Producer: Mirrorsoft
Retail Price: £7.97
Age Range: 5 - 11
Author: Soft Option

Ancient Quests contains two programs, King Tot's Treasure and The Count, both designed to give maths practice and skill reinforcement over a wide ability range. After King Tut's Treasure has loaded, the menu offers five choices ranging from shape matching to matching fractions with their decimal equivalent. The player is then offered a choice of easy or hard options, speed and number of hazards. The final option gives a choice of Kempston/Sinclair joystick control, or keyboard control The aim of the game is to move the archaeologist Professor Diggins, and his metal detector around the screens to find buried objects (shapes, tractions and so on) which then enable him to open the door and reveal the hidden treasure. In The Count, the player has to search Dracula's Castle before destroying the Count himself. This time, the educational options cover counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

An immense amount of thought has obviously gone into Ancient Quests, and the range of options provided is quite impressive Both games are enjoyable for children to play, but I'm afraid what they offer in terms of educational content is very limited.

COMMENTS

Control Keys: number keys, or joystick option
Keyboard play: very responsive
Use of colour: very good
Graphics: very nice indeed

Publisher: Mirrorsoft
Price: £7.95
Memory: 48K
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair

Mirrorsoft produced a number of games which help with basic skills, but if you have not already bought one of those then Ancient Quests is a must.

King Tut's Treasure is a game concerning matching shapes, matching fractions with names and decimals. This bold statement makes it sound like one big yawn, but the game is so cleverly designed as to overcome that problem, inherent in many educational games.

As Professor Diggins you have to search for the treasure over several screens. Having only a metal detector you must depend on the screen indicators as to the position of the treasure. When you are very 'hot' you can dig, and may find the matching shape or name. However there are hazards to avoid and played at the top speed the game can be very exciting.

In The Count you are in a castle and have to answer a number of questions on counting, or a choice of any mathematical operation. When that is done you go to the library, answer some more questions and, if correct, sunlight will pour in.

Both games are smooth in operation and have good graphics, and a choice of keyboard or joystick control. As a variety of skill levels is offered it will appeal to the 5-10 age group. It represents good value and the mixture 1 of arcade action with content is just about right.

QL and Spectrum
Mirrorsoft
Maze Game
£7.95

Two games for the price of one is the growing trend for sensibly-priced good value software. I'm not wild about this example from the normally sound Mirrorsoft label, however.

The games run perilously close to passing off arcade games as educational software, in my opinion.

In King Tut you wander round a sub-Ultimate maze matching shapes with names and so on until you find the hidden treasure.

The other game. The Count, is set in a Dracula scenario and deals surprisingly enough with counting.

SPECTRUM LESSONS

Mike Edmunds looks at some more educational software.

£7.97
Mirrorsoft
Mirror Group Newspapers
Holborn Circus
London

Software houses specialising in educational software seem to have been off on their summer holidays for a while so there has been very little in terms of new releases for this issue. However, talking of sun, several rays of software hope have appeared and are on review this issue.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

At last programmers have woken up to the fact that educational offerings deserve the same high quality as software for the games enthusiast. Quality, high-resolution graphics, good use of colour and sound appear to be essential for arcade-type games but, until recently, educational programs have, on the whole, fallen far short of those standards. Teachers and parents are becoming increasingly wary of 'educational' tags and today's software needs to be educationally sound, capable of wide usage across the curriculum, capable of supporting associated activities and, most of all, be good value for money.

This month's offerings go at least part way to satisfying these criteria, so, without further ado get out your buckets and spades and let's go for a 'Day at the Seaside'.

This seasonal contribution is part of Softlee's 'See-Hear' system. The idea is not entirely new to the Spectrum but is an exciting development for educational users. Softlee's system uses a stereo tape one track providing the program, the other giving the audio soundtrack.

Loading this program was not easy, requiring a stereo output and careful volume setting, but, using the special lead supplied and having set up the headphones we can begin. The child (or children if you have multiple phones facility) listens to the soundtrack and responds to cues supplied both on the tape itself and within the program. The age level is 5+ and the soundtrack story is delightful for children of that age. The graphics are also impressive, illustrating the story and rewarding the correct spelling that the program requires.

Flashcards and word writing aids are included with the program, but although the whole package is well put together and simple to use it has a rather limited value used on its own. Described as an aid 'to beginning spelling' it can only run through the 21 given words in the order that they appear on the soundtrack. No variation is possible. It is useful for reinforcing the given words but it would have far more value used as a stimulus for the younger child to undertake some kind of topic work. Oral and language work are obvious follow-ups.

A great idea, superbly implemented but of limited educational value as a 'stand alone' program. (Also rather pricey!) Worth considering as a topic aid for younger children.

KING TUT

Having spent some time digging in the sand, how about a search for King Tut's treasure while you're at it? Under the Mirrorsoft banner comes a double package of 'Educational Arcade Action for 5 - 11 year olds. 'King Tut's Treasure' and 'The Count' being the titles written by Soft Option.

These programs are designed to give Maths practice and skill reinforcement over a wide level of abilities, using arcade-format. As well as developing maths skills these programs call for a logical approach and simple mapping ability.

'King Tut' provides five options, ranging from shape matching to the matching of fractions with their decimal equivalent. A choice of objects, speed and number of hazards is also available to the teacher. Movement is via keyboard or joystick and the aim of the game is to guide your nicely animated archaeologist, Professor Diggins, around an ancient ruin. Equipped only with a metal detector (which emits a tone to indicate a 'find') you must discover the hidden treasure. As well as the necessary mapping there are various nasties zipping around which you will have to avoid if you are ever to gain the final reward!

In 'The Count' a search of Dracula's Castle is necessary before you meet and destroy the Count himself. All is not that easy however, as various maths problems have to be solved along the way. Counting, and the four Rules are covered with Easy and Hard options setting the number of problems.

Both games are superb in terms of graphics and colour and the problems seem ideally suited to the target age range. Given the fact that the pair of programs are available together for £7.95 they represent good value for money and a long awaited move toward higher educational programs. (A cause which, so far, has only been taken up by relatively few software houses!)

LOOK TO THE SKY!

Finally, after a day of sun, sand and excitement how about an evening stargazing?

From Skysoft comes a complication of programs on astronomy. The programs, tried and tested by teachers, are available from a main menu, with additional starmaps and constellations which can be loaded in. The options cover a perpetual calendar, a star tracker, options to view the moon's phases, paths of planets and satellites, the track of Halley's Comet, together with viewing the moons of Mars, satellites of Jupiter, rings of Saturn, planetary ephemeris, etc., etc.

The whole compilation is extremely thorough and although the documentation is rather limited there are on-screen explanations if required. The options are much too detailed to do justice to here, suffice it to say that this is one of the best programs of its type that I have seen. With monitor output it's almost like sitting in The London Planetarium!

The quality of colour, graphics and overall presentation is excellent (the text layout has been designed using 'Letset' by Eclipse) and the capabilities of the Spectrum have been fully utilised. The Starmap option in particular is first class, including seasonal changes. An additional plus is the ability to print out the display.

No indication of age range is given, but for the more able junior child through to the experienced astronomer I cannot see a better value program becoming available for the Spectrum (even though it has one spelling mistake!). At £3.95 it represents outstanding value. Wholeheartedly recommended by someone who, as yet, cannot tell Regulus from Capella!

in conclusion I think that this month's programs typify the sort of material that many teachers with Spectrums have been searching for. If Summer or even Autumn days should happen to be wet, then power up your computer and settle down with some these programs!

All programs are for the 48K Spectrum/Spectrum +.

A FIRST CLASS ROMP

Theo Wood finds that educational software is a boon to teachers.

One feature which stands out when you look back on 1985 is the increasing sophistication of software in the learning field.

While previous years saw a mass of new software the quality was not necessarily good. There was a feeling that publishers were keen to jump on the bandwagon and produce software quickly for a perceived, rather than an actual, market.

Some of those programs were distinctly dull, but 1985 saw an increase in the games element and the fun/educational borderline became blurred.

PRESCHOOL LEARNING

For the pre-school and infant age group Romper Room from Beyond is another attempt at using the Spectrum for initial alphabet teaching. Romper Room is much more lively than previous programs of this type. It features a character called Max who illustrates each letter with an action. The screen picture above is one example.

On the first game, Watch the Letters, both capital and small letters are shown together with a small sentence to be read by the parent. Max then sets the word, such as dancing for D. That is much more fun than a static graphic of an object.

The three other games in the package, Press a Letter, Find a Letter, and Letter Quiz work from that basis. Letter Quiz is the hardest of the games, where the player has to observe Max's action, determine the initial letter, and then press the letter on the keyboard.

Education publisher Macmillan has produced games which follow on from the kind of skills learnt in Romper Room.

Tops and Tails and Castles and Clowns are designed with the help of Betty Root, who is the 1985 President of the United Kingdom Reading Association. Those games are involved with the recognition of initial sounds and Tops and Tails introduces sound blends. Both feature games and, interestingly, two people can play. That is really useful when you have two children squabbling over who should play with the computer.

Mr T Meets His Match by Good Housekeeping, deals with memory skills. The players have to pick out pairs of animals as they turn over cards on the screen. The one-player option allows Mr T to be a forgetful or clever computer opponent. At a higher level the animals on the cards change to geometric shapes.

The other game, Switcheroo, provides food for thought as the task is to change one animal into another in four moves. That can be done by changing the size, colour, or animal. Mr T Meets His Match is an interesting package which deals with non-verbal skills using entertaining graphics.

Paddington's Garden Game is a gentle arcade frolic in which Paddington has to go around the garden to find a pot of marmalade, catching butterflies as he goes. The butterflies are released at the end of the game.

Joystick control ensures easy use. The game is innocent enough for the younger age group for which it is designed. Paddington fans should enjoy it, while practising hand/eye coordination.

SIMPLE ARITHMETIC

While today's educational thinking encourages calculators for yesterday's burdensome tasks of long division and multiplication, elementary numeracy cannot be ignored. Several programs work on that problem and are so designed as to deal with varying skill levels from five to 11.

Mirrorsoft's Ancient Quests pack age has a game called The Count which provides practice of simple counting to more complicated sums such as division and multiplication. Moving around the castle you must solve the problems posed before reaching the library where the Count can be overcome.

The other game, King Tut's Treasure includes arcade action. You must move Professor Diggins around the screens, avoid the hazards and dig for the matching shapes, match a fraction with a decimal or fraction with a name.

Psion and ASK collaborated on two of the year's best programs which deal with numbers. Estimator Racer is another arcade classic in which you have to race around a track as fast as possible. The faster you go the more frequently you have to answer questions. The speed and level can be selected and depend on the type of car and player's control.

Estimator Racer is different from other similar programs in that it is not the correct answer which is needed but the one nearest to the answer. That skill is useful when using a calculator, and encourages quick thinking without the need for complete accuracy.

Number Painter is another program with the same pedigree. This time the aim is to reach the target number by painting out other numbers - such as +2, +3 - until the target is reached. Based on a platform and ladders game, and operating at a number of different skill levels, Number Painter is great fun and has enough action to appeal to players who are hooked on games.

ADVENTURES

Adventure games have proved popular and the format is selling well in adventure books with multiple choice options. Taking an active role in the development of the plot, young readers are encouraged to improve their reading skills.

Mirrorsoft's Phineas Frogg must be considered a classic of its type for eight to 10 year olds. A story book is provided to fill in the plot background before you start the game, and a multiple choice of action is shown on each screen. There are also several arcade games which have to be played to solve the mystery, which is to save the scientist Mole from the Secret Lair of the Terrible Hamsters - SLOTH for short.

Jack in Magiciand could be played by the same age group, or as with Phineas, with younger non-readers as an alternative to reading a story. Based on the old tale it too has options. As a text-only adventure it lacks some of the interest of Phineas, but that is compensated by using a more descriptive text.

SIMULATIONS

Simulations are one way of introducing a subject and practising skills. Weathermaster by Sinclair/Macmillan is one of my favourites. Using it you can play at being a weather forecaster.

Onscreen you see a picture of the British isles and the frontal systems moving over the chart. The aim of the game is to provide a correct forecast. That must be done for each region until the whole country has been covered. If you can do that you can become a weathermaster - no mean feat.

Oilstrike is another in the Science Horizons series from Sinclair/Macmillan. It is a simulation similar to Weathermaster but this time you have to survey and drill for oil. The secret is to find suitable oil-bearing strata before drilling, otherwise costs mount turning the operation into what could prove to be a fruitless exercise.

The success of sports simulations in the software charts proves their popularity. Two sports simulations which require more skill than usual are Yacht Race and Run For Gold, both from Hill MacGibbon.

Yacht Race is an introduction to the art of sailing and comes with a printed chart of the different courses. There are six levels of difficulty which allow the novice to learn by coping with steering the dinghy before moving on to trimming the sails and setting the balance.

Run For Gold similarly requires a learning curve to fully master the pace and steering of your two chosen runners. Setting the pace too high for your runners will quickly tire them out. The object of the game is to increase your fitness level in local meets, before moving on to reach Olympic standard.

The Spectrum is not noted for its musical capability but one program stands out which uses what little there is to the full. Music Typewriter, from Romantic Robot, enables you to print out a score on to a wide selection of printers and interfaces.

The product is a real aid to budding composers who are working with a musical instrument. You can ENTER the notes with the help of the keyboard overlay which is provided, and edit the tune bar by bar.

A substantial section dealing with setting key changes, rhythm or tempo, as well as right or left-hand play options, means that the package can cover a wide variety of musical styles. You cannot use chords, but that is a failing of the hardware.

MORE LOGO LOGIC

Sinclair's own version of Logo was a critical success in 1984 and provided Spectrum owners with the chance to experiment with a full implementation of the language. Two Logo lookalikes were released in 1985 which offer Logo facilities of Logo at a reduced price.

Spectrum Logo Graphics from Sigma deals purely with turtle graphics. Using a keyboard overlay the main commands can be ENTERed with single key stroke. Spacing between commands is added automatically. That may be of some help to younger children but the entry of commands will not deter most children. The big drawback with the program is, however, that routines cannot be SAVEd.

The second Logo program was Picture Logic, from Addison Wesley. The program is a reworking of Heather Govier and Malcolm Neave's earlier program Logo Challenge.

Picture Logic adopts the structured approach to turtle-type graphics. The book accompanying the software takes you through the first stages and beyond by a series of exercises, called challenges, with many hints and tips to help beginners. In neither of the two programs is there any list processing facility which can be found in the full Sinclair version. If, however, you want turtle graphics and want a structural approach Picture Logic is the best buy.

One package which is easy to use and provides access to the Spectrum's graphics capability is New Generation's Light Magic. The program allows you to draw onscreen, change brush size and generally play around with colour and pattern without any programming skills. A program such as that can give some insight into how a graphic system works as well as being instantly usable.

BOOKWARE

For 11 to 16 year olds the Century Communications book Maths Tutor for the Spectrum is to be recommended. It is not a revision package but a self-contained maths course in book form with a tape for a few pounds extra.

A maths course could well be very difficult to follow but author Robert Carter has brought a masterly use of language into play which ensures that the whole subject does not become too dry. The explanations in the book are oustandingly clear and simple, and use of the programs in the book reinforces understanding of the mathematical concepts required up to O Level.

Revision programs are the mainstay of the program lists for secondary school age. The best of those on the science side are the Pan/Hill MacGibbon packages, called Pan Course Tutors. They cover all the usual science subjects and come with a text book.

There are diagnostic tests at the beginning of the programs which help students to identify weak spots in their study course.

The student is then directed to a suitable module. The modules make extensive use of screen windows, with one for the explanation, one for a question and a third for hints.

Penguin has released more titles in its study range, which mostly cover English Literature. Those operate on database techniques which allow you to browse through and follow characters in a novel or play. As the study of English Literature is largely interpretive, and the space for text is extremely limited, it would seem that those and other, similar, packages offer little real advantage over revision notebooks.

WORLDLY WISE

A program for older students which does not concern revision is Worldwise, a study of nuclear weapons. It operates as a database as well as providing a basis for playing negotiation simulations. It is meant as a factual program and not, in itself, an opinion former.

The Richardson institute for Conflict and Peace Research, at Lancaster University, operates an update system for members of the user group WUG - Worldwise Users Group, membership £2.00. Extra copies and microdrive versions can be obtained through the group at a special price.

Programs such as Worldwise can be used to provide the basis for intelligent discussion in an area which is renowned for bias and emotion, frequently unsupported by hard facts.

All in all, 1985 has been a good year for educational software. As it becomes less easy to rely on simple rule and drill exercises, producers of software are showing imagination and wit in their programs. In doing so the packages are becoming more attractive to use and more fun to play.