Code Masters
£3.99

Hands up if you've got a violent streak (yeah, now what? - Ed). Are you the sort of person who goes around the house kicking the cat and looking dead mean? Well STOP! Leave the moggy alone and buy Quattro Fighters. The four games offer a mixture of beat- and shoot-'em-up to keep any trigger-happy gamesplayer occupied for a long time.

The action pack kicks off with Guardian Angel, a real fist-cruncher of a game where battles are fought through the docks of Manhattan using hands, feet, iron bars, baseball bats and even teeth if you're that way inclined! There are some great graphics and there's always a surprise around the new corner.

On first play, Kamikaze seems just another plane-zapping game but there's a lot more to it than that. True, there are lots of planes of different slopes and sizes to be destroyed, but you also have to rescue blokes from one side of the level and take them back to base. To get them out of their prison you have to load the plane with explosives and dive-bomb it!

MIG-29 Soviet Fighter offers shooting action of a different kind. This time the game's viewed from behind the plane, After Burner style. Lots of tanks, aircraft and power-up balloons fill the screen with great graphics.

The final game's a bit of a cop-out, meth. SAS Combat has been seen on another Quattro compilation so if you're collecting them all you'll be a little disappointed. But with four areas to be cleared of troops and a gun full of bullets to do the job, it's a right good blast.

All the Quattro packs are great value for money. Four budget games for the price of one - you can't go wrong, can you?

REPLAY

Whiffy, spiffy, tiffy and thoroughly nifty. Prey gentle molluscs, take your seats for the great YS roundup...

Code Masters
£3.99 cass
Reviewer: Jon Pillar

Punch! Kick! Strike repeatedly! Gouge! (Okay Linda, okay! The Pastels are quite a good band really). Oh hello everyone. Heres a review of Quattro Fighters. (Ouch).

THE GUARDIAN ANGEL

Fresh from his triumphant interstellar tour in "One Man And His Quiff," Freddy Hardest comes down to Earth with a bump in this horizontally-scrolling beat-'em-up. The plot is typically simple - clean up the Manhattan docklands armed only with an old coat. What's more, after years of battling finger-twisting controls it's refreshing to find a game that can be played perfectly well using just two fighting moves. The action is clearly-presented and manically busy, with villains attacking from both directions at once. This leads to some tense bouts of fisticuffs as you attempt to deal with minor baddies before the loony with the large, blunt object creeps up from behind. Topped off with lots of levels and a good variety of opponents, this is a pleasingly playable little number.
77°

SAS COMBAT SIMULATOR

Tipped to sweep the board at the annual Worst Title And Cover Artwork awards, this game is a surprisingly good Commando clone. Each excitingly plump level contains both vertically- and horizontally-scrolling sections, with a short beat-'em-up bit tacked on the end. There are enemies and power-ups galore, and although the graphics are occasionally dodgy (at one point you filch a jeep which looks remarkably like a very badly drawn jeep), the shockingly addictive gameplay shines out like a freshly brushed smile. Scribble out the inlay, and you've got a winner.
86°

MIG 29 SOVIET FIGHTER

From Russia with lurve comes this innovative slant on Afterburner. Cleverly picking up on that oh-so-obvious omission from the original, the programmers of MIG 29 have included some gameplay. Hurrah! Power-ups, limited ammo and ridiculously numerous ground defences all add up to far more than an impressive display of fast graphics. Alas, the game is destined to be known as no more than A Brave Attempt - even with a bit of gameplay bunged in, the basic Afterburner idea just doesn't work. Any game that can be played for ages simply by circling round the screen doesn't, I'm sorry to say, cut the mustard.
41°

KAMIKAZE

A merry little shoot-'em-up that finds you puttering about the skies in a bi plane. Programmers Big Red (already famous for tweaking Dizzy into Seymour have twanged the braces of convention once more - the idea is to collect what can only be described as a bomb, and then, clenching it between your teeth, crash into the enemy stronghold. Cheery graphics help things bob along, and with everything from jet fighters to men wearing rocket packs in the air, the game is no pushover. Like Cavemania, a very Game-'n'-Watchish sort of thing - bright and breezy, instantly forgettable and great fun.
73°

Not bad! MIG 29 lets the side down rather, but overall this barg is a bargain. Lucky coincidence, eh?

Label: Codemasters
Memory: 48K/128K
Price: £3.99 Tape
Reviewer: Big Al Dykes

Bouncing around the world with a cheerful smile may well be the stuff of Codemasters legend, as borne out by that chart busting eggy fellow, Dizzy, but believe me, there's no substitute for a good blast 'em up. It gets the adrenalin flowing and works up a 'moowst bagelicious' appetite. Quattro Fighters could be the solution!

Of the four games available on Quattro Fighters, two are flying shoot em ups, Soviet fighter MiG 29 and Kamikaze. MiG 29 is a fast, forward looking flight sim game with excellent graphics and well above average gameplay. There are five different combat scenarios and the game, unsurprisingly involves destroying aerial and land based targets including American F15s, tanks and helicopter gunships. Skill and judgement are called for as you avoid flak, missiles and serious gunfire. It'll take a little while to get used to the various weapons and their selection but the game is all action the whole way through.

Kamikaze is less impressive and belongs to the Harrier Attack school of computer game. Scramble off the ground and attack the enemy's HQ with a dinky little aircraft that appears to fire peas at the old Bosche. The enemy will throw planes, paratroopers, helicopters, anti-aircraft guns and even UFO's at you. Yes, it seems as though the whole galaxy is against the kamikaze pilot. The graphics are colourful though basic but the game remains fun, if a little infuriating, to play.

The best of the two ground action games is without doubt Guardian Angel. A thumping good beat 'em up that's sometimes a little overdone in the difficulty stakes. In Guardian Angel you must low kick, high kick, thump and jump your way past the thugs of New York to make the city safe to live in (some hope!). Sometimes you're up against just one or two easy enemies but very often you'll end up fighting off many more, all at once, including some very tough dudes. Watch out for and avoid at all costs the bad guy with the fork lift truck, if he hits you you'll automatically loose a life, and the vicious rats of doom must be wiped out with punishing, long distance, low kicks. The action is fast and the graphics are quite clear. Unfortunately it can be a little difficult to control your sprite but this game is worth a look.

SAS Combat Simulator is very similar in concept to Airborne Ranger (reviewed last month as part of US Gold's Super Sim Pack) and although I personally don't like this type of game, it's still an average shoot 'em up with lots of weapon power-ups and a multitude of potential targets. The battlefield is vertically viewed and colourful although it sometimes gets a little difficult to distinguish between the various sprites on screen.

Quattro Fighters may not be an outstanding collection of big licences but there is lots of playability and lastability there. I would find it difficult to get enthusiastic about some of these games by themselves but they do put up a darn good fight as a collection!

GARTH:
Codemasters are not known for outstanding quality of their games but their excellent playability makes them one of the most successful producers of games. This is borne out with Quattro Fighters - a reasonable and very playable quartet.