Producer: Domark
Memory Required: 48K
Retail Price: £8.95
Language: Machine code
Author: Derek Brewster

It's well over a year since we all got excited by Micromega's Code Name Mat, a 3D polar graphics game that was virtually state-of-the-art at the time and was penned by none other than our very own Derek (who wasn't our very own at the time).

In this new game, once again, the survival of Earth depends on you, Mat, the intrepid and fearless space fighter. Again, you are alone in a sophisticated ship, Centaurian II, with two weapons systems, plasma bolts (slower) and lasers (faster). Unlike CNM there is no supporting home fleet to think about. Your task is to make sure that the network of 24 satellites which provides power to the all important Karillium mines on Vesta are not destroyed by the enemy Myon forces, leaving Earth to starve.

The power network consists of four power lines, each containing six satellites. Using unmanned craft, the Myons attack the satellites attempting to break all four power lines by destroying at least one satellite in each line. You must hold them off for as long as you can the longer you hold them off the more Karillium will be mined. The trick is to make sure that at least one line is always kept open, either by moving undamaged satellites into the position of the dead ones or by repairing the partially damaged satellites.

Centaurian II has a number of systems; SAFETY prevents you melting your weapons and stops you going into hyperspace without any shields. An energy bar indicates the state of the batteries (which are kept topped up by the engines, so long as they aren't damaged). The screen on the left has a number of functions. It's a battle computer, rear view screen, long and short range scanner, and a quad scanner which will tell you where the enemy is and how many satellites have been damaged. On the battle computer you'll see the enemy's range, and all you have to do is to manoeuvre the ship so the blob appears in the centre. The Target computer automatically selects the nearest enemy ship. After a fight, a damage report is given and the computer also directs repair droids to fix any damaged system, during which time the system will be shut down.

Out in space though, learning Myon tactics is important. The first couple of waves tend to home in on you. Between each wave there is some time to repair damage inflicted on your ship or the satellites. Then after the first two attacks, the following ones are directed at the satellites and that means a lot of warping back and forth.

Good luck Mat, we at CRASH are counting on you.

COMMENTS

Control keys: 6/7/8/9/0 for left/ right/up/down/fire, 1/2/3 for decelerate/accelerate/stop, 4/5 for cruising speed (30%)/full speed. There are 14 other vital controls
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair 2, Cursor
Keyboard play: complicated and often fiddly
Use of colour: good
Graphics: very effective
Sound: limited
Skill levels: 1
Lives: 1

Code Name Mat II is another strategy space shoot em up. Although there is a mass of instructions supplied with the game, a quick read should be enough to put you in the picture. After all, by now we should all be familiar with the concepts of short and long range scanner, battle computers and damage reports. This game has all of that and a little bit more. Of course the drawback is having to memorise all of the buttons needed to make the various functions spring to life, but the keen will soon learn. The graphics are adequate but not good enough to make the game brilliant. A long way above average.

This is a pretty complicated game and it took me quite some time to master the controls. On the whole my effort was well rewarded. Code Name Mat II has all the right ingredients. It needs arcade skills to defeat the enemy in combat, and strategic skills to frustrate the enemy's aims. Above all it requires a sense of adventure to begin in the first place. The game brings to life some very complex interactions, and it all becomes very absorbing - especially when you check for damage and notice that the battle computer and the short range scanner are on the blink making you virtually blind. Great, if this sort of game interests you then you must not pass it by.

I never actually saw "MAT 1" so when I came across this one I hadn't a clue how to play it. The instructions were a bit muddled so they didn't help playing much. I m sure I would have got the hang of playing with all the keys after a while but for some time I was totally lost. The graphics are nothing too special although there were a few nice touches here and there. There was a definite lack of sound in this game which is a shame as it might have made it a little more playable, but I doubt it. Generally I wouldn't play this game a lot as it is a little too involved for me to handle, even though it is quite addictive.

Ross: As I suspected, this game is a near clone of Codename Mat 1. It's time to get your spacesuit out and join the Star Trek league of alien-zappers again.

The scenario is a few ions different from the original, - you'll be protecting the 24 satellites that are circling the Mines of Vesta. (So that's where they get the curries from? Ed) Maintaining your satellites is a bit like painting the Forth Bridge as the nasty little Myons keep trying to destroy at least one satellite out of each group of four, so you must keep repairing them without letting the links between groups break down. Circles of boredom, perhaps?

Your craft is well equipped to feed you with info about your status, etc. As for fighting back, you've got a choice of lasers or energy bolts to attack with. The lasers are faster but deprive you of more energy into the bargain. You must control the temperature of the lasers, speed, shields and all - which leads to not only a complex game but a wonderful tangle of fingers too! And I thought computers had done away with such mundane tasks...

If you've played Codename Mat 1 then there's no real surprises for you. If not, then take a look. 7/10

Dougie: Better than Codename Mat 1 it may be, but it ain't as hot as Starion, Elite and games of that ilk. 6/10

Rick: I never played Codename Mat 1, and I'm not sure whether I should have bothered with the sequel. 3D space wars are a bit dead unless you can do them well. 5/10

Publisher: Domark
Price: £8.95
Memory: 48K
Joystick: Sinclair, Kempston, Cursor

The Myons are back again, after a year or so of inactivity, with Codename MAT II, another epic saga of alien-zapping from the mind of Derek Brewster.

This time it's a grid of satellites you are defending from the rotten galactic sprites, which power the Karillium mines of Vesta, without which substance millions will never... well, stuff the scenario. It's the zapping that counts.

The game has a terminal case of the beam-me-ups. Your spaceship has lots and lots of gadgets like ion engines, plasma guns, two scanners, and so on. All good solid stuff bought cheap off an old episode of Star Trek. They need a lot of keys to operate.

The screen shows the standard cockpit view, and an array of instruments. A smaller screen in the corner can be set to show the whole grid, or sector scans, or a detailed account of the status of your ship. Damage can be repaired by two droids which operate while you play.

Death comes when your shields are penetrated, or your lasers overheat, or something equally vile such as drifting about with no engines left. At the end of each wave - there are eight, repeated with more nasties for a total of 256 - you can repair satellites, your ship, or move satellites around to try and maintain the most efficient grid.

Despite its creaky concept, the game is mightily addictive. Later waves of aliens become both cunning and ferocious, spreading themselves thinly to attack as many satellites as they can, or grouping in force and homing in on you. Touches like that, plus damage reports and the need to make tactical decisions about the repair droids or where to warp to next, certainly increase the illusion of being a middle-aged actor with a spreading waist and an abiding love of ultra-rational Vulcans.

MACHINE: Spectrum/Amstrad/CBM 64
SUPPLIER: Domark
PRICE: £8.95

Derek Brewster's Cadename Mat was one of last year's surprise hits - and the sequel is set to become a smash too!

Mat has resumed his battle with the Myons in his new ship Centurion II - and is defending crucial Karillium mines.

Karillium is the most precious substance in the universe. It is the bringer of life. One small pinch can turn a barren desert into a steaming jungle!

The mines are found in the planet Vesta - and are supplied with energy by a vast grid of satellites surrounding the planet. If the satellites are damaged or destroyed then the Karillium mines will be destroyed.

Mat has to protect the satellite grid by destroying the Myon ships out to destroy the only source of Karillium available to Earth. He also has to police the vast network of satellites and move them around to keep the energy grid operative if any become damaged in the numerous Myon attacks.

So you've got a mixture of arcade action and battle strategy here - with a hint of that old Atari classic Star Raiders thrown in.

You have to use the instrumentation on your ship - which includes scanners, a battle computer, shields and two kinds of weapon - to zap the aliens!

You must warp from sector to sector to defend the grid - Star Raider style - using the Quadrant Grid Chart that you can call up on your Centurion II dashboard.

Controls are a mixture of keyboard and joystick - and quite complex. It'll take you a bit of time to master them effectively. But the documentation which comes with the game is extremely thorough and all your questions will be answered after studying the operating instructions for Centurion II.

The screen display shows your view from Centurion II's cockpit. You have a whole bunch of instruments to watch while battling it out with the Myons - and some useful damage reports flash up to tell you just what bits are being blasted off your craft!

But never fear - help is at hand in the shape of two droids which you can send off to repair the various damaged parts of your ship - when and if you get a quiet moment! A really nice touch this. But beware - the droids can be damaged in battle too.

Codename Mat II is an exciting mixture of action and strategy - and will keep you stuck in front of your Spectrum or Amstrad or C64 for many hours of happy zapping. Don't miss this one!

Spectrum and CBM-64
Domark
Shoot-'em-up
£8.95

After the cult status bestowed on the original, this sequel has been eagerly awaited. This time, your old adversaries, the Myons, are bent on destroying a bunch of satellites. You have to protect them by destroying wave after wave of Myons before they have time to wreak havoc.

Between waves, you get a chance to repair either the ship or some satellites. Your ship also has two droids which can make running repairs in combat. The instrumentation is complex with scanners, battle computers, status indicators and so on. Combat consists of warping towards the enemy sector, and then once there, you close in on them using your scanners, and then do a spot of dogfighting.

Damage occurs when you take hits, or collide with the enemy. There are numerous systems all over the ship; damage affects the operation of the ship to a varying extent, and you must decide what gets priority for repair.

Despite all this fairly complex stuff, the guts of the game is shooting Myons and a pretty uninspiring bunch they are too. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, some with cloaking devices. But really, these days we expect our aliens to be three-dimensional and have a bit more grey matter. This game is in many ways a step backward from the original. Brewster fans were expecting a lot more.