Producer: Mirrorsoft
Retail Price: £9.95
Author: Rod Hyde

Strike Force Harrier is a flight simulator set in a Harrier jump Jet along with a full battlefield mock up. There's strategic planning to be coped with as well as competent control of your aircraft. And of course this only comes with practice.

Your mission is to destroy the enemy HO and set up your own ground sites at the same time. To make things a mite harder, enemy tanks and aircraft are gunning hard for you. Tanks must be destroyed before you can set up the site. Once a site has been established the tanks start to threaten your new won ground and so on...

After loading, you are presented with a menu of options. To begin with it is probably advisable to watch the Demo mode and then select a practice option until you get the feel of things. Once competent at handling the craft it's on to Combat duty and that's when things really start to hot up. As you can imagine, handling a Harrier requires a lot of controls. A joystick or the keyboard can be used, but even with a joystick, keys are needed too. The game comes with a 27-page booklet packed with instructions and flight movements. Although a daunting prospect it's a good idea to have a quick read through or else you'll find that your missions are curtailed rather quickly.

Strike Force Harrier can be played on two levels. It can be a shoot em up on one level, but for people really into flight simulators, it can be played as a mock up of a real battle with strategic objectives. For the committed games player the instruction booklet is essential to get a full grasp of what's going on.

Overlaid on the cockpit view is the Head Up Display. This shows your vertical speed indicator, air speed indicator, the gyro (reveals your direction of travel), height and your pitch above or below the horizon. The HUD can also display additional information when the relevant key is pressed.

The Harrier carries an impressive inventory of weapons. You have two Sidewinder air-to-air missiles with a five mile range that automatically home in on a target selected by a sight on screen. Three 1,000lb bombs and 250 rounds of cannon shell with a five mile range are also on board. The cannon is a bit tricky to fire correctly because (low technology stuff this) you need to be pointing more or less directly at your target - should this be a tank, then obviously you'rediving straight for the hard ground...

The air attack radar indicates the position of enemy aircraft within a radius of five miles. The Friend or Foe tracking radar situated at the bottom of the screen indicates enemy aircraft positions, mountain peaks and your own moving track so you can tell whether you are closing with or fleeing from the enemy. Tanks and ammunition sites are also shown.

Three types of take off are relevant to the various ground conditions. If the airstrip is prepared, then a conventional take off is sufficient. From unprepared ground a short take off is necessary at an angle of 45 degrees. The Harrier, however, really comes into its own when there is no take off space since it can lift off vertically. A hovering mode is also possible and there are three types of landing as well (conventional, short and vertical).

Three levels of combat difficulty are provided: Pilot, Commander and Ace which make different demands on the skill of the pilot. It's up to you to master the controls and prove your abilities...

COMMENTS

Control keys: almost every key on the keyboard used!
Joystick: Kempston, Interface 2
Keyboard play: responsive
Use of colour straightforward but effective
Graphics: jerky scrolling, but otherwise fast and realistic
Sound: average
Skill levels: three

Flight simulators aren't the most immediately playable games on the market, I can tell you, but Strike Force Harrier is comparatively easy to play. The graphics are jerky, a feature all too obvious in most games of the genre, but MIRRORSOFT have done a fair job of making an enjoyable game in a field where there have been too many duff efforts. Though by no means the best on the Spectrum, Strike Force Harrier is quite reasonable. As a flight aim, this is pretty good.

What yet another Flight simulator? That makes two in two months. Strike Force Harrier is not nearly as boring as many other flight sims I have played recently. There are loads of nestles to shoot down so it isn't just a case of learn how to fly and then shoot down a couple of planes - this is really action-packed stuff. The graphics are pretty much run-of-the-mill for this type of game, with some sloppy characters and jerky screen scrolling. The sound is sparse, no tunes and only a few spot effects. If you like flight rims or you think you will if the right one comes along then you'll probably get on with this.

Now this is more like it! After my disappointment with ACE, I was glad to get my hands on a proper, fun-filled, action-packed flight simulator. Strike Force Harrier has all the makings of the best fight simulator on the Spectrum - even as good as Spitfire 40, another superb flight sim from MIRRORSOFT. A superb manual is included in the package containing simple, easy to read instructions with neat diagrams to explain all the possible movements you can use for avoiding missiles, attacking HQ and so on. The manual is an essential read, but can be skimmed over if you're very eager. The graphics are excellent and add to the realism. The plane itself if very fast reacting and behaves as you would expect a Harrier to behave - you even get your wings ripped off if you descend too fast. Strike Force Harrier is as near as most of us will get to flying a combat plane - and it's a mighty bit cheaper and safer!

Mirrorsoft
£9.95

I reckon it's probably easier to fly a bloomin' great aircraft than a flight simulator. At least the controls are simple and you get the feel of what you're doing wrong, like nose diving towards the earth faster than the speed of a C5! Despite all this, Mirrorsoft has managed to produce a simulator that's both easy to use and fun to play and also managed to incorporate a lot of extra gameplay alongside it.

The Harrier jet, the hero of the Falklands war, is a sophisticated plane that sports a unique vectored thrust system whereby the plane's jet nozzles can be swivelled through ninety degrees to allow the plane to perform some pretty nifty manoeuvres. All this is faithfully reproduced in the game - if you get in a heavy dogfight you can suddenly shift the direction of the engines enabling you to flip behind an enemy and gethim firmly in your sights.

Screen display is split in two, your view from the cockpit occupying the upper part and the control panel the lower. There's also a Head Up Display, that gives you status information so you don't have to take your eyes off the enemy to see where you're going. The animation is fast though a little jerky but that isn't surprising when you consider the program is carrying out a complex battle sequence at the same time.

Once you've managed to avoid splattering yourself into the ground at every take-off you can then embark on your mission to destroy enemy headquarters. To do this you must defeat both tank and aerial attacks and leapfrog towards HQ, setting up ground support stations as you go. Fail to defend your own bases and you'll lose your only method of refuelling and rearming.

As with all simulators, it'll take you a while to get handy with the controls but once you have you really will be flying high!

THE COMPLETE YS GUIDE TO FLIGHT SIMS

Oh cripes. Whose idea was this? Couldn't we do it on something else? Nah, we promised. How about putting if off for another month? Or we could make JONATHAN DAVIS do it? Heh heh. Right, where's he got to? Ah ha!

Neeeeeow! Dakka dakka dakka! Kaboom! "Crikey, Ginger, pull up! Over."

"I can't! I think my flaps have gone a bit funny. Over." Neeeow! Boom!

"Bail out! Bail out! Over." Dakka dakka dakka. (Ricochet noises.)

"Er, okay then. Over and out."

Sorry about that, just trying to inject a bit of excitement into this thing because, let's face it, flight sims aren't exactly the most exciting bits of software around.

Or are they?

No, They're not. But there are loads of them about, and people keep buying them. Why is this? Perhaps we'd better investigate.

For thousands of years man has dreamt of flight... (Cut the crap, Ed) Erm, well, perhaps it's because they demand a bit more thought than your average arcade game. Fast reactions are all very well, but what about using your noddle occasionally? Keeping a plane in flight isn't just a matter of wobbling your joystick about a bit, which is the impression that lesser games give. You've got angles of attack to worry about, altitude, navigation, weapons systems, undercarriage... the list is endless. As are the manuals usually. And that's another thing. If you've never played one before you'll need to spend hours wading through one of these breeze-block tomes before you can even get off the ground.

Once you've got the thing up in the air though you're well away. With any luck there'll be lots of scenery to look at and plenty of enemy thingies to 'take out'. You might even like to indulge in a bit of aerobatics to pass the time. The one thing you should always keep an eye on though is the ground. Stay away from this at all costs. Unless you're landing, of course, which is another story altogether.

SO WHAT'S A FLIGHT SIM THEN, EH?

In compiling this guide I was faced with the usual problem - what exactly is a flight simulation? What are the criteria? Where do you draw the line? I decided to seek the advice of one of Europe's leading experts in the field of computer games.

"Er, Matt? (Cough.) Matt?' I ventured.

"Mmm?"

"Would you have said that, say, Fighter Pilot was a flight sim? Huh? Matt?" I enquired cheerily.

"Er, probably," he replied.

"How about Harrier Attack?"

"I expect it is, yes."

"Or Night Raider?"

"Um, look, I've got to go out. To the, er, shops. I'll see you later. Maybe."

Unperturbed. I decided to try Andy, but he didn't appear to hear me. I also tried ringing up a few friends. They all seemed to be out.

So it's all down to me then. Well, I reckon that really, in a flight sim, you ought to be in control of a plane of some sort. Ideally you'd get a 3D view out of the cockpit, but I'll be flexible and allow ones where you see the plane on the screen from the back (like ATF) and even ones where you see the view in 2D (from the top or something).

Another important guideline is the number of keys. Preferably there should be at least 2,452 of them, each with about three different functions. But, again, I'll allow a generous margin of error and set the bottom line at six.

And finally there's the manual. Obviously this should be as large and impenetrable as possible, with lots of incomprehensible acronyms that you have to keep looking up in the glossary at the back. A rough guide to length? Let's say 500-600 pages for a decent one or, if the game comes in an ordinary cassette box, an inlay card that folds out into a thin strip long enough to wrap round Matt's tummy at least two and a half times.

So now we know just what makes up a flight sim, let's take a look at a few…

RATINGS

Once again, the normally-so-versatile YS rating system doesn't really seem too appropriate here (Instant appeal? Addictiveness?). So what we've done is to come up with a revised system, specially tailored to meet the needs of today's flight sim. Let's have a nosey...

The View: Can you see anything nice out of the window? Or is it all just green and blue wiggly lines? And does the scenery glide around smoothly or jerk around like an Allegro with a dodgy clutch?

Realism: This can often be determined by the number of keys the game uses. So that's just what we've done. Counted 'em. As there are 40 keys on your basic Speccy, and each one can be doubled or even tripled up, the maximum comes out to exactly 100. Handy, eh?

Dakka Factor: Is there much to shoot? Or is it all a matter of map-reading, gauge-watching and other such nonsense? And once you've shot whatever it is, does it explode dramatically and plummet to the ground leaving a trail of smoke behind it? Or not?

Net Weight: A crucial part of any flight sim is all the junk that comes with it. So, adding together all the disks, maps, manuals, stickers and the box, what do the YS scales make of it? (All weights are, of course, approximate.) (In degrees.)

Strike Force Harrier
Mirrorsoft

Right, so we all know what a Harrier is. What you might not know though is that it's one of the fiddliest planes to actually fly. To get it to take off you've got to have the nozzle things pointing downwards, and then point them backwards to make it fly along. There are also all kinds of things inbetween, and all of them are faithfully incorporated into this aging sim. It's a proper looking-out-of-the-cockpit job, and features ground attack as well as aerial combat. These tend to be split into two sections - one below the clouds and one above. Graphically we're talking seriously ropey here. There's plenty to see, particularly on the ground, but everything is made up of very small sprites which never seem to get especially close (and hence stay very small). But the flying is generally well done, and all this 'thrust vectoring' business works quite well. There is, of course, a war to fight and it mainly seems to consist of destroying tanks. So it's okayish, but very old-look without much in the way of lasting interest.

Label: Mirrorsoft
Author: Rod Hyde
Price: £9.95
Joystick: various
Memory: 48K/128K
Reviewer: Graham Taylor

For some people blasting is not enough. Many of us when confronted with a flying program ask only for an up-down-left-right-fire straightforward leave-your-brain-at-the-door-to-the-hanger approach. Strike Force Harrier is not like that. Harrier is very, very complicated. To use every feature of the game could involve 30 different key presses.

The manual runs to 28 pages, daunting stuff. Conscious of this, Mirrorsoft has provided some 'idiot's first go' detailed instructions which tell you button by button what to press when - without it you'd be getting a review of how the runway looks.

In the event I managed to land, take off and, best of all, blast several enemy jet fighters clean from the skies within about an hour of play. That, despite the fact that Harrier is one of the most complex simulations I've ever seen.

Graphically the game is very impressive - from the interior cockpit display to the 3D scrolling view in the cockpit window. Various programs use various different techniques to achieve the effect of movement past the world outside. Harrier uses the 'sprites growing bigger by frames' technique and it works rather well. Nothing looks all that good if you examine it in detail but the overall effect, especially in the midst of battle, is most impressive.

As I have said there are an astonishing range of options in Harrier. Although it is possible to get going with around six controls and blast a few things, as you explore the game you'll discover whole new areas of flying possibilities and you'll begin to realise just how vigorous has been Mirrorsoft's drive for authenticity.

For example, there are three ways of taking off - conventionally, STOL where you have only a short runway and, of course, straight up (VTOL). For each mode there are different flying techniques, each set out clearly in the manual and each requiring a lot to learn. The same is that of landing - except there is a fourth method, crashing!

The different techniques all involve a concept new to flight simulations called vector thrust. This is the facility unique to VTOL aircraft whereby the jetstream can be directed via nozzles. There are many additional ways you may find of using this feature to give, for example, height with de-acceleration. Sometimes a vital technique in combat.

There is a specific task in the game which will involve use of nearly all the features. You must destroy an enemy HQ, first destroying enemy tanks and setting up a new operational base. First select an appropriate area then land perfectly. Then move one of your old bases forward - it ain't easy.

Attack and defence is not merely a matter of firing and getting out of the way. There are a vast number of specialised and specific techniques to be learnt. The manual has pages of flight pattern information indicating how to avoid specific forms of attack and instead achieve attack positions yourself.

Before you really get to grips with Harrier you will need to become thoroughly conversant with all the controls. You also need to learn to read the FOFTRAC tracking system.

Harrier rewards effort, the graphics and sound are good but it's the sophistication and accuracy of the simulation that is the whole point.

If that's the kind of challenge that appeals you'll love Strike Force Harrier.

CAN THIS BE REAL?

Fly an aircraft, race around the world's most dangerous Grand Prix circuits or take a steam locomotive from London to Brighton. Just as your Spectrum can take you into the depths of space to zap aliens so it can simulate most audio visual real-life events you can mention. This month SU straps itself into the world of Spectrum simulators. Here's our choices:

STRIKE FORCE HARRIER
Label: Mirrorsoft
Price: £9.95
Memory: 48K/128K
Joystick: Various

The Hawker Harrier jump jet was brought into action during the Falklands war and it is on this island with its extremes of landscape and treacherous climate that Strike Force Harrier is set.

Your objective is to destroy the enemy base, situated 250 miles over land. First you've got to get there and flying a Harrier is no easy job.. You'll need to take the aircraft ip many times before you get the hang of the instrument panels and the controls which were designed for contortionist but can be user-defined.

Once you've got the hang of your Harrier you can take off over the mountainous terrain, some of which is snow covered. The multi-purpose window at the bottom left of the screen will tell you if you're in mechanical trouble or you're about to crash, the FOFTRAC will track enemy aircraft but you're on your own when it comes to finding the enemy base. There's no full blown map for you to swat up so, like a real pilot, you'll have to rely on your flying skills.

The excellent flight manual takes you through the hardware details of your Harrier, how to get it up in the air, how it performs ice it's up there and how to perform the various defensive and attacking manouevres to best effect. There's even a guide to the evasion of SAM and AAM missile attacks.

Harrier is simply the best war zone simulation I have seen.

Atari ST, £24.95dk
IBM PC, £24.95dk
Spectrum, £9.95cs, £12.95dk
C64/128, £9.95cs, £12.95dk
CPC, £9.95cs, £12.95dk
Commodore Amiga, £24.95dk

Harrier GR.3

The Harrier has been a highly successful aircraft, combining agility with VSTOL capability. It does this by having engines that can be tilted through just under 100 degrees, and although Mirrorsoft's program only allows three tilt positions (horizontal, 45 degrees, and vertical) this feature still makes for some interesting flying techniques.

On the ST this program is a winner for those who want an easy-to-fly, fast, highly manoeuvrable aircraft with a very large map and straightforward shoot-to-kill, bomb-to-blast combat opportunities. Even the 8-bit versions come out looking pretty good, but obviously they can't match the ST's solid graphics and extremely smooth operation.

There's only one mission - destroy the enemy HQ 125 miles from your start position. The map is divided into grid squares and you are provided with four ground sites where you can rearm and refuel.

To capture the enemy base, you must strike into enemy territory and identify grid squares with minimal hostile activity. These sights are suitable for use as ground sites, and by landing and calling up ground support you can usually move one of your sites to the new location. By doing this you can move your resources across the map which is far too large for you to traverse without fuel and armament backup en route.

There is therefore a certain strategic element to the game, as well as the fun of flying an agile plane and the challenge of developing tactics to defeat the opposition. Thrown up against you are Surface to Air Missiles, Anti-Aircraft Artillery, ground fire from enemy troops, and enemy aircraft (which are a lot faster than you are). Chaff and flares are provided to help you foil radar guided and infrared seeking missiles.

Although instrumentation is limited, the sheer playability of this flight sim makes it a good buy for search-and-destroy buffs - particularly on the ST - but don't expect bulky training manuals, total authenticity, or dozens of control/display options.

MACHINE: Spectrum/C64
SUPPLIER: Mirrorsoft
PRICE: £9.95 (£12.95 C64 disc)

It's been a long time coming but it's been well worth the wait. Commodore and Spectrum pilots can now take to the skies in the computerised version of the Harrier Jump Jet.

The original Beeb version got a rave review in February. And I see no reason for us to change our minds. Despite the Spectrum's graphic inadequacies this version of the game/simulation is very playable. With the enhanced pictures and sound the 64 version is great, too.

You can enjoyStrike Force Harrier on two levels - and a straight forward zap-the-enemy combat game or a complex flight simulator, There are over 30 controls to cope with if you decide to actually fly the thing.

If you select the combat option you put yourself in the hot seat on a mission to destroy an enemy HQ.

The combat practice mode puts you in the air right away with a squadron of Migs in front of you. Zap them with cannon fire or Sidewinder missiles - but you only get a couple of these, so use them wisely.

The Spectrum graphics don't look bad - although the enemy Migs do tend to be a bit jerky when they bank in front of your Harrier.

The C64 version is very smooth and you get a real impression of gazing out of the Harrier's cockpit.

Strike Force Harrier is set to become a classic of its type on all formats. Take off after it today.

Mirrorsoft
£9.95

This is an excellent flight simulator, a complex combat strategy game and an impressive shoot-em-up all rolled into one. The strength of this impressive and well thought out package is that it's enjoyable to play on all these levels and accommodates itself to the inept novice as well as the experienced simulator flyer.

At the learner's level you can get your flying skills tuned up by using the practice mode, or it you want to get straight into aerial combat opt for combat practice mode which gets you straight into a dog fight.

As you are flying a Harrier jump jet there are not one but three methods of taking off - there's the conventional runway take-off, a short version for quick escapes and, of course, the vertical take-off. Similarly you have three types of landing techniques. All these are relatively simple to master (unlike a lot of flight simulators) and sensibly the challenge of the game is placed on your ability to pull off manoeuvres in the air rather than making the routine elements such as take off and landing unnecessarily difficult.

As you would expect the game is best played using a joystick but you'll also be making full use of the keyboard which is chock full of single key commands for weapons systems flight controls and radar systems the cockpit display is packed with instruments but it's all essential and nothing has been included just for effect. A nice touch is the tinted windscreen which houses a digital compass and height indicator, speed and vertical speed monitors a pitch indicator and an all-in-one gunsight and roll indicator. Below them there are indicators for brakes gear and flaps as well as warning and damage monitors. Along the bottom of the display are gauges for fuel and thrust (which doubles for a message screen, air attack radar and what is known as the FOFTRAC map (Friend or Foe Tracking Radar). The FOFTRAC mop shows the landscape in the sector you are flying through as well as your own position and the location of enemy forces. Unfortunately it's often difficult to tell just what is going on in the sector as the symbols are very small and the registering of your own position at times seems erratic.

Once you have acquainted yourself with the aircraft and its capabilities you can then attempt a mission. There are three levels of skill to choose from, Pilot, Commander and Ace. The upper levels act as a sort of handicap, calling upon you to use greater flying skill and more accurate marksmanship to succeed.

The mission is to destroy the enemy's headquarters 250 miles away and the action takes place over a massive 512 sector map which contains over 3000 mountains, 3500 surface to air missile sites and over a thousand tanks. First you must fly a reconnaissance mission over the area you wish your ground forces to overrun, then establish a base before the ground troops can move up, then it's onto the next sector. If this all sounds a bit strategical it is, but there's plenty of opportunities to blast hell out of enemy planes and tanks. The mission will certainly take a lot of time and effort to complete and is ideal for those who like to become totally absorbed in a battlefield simulation.

An informative and comprehensive 26 page manual comes with the game and at the back are illustrations of defence and attack manoeuvres with evocative names such as The Scissors, The Split S and The Immelman. These are meant to resemble closely actual tactics used by Harrier pilots. In addition there is also a sheet which gives an illustrated guide to the cockpit and the keyboard keys On the reverse side is the grid of the combat area which can be used for mapping.

Strike Force Harrier has been designed to be as authentic as possible and will probably exceed your expectations of a package of this kind.