Producer: Hewson Consultants
Memory Required: 48K
Retail Price: £7.95
Language: Machine code
Author: Steve Turner

'Congratulations', says the inlay, 'You are now the proud owner of Avalon, the first in a new world of computer games, the Adventure Movie.'

It's likely that in the next few months the words ADVENTURE MOVIE are going to become familiar. It hasn't happened overnight, of course, there has been a slow progression towards the interactive adventure which uses arcade style graphics (starting perhaps with games like Atic Atac) and which progress is now accelerating. History will dictate who is first, but Hewson have certainly made a head start with Avalon.

The packaging is small video box style with a large inlay containing columns of apparently daunting text. In fact the game turns out to be one of those you can dive into immediately, but reading the instructions would serve a useful purpose as this is, primarily, an adventure and few things are instantly obvious. Also included is an explorer's map of the Avalon complex and a protection entry code with very pale blue ink on slightly paler paper to make it hard for photocopiers. It asks you to type in three separate codes before accepting access.

You play Maroc (the wizard) or rather his astral projection. There are sixteen ranks (skills) which are subdivided into eight stages, and at the start of a new game your status is the lowest, that of apprentice. Your advancement is gained by penetrating deeper into the dungeons and by collecting spells.

Maroc's task, to put it simply, is to destroy the Lord of Chaos, who dwells in the deepest part of the dungeons protected by several types of horror. These include goblin warriors, who gang up on you and can only be avoided by running quickly through two rooms or down a tunnel; wraiths who throw fire balls at you after a while and tend to follow your progress by materialising through walls; guardians of chaos, and finally warlocks, who may be helpful and may not, depending on what you can offer them.

To help in this enormous, task there are many spells and useful objects to be found, some are collected just by walking over them, but others may need the help of a servant (one of the early spells to be found), who can do the task for you. Movement itself is a spell, since Maroc is only an astral projection, and this is given to you at the start of the game. Collected spells are listed in a continuous scroll at the base of the screen and are selected by using the up-down control and fire. Some spells can be used simultaneously such as 'move' and 'unseen'. A useful one is 'freeze', which stops time for a few moments and can let you get away from things like the goblin warriors. Here, an arcade skill comes in - the ability to get out of the freeze spell and into 'move' as fast as possible!

All the rooms have some doors which may be open, closed or locked. The locked ones obviously require keys. Closed ones are operated by taking Maroc to the door at the correct height and nudging it, moving back slightly to let it open before proceeding through it. They shut just as easily.

Because of its arcade overtones Avalon is reviewed here as an arcade game rather than by Derek Brewster but no doubt Derek will also have something to say on the subject at a later date.

COMMENTS

Control keys: A to G = up, Z to V = down, B, N = left, M, SYM SHIFT = right, H, J, K, L = fire
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair, AGF, Protek
Keyboard play: several options and positive response
Use of colour: borders very colourful, the playing area is quite simple and avoids messy attribute problems
Graphics: excellent 3D effect and well drawn and detailed characters
Sound: good start tune, otherwise useful sounds as warnings
Skill levels: not applicable
Lives: not applicable
Screens: over 200 rooms

This is the best thing I've seen in arcade/adventures with the mystic qualities of adventures and the graphics of arcade. Avalon is the best blend between the two yet. The 3D effect is excellent (though a little jerky, but who cares when it is this good)? Overall, there is a lot to do in the game which means that interest will be held. I would personally recommend that a map be drawn to aid progress as I soon became lost without one. I think Hewson have produced a likely adventure cult game.

What makes Avalon a real interactive game is the fact that as you play it, you really alter the state of things with each 'life'. The spells you managed to collect last time are still with you, chests opened are still open, and as you carry on failing, more goblins and then guardians appear from the depths as though alerted to your presence. So the only way to go about it is to use the first few attempts as a practice mode until you get the hang of opening doors proficiently and using spells. And the further you get into the game, more you realise that this isn't really an arcade game at all although some skills are needed, because you really can affect the way things happen to you. There are so many neat touches, most of which only appear with long play. Once I waited in the start room and a wraith appeared. The first fireball he threw was not at me but at the door - he shut it! With so much budget software around it seems to be harder to award value for money to a game costing £8, but Avalon is worth every penny in my book - no game like this could be developed at a cheap price.

Avalon is a game that never ends. If you sink to the lowest level, it still keeps going and you are forced to live with the effects of what you have done on previous attempts. In this sense there is every chance of picking yourself up again and continuing to get better. Useful, therefore to have the SAVE and LOAD facility. The 3D graphics are most effective, although at first it can be disorienting to go up through a door and emerge in the next room sideways. This reorientation also means a map is pretty essential - there is a freeze key. I like the use of the joystick driven control which does both for movement and for spell selection, and life can get very panicky when there are three goblins and a wraith chasing you and you want to use spells and move. Highly addictive, extremely playable and a game to keep the attention for ages. Avalon is going to take a lot to master and, with as far as I have got, looks like having much more to it than even Atic Atac. It's got great music as well - pity there's not more of it!

MEET THE GUARDIAN OF CHAOS AND LEVITATE IN 3D AVALON

Memory: 48K
Price: £7.95
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair, Cursor

Enter the 3D movie world of Avalon. You are a wizard intent on the destruction of an evil image who inhabits an underground web of caverns inhabited by goblins, skeletons, wraiths, a guardian of chaos and seven wizards.

You move around the rooms after casting an astral projection spell which will enable you to levitate.

Pursued by the various monsters which dwell in the caves you must accumulate your power by finding spell scrolls. Those enable you to freeze your enemies and summon a servant to help you in your quest for the mage's ectoplasm.

To reach the bowels of the earth you must pass through the gate-house level and find a treasure chest in which the key to the dungeons is hidden.

As you travel through the adventure you will become wise in the ways of magic and earn gradings no doubt given by the magic circle. Those are divided into stages and ranks. A stage describes the physical location at which you have arrived in the game. Those range from Apprentice to Supreme. The ranks denote your skill as a magician, and start at Lore Seeker progressing to the august title of Lord Lord.

The magic system in particular breaks new ground. The spells you have are listed on a scrolling window, and you must use the joystick to select the appropriate spell. Even movement is conducted using a spell, so that physical and magical activities are directly interlinked.

Graphics are not so clear as in the Ultimate arcade/adventures such as Atic Atac. However, the 3D representation of each room, with doors that really open, and the attempts at animation of monsters represent a bigger challenge than those earlier games tackled.

Hewson claims the game will do for computers what the Jazz Singer did for movies. A ridiculous suggestion which should not however detract from a product that introduces a new style and sophistication in 3D graphics. If you are into arcade games then you will enjoy moving around and killing the monsters in the maze. If, on the other hand, you like adventures you will be fascinated by the puzzles.

MACHINE: Spectrum
SUPPLIER: Hewson Consultants
PRICE: £7.95

What Adventure game can you play using a joystick? Come on now - there is one! It's called Avalon and it comes from Hewson Consultants for the 48k Spectrum.

Avalon - oddly subtitled "the adventure movie" - is a cross between Dungeons and Dragons, Atic Atac and a full blown Adventure game and is destined to become one of the big games this Christmas.

Avalon is a mythical Isle of Glass featured heavily in the Arthurian legends which set programmer Steve Turner off on the course to create this new game.

You play the part of Maroc the Mage, a Lore Seeker, who sets out to destroy the Lord of Chaos who has taken up residence inside the Isle of Avalon.

The game has eight levels - each getting progressively more difficult as you get closer to your final goal and the Lord of Chaos.

In order to get this review to you as quickly as possible, this reviewer only pottered about the first two levels - but that was enough to see that Avalon is an absorbing and challenging game.

Just as in Adventure, there are problems to be solved before the player can progress to the next level of the game. You have to collect various items and complete various tasks before unlocking the doors to lower levels of the Isle of Glass.

Maroc has to travel around the many rooms of Avalon - at first collecting spells and gold which will aid him when he comes to venture into the lower levels.

On the first level he also has to find the Servant - a funny little spirit creature who will aid his quest.

There are nasties inhabiting the rooms and tunnels of Avalon who set out stop the Mage reaching their Lord.

A nice feature of the game is that when you "die" it's only your astral form kicking the bucket and you return to the starting room complete with all spells and other goodies which you collected before the nasties got to you. This helps you get into the game without becoming terminally frustrated with it.

Collecting and adding your powers is where the D&D element comes in to the game. The similarity to Atic Atac is that you find your way around a maze of rooms. The Adventure element comes in when you have to start solving problems in order to progress further into the game, which appear at lower levels.

The 3D graphics are among the best I've seen on the Spectrum and there are a number of nice touches - like the Servant spirit.

The screen is split into a large graphic display showing Maroc and his surroundings, with a small window at the bottom centre which displays command options - like "move" or the spells which Maroc has available to him such as "freeze" or "flame".

To choose what you want to do, you simply pick an option scrolling the commands in the window and making your selection using keyboard or joystick.

The game comes with a well written and informative set of instructions - which are essential reading before you sit down and play.

I'm not sure about Hewson's claim that Avalon will appeal to out and out Adventurers a well a arcade game fans - but the game is fun to play, pretty to look at and challenging too. And at the price, you can't go far wrong!

I can't wait to see the first map of the Avalon rooms - or hear from the first person who claims the ultimate and tells me he has achieved the rank of Supreme Lore Lord. I reckon that telephone call is a long way off!

In order to help you reach that rank, we've got together with Hewson Consultants to bring you an exclusive Avalon map - plus games tips on the first level of the game. So don't miss December's issue of Computer & Video Games with special added ingredient of Prof. Video's visit to the Isle of Glass.

MACHINE: Spectrum 48K
CONTROL: Keys, Kemp, Curs, Sinc
FROM: Hewson, £7.95

There's no doubt about it, Avalon is a remarkable game, but it suffers from serious playability problems.

There is a very attractive screen border and the main playing area occupies the centre of the display. Coloured lines sketch out your current location, a room with one or more doors, and a small seated figure, Maroc the Wizard.

Maroc the Wizard can, with the help of a spot of magic and your joystick, float about the screen picking up objects (by passing over them) and avoiding contact with various malevolent sprites.

As you wander from location to location you collect spells and other useful items in your quest to destroy the Lord of Chaos. There are eight levels and 200 locations to explore, and this is where the playability problems arise.

To open a door you move Maroc up to the door knob and the door swings open. The trouble is that to close it you do the same thing, so unless you're careful you may find yourself opening a door and then closing it again before you have managed to get through it.

The control problems are a pity because Avalon has a lot of novel features. There are a large number of spells to be found, allowing you to renew your energy supplies, attack your enemies, and even command a small wraith-like 'Servant'.

Unfortunately, even selecting spells requires almost superhuman dexterity if you're in a hurry. The spell names appear on a scrolling list at the bottom of the page which you flick through with the aid of your joystick, but the list scrolls so fast that selecting the spell you want is very hit-and-miss.

Avalon scores over its cousin, Ultimate's Atic Atac, in terms of size and complexity, but you'll need eleven fingers and a lot of patience if you're going to get the most from it.

I fI bump into one more door or get pursued by one more zombie-like soldier I am going to scream so loud it will blow every semiconductor for miles.

That's the trouble with Avalon - it's desperately frustrating to play and gives little reward to the player in the form of treasure or killing.

The animation and rooms are pretty enough and your character's actions and spells are certainly clever. But boy, is this a tough game to settle into. Not that there aren't easy ways for Hewson to improve the playability. Less persistent enemies would be a blessing. most of all, this program needs a smaller wizard or bigger doors...

BOB WADE

It seems to me that the most important innovations in the Spectrum field have come out of the adventure genre. Take, for example, The Hobbit and Atic Atac. Avalon seems to belong in the same vein.

Hewson have produced a potentially excellent game which falls down a bit on playability. Control is difficult even with a joystick and despite reams of instructions it's a hard game to get into.

ROB PATRICK

Avalon from Hewson Consultants is billed as "the 3D adventure movie," and it makes a very creditable attempt at achieving this goal. Three dimensional pictures of locations around which your character can move are drawn on screen. As in television programs such as Coronation Street, this means that each room has a wall which you never see, a wall through which you can watch the action.

The game is mammoth, including 223 rooms on eight levels, and over 100 characters. In many ways it seems similar to Atic Atac, rooms to move through seen from the side rather than from above; passages to travel down, rather than trapdoors and, of course, there is the player's ultimate goal to be located and villains to be defeated.

Other aspects of the game, are entirely new. Around the building are placed various spells which can be used at different times. The Move spells with which you start are important, as they are the ones which allow you to move your astral projection around. Others which appear are essential to your progress. Spells to freeze your enemies, to make yourself invisible, or to control a servant can all be found and your skill in finding these and your judgement in knowing when to use them are essential for success in Avalon.

Using a complete three-dimensional technique in an adventure is new. However, it does produce graphics which flicker incessantly. Those people who were expecting graphics of the quality used in Ant Attack from Quicksilva will be disappointed. The three-dimensional view also makes movements more complicated, as you try to move a character on a two-dimensional screen through three dimensional space.

For short periods of time the game is excellent, but when played for a long time as it must be, it becomes a strain on the eyes. It will, without doubt, be an extremely successful game, but its success with flicker-free graphics would be even greater .

Avalon is produced by Hewson Consultants, Hewson House, 568 Milton Trading Estate, Milton, Abingdon and costs £7.95.

Hewson Consultants Ltd
48K Spectrum
Price £17.95

Avalon is a superb new 3-D graphical adventure program for the Spectrum. The screen displays are incredible; it's amazing what can be achieved on a Spectrum when programmers exert themselves, and this game is easily on a par with many Atari programs.

The format is reminiscent of Atic Atac or Sabrewulf, but involves many adventure elements as well. The 3-D effect is one of the best around, however, it still isn't totally convincing. The sprite movement of characters around the screen is quite smooth; making it fun just to travel round the various rooms watching the action.

A joystick is a big help as moving through doors can be tricky for the inexperienced. There are numerous characters to meet and problems to be solved; however, overall the style is far more arcade-game than adventure.

Instead of a score option you have stages and ranks to ascend as your skill progresses. As you have assumed the role of Maroc the magician there are various spells to collect on your journey, e.g: "unseen", "energise", "missile", "flame" and "servant" (who can help you collect objects, etc,). Mapping is possible by pausing the game at suitable locations and SAVE/LOAD 'old' game is supported.

Your quest is to travel through the eight levels and finally to banish the Lords of Chaos from the isle of Glass. There are numerous rooms to explore and objects to locate; but selecting and activating spells can be difficult, especially if you're being chased by enemies at the time. This makes the game hard to play at first, however, it's well worth persevering with it.

Presumably it will appeal most to those people whose manual skills allow them to beat 'Atic Atac' with ease, and who are looking for something more challenging. Hopefully this trend in advanced graphics and player interaction will continue in other similar programs. It certainly seems to point the way for the future trend in adventures. Overall a superb game whose merits cannot be too highly praised.

SOFTWARE SCENE

While some software houses are taking the Spectrum to its limits and beyond others doggedly continue to churn out ever more diabolical pieces of programmed junk. John Gilbert present a personal pick of the bunch, and Chris Bourne take an irreverent look at the dwindling ZX-81 software scene. Their talents are combinedd in listing the Top Ten Turkeys of 1984. Let the reader be warned.

SPECTRUM SOFTWARE

A cynic may argue that development within the software market in 1984 was non-existent. The same type of game appeared as those which took the lead in 1983, the most popular being of the arcade variety. The programs were written in the same style and to please the same type of customers.

That is only a superficial view, however, and if you look at the games market as a whole, dividing it up into sectors such as strategy, arcade and adventure, you will see that substantial and sophisticated changes have taken place. Despite what some pundits have said you will find that the world of computer games is still buzzing with life.

£7.95
Hewson

In the autumn of 1984 Hewson brought out Avalon, another step forward in 3D graphics. The game casts you in the role of a mage who has to defeat an evil warlock. In order to do that the mage must negotiate the terrors of the warlock's underground caverns, going deep into the bowels of the earth. The mage must discover treasure, fight monsters and gain spells which will ultimately defeat the warlock.

The plot sounds, and is, mundane and is on the same level as other Dungeons and Dragons games or even Atic Atac. The graphics are, however, something special. All objects are displayed in 3D, the mage can rotate and float around the scenes and doors open outwards in perspective. Hewson called it an adventure movie when it was first launched. The graphics may not be that spectacular but they are very close.

Billed as the first computer\movie, Avalon sends apprentice magician Maroc on an underground quest for ancient wizardly power. It combines a novel graphics system with adventure elements to create a powerfully addictive quest.

The sequel, Dragontorc, broadens the action to various parts of Arthurian Britain and introduces more characters - elves, skeletons and the like which may help or hinder. Doors visibly swing open, fireballs buzz through the air, and strange runes may be gathered to give access to new areas. The games are made by the energy-based spell system which gives depth to an enthralling epic.