Microhobby Semanal 29-32

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Here we are with another thread about reviews of MH BASIC games for you, my dear ermmm... lovers of pureness that there are in these kind of games ('masochists gamers I'd call them!' - Ed).

This time we have Microhobby Semanal 29-32. The last thread I made was about MH Cassette, an electronic magazine sold on tapes. But the parent publication, Microhobby, released some tapes (only to subscribers, IIRC) of the BASIC lists from its paper issues. One of them is the one I'll review.



I chose 29-32 because it includes the first issues of this paper magazine I started buying just some days after I got my brand-new Spectrum Plus. They included many lists in its BASIC section (many of them I typed up in that summer of 1985!).

Let's start with:

El Barman by Julián Arranz



This a very special game as it's the first one I typed. It was not too long, which encourages me to type it up. The result was a nice impression.

It's a frogger-like game in which you're a waiter and must serve drinks to the customers sat in the tables on the down side of the screen (O.O.O. etc). The problem is the cafeteria is at the other side of the street (upper side of the screen) so the waiter must cross a crowded four-lanes avenue (yes, 4 lanes!!!) to accomplished its mission. Then, back to the cafeteria (a white little square up the screen) crossing the avenue again to get another drink to serve another table, all in a limited time (avoid time units reach 600) with five lifes.

Keys are O-up, W-down, Q-left and P-right (yes, only Ultimate made it harder defining playing keys!).

In the original list background of game (PAPER) was white instead of blue, what makes it looks better, IMO. You can see the original list in paper here (upper side of the page).

Some conclusions I had after first playing this game:

- BASIC games can be cute and funny
- The cafeteria proprietor studied in Harvard Bussiness School, definitely.
- The waiter served in Vietnam some years before.

[R-Tape]

Heh. I love games that pass off an absurd plot/premise as if it were normal. I think even Amazon employees have more rights than this poor chap.

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Músculos (Muscles) by Angel Salanguera



This is an educational program to study the human muscles. If you've always wanted to know what are their spanish names (I presume nobody here!), this is your program. So press reset and load next game.

First of all, it asks you to load a previous file. Just press N. Then a new screen asks you if you want to study (1) or make a test (2) of: head muscles (C), trunk muscles (T) or limbs muscles (E). Make a combination of both groups in the INPUT answer. Then the program will ask you to correct (?) the selection. Press N.

It's curious to see how the Spectrum BASIC can draw parts of the human body well, in spite of its limitations.

One of the games that justified that...

We bought it to help with your homework
We bought it to help with your homework
And the household accounts
etc etc

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Obstáculos (Obstacles) by José V. Monrabal.



Drive a glamurous sports car in an horizontal-scroll racing game on a road, trying to avoid obstacles. Well, actually trying to pass through where the gap is, because every obstacle occupy the whole road (Walls on the road? WTF?)

The flickering movement of the car and the rest of graphics don't avoid to find it surprisingly addictive in the first games, moving the car through the gaps becomes an obsession but once you get the hang of it it becomes boring.

The crappy feature is that you didn't even know the score you get when you crash as there's no PAUSE command when the score is displayed (line 5010), it returns directly to the 'stop the tape' starting screen.

Q - up and A - down is all you need to drive the car.
J = play
S= reset

[PeterJ]

I love these reviews. Thank you.

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Astro by Manuel Orcera



This was also reviewed in the MH Cassette thread I opened last april as it appeared in both tapes. Anyway, it's time to remember it!

Weird game in which you control an astronaut along some screens. First one, a labyrinth. If you touch the walls, you're dead, what is highly likely due to the difficult control of character. Frustrating.

Then, a new screen in which you must avoid and shoot stars. Strange level, as you're supposed to lose a life if collide with any stars, but sometimes you collide and nothing happens. I think I'm missing something.

Then, two new screens similar to the latter ones. If, after those four screens, you don't get a minimum of 27.500 points, you can't go to the next screens (it seems there are six in total). The problem is there's no points counter on the screen.

If you get that amount of points (of make use of the GO TO command ) you go to the next screen, in which you must avoid and shoot a sort of space objects. This time with points and oxygen counter (whenever you collide with an object, your oxygen counter decreases). Probably the best level.

[Juan F. Ramirez]

I love these reviews. Thank you.

You're welcome.

Try the games and tell!

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Monitor by Francisco Coto



It's a programing utility that let you write programs in machine code, hexadecimal and debugging.

You must have the cursors in C mode (capitals) to introduce the commands: C, K, M, G, ... that according to the instructions in the magazine page, makes stuff coders find exciting but I have not idea what it is about. The mentioned page is this one.

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Acorralado (Cornered) by Carmelo Rubiano



This is a maze game. In the mag description (issue 32, page 26) it is only says that you're cornered and must get out of the maze, finding the door. A very detailed instructions, as you can see.

The game starts with the maze being built, it takes some time. Some time to read a book, do the ironing, have a walk, travel to Alaska, actually.

When the maze is finished, there a time counter up-left, and a step counter and monsters counter down-right. And a little red square that's supposed to be you moving through the maze. 5, 6, 7 and 8 are the keys (I had to look for them in the BASIC list to guess it!) and you start to move.

From now on it's up to you to guess what's going on. I just move and only some 'o' is flashing (are they the monsters?). But it seems I'm always at the same place of the maze.

Just try... if you can!

[Juan F. Ramirez]

Puntos (Points) by José L. Selvi



It's the usual game we used to play on a squared paper. Basically it was: by turns, you vs the Spectrum, mark one side of any square, when you mark the last side of any square, a point for you. The player with more points wins.

An INPUT command awaits your turn. You must input a 3-digit number:

- number of horizontal row in which the line will start
- number of the vertical column
- 1 if the line you draw will be vertical, 0 if it's horizontal.

Seems a nice game (similar to 'Tramas', reviewed in my first MH thread in april). The problem is I'm trying to imput my first movement but the program can't understand me. I tried sevel combinations of digits, but no one worked. So if any hero can try and explain how it works, it'd be great.