Reviews

After a couple of years seeing these interesting reviews and ratings, I decided to write my review of the game to which I pay tribute with my nick.

Trying to give my version of a title unfairly forgotten or at least not valued enough.

Alien 8 will always be in Knight Lore's shadow but only because it appeared later. Quake 2 also appeared after Quake and is considered better, in the same way that the former is worse than Quake 3. Another issue is the merit of developing the technology, however Alien 8 introduced quite a few novelties and details of great originality. Reactivating the chambers in a room is quite an experience ... As well as operating the demining robot by remote control ... Each Game Over involves a complex and sophisticated reprogramming process. Even the map has the shape of the spaceship!
Of course there appeared and will continue to appear better games in graphics, music, sound, effects, plot, etc, but the balance and excellence achieved at all levels as early as 1985 makes it timeless. Never a software, without being the first of its kind, was so superior to its peers.

Personally, Alien 8 will always be linked to how a good Saturday morning should be.

That's all, I may criticize some other game but:
a) In no case will my grade exceed that of Alien 8
b) They will always be historical games that I will judge as worthy of at least the second highest grade.
Such a way of expressing that everything I review other than Alien 8 will be awarded 4 out of 5!

I've read the story behind Death Pit and it's amazing.
Since it served for the birth of Saboteur, it has its little corner in history. Saboteur in fact is pure history of the Spectrum in its own right.
Saboteur is like PSX' Metal gear Solid.
Imagine that an indie created a tribute to MGS in an inferior system (commonly called demake)

In fact Saboteur! IS a cleverly programmed game if you look closely




I am not able to give more insight into technical details but it shows that it is excellently programmed taking into account what it wants to express and how, and the limitations of the machine itself. Clive Townsend gave a lesson.

Sentinel IS ONE OF
the historical ones who were most able to revolutionize the panorama when it seemed that it was already saturated.
One of the best, without a doubt, thanks to its great technique and excellent programming.
As a First Person Shooter could not be done for the Spectrum (it could not be rendered in real time unless speed was sluggish) they did this: render and capture the image so you could scroll it and therefore navigate across the landscapes.
A Great example of solution - searching and solving problem abilities

I have always considered Skool Daze to be one of the very few games to be able to be compared in a not too disadvantage way with the game you'll already know is my favorite.

I like that you remember it and its second part. An excellent second part as you hinted, to the point to be slightly more funny and varied than the first installment.
I also want to remember that this graphics engine (as it is said now) used by these two, was used once again in a detective game. Such is the flexibility of it despite its simplicity.
So here we have an extremely successful, flexible and transportable product for other requirements. And the graphics just as good. A real gift

Games as well done as this are not very abundant. It is an adventure genre reminiscent of role-playing games. There are original facets like getting some merchandise; You can also try to steal them without getting caught. (When they don't look).

The technical aspect is flawless. Although the printing of the graphics is done with a technique that erases the old ones by overwriting with the same before the new graphic (XOR), it is to give a fast pace to the game and because it is not necessary something more techie because of how well structured the screens are. Excellent art and very varied colors. The synchronization between all these elements is fabulous. And the final result exceeds the individual sum of its elements.
There really is nothing left behind. And the playability and ease of use an example set in stone. One of the immortal superclassics of the Spectrum

Dynamite Dan achieved what very few games were capable of, it was a game that got the attention even of those who were not interested in video games. And it did not lack merits to achieve it: its graphic appearance was detailed but clear, thanks to its careful animations all the characters had their own personality. But the best thing was the interaction between the graphic and the sound aspect. I don't know how they did it but being a 48K title it was capable of simultaneously combining different sound effects and not very long musical melodies.
It was like a dream come true, that for a game so dynamic and full of action there would be a sound section so careful, polished and above all integrated with the rest without causing slowdown.



This historical title deserves to be remembered as one of the friendliest and funniest.

Where Time Stood Still is another one of those games that denotes a confluence of impressive talent and impressive artistic gifts.
In terms of appearance and presentation, it is reminiscent of Pyracurse or The Great Escape. That is, technically it bets on the difficult side. A merit without a doubt, although the objective of a video game is to entertain. But here you have that maybe it suffers a little to achieve it. Maybe cause there is an excess of artificial intelligence and some characters complains too much and make the story go slower than necessary.




All in all an intelligently developed game able to push the limits of the machine, albeit with a playability that sins of excess of sophistication.