Produce,: Abersoft, 48K
£4.95

This is a robot/maze game, but a considerable improvement on the 'Berserk' type. The complex is haunted by robots which fire away blindly at anything, and which you must destroy. The earlier ones are prety dumb, but later additions get harder to hit and are better at hitting you; some are even invisible (use the radar to spot them). Machine code. Joystick: Kempston. Addictive and good value.

Produce,: Abersoft, 48K
£4.95

This is a robot/maze game, but a considerable improvement on the 'Berserk' type. The complex is haunted by robots which fire away blindly at anything, and which you must destroy. The earlier ones are prety dumb, but later additions get harder to hit and are better at hitting you; some are even invisible (use the radar to spot them). Machine code. Joystick: Kempston. Addictive and good value.

Producer: Abersoft, 48K
£4.95

This is a robot/maze game, but a considerable improvement on the 'Berserk' type. The complex is haunted by robots which fire away blindly at anything, and which you must destroy. The earlier ones are prety dumb, but later additions get harder to hit and are better at hitting you; some are even invisible (use the radar to spot them). Machine code. Joystick: Kempston. Addictive and good value.

GOOD IDEA LACKS THOUGHT

You are invited to spend an evening with the evil wizard Cinslair and his many denizens in a new game for the 48K Spectrum, Wizard's Warriors. You must shoot the blue, yellow and white warriors as you progress through the crypts of his castle and confront the wizard at the abyss between this world and Hell.

The game sounds fascinating in theory but the Abersoft implementation is less than perfect. When the game is first loaded you have the option either of reading through or skipping the instructions. One press of an incorrect key and you will be left with no idea of the control keys or how to play the game. There are no instructions on the cassette insert, despite the fact that many players often need a crib sheet to refer to if their fingers stray from the correct keys.

The instructions are displayed on three screens before play. That is possible because each screen has been tightly packed with words. It makes comprehension very difficult.

The last page of instructions shows the keyboard configuration. It can be easily missed if you keep your finger on the key too long when changing from one page to the next. The keys have been made too sensitive and the only way to return so the instructions is by re-loading the game.

The Wizard's Warriors costs £4.95 from 7 Maes Afallen, Bow Street, Dyfed SY24 5BA.

THE WIZARD'S WARRIORS
Mastertronic
Memory: 48K
Price: £1.99
Joystick: AGF, Kempston.

Although the blurb on the cassette insert trills enthusiastically about tyrannical wizards, stench of death, lethal minions etc, Wizard's Warriors by Mastertronic is a straightforward two-dimensional maze game.

Your on-screen alter ego is a small figure armed with a laser rifle. The purpose is to move him around the grid despatching the wizard's guards who are also supplied with lasers.

When you've got rid of the visible enemies others arrive who can only be seen in direct lines of sight. The rest of the time they can be tracked on the rudimentary radar beneath the playing area. When those are all reduced to atoms an eagle must be slaughtered, then the wizard. Difficulty increases from screen to screen.

The game is an average shoot-'em- up with no great distinguishing characteristics from many others. Graphics are pleasantly coloured but jerky. You won't need a great deal of strategic skill as the easiest thing to do is hang around with your back to a wall and wait for the rather unintelligent guards to stumble your way.

MACHINE: Spectrum 48K
FROM: Mastertronic, £1.99

Multi-screen maze game with poor, jerky graphics.

Verdict: Yawn

Value For Money: 2/10

PRICE: £1.99

Wizard's Warriors, from Mastertronic, takes the form of a complex version of Pacman. Your task is to survive each one of a series of mazes. In each maze are several of the Wizard's warriors, each of which is out to get you.

Blue warriors are easy to spot, and can be shot whenever you are in direct line with them. When they are killed, white and yellow warriors will appear, and these can only be seen some of the time. To pinpoint their movements at other times you must refer to the radar at the bottom of the screen. This shows the position of the warriors, but not the positions of any walls in the maze. After the white warriors the Wizard's eagle appears, and then the Wizard himself.

Having survived all these perils, you can move on to the next maze, which will contain fewer hiding places.

Maze enthusiasts will love this game, although it will probably prove slightly too easy for experienced maze movers.

Produced for the 48K Spectrum by Mastertronic, 54 George Street, London W1.

PRICE: £4.95
MEMORY REQUIRED: 16K

The name and packaging of this particular game give the impression that there is something rather special within. Unfortunately, on the whole I was rather disappointed.

Wizard's Warriors is really only a rather more sophisticated rehash of the old favourite - 'Pac-man'. Not to say that this is either bad or poorly written, but rather that is unoriginal. The game is quite fun, though confusing at times - no proper warning is given if a life is lost and the Wizard's Warriors are often too intelligent to catch.

My advice is to play this game before you buy - you may like it, there is no reason why you should not, on the other hand you may already have one of the other dozen variations.