Producer: CDS Microsystems
Memory Required: 16K
Retail Price: £5.95
Language: Machine code

The first computer heroes were simply 'you', now players are offered a plethora of names and characters. The lates from C.D.S. is Cedric - that's 'you' - who looks like a bear (bears seem to be a favourite). The screen contains 176 squares or pale blue tiles on a black ground in an eleven up by sixteen across grid. Ten squares are occupied by skulls and crossbones and six by little flags on posts. in another sits Cedric and somewhere on the screen, one square is taken up by the yellow timebomb.

The time bombs are no joke - they start off with a figure of 30 which instantly starts running down to zero, but not in seconds. The time actually allowed is more like five seconds. The object is to move Cedric around the screen and reach the time bomb before it goes off. When Cedric touches a square he erases it, and as he cannot move onto an already blanked square, this tends to make life difficult, especially with six bombs to defuse per screen. Fortunately it is possible to scroll a horizontal row along, which means you can get Cedric to a spot nearer the bomb and avoid the blank squares. The screen wraps around vertically and horizontally.

Scoring is ten times the points remaining on any bomb when defused, steps taken, and bonus points for flags collected. Skulls, naturally, kill. After screen one has been cleared, screen two offers another hazard in the form of yellow boots which also kill on contact. The boots increase per screen to a maximum of four.

COMMENTS

Control keys: Q/Z = up/down, I/P = left/right, B to SPACE = scroll, or the cursor keys and 0
Joystick: Kempston, Protek, AGF or cursor clip on.
Keyboard play: responsive
Colour: good
Graphics: simple but good
Sound: very good
Skill levels: 5 (speeds, plus time bombs get faster) and more skulls)
Lives: 3

At first glance this game looks colourful and fun but fairly simple. Playing it for a few minutes convinced me otherwise. It's still fun but not that easy. It's a bit like those word puzzles where there is one gap left for you to shuffle the squares up and down to make words. The scroll facility actually makes the game more skilful in a way - and possible, because of the time limit. When you've defused a bomb, another appears randomly, which gives you a second to spot it, the hazards in between and the best route, then four seconds left to get there. It's all very frenetic, and by the time there are four dancing boots leaping about as well, the screen gets busy enough to make it hard to spot the wretched bomb. More addictive than I first thought.

This is an original game with plenty of appeal - the graphics, although simple and unanimated, look neat, bright and clean. The keys are well laid out, with two playing options and it has one of the best Hall of Fame entry methods I've used. It's fun to play, but has the drawback of being a high points only scoring game once you get the hang of it, therefore, a bit low on addictivity, but very good for the 16K.

Graphics are simple but effective and the sound is great, nice continual step by step tune and wonderful 'boing' noises when you defuse a bomb. The scrolling is done by holding down a scroll key and using the direction keys for left or right. If you scroll next to a skull and don't get the timing right, you can easily stop scrolling, go into move and run into the skull. I wouldn't say it's a maior game, to be honest, but I did find trying to beat the hi-score became something of an obsession for an hour. Buy it if you like the idea, but it should be a big hit with kids'.

Memory: 48K
Price: £5.95
Joystick: Kempston

In spite of simple graphics and the unforgivable way in which it massacres the well-loved Für Elise by Beethoven, Timebomb is likely to win an enthusiastic following among those who enjoy an entertaining and novel game.

On a screen representing a grid of blue squares you must guide the hero Cedric towards a series of six bombs in time to prevent them exploding. Each bomb is set to explode after 30 seconds and as soon as one is defused another appears at a random place on the screen. You score points as you pass over the squares and lose one of your three lives whenever a bomb explodes.

Adding to the complexity of the plot are bonus points to be gained from picking up flags or reaching a bomb quickly, and hazards to be avoided such as skulls and boots. What really makes the game interesting is the way in which the blue squares disappear once Cedric has stepped on them, making it impossible to go back over the same route. There is also a scrolling facility enabling you to line up Cedric with a bomb without losing any of his squares, as well as a wrap-round facility which allows you to go off the edge of the screen and re-appear at the opposite end rather than go to the trouble of crossing it.

As the bombs tick away, snap decisions must be taken as to which route is the quickest, safest and most productive of points, while nimble fingers are needed to guide Cedric safely and smoothly to his target.

Timebomb appears to have found the proper balance for an amusing and addictive game. It is produced by CDS Micro Systems.

MACHINE: Spectrum 16/48K
CONTROL: Keys, Kemp
FROM: CDS, £5.95

This game is another version of the arcade game known as Delusion or Gridtrap.

There is already a version of this game for the Spectrum by K-Tel, and one on the Commodore 64 by Livewire. This model stands up well in comparison.

Your man hops from one square to another on a large grid. Other squares are occupied by flags, skulls, and a time bomb on which the amount of time left till the explosion is shown rapidly decreasing.

Using sensible control keys you must guide the figure to the bomb in order to defuse it, whereupon another bomb will appear somewhere else and he must repeat the process to save his three lives.

Having defused six bombs you progress to the next level, which is made more risky by the presence of up to four boots. These stamp angrily about the screen and will flatten you given half chance.

A life is also lost each time you bump into a skull. Further complications are introduced by the fact that you cannot cross a square twice. Pick up the flags for bonus points.

Each time you step on a square it turns black. Should you find yourself cut off by black squares, you can scroll the row you are standing on left or right until a coloured square appear either above or below you. You can then get on with your task.

The graphics are excellent for a 16K game and as an extra bonus your Spectrum plays Beethoven's 'Fur Elise' as you move round the grid. Perhaps we can now expect a Spectrum game with full orchestral and stereophonic sound-effects.

This is a good implementation of an old favourite, and the fact that it's been squeezed into 16K is an extra bonus.

This month we focus on the exploits of hero Willy after his mining experience and on some of the best and worst new Spectrum games.

Timebomb - Spectrum £5.95 - is a game which calls for fast reactions and even faster thinking. The player moves round a grid, trying to reach the time bomb as quickly as possible. If a bomb is left for too long it will explode. Each square of the grid can be touched only once on each screen and six bombs must be defused on each screen. Further complications are the static skulls and walking boots which are deadly to the touch.

The game is simple in concept and infuriatingly difficult to complete. It does not, however, have the sophistication and lasting appeal of many games on the market. To represent value for money it would have been better presented on a cassette with other games of a similar standard. From CDS Microsystems, 10, Westfield Close, Tickhill, Doncaster DN11 9LA.