Producer: Silversoft
Memory Required: 48K
Retail Price: £6.95 and £7.95 respectively
Language: Spanish machine code
Author: Victor Ruiz

These two games, which are sold separately, form a two part graphical adventure game. The central character is a chap called Professor Indiana Smith (no relation to the Joneses) and his ultimate goal is to rescue poor Victor and nick a bit of loot (salvage treasure) in the process.

In the first game, Saimazoom, our hero is trying to explore a hundred-screen region for some treasure. In effect this area is a maze because hills, rivers and trees act as barriers. As Smith wanders about the joint he will occasion upon a variety of items, most important of which are canisters of water his water level is always falling and needs constant topping up. Other finds include canoes, pickaxes, guns, keys et al (AI plays no part however). These items are placed into a 'bag' able to contain only four items, which are shown on the side of the playing area. Now, if Smith finds himself in a tight spot because he is being chased by the Tibag Indians or the occasional wild animal the assorted goodies can come in very handy.

The canoe can be used to escape over a river, the gun to kill or the pickaxe to move mountains. These objects can only be used once, so if you cross a river you must find another to come back. One item that can be retained takes the form of a key. Some of the treasure could be locked in one of the strange locked rooms the key will let you in for a quick explore but mind the snakes.

For his second mission Smith finds himself in the gardens of Baba Liba. His task: rescue Victor, find the treasure and pinch a princess. Again the garden forms a vast maze except that this time the barriers cannot be penetrated. You must use your skill to find a route and get the three keys that allow you into the palace. There are even more nasty people and unpleasant wildlife to deal with but at least you have the means. You start the game with 14 short-fuse bombs. If you find your path blocked by something, drop a bomb and dash into another screen, put your fingers to your ears and wait. When you return the personage will have been killed. Alas one cannot use bombs for blowing up the shrubbery, then the task of reaching the palace would be just too easy.

COMMENTS

Control keys: O/P left/right, Q/A up/down, Space to fire
Joystick: Kempston
Keyboard play: good choice of keys
Use of colour: very basic
Graphics: neat but dated
Sound: limited
Skill levels: 1
Lives: 4 and 3
Screens: 100 each

Saimazoom is essentially a collect the bits game. The graphics are unremarkable but this type of game can be instantly playable but, as in this case, has little lasting appeal. I found the animals too easy to dodge and the game too easy to play. Baba Liba is marginally better than part one. The maze area is more enclosed and better drawn, the nasties are a lot nastier so the bombs come in handy. Of the two parts I preferred the latter.

Saimazoom is one of those games, you know the sort, you buy it and feel you have been ripped off. Later on you begin to get into it a little more, until you buy another game, after that it rots in a comer. Apart from being very dated I can't find anything desperately wrong with it, but it is rather a step back for Silversoft. The graphics are big and jolly and jerky. Playability wise Saimazoom becomes boring after a few goes, I would give it a miss. Baba-Liba on the other hand is a much better game. The graphics, while still dated, seem to fill up the screen a little more (like my Art teacher I hate empty spaces). What little sound there is, is good, more would have helped a lot. Baba-Liba is the more playable and more addictive of the two games.

I was pretty disappointed with these two games, I can't help feeling they slipped through some sort of time thingie, perhaps from the days of the ZX80. While they are both fun, Saimazoom more so, they get boring pretty quickly. Neither are hard games to play so perhaps there rests the answer. I will recommend them for the toddler games, lots of mini fun, not too much aggravation.

Publisher: Silversoft
Price: £7.95
Memory: 48K
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair

Professor Indiana Smith is no relation of the famous Spielberg archaeologist but he does get into the same sort of trouble.

His exploits are featured in a trilogy of games under the title Saimazoom. He starts his adventures in a jungle, probably 'somewhere in Africa', where he is after some rare and exotic specimens. Some archaeologist! He does not know what he is after or what his finds are until he gets them back to base camp and he has no map.

Luckily, he can pick up guns, axes and canoes scattered around the place. There are 100 square screens, or miles, to be travelled within the game and the journey involves river crossings, monster attacks, and even a spot of GBH on local jungle shrines.

You can get to the shrines using keys which you have found. Just insert one into a lock and you will be teleported to another location.

The unlikely scenario, ease of play and wimp monsters make the game suitable only for those who have not touched a computer or laid eyes on an arcade game.

MACHINE: Spectrum
SUPPLIER: Silversoft/Dinamic
PRICE: £6.95

The games from Spain WON'T be going down the drain if Saimazoom - produced by a Spanish company Dinamic - is anything to go by!

This is a Wizard's Lair/Sabre Wuif-type game set in a steaming Amazon jungle.

The graphics match anything from British software houses and the game will soon have you hooked.

Saimazoon is the first of a trilogy of arcade adventures starring Prof. Indiana Smith. The second part of the adventure is called Babaliba.

PRICE: £7.95

Saimazoom is the first part of the Silversoft Indiana Smith trilogy.

Smith aims to collect several items of treasure from the jungles of Saimazoom. The jungles are rumoured to occupy around one hundred square miles, with one mile fitting on the screen at the time. According to this scale Smith is several hundred yards high, can do the one second mile and confronts the largest snakes ever seen.

Graphics are too large and blocky, with everything from rivers to cacti looking somewhat square. Lethal enemies appear while you are on a screen, and disappear once again if you leave an area and then immediately reenter it. This makes them ridiculously easy to avoid.

The major problem presented by the game is its maze-like format. All features of the landscape are solid and must be circumnavigated. Luckily you can carry up to four useful objects at a time. You could take four canoes, to cross all the rivers; or a gun to shoot anything on sight, or perhaps a useful looking key or sack.

Unfortunately it is all too easy, as you sprint around the jungle, to use up your last canoe while crossing a river and then to find yourself surrounded by water. Then the only option is to settle down and wait until you have died of thirst several times.

Produced for the 48K Spectrum by Silversoft, 271-273 King Street, London.

QL and Spectrum
Silversoft
Maze Game
£7.95

Ultimate Play The Game have really spoilt software reviewers. I might have raved about this game once. As it is, it goes down as competent and enjoyable. You steer your figure, Indiana Smith, around the jungle collecting items which permit you to ford rivers, shoot hostiles and carve through rock-piles and you must collect water bottles.