Alien 8 - Sinclair Spectrum - 1985

Alien 8 was released by Ultimate Play The Game in 1985 and employs the same Filmation technique that was used in Knight Lore.  It was, unfairly in my view, criticised on its release as just being Knight Lore set in space.  Back in the day I completed this game prior to playing Knight Lore, and the Sabreman game felt like a big step backwards.  I still hold the same opinion after playing them in chronological order this time round.

The game is set aboard an interstellar starship on which the crew have been cryogenically frozen.  As the ship nears it’s destination it is boarded by aliens who have removed the circuit boards from the cryogenic life support system that keep the crew alive.  You control the titular robot who has to recover the circuit boards and return them to their proper places before the destination is reached.

The game is played against the clock and you have to search the rooms for the circuit boards which are shaped as pyramids, cubes, domes and cylinders.  These must be placed in the corresponding flashing sockets in the cryogenic chambers. The game contains the usual platform type puzzles requiring lateral thinking and/or quick reflexes. The puzzles are generally more complex and varied than that those in Knight Lore as other features have been added such as remote controlled drones and piles of blocks that have to be carefully manoeuvred around.  The ghosts and guards from Knight Lore have respectively been replaced by clockwork mice and a dalek/mouse cross; the sparkly enemies remain the same.

As Alien 8 uses the same game engine as Knight Lore it feels, sounds and plays the same.  The graphics have been updated to give a suitable spaceship look and are a lot more varied than Knight Lore.  The extra objects in this game add to the variety of puzzles, both in the lateral thinking and the more dexterous ones. Where Alien 8 really differs is in the main quest.  Whereas Knight Lore is totally linear, in this game the tasks can be completed in any order you choose. The circuits and cryogenic suspension chambers are scattered all over the ship – there is no central repository you have to take objects to and no particular order in which to complete the rooms.  Another positive change is that there are no objects which randomly drop on you in certain rooms – they are there but are triggered (usually by picking up one of the circuits) so can be avoided.  Finally, the annoying and awkward shape changing mechanic has been removed from this title.  Overall it is a marked improvement over Knight Lore and more of a step forward than it was given credit for on its release.

The sparkly enemy can be 'guided' and is needed to reach the pyramid circuit.

Underwurlde - Sinclair Spectrum - 1984

First guardian, wrong weapon

Underwurlde was the second of three Sabreman games released by Ultimate Play The Game during 1984 and the only one I have not played before.  It is the follow up to Sabre Wulf and was released at the same time as Knight Lore.  After escaping the jungle, the unlucky Sabreman has been trapped in the ‘Underwurlde’ and must make his way through a castle and caverns to one of three exits (one for each of the planned sequels).  To reach the exits you have to defeat three guardians, requiring you to collect a particular weapon to pass each one.  Underwurlde boasts nearly 600 screens of side on, flip screen platforming set in the castle and the caverns beneath.

This time out Sabreman can athletically leap about the play area and cannot be killed by touching the enemy creatures.  He can however lose a life by falling too far into one of the deep caverns.  When the enemies touch Sabreman he is bounced around the screen.  Due to the abundance of enemies and the narrowness of the platforms and ledges this can make the game frustrating as it is all too easy to die. You are armed but can only shoot left or right and the enemies come at you from all around.  Aside from using platforms you can descend into the caverns by using ropes and ascend by standing on bubbles that rise from the floor.  Again, it is all too easy be touched by a creature and sent plummeting into the cavern floor.  Another annoying feature is that you jump automatically when reaching the edge of a platform; this and the touch of the enemy creatures give the game a slightly ‘out of control’ feel.

The graphics are up to the usual Ultimate standards with colourful, smooth and fast moving sprites. The sound effects are also decent enough for the Spectrum.  Underwurlde is both fun and infuriating at the same time.  I was in two minds about whether to include the game on the list due to the annoyances, but the quality of the game (just) won me over in the end.

Using a rope is the safest way to descend into the caverns.

Eagles can pick you up and try to drop you from a great height.

Sabre Wulf - Sinclair Spectrum - 1984

Sabre Wulf on the Spectrum has some attribute issues but they were not very noticeable when playing.

Sabre Wulf marks the debut of our pith helmeted hero Sabreman. Sabreman starred in a series of four games and I believe the Spectrum was the only system that featured them all. The mythical Mire Mare was to be the fifth and final game in the series but was never released after a falling out between the Stamper brothers and US Gold (who purchased the Ultimate name and back catalogue). More information on the fate of Mire Mare can be found here.

As mentioned the Spectrum was the only system to feature all four Sabreman games and had the best version of Sabre Wulf.  The Commodore 64 version had drab, blocky graphics and some of the sprites were very flickery; it had good music though.  The Amstrad version, like Knight Lore, had a bizarre colour palette and was too slow.  The less said about the BBC version the better. On release Sabre Wulf was described by various reviewers as Atic Atac in the jungle but that’s no bad thing. I still have the game in its original box in pristine condition.

The less impressive Commodore 64 and horrible Amstrad CPC versions.

In this game Sabreman has somehow become stuck in a jungle and can only escape by finding the 4 pieces of the Golden Amulet of ACG.  The game is set over a 256 screen maze of jungle scenery.  Most of the screens are very similar so, like Atic Atac, a map is essential.  The jungle is inhabited by various creatures, most of which can be dispatched with your trusty sabre.  There are a few, such as the wolf (or ‘Wulf’), which are invincible and must be avoided, though some can be persuaded to run away with a deft prod of your weapon.  Scattered around the pathways are orchids which bloom in random colours.  Some colours are helpful (e.g. cyan = speed boost) while others are a hindrance (e.g. magenta = reversed joystick directions).  Treasure (for bonus points) and a generous scattering of extra lives can also be found.  As far as I can tell there is no time limit although an invincible fire appears if you linger too long on a screen.

This is another game I mapped and completed well over 25 years ago.  Playing again it seems a lot tougher than I remember or more likely my reflexes aren’t what they once were*. Being a Spectrum game you can’t expect too much from the sound effects but they are above average for the machine.  The graphics are very good – the jungle is full of vibrant colours and well animated creatures.  Another classic from Ultimate Play The Game.

 

*I’ve since rediscovered the tactic I must have used – wait by an orchid until it blooms in an appropriate colour then run like hell to the next one.

The titular 'Wulf'

That's the amulet complete. Now off to the exit.

The rather unimpressive end to the game.....

Knight Lore - Sinclair Spectrum - 1984

Knight Lore is a 3D isometric adventure game published by Ultimate Play The Game.  It was the game that spawned a new trend for this viewpoint during the mid to late 80’s.  Although Ant Attack had used isometric projection over a year before, it had failed to capture the imagination like Ultimate’s 'filmation' releases.  Knight Lore was one of three games featuring Sabre Man released during 1984, following on from Sabre Wulf and Underwurlde.  According to Tim Stamper it was supposedly completed before Sabre Wulf but was held back "because the market wasn't ready for it".

The ultimate (excuse the pun) goal of the game is to cure yourself of lycanthropy by visiting the dying wizard Melkhior in Knight Lore castle.  To do this you have to seek out the cauldron room which is situated near the centre of the castle.  In this room you’ll find Melkhior the wizard and, obviously, a cauldron.  The wizard doesn’t look like he’s knocking on heaven’s door as he perpetually circles the cauldron and kills on contact.  The cauldron itself flashes up an ingredient you need to collect in order to create a cure for your disease. Once you deposit the object a new item is shown. You have a time limit of forty days represented by a dial displayed at the bottom of the screen.  When a moon shows on the dial you change into the ‘werewulf’.

The castle contains more than 100 rooms – I’ve mapped it but haven’t counted.  Many of the rooms require platforming and lateral thinking skills (and occasionally luck) to get through.  The platforms are made up of blocks, some of which are moving and others which may sink or disintegrate when stood upon.  There are also a variety of enemies present in the castle which will normally kill on contact.  The only difference I can see between sabreman and the werewulf is that certain enemies are repelled by the former and attracted to the latter.  This can be useful to remember when navigating certain rooms.  The sparkly thing atop the cauldron also attacks you if you enter the room as a werewolf.

I first played Knight Lore around a friend’s house soon after completing Alien 8 and remember the game mechanics to be a bit clunky next to the later game.  This was especially true of the transformation between sabreman and werewolf which can happen at inopportune moments.  Also annoying is the way you can die by having spiky objects randomly drop from the ceiling in some rooms – I hate unfair deaths.  Playing again with fresh eyes it’s not nearly so frustrating. It is certainly more linear than Alien 8 and, if I remember correctly, it is easier to die – mainly on something spiky or by touching one of the fast moving ghosts. I also found the time limit a bit punishing.  I ran out of time after putting 8 objects into the cauldron so haven’t completed it…..yet.

It is another good game from Ultimate and was certainly a trendsetter but I think I will prefer the more refined Alien 8 when I get to 1985.

One of the more annoying screens with randomly falling spiky balls

I should mention here that Knight Lore was also released for the Amstrad CPC in 1985.  It generally plays slower than the Spectrum version - frustratingly so if there are more than two moving objects on the screen.  They also added an extra colour but some of the combinations are a bit jarring.  I prefer the footstep sound on the Spectrum as well - the Amstrad version plays a note each time Sabreman takes a step which can and does get annoying after a while. The Speccy version is better in my opinion.

Amstrad CPC - Painful on the eyes and painfully slow

Map though very small due to flickr limitations

Jetpac - Commodore VIC-20 & Sinclair Spectrum - 1983

Lunar Jetman went on to star in a long running comic strip in Spectrum magazine, Crash!

Another one on the list from Ultimate Play The Game and their very first release. 

Jetpac is a single screen shoot ‘em up. It is a game I first had on the VIC-20 and by the time I got the Spectrum I had other games to play so didn't bother with it.

Your task on the first level is to assemble and then fuel a rocket.  There are a couple of pieces of the rocket on the platforms.  You can move over these to pick them up and they automatically drop onto the base of the rocket.  Fuel then drops onto the screen to be picked up and also dropped onto the rocket. When the rocket is fuelled up you can enter it to blast off to the next screen where you only need to pick up the fuel. Every fifth level you have to assemble and fuel a new rocket. Various alien enemies appear from the side of the screen and be blasted with a nice Defender style laser.  Each type of alien has its own movement pattern that differs from level to level.  Bonus objects such as gems and gold fall from the top of the screen and can be picked up for extra points.

I doubt I would have selected Jetpac for my list if it wasn’t for the VIC-20 version. There are plenty of better games on the Spectrum but not so many on the VIC. But which version is best?  With Ultimate developing the game you would think the Spectrum version would be better, but I prefer Jetpac on the older machine. The speed has been turned up a notch on the VIC which along with a smaller play area (due to the lower resolution) makes for some frantic gameplay.  Additionally the sound effects blow the rather weedy Spectrum efforts out of the water. 

The Spectrum version has much better graphics...

...but I prefer the faster pace of the VIC version

Atic Atac - Sinclair Spectrum - 1983

 

Atic Atac is the first game on my list from Ultimate Play The Game, one of the foremost developers for the Sinclair Spectrum.  They subsequently sold the name and are now known as Rare.

In Atic Atac you start as one of three characters who has been trapped inside a haunted castle.  You can only escape through the front door by finding three parts of the ACG key.  Pieces of the key are placed over the five level castle that is inhabited by ghostly beings which must be avoided or shot.  There are other enemies that appear which can only be destroyed or repelled by certain items scattered around the castle.  For example, Frankenstein’s monster can be killed if you are carrying a spanner.  Contact with enemies diminishes your ‘health’ which is represented by a roast chicken on the right hand side of the screen.  When you run out of ‘health’ you lose a life, but it can be replenished by picking up food.  If that wasn’t enough there is also a time limit.

The rooms on each level of the castle look very similar so a map is essential.  Most of the doors are unlocked and both these and the trap doors open and close on their own so you can get trapped in a room. There are also locked doors that come in four colours and can only be unlocked with the appropriate coloured key.  You only have three slots to carry objects and keys; additionally each part of the ACG key takes up a slot.  The view is a weird mix of side-on and top-down which doesn’t quite sit right with me.

I didn’t play Atic Atac much back in the day – I couldn’t really get into it then and did not have the patience to map it.  Mapping is vital to complete this game due to the similarity of the rooms making it almost impossible to memorise.  Once mapped the game is very easy and can be completed in minutes.  It’s still a good game though with fast, smooth animation and decent enough spot effects.

The graphics are fast and smooth but the view is a bit strange

Spoilers
Here are some maps I made that may come in useful

Top Floor

First Floor

Ground Floor

Basement 

Dungeon