REVIEWS COURTESY OF ZXSR

Butterfly
by Hugh Davis
Pulsonic
1984
Crash Issue 5, Jun 1984   page(s) 84

Producer: Pulsonic
Retail Price: £2.99
Language: BASIC
Author: Hugh Davis

Butterfly shows a simple looking window with one vertical and one horizontal dividing it up into four panes. Curtains hang on either side, and the sill contains an electric wire. You are a spider who must eat at least twelve butterfiles per minute and watch out for the purple spider eater that lives in the curtains. There are usually two butterflies visible at any one time. That's it!

COMMENTS

Control Keys: Q/A up/down, N/M left/right
Joystick: None
Keyboard Play: unresponsive and slow
Use of colour: fair to average
Graphics: very poor
Sound: very poor, just a few beeps
Lives: 1


The moving around to eat butterflies is very, very jerky - real basic BASIC. The game itself is poor. To be honest, the less said about this one the better!


I have seen some of these Pulsonic games on sale in Woolworth's, and having now actually played five of them, I have come to the conclusion that they must have been specially designed to sell in such places, in the hope that lots of people, perhaps new to the Spectrum will think them amazing value. You're warned! This one certainly is utter rubbish.


In fact this could have been a reasonable but simple game. Catching 12 butterflies in a minute is a hard task, not because a high degree of skill is required, but because an inordinate amount of luck is needed! The graphics don't even rate a primitive award. Sorry, a waste of time.

Use of Computer28%
Graphics15%
Playability10%
Getting Started40%
Addictive Qualities1%
Value For Money10%
Overall17%
Summary: General Rating: Rubbish.

Transcript by Chris Bourne

Sinclair User Issue 30, Sep 1984   page(s) 3

Memory: 48K
Price: £1.99

Butterfly, from Pulsonic, is a simple game programmed entirely in Basic and consequently is rather slow when compared to other modern arcade games. You are a spider, chasing and eating a minimum of 12 butterflies per minute to survive.

The hazards of life on the windowsill are represented by the purple spider eater which lurks behind the curtains and who looks like an over-fed Pac-man. A joystick would help in raising the game from the level of mediocrity but unfortunately it is not designed to be joystick-compatible. Being in Basic, that could be remedied easily. Also the spider is a little slow to react and though it is possible to catch your prey, a good deal of practice would be necessary to enable you to catch the required 12.

Unfortunately, little attention has been paid to producing an interesting screen layout. The spider is fairly convincing but the butterflies are somewhat lacking in sparkle and the background is dull. Although the program costs only £1.99, it is what one would expect to find as a magazine listing, not as a commercial program.


REVIEW BY: John Lambert

Gilbert Factor4/10
Transcript by Chris Bourne

Personal Computer Games Issue 7, Jun 1984   page(s) 58

MACHINE: Spectrum 48K
CONTROL: Keys
FROM: Pulsonic, £2.99

Another cheapo game from Pulsonic, who are to be congratulated for lowering software prices, but severely reprimanded for offering this particular specimen to the general public.

A spider must eat butterflies to stay alive. Sparse graphics, jerky movement, Basic program. For far better value for money, try typing in one of the PCG listings.


REVIEW BY: Steve Cooke

Graphics2/10
Sound1/10
Originality5/10
Lasting Interest1/10
Overall2/10
Transcript by Chris Bourne

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