Rambo: First Blood Part II
(Ocean, 1986)
Reviewed by Chris Lennard

Rescue the American POWs from Vietnamese slave camps in this cash-in of the very mid-80s Cold War, gung-ho, highly nationalistic and violent Stallone-vehicle film of extremely dubious morals. Run around the jungle using the selection of weapons at your disposal killing the swarms of foreign soldiers intent on killing you, in what is a multi-scrolling top view shoot-'em-up. Bonus weapons can be picked up and used to amusing effect to devastate the local scenery and enemy encampments. It's basically a poor relative of superior examples of the same genre such as Commando and Ikari Warriors, lacking their originality and gameplay. Music and graphics are nice enough but it's only worth playing if you like this type of game.

See also: Rambo III.

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Rambo III
(Ocean, 1988)
Reviewed by Guillaume Chalard

After having freed the last GIs jailed in Vietnam, Rambo decides to make a little trip to Afghanistan. The film was relatively good (provided you like action and you don't want to use your brain) but the game is better! First, you have to find several items in a base full of soldiers. Be careful not to trigger mines or alarms. This part is a classical adventure/action game, which involves much killing and a good hand-drawn map to find the way out. The graphics here are really good, though they lack colour. But once you're out, you can play a great Operation Wolf-like game, in which you must shoot soldiers, helicopters and tanks. Two great games in one; it's nearly too much!

See also: Rambo: First Blood Part II.

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Rampage
(Activision, 1988)

Ralph, George and Liz have been eating contaminated hamburgers and have turned into giant hairy monsters (I hope BSE won't have the same effects), and they're on the rampage. Up to three players can take part as they attempt to demolish 50 American cities and raze skyscrapers to the ground, terrifying the inhabitants. However, the police and the army are out to stop you! This game is wonderful, with colourful graphics and excellent sound effects, and it's so much fun to ease your stress. It's even better with three players, although the controls are a bit awkward, and the tune is irritating.

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Ramparts
(Go!, 1987)
Reviewed by Chris Lennard

A rehash of the more popular classic Rampage which was released at about the same time as this game; you aren't faced with the choice of mutant monsters, but in its place the duller one of ugly looking mediaeval knights. Set in the Middle Ages, you must proceed to destroy stone castles of various shapes, colours and sizes by climbing up their towers and using your knight in shining armour to knock them down with his fists. Naturally, the castle's inhabitants don't take kindly to your demolition derby and sap your energy by attacking you. Food bonuses boost your health, while rescuing various damsels in distress boosts your score. A second player can also join in on the action. An unoriginal game, that pales in comparison with its more illustrious counterpart.

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5

Ranarama
(Hewson, 1987)

Mervyn was messing about with some spells and has turned himself into a frog, and now he has to conquer eight dungeons, each containing eight levels. He can cast spells, but to do this (and to survive) he has to tackle the warlocks and necromancers wandering the dungeons and grab some runes off them. This involves rearranging some letters within a tight time limit so that they spell 'Ranarama'. There are also hordes of other monsters waiting for Mervyn! This game involves a lot of exploration, and there is that something that makes it really fascinating for me. It's a bit difficult to get the hang of at first, but as you keep playing it and explore more of the dungeons, you'll soon love it. In fact, it's one of my favourite games for the CPC.

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10

The Spirit of Rasputin must be destroyed! His power comes from the Jewel of the Seven Planets, but to reach the jewel, you must neutralise eight spells that are cast in Rasputin's name. You must enter each of the dimensional labyrinths, collect all the spell boxes in it, and destroy the creature that appears. The spells that need to be neutralised take the form of stones inscribed with runes, but they are heavily guarded, and the only way to obtain them is to use the Eyes of Heaven spell which matches the colour of the room it is in. The story is not quite as confusing as it sounds, but it is a frustrating game to play. The graphics are viewed in pseudo-3D, and it's tricky to make sense of the layout of the room, and the controls are awkward as well. All of the CPC magazines rated this game highly when it was originally released, but I can't see why.

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5

Rastan
(Imagine, 1988)
Reviewed by Chris Lennard

Horrible monsters courtesy of evil King Karg have overrun the fair kingdom of Maranna and only its buffed up sword-wielding ruler Rastan can clean it up in this hack-'n'-slash platformer arcade conversion (rip-off of a certain Robert E. Howard character called Conan the Barbarian). Sporting only a loincloth and a large sword (oo-er!) you guide him through six levels of barren and perilous landscapes on his way to the castle dispensing justice on any passing fiend whilst avoiding the lava pits, fatal precipices, and exploring underground caves. Power-ups strengthen our hero and a range of more destructive sharp weapons can be acquired and utilised. Good looking solid action with lots of guts and gore and nice sound effects.

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9

This is a Tron clone, and it's fast. You can play with either another person or the computer, which has three skill levels. The winner is the first player to win nine rounds. You should be aware that you can press the fire button to tunnel through the trails left by both players up to three times during each round, and you'll need to know this to beat the computer even on the easy skill level. The graphics are nothing special, although the music is quite good, and I love that warping sound that you hear throughout the game. It'll take some quick reflexes and a lot of practice to beat the computer, but there's really not much of a game in there.

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A spaceship is stranded somewhere in the galaxy and is in danger, and as a spherical droid, you've got to repair it – and your previous role was to repair toasters. You'll also have to open doors to get to certain areas of the ship by solving puzzles first; there are eight blocks arranged in an octagon, and you have to swap the colours about until all of them are yellow. It's nowhere near as easy as it sounds, and once you've started the puzzle, you can't exit from it until you've completed it successfully. The digitised graphics may be impressive, and the music may be absolutely brilliant, but most of the puzzles give Rubik's cube a run for its money.

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5

Rat Connection
(MBC, 1988)

Waking up after a particularly wild night, you remember that your secretary has gone missing, and you must find her – but not before you find your clothes and get dressed to face the sleazy streets and citizens of Rat City. This is a text adventure game created with The Quill, and frankly, it's very disappointing indeed. The text is extremely brief, and hardly any of the objects that you will need to search more closely are even mentioned – so you need to look at the pictures or guess the names of the objects. As an example, to find your clothes, you must search your bath; however, neither the text nor the picture mention a bath. The pictures are fairly well drawn, although everything is very grey and gloomy, but the difficulty level is very frustrating indeed and put me off completely.

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