With the summer season well under way, we thought we would take a look at two games on the subject of cricket. The noble English institution has been covered before by games for the Spectrum but these two are new.

Producer: Wyvern Software
Memory Required: 48K
Retail Price: £5.50
Language: Machine code
Author: Not Known

Of the two games Howzat comes in the more professional looking packaging with a full colour insert containing two pages of brief notes. Cricket has a yellow card insert with a line drawing on it and no instructions, but is accompanied by a large booklet containing playing instructions and many details on playing cricket in general.

In keeping with its packaging, Cricket is the less sophisticated program, although it has plenty of options, allowing play against 18 county sides. Howzat allows play against or selection from 17 county sides and 7 Test squads. Both games allow the player to select his own side and name them. In simulations of this sort, a printer is very useful - almost essential in the case of Cricket, and both games allow this facility.

CRICKET

On completion of loading you are asked to put CAPS LOCK on, as the program only accepts input in capitals. This seems a little primitive these days. You are also asked to type in '1' if using a printer, but there is no screen prompt to tell you anything else, although ENTER moves things along. A 12-option menu allows you to select a team, load or save one, play a county side, play another invented team and several other things like change the Over limit. Selecting your own team means typing in the name of 16 players, they are then given their various qualities and strengths and when playing another team or county side you may select which 11 to choose.

Cricket offers a pitch analysis before taking the toss and informing you who has won. If it is you, you may elect to bat first or bowl. The game is non-visual - you select how many balls the game is to continue for, and the computer reports on each ball. When the number of balls selected for play are over it is possible to see the scoreboard and partnership details.

HOWZAT

Howzat is a graphics type game, which shows you the field and the position of the fielders, batsmen etc. In this respect it resembles CRL's Test Match. As the player you may select the bowler and set or change your field positions, moving them via the keyboard. Two games are provided for, one day cricket or a first class match. You may select a team from the options provided or create your own. The selected team is then displayed with the standard players and rest of squad, from which you may select the players you want. When this is done, the players' strengths in batting and bowling are displayed, but the skill factors may be altered if so wished.

When the toss has been decided, the field appears. Using the cursor keys it is possible to place a cursor over any player and move him to a new position. Between each ball it is possible to reset the field or see the scoreboard. Pressing the 'B' key results in the bowler running up and bowling. The stroke is taken automatically and the batsmen asked if they want to run or not.

Howzat has been apparently endorsed by an England Cricketer, Brian Rose. He says, 'It's a truly addictive game.' It is involved and accurate as to the selection of county, test sides, trophies and one day cricket. The user involvement is only to the point of making decisions on team selection and commencing playing actions. I would like it to be more interactive. I am sure that cricket fans will like it, but to the rest of us I would say beware - it tends to have the same effect as TV cricket (Zzzzzzz!).

Compared to Cricket, Howzat is much more slick, no need here to input and ENTER, the input is sufficient and the response almost instant. But actual play is very unrealistic. The bowler always bowls from the same end, no matter what over, and fielders move in steps to the ball to field it between each run you take. No skill is used to judge a run. Although not a cricket fan, I did enjoy CRL's Test Match, but this one left me cold, and I can't see it being in the least bit addictive.

Howzat has reasonably large characters, although no real animation is used. Moving the fielders around is not very realistic as you cannot put anyone very near the actual pitch. In the end, it seems most unrealistic to expect any sort of enjoyable skill from a game which requires a vast playing area in real life, when it is reduced to this size on a TV screen.

Producer: Alternative Software
Retail Price: £1.99
Author: Wyvern Software

Howzat! is a two player cricket simulation with plenty of options, presented on a series of menus. The first decision to make is whether to play one-day or first class cricket. There are sixteen county sides and seven test sides to choose between, depending on the level of cricket chosen, and if none of them meet with your approval names of your own choice may be input. Opting for an existing team calls up a squad of eleven players automatically. Some fine tuning is possible and when a team has been finalised, its members are given a batting and bowling rating from one to ten.

After the teams have been accepted, the computer randomly selects the winner of the toss. The batting side has to choose the opening batsmen and conversely, the fielding side needs to choose the bowler. The screen then changes to show a birds-eye-view of the cricket pitch, the two batsmen, the bowler and the ten fielders. Fielders may be repositioned at any stage of the match.

At the end of an over the score card appears and the batting card, the bowler' s analysis and the innings report may be accessed. Choose another bowler and the match continues.

The computer automatically tells you if the batsman has scored four or six runs, if the ball goes to the wicket keeper or if it's a wide. If the ball can be seen on the pitch after it is struck then it's down to you on how many runs you wish to attempt.

COMMENTS

Control keys: cursor keys to move cursor and individual keys to make selections
Joystick: n/a
Use of colour: white players on green field
Graphics: very basic
Sound: nothing much
Skill levels: one
Screens: menus plus the pitch

Howzat is truly a screamer. I wouldn't wish this on anyone. In my few years of games reviewing I haven't seen a sports simulator that has been as boring to play as this. Some may argue that Howzat captures the strategy element of cricket, but it doesn't: selecting where on the field your fielders stand or whether to run or not isn't really all there is to the great sport. The graphics are dire: UDG characters are used so there is a multitude of little stickmen on the pitch. There is no sound but in a game of this quality I wouldn't expect any. Stay well away from.
BEN

ALTERNATIVE SOFTWARE, mmm! Well it's certainly a bit different. The game features a few realistic points like the grass being green. I was very disappointed at the amount of inaccuracies and bugs in the game. Fancy being able to play an England team against itself! At one stage Tavare was bowling against himself. Or even Botham catching himself out. The bowler doesn't even get to the crease to bowl. At least the scoreboard is pretty good - but you're not playing the scoreboard, are you? Another cricket game bites the stumps.
PAUL

Howzat is a very, very boring game. More interest could have been added with the inclusion of a watch-the-grass-growing mode. I'm quite sure that no-one is going to find this value for money, unless they intend paying £1.99 to use the inlay for something unmentionable. The screen display is sufficiently garish to light a room, and the stick men graphics aren't even animated. ALTERNATIVE SOFTWARE deserve large congratulations for producing potentially the biggest failure ever.
MIKE

SOFTWARE FOR THE SPECTRUM SPORTSMAN

John Gilbert goes for gold in a bid to find the best computer sports simulations.

OLYMPIMANIA
Memory: 48K
Price: £6

OLYMPICS
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.95

WORLDCUP FOOTBALL
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.95

FOOTBALL MANAGER
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.95

UNITED
Memory: 48K
Price: £6

TROON
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.95

NEW BIRKDALE
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.95

ROYAL BIRKDALE
Memory: 48K
Price: £5.90

SUPER SOCCER
Memory: 48K
Price: £7

SUPER-LEAGUE
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.50

ASHES
Memory: 48K
Price: £1.99

CRICKET CAPTAIN
Memory: 48K
Price: £4.95

HOWZAT
Memory: 48K
Price: £6.95

TEST MATCH
Memory: 48K
Price: £5.95

GOLF
Memory: 16K
Price: £5.95

Summer is here, or so we are told by the weathermen, and instead of spending hours in front of a television set watching the Olympics or a Test match, why not spend hours creating your own little piece of history with one of the Spectrum sports packages on the market?

The Olympic Games have always brought with them a mass of souvenirs, ranging from flags to cuddly toys. This year is the same but there is an added dimension as computer software companies have tried to cash in with high-pressure selling of their sports programs, including ones which simulate Olympic events.

Automata, of Pimania fame, has a spoof version of the Games with the Pi-man working his way to gold in five events. The events include the Pi-Jump, Alpi-Skiing, Steepi-Chase, the Pitathlon, and the Butter-Pi, which is the swimming contest.

Each contest is animated smoothly and the graphics are detailed down to the last member of the crowd. After every contest has been lost or won the awards are given on the familiar three-position pedestal. If the Pi-man wins he takes a bow but if he loses he runs round the stadium shaking his fist at the crowd. Pi-man may have learned to be an athlete but he is certainly no sportsman.

Olympimania, being from Automata, is a joke but should provide the usual hours of fun if you can suffer the inane humour of the Pi-man. You might also like to try the experience of listening to the soundtrack of the Pi-Land International Anthem on the reverse side of the cassette.

The game should also appeal to people who find the real Olympics dull but if you take a more serious interest you will want to run Olympics, which is another spin-off from CRL. The program includes 14 events and is LOADed in two 48K parts.

Side one of the cassette includes events such long jump, discus, shot putt and javelin. The other side contains six events which are held outside the stadium. They include cycling, swimming, canoeing and yachting. A marathon has also been included, run in five sections, each part between the other events.

In the standard game you will take the part of the British team. The computer will challenge the might of three other teams consisting of the United States, the Soviet Union and the Rest of the World - this might be the only opportunity you have to see the Soviet Union compete in the Games.

Once you have been through the first half of the Games the medals your team has won will be added to the score you accumulate in the second half. Unfortunately, only gold medals are awarded and you receive no points for being second or third. That detracts from authenticity as the Olympics are not the same without silver and bronze.

The graphics which show the events taking place are not so good as those of Olympimania but the ways in which the athletes compete in terms of skill and energy levels have been well thought out. Sufficient realism has been incorporated into the program that athletes will start to slow during the events if you over-stretch their limits.

The games are written in Basic with a corresponding slowness in the speed of graphics and the way in which results are calculated.

Olympics will interest fans who buy anything to do with the Games but will disappoint others who are looking for good sporting software.

The World Cup is to football enthusiasts what the Olympics is to athletics fans. Artic Computing has decided to produce its own World Cup Football for the Spectrum two years early.

You take the part of one of the teams playing in the cup and take it through a series of games to reach the final. Each game has the usual time-scale, including injury time if necessary, but the time factor is scaled-down so that each game takes about five minutes to play.

The graphics representation of play shows part of the field and the life-like actions of the players. The players even return to the dressing rooms at half-time.

Your control is limited to the footballer who is nearest to the ball in your team. That player will light up when in possession of the ball.

World Cup Football can be played at nine levels and there are 40 teams in contention. The game is addictive and should even be of interest to people who know nothing about football.

United, from CCS, on the other hand is a poor relation of the Addictive Games Football Manager and has none of the thrills of the Artic game. The four league tables are there, you can pick your team, and you can spy on the other teams to find their weak spots. The only people who will like it, however, are those who like looking at tables of figures, as the graphics displayed when games are taking place are appalling, having a green background with little pin-men making a brave effort to keep contact with the ball.

United is so uninteresting that it cannot be recommended, even to beginners. If you want a good game buy Football Manager, which is still the best value for money.

Super Soccer is much the same as United. It is poorly-presented, slow, and we also had difficulty in LOADing our copy, which could point to the use of low-quality cassettes for reproduction.

Winters is a small company which exists solely because of its range of sports programs. Super Soccer is not one of its better efforts, which is a pity, as some thought appears to have been put into the game. It can be obtained from Winters Ltd, 24 Swannington Close, Cantley, Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN4 6UA.

Super-League, for the 48K Spectrum, is from Cross Software and, thankfully, different from the other play-and-get-to-the-top-of-the-league games. At the start you have to decide the skill level at which you are to play. That is based, as ever, on the league position but, in the case of Super-League, you have either to finish in the top six, in the top half, or avoid relegation. Unfortunately the game is limited, as there is only one division in which to play. If you are relegated you join the losers and the game finishes.

Like many other football games on the market, the program is just a database which manipulates numbers to produce the league results. It would not be half so bad if the players were shielded from all the calculations by more varied methods of input but numbers have to be balanced on the skill sheets to provide marks for dribbling skill, strength of kick and supporting energy in attack and defence.

Everything is entered as numbers and the computer then plays the game for you. That is followed by a 30-second wait for results, which would deter the strongest of us from football for life.

It is obvious that the major criticism of the game is that you are not given sufficient involvement during play. Although Super-League will become tedious for hunters for action, there are sufficient aspects in it to hold the attention of a fanatic. It is pity that most of the game is played by the computer but if you prefer to plot strategy quietly and slowly, Super-League is for you.

The cricket season is in full swing and there are many games for the Spectrum which will support fans when their teams have walked off out of the rain. Ashes, from Pulsonic, is the cheapest in the range at £1.99. It provides a good graphic simulation of the game for the 48K Spectrum. At the start you are given a choice of venues. There are 10 of them, five in England and five in Australia. Your choice will, of course, affect the type of bowlers you can select.

Each team has 11 players you can choose, or you can use the two teams which are already in the computer. You can specify the type of bowler you require as fast, swing/seam or spin. The toss is made and the winner automatically bats first. If you are not batting you will have to field your players to take advantage of the ground and particular batsmen. Positioning is limited as you can choose only from those positions indicated by the computer.

Like so many sports games, Ashes relies heavily on numeric input. If you are batting you have to match your stroke with the way the bowler pitches at you by entering a numeric option. The same is true of bowling. You must press a number to signify your choice of line and length.

Howzat, from Wyvern Software, is one of the best cricket games available. The graphics display is freer than Ashes, as you can decide where you want to put your players without restriction on field areas. You can also change the field if you think it is necessary at most points in the game.

Wyvern has opted for realism as it has included 17 first-class county squads and seven Test squads with which you can play. As with Ashes you can choose a standard team or select one of your own. Howzat, however, has an edge over Ashes as you have a wider range of teams from which to select your 11 players.

Details of matches and information about the state of players is given quickly and efficiently. Wyvern has even included a realistic scoreboard to show the events while play is taking place. Its depth of play and proximity to the real thing could not be beaten even by such games as Test Match, from CRL, or Cricket Captain, from Allanson Computing, which aim to produce the same effect.

If your game is golf rather than cricket, there are many simulations of courses round Britain, including the Troon and New Birkdale classics from Hornby Software. Among the newer releases Royal Birkdale, from Ocean, is one of the best.

The game takes you to the famous course which has hosted the Open championship and has been the haunt of many famous players.

At the start you are given the opportunity to alter the wind speed conditions. You then select your club and take a position at the first tee. There are 10 clubs in all, the first being a driver and the last a sand iron. Directions are entered using a clock-face technique in which 0 and 360 degrees point north. That is the method used by all computer golf games, although some vary the directions round the clock.

The instructions on the cassette insert are more than adequate and provide hints on how to play in the rough and which clubs to use on any occasion.

The course is laid out hole by hole and when your ball hits the green a close-up of the hole is given so that you have a better chance of holing the ball.

The only criticism is that the graphics representing the course are too detailed and the different areas of the course tend to clash with each other. If you can tolerate the cluttered screen display, Royal Birkdale should give you many hours of pleasure. Like any of the other sports games on the Spectrum it can be just as much fun for a non-sports player as for an enthusiast.

Virgin has recently issued its version of Golf but, unlike most of the other companies specialising in sports, it has aimed its program at the 16K Spectrum. The game, for one to four players, scores points on graphics display, which is more inviting and easier to read than that of Ocean, but it does not have the same feel of a real course Royal Birkdale offers.

The Virgin version offers play at a varying number of holes, from one to 18, and will allow you to use one of six clubs for each shot. Wind direction and speed are not taken into account so noticeably during the game but the names of the clubs and strength with which you hit the ball are important factors.

Golf uses the same direction input system as Royal Birkdale but is more precise as to the points of the compass in relation to the player. It is certainly a match for Royal Birkdale but the Ocean game wins for its authenticity.

If we were to apply a rule that all sports games had to be representative of reality, none of those reviewed would be worth playing. The best, such as World Cup Football, Troon and Royal Rirkdale, are just barely simulations.

A fairer rule to apply would be that all the games provide entertainment for people who enjoy real sports, and most of those reviewed clearly do. Games using soccer, golf or cricket for their basis are not meant as full simulations and they are more likely to be played by computer users and sporting computer owners than sports enthusiasts.

Undoubtedly few Spectrums have been bought solely to play sports games and if they have that is a sad prediction for the future of the sporting world, which relies heavily on co-operation and team spirit. Computer games can go nowhere near to simulating that type of experience.

Most sports are outdoor activities and, like nothing else, lose much in translation to computer. Computers are limited in the way they store information and cannot take all the variables of game play into account. Most sports programs are, therefore, very limited in what they achieve.

Players using computers to play football or golf may be trying to ind a substitute for the real thing. If you are satisfied with that substitute, the games available for the Spectrum should keep you entertained. None of the so-called simulations on the market, however, is anywhere near the real thing.

Label: Alternative Software
Author: Wyvern
Price: £1.99
Reviewer: John Gilbert

Cricket is not the liveliest of games and that could be why Howzat, originally released at full price by Wyvern Software, is such a lame duck.

You'd expect, maybe, the atmosphere of hot, sticky, June days. Batsmen and bowlers would be controlled by joystick and there would be action packed bird's and wicket's eye views of the grounds. Instead, Howzat! is played by rigid little matchstick men - I think they're men - who are almost invisible against a sickly green green.

Admittedly, at the start of the game you get to select the event and your team, but that's about all the action you'll see: it's a bit like watching Geoffrey Boycott in a particularly bad year.

You can take part in a one day test or in a series such as the Benson and Hedges League or the Texaco Trophy. Your choice of event is unlikely to influence on play - it doesn't make the darndest bit of - difference but it's nice to add that extra bit of authenticity to the game.

Teams can be made up of county or test stars, or your own, specially created, players. When you choose your 'own' team you type in their names and give each batting and bowling ratings between zero and ten. It's possible to build up the ultimate team, who all have top marks and can thrash the opposition, but that rather defeats the purpose of the simulation. There should have been some sort of restriction on allotting rating points.

Once you've chosen the captain and wicket keepers of both teams the toss decides the order of play. The bowling team has all the cards as the batting team can only decide which two players should go in and whether to run after a successful swing of the bat. The bowling team, on the other hand, can position fielders and start a bowling run. You can't, however, decide what sort of bowling action you want or the force of delivery. Some simulation where everything's randomly generated!

Play actions are randomly generated on the batting side as well. Once the bowler's pitched the ball you'll either hit it or not, it and either will or won't be caught. You then have the choice - Yes/No - of making a run.

As cricket simulations go - usually very slowly - Howzat is certainly LBW, even with the budget price tag.

The game would have been just as exciting it it played with itself.

MACHINE: Spectrum
SUPPLIER: Alternative Software
PRICE: £1.99

If you were inspired by England's victory against Australia in the Ashes series over Christmas, then here's the game for you - it's a horribly addictive cheapo from a new budget label, Alternative Software.

It's an accurate representation of our national summer game and all for under £2. OK, so the graphics aren't up to much - the display of the field is inhabited by little pin men - but the strategy element is there in full as is the little random bits of luck or misfortune which happen in all real cricket matches.

You can choose to play a one or two player game, select any one of the 17 county squads or seven test teams, enter your own special team, play test matches, one day matches, league matches - you name it!

You can call up a detailed scoreboard, detailed analysis of batting, bowling statistics, and print out of the scoreboard or scorecard at any time on your trusty Speccy printer. Random extras, like byes, wides etc, are included.

When batting you can choose to run or stay at the crease - and yes, you can get run out if you're not careful. If you decide to field you can place your men, select bowlers etc. Just like the real thing.

Each player has a skill rating which you can alter at will.

Howzat! isn't a spectacular game - just very good value for money. It's more a strategy game than an out and out arcade thrash - but if you're into cricket then you won't want to miss this neat budget release.

MACHINE: Spectrum 48K
CONTROL: Keys
FROM: Wyvern, £5.50

Howzat, as you've probably guessed, is a cricket simulation. Unfortunately Wyvern fail to tell you that it's for two players, and knowledge of the real game is helpful.

After a brief introduction, the game gets underway with the option of one day or first class cricket. If you choose one day cricket you can play in a variety of matches from the John Player League to the Texaco Trophy. On the other hand, if you choose first class cricket you have the option of playing in County or Test cricket or going on tour.

Following this, you pick your team. All of the 17 first class county squads and the seven test squads are available for you to select from. Alternatively, you can choose your own team from the squads or enter your own set of names. Each player has his own changeable skill ratings.

After choosing your opening batsman your opponent positions his fielders and selects a bowler. The actual playing screen consists of a white boundary line inside which are the players and wickets (also white). Graphical quality is minimal as the players are simple stick figures with poor animation. Other displays such as the scoreboard, bowling analysis and scorecard are all set out like the real thing and are just as good.

In testing this program one major bug was found. When choosing the teams it is possible for the same player to play in both sides and also it's possible for one team to play itself, for example: England vs England or England vs Somerset in which Botham plays for both sides. Wyvern could have easily prevented this by including a simple check in the program.