The Wizard’s Warriors (Abersoft)
Did someone say Wizard of Wor? Yes, because that was what effectively this game is a pretty shameless clone of, even down to some of the mazes themselves looking surprisingly similar as are the warriors themselves, with the bonus of having to shoot down an eagle from time to time. Of course, a shameless arcade clone would be a good opportunity for a re-release as Wizard’s Warrior (IS 0052) complete with proper instructions which the original game lacked. No other format conversions were undertaken, possibly due to the Commodore 64 getting an official conversion back in the day.
The Quest for the Holy Grail (Dream Software)
Dream were clearly inspired by the Monty Python film when they created this text and graphics-based adventure game, with many nods and daft humour throughout, claiming that it was the first “funny-ised” adventure game – maybe a hint that some of the others took themselves a little too seriously? Dream did publish a Commodore 64 version not long after the original Spectrum release too – and both were re-released by Mastertronic (IS 0054 and IC 0054 respectively.) No other format conversions were undertaken.
Formula One (Spirit Software)
Games which were trying to simulate driving a Formula One car did not always go for the in-car 3D approach that this game did (Psion’s Chequered Flag being the main one of note at the time.) However, the original release of the game is most infamously known for its “steering wheel” which was effectively a yellow plastic device which you would roll across the top row of keys to indicate the steering rather than use the keys. It got labelled as an ashtray by Crash in its review of the original, which tells you all you need to know. Despite it getting third in the Bummer of the Year in the 1984 Crash Readers’ Awards, it was re-released as Formula 1 Simulator by Mastertronic (IS 0056) with Ed Hickman handling the conversions to the Amstrad CPC and MSX, both based on the original game, whereas Commodore 64 and Commodore 16 and Plus/4 owners got a separate game entirely, programmed by Shaun Southern of Mr Chip, complete with a Rob Hubbard soundtrack on the Commodore 64 version.
Did You Know?
Formula 1 Simulator was the biggest selling Mastertronic game overall, with a total of 568,013 copies sold across five formats. The biggest seller was the Commodore 16 and Plus/4 version, with 173,498 copies being the best seller on one format for any game, and then in sales order, there then was the Spectrum (138,161), the Amstrad CPC (98,436), the Commodore 64 (96,696), and finally the MSX (61,222)
Kentilla (Micromega)
Another text and graphics adventure that had been very favourably reviewed was Derek Brewster’s masterpiece Kentilla, released originally as a sequel to an earlier game Velnor’s Lair and set in the fictional world of Caraland. It really did expand with a good parser and nice graphics detailing its locations throughout, and although tough to begin with really did draw you in well in attempt to complete the game. It was re-released by Mastertronic (IS 0104) but unfortunately the re-release suffers two game breaking bugs meaning that it is impossible to complete – so Spectrum owners should seek out the original release or use a modification published in Your Sinclair for this version. Mastertronic handled conversions for both the Amstrad CPC and the Commodore 64, with the latter having a superlative Rob Hubbard soundtrack too.
Did You Know?
Some copies of the Commodore 64 version of Kentilla have the game mistitled on the front inlay, with one L in the game’s title. That spelling mistake is also prominent in the loading screen of the game too. It also sold more than the Amstrad and Spectrum versions put together. As for the Rob Hubbard soundtrack, it was originally planned to be a more interactive soundtrack, so that it would change dynamically depending on the scenes within the game. Time ran out though, so in the end Rob hacked together all the parts into one long piece, which was the epic thirteen minutes that you hear during play. It would have taken Rob another three weeks or so to get the soundtrack as he wanted, which was a shame that it could not have waited – I for one would have loved to seen and heard that working.
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