Game Over
(Dinamic, 1987)
Reviewed by Javier Sáez

Five planet federations have fallen under Gremla's dominion and the only hope of freeing them is Arkos, a 'megaterminator'. Game Over is divided in two parts. On the first one you just have to rush through the screens, while the second part has some adventure elements. The graphics are quite good, with some really big sprites. The sound is only average because while the sound effects are pretty good, there's no music. Now, one thing I could never understand is why Arkos wants to defeat Gremla. On the loading screen they seem to be quite good friends.

See also: Game Over II.

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This was released in Spain as Phantis, where it also had a completely different loading screen featuring a very sexy woman. As for the game... well, I was amazed! It's a Dinamic game that's actually a bit too easy! The first part (in which you enter the planet of Phantis in your spacecraft) is a standard space shoot-'em-up, while the second part (in which you must free your companion Gremla) involves some good old platform action and a lot of blasting. The reason why it's too easy is that extra lives are available in abundance, although you're really going to need them later on in the second part! The graphics and music are absolutely brilliant, and while there's nothing original about the game, it's still great fun.

See also: Game Over.

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Garfield: Big, Fat, Hairy Deal
(The Edge, 1988)

Arlene has been taken to the city pound, so Garfield has a plan to rescue her. After collecting some objects in Jon's house, it's time to set off to search the town. You'll also have to enter the sewers at some stage in the game. However, you must be careful that Garfield doesn't become hungry, or he'll have a 'snack attack' and eat an object that he's carrying! Like most cats, Garfield is sleepy, and if he falls asleep, the game is over. Odie can also be a great nuisance, but you can kick him out of the way. The graphics are quite good, but some of the locations use dull colours, and you're often left wandering about, trying hard to avoid a snack attack.

See also: Garfield: Winter's Tail.

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5

Garfield is asleep and is dreaming about a chicken somewhere in Switzerland which lays chocolate eggs. The game is divided into three parts - the first sees you skiing, the second sees you in the chocolate factory attempting to connect pipes together so that the chocolate reaches the egg-laying chickens, and in the third, you're on a frozen lake and have to find the other side. The game is slow, monotonous and boring, with monochrome graphics - I mean, come on! There is also only one sound effect used throughout the game - now, is that awful or what?

See also: Garfield: Big, Fat, Hairy Deal.

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4

Gary Lineker was one of the best known names in English football in the 1980s and early 1990s, although he doesn't actually feature within this game - Gremlin merely used his name to make it sell. What you get is an average football game which is rather fast, but unfortunately sacrifices playability and smoothness. The scrolling is very jerky and it's difficult to understand what's going on. Dribbling in particular is annoyingly frustrating to achieve. The graphics aren't that bad once you're on the pitch, and the music on the menu is good. However, it's not the best football game out there, and it didn't interest me for long.

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6

One of the most famous 8-bit games of all time, this is a faithful conversion of the classic multi-player arcade hit. You and a friend can choose between the wizard, valkyrie, barbarian or the elf. Lying before you is a dungeon comprised of countless levels filled with all kinds of treasures and horrors imaginable. Battle your way past ghosts, ghouls and a wide variety of evil monsters using magic and potions, as you desperately try to escape before your health runs out. Both graphics and sound here are delightful and once you get into this game, many, many hours can be lost! There is also another version of the game called Gauntlet: The Deeper Dungeons, which contains lots of levels designed by Gauntlet fans.

See also: Gauntlet II, Gauntlet III.

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Gauntlet II
(US Gold, 1988)

The game that follows on from the original has much the same layout, although some new features have been added. There are health-draining force fields and new monsters such as sorcerers, blobs of acid, and a black monster that homes in on you and saps your health. The levels also start changing randomly after level 5. Less important is the ability to choose what colour you want your character to be, and if you're playing with a friend, it's now possible for both of you to choose the same character. The graphics and sound effects are just as good and the game is as good as, if not better than, the original.

See also: Gauntlet, Gauntlet III.

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9

The third instalment of the Gauntlet series is quite different from the previous two games. The game takes place on the island of Capra, which is divided into eight sections. The Devil has come from hell and unleashed his evil monsters, and you must kill them and return the Devil to where he belongs. The most obvious change is that the game is viewed in isometric 3D. However, it's also a Spectrum port, albeit one with very detailed graphics. Could we not have some more colour? You also have a choice of eight characters instead of four, and instead of dozens of small levels, there are now eight very large levels. There's a lot of walking involved, as each level is essentially a treasure hunt, but it's still a good game - if you're a Gauntlet fan, that is.

See also: Gauntlet, Gauntlet II.

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Gazza's Super Soccer
(Empire, 1989)

Gazza may be a has-been now, but there was a time long ago when he was a rather skilful footballer. Unfortunately, this game (known as Bodo Illgner's Super Soccer in Germany) is utter tosh. You can choose to play in either a league or a cup tournament, or just have a friendly match. The players can be renamed and their statistics adjusted. All this detail sounds impressive; it's when you come to play the match that you start to scream. The scrolling is extremely jerky, and it's difficult to control your player. In fact, it's difficult to see which player you are trying to control. And is that noise supposed to be the crowd cheering, or is it interference?

See also: Gazza II.

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3

Gazza II
(Empire, 1990)

This is a really nice football game, although it doesn't allow you to play in a league or a knockout tournament. The difficulty of the game depends on who you choose to play against - Albania are the weakest team, Brazil the strongest. Alternatively, you can play with a friend, although there's an annoying bug where the two teams swap colours at half time. Two nice features are the boot-o-meter, allowing you to control the strength of your kicks by holding down the fire button, and a radar screen which shows where the ball and all the players are. The game is very easy to get into, and with an amazingly cool tune on the menu screen, it's a winner.

See also: Gazza's Super Soccer.

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