Alright, so its a load of
testi. Don't blame me, I don't write
those scenarios you know.
Anyway, what you have to do is
this: Guide your very own simulcraft
around the 30 odd levels of
simulator land, destroying energy
generators. These generators produce
lorcefields within the levels
that prevent you from going any
further,
If you destroy all the generators
everywhere then the computer
packs up shop and turns into a vegetable
rack, It does beg the question:
Why doesn't the computer
just create some more generators
then, since it created the ones you
are bent on destroying in the first
place? I've no idea so you'll have
to ask Microprose for the answer to
that one.
Once you actually get going the
first thing you notice are the 3
-Starglider
2/Virusfinterphase like
D,
graphics and the second is that the
screen rotates around your simulcraft,
rather like US Cold's Rotox.
Except that was in 2-D of course.
which makes this all the more
impressive.
Most of the time you are trucking
along narrow, winding pathways,
with a sharp drop into
Nowhereville beckoning.
Thankfully you can't fall off the
edge. You just rebound from it.
you could fall off the game would
be a nightmare.
It isn't though, and you can race
along a tremendous speeds blasting
The red border is
diffused by taking
out certain power
stations. Four
weapons are
available to aid
you doing this
away at everything that flashes by.
Of course you may end up at a section
where there is no land area. At
which point you leap into the nearest
simulkiosk and whip out your
wings.
If you also have jet propellant
then you can take off and fly over
to the next platform. or you can
just zip around, strafing all the
enemy positions up and down the
matrix. What you must watch out
for are the red energy barriers.
Even while flying you can't get
past them, and at living speeds
your front shield will suffer a large
fright if you run into one.
The other airborne hazard to
beware of are the computers own
simulcraft and planes which circle
around like vultures waiting for an
opening. Blast one as soon as it
appears or it'll be perpetually
sniping at you from above. Extra
weapons and equipment to combat
the simulforces appear phoenix
like from the ashes of defeated
installations.
There's ECM, homing missiles,
energy boosts shield replacements,
radar and other stuff
besides. In fact there really isn't
any shortage of power ups as long
as you keep on blasting everv•
thing.
On the earlug front Simulcra
doesn't offend, but never rises very
far above average. All the expected
bangs and rattles accompany the
action, and the obligatory tune
does its thing to reasonable effect.
Although Simulcra isn't as puzzle
orientated as Rolm, it is considerably
faster, has impressive
GAMES
Shooting the many
assailants reveals the
weapon pods which
re-arm you
rotating 3-D graphics, is easy to
play, and yet offers a 30 level challenge
that will take some beating.
So I liked it (which is surprising
considering how notoriously tardy
I am) and if you shell out the necessary
dosh I believe you will too.
Duncan Evans
Simulcro
E24.95
Firebini
Sound
Graphics
Gameplay
VatuP
Overall — 79%)
AM I GA LU M PLI TI N G N OVVR I be l I I f I
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