Producer: Micromania
Memory Required: 48K
Recommended Retail Price: £5.95
Language: machine code
Author: Dominic Wood

Tut was an Egyptian ruler who stowed much treasure in his pyramid. Your job, as grave robber extraordinary (or archaeologist - they mean much the same thing) is to enter the tomb and collect as much of the treasure as you can. There are five different tombs and you can start at one and work your way through, or enter the game at a later stage if you wish.

The very good packaging contains clear instructions and the tomb turns out to be a left/right scrolling maze with vertical tunnel connections from top to base of screen and vice versa. The treasure is collected by moving over it, and life would be easy were it not for the host of monsters lurking in the tombs. These include mummies (the wrapped up kind), cobras, spiders, skulls and others, all of which move rapidly and decidedly in your direction. Fortunately, you are provided with a rapid firing laser. It fires regularly by itself but can be put into continuous fire if you like. Unfortunately it only fires horizontally, so you're very vulnerable to beasties coming from above and below. There is also one smart bomb per tomb or life, but its effects are very short short-lived indeed. To help there is a map of the entire tomb layout at the top of the screen.

GENERAL

Joystick options are offered, but the keyboard layout is quite sensible. A/Z = up/down, N/M = left/right. A pause and restart facility is provided.

COMMENTS

Keyboard positions: well laid out
Joystick options: Kempston or AGF and Protek
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour: marvellous
Graphics: detailed and smooth
Sound: good tunes, but not enough of them
Skill levels: over eight
Lives: five
Screens: five

Tutankhamun is an original game that uses very good, detailed graphics. It all works very smoothly too. A game with a nice difference, very addictive - I wonder what happens when you reach Tutankhamun's tomb?

The graphics really are very attractive, with loads of colour, and fast moving. Controlling your man can be alarming as he fires independently and tends to zig zag about if you leave his control keys alone for very long. There is plenty of scope for enjoyment since surviving is no easy task.

The multi-coloured monsters come thick and fast, so much so that you've got to be ace at getting round them and making sure you're in a left/right corridor so your laser will work. If you get stuck and have to move up or down with creatures sailing give you about two seconds grace. Pretty addictive stuff.

Producer Micromania, 48K
£5.95 (1)
Author: Dominic Wood

Tut was an Egyptian despot who stored his worldly goods in a large tomb. Your job as archaeologist or grave robber, is to wander the five tombs and collect as much treasure as you can. You may start at tomb 1 or at a later stage if you wish. The maze scrolls left and right and vertical tunnels wrap around top to bottom. What makes this game difficult is the ferocious speed of the beasts that inhabit the tombs. Monsters include mummies, cobras, spiders and skulls. You are provided with a continuous firing laser, but it only works horizontally, which makes you vulnerable in the vertical tunnels. There is also a smart bomb to be used once per tomb or life, but its effects are very short-lived indeed. At the top is a map of the entire complex. Doors block the tombs from each other. Lively graphics, speed and good key positions all combine to make this very playable and addictive. Overall CRASH rating 72% M/C - a maze/zap game with a different feel.

Producer Micromania, 48K
£5.95 (1)
Author: Dominic Wood

Tut was an Egyptian despot who stored his worldly goods in a large tomb. Your job as archaeologist or grave robber, is to wander the five tombs and collect as much treasure as you can. You may start at tomb 1 or at a later stage if you wish. The maze scrolls left and right and vertical tunnels wrap around top to bottom. What makes this game difficult is the ferocious speed of the beasts that inhabit the tombs. Monsters include mummies, cobras, spiders and skulls. You are provided with a continuous firing laser, but it only works horizontally, which makes you vulnerable in the vertical tunnels. There is also a smart bomb to be used once per tomb or life, but its effects are very short-lived indeed. At the top is a map of the entire complex. Doors block the tombs from each other. Lively graphics, speed and good key positions all combine to make this very playable and addictive. Overall CRASH rating 72% M/C - a maze/zap game with a different feel.

EXPLORING TOMBS IS FUN

Micromania's Tutankhamun for the 48K Spectrum is a maze-type arcade game with sufficient variety and incident to provide hours of entertainment.

The game features an explorer searching a Pharoah's tomb for treasure while being pursued by cobras, spiders, skulls and mummies. He can fire against the monsters, but only horizontally, with his laser, and must at the same time collect keys to open the doors between one part of the tomb and another. Picking up treasure increases your score and you have to make your escape with the treasure before your time runs out.

One of the assets of the game is that the screen scrolls left and right, so that you have a constantly-changing setting, and a wraparound facility for the explorer at the top and bottom of the screen maintains the smooth flow of the action.

There are also five tombs from which to choose, each with a small-scale map at the top of the screen for reference.

Any of the tombs bears exploring several times to find the best route, without dangerous dead-ends, to the central treasure chamber.

Another advantage of the the carefully-designed game is that although the various monsters present you with plenty of difficulty and challenge, you do not have to face the discouragement of starting again every time you are zapped; you have several lives to resume your search from wherever you finished.

Tutankhamun is available from Micromania, 14 Lower Hill Road, Epsom. Surrey KT19 8LT. It costs £5.95.

48K Spectrum
£5.95
Micromania

You can have the tomb of your life with this colourful machine-code maze game. In fact you can choose from five tombs of varying difficulty in which to play the role of an armed explorer who is endeavouring to collect the priceless treasures placed in the great Pharaoh's massive sepulchre.

The explorer is moved around by means of a Kempston or AGF joystick or by the familiar A and Z to go up and down, M and N to go right and left. The remaining keys on the bottom row lire the lasers, and there is a smart bomb facility which can only be brought into play once in every tomb or life but it kills everything on the screen except you.

Points are scored by collecting the treasures and shooting the creatures. Bonus points are awarded for especially quick completion of a tomb. The screen scrolls to the left though if you wish, for some obscure reason, to retrace your tracks it will scroll to the right.

Every tomb has between one and four doors which must be unlocked with the keys that are found in the tomb. Each key can only be used once and you cannot carry a bunch of them about with you. Your laser only works when firing to left or right.