Producer: Imagine
Retail Price: £7.95
Language: Machine code

When you load the game you are presented with plenty of options. You can select six levels of play against the computer or play against another human player. If the action is all too intimidating at first, there's always the practice mode if you're new to the game. This allows you to try scoring goals solo against three players and gives you the chance to practice ball control and dribbling skills. You start off in your own half and have to dribble your way up to the basket, evade the opposition, and plonk it in. You can also change the colours of the team and ground - useful if you've only got a black and white telly.

Once you've set all the options and want to play press the start button! The teams run out of the changing rooms and take their positions for the tip-off. A peep of the ref's whistle sounds and the game starts with the ball being thrown into the air between two players from opposing teams. You have to jump up into the air and knock it down to one of your team-mates before your opponent does in order to gain possession.

As the ball travels around the pitch the playing area scrolls from left to right. In all the play ing area is between two and three screens long and is viewed panoramically like Match Day. Indeed, World Series Baseball works very much in the same game Match Day, and those who have played the football game won't have any difficulty with getting into basketball. Playing a whole computer basketball team is fairly straightforward - the nearest player to the ball is chosen by the computer and put under your control. You'll know which player it is because his shirt will mysteriously change colour. If you pass the ball the the player receiving is automatically selected for you to control.

The general aim of the game is to retain possession of the ball as much as possible and to take as many shots as you can at your opponent's basket. A scoreboard keeps track of the game and tells you the time remaining and, of course, the score. It also acts as a message board - when a team scores 'GOAL' scrolls across it.

A game is divided into two halves, each half being three minutes long.

COMMENTS

Control keys: Definable.
Joystick:
Keyboard play: confusing with two players
Use of colour: bland
Graphics: no shortage of attribute problems
Sound: Peep!
Skill levels: Six
Screens: N/A

First it was baseball, a relatively unheard of game over here which Imagine made into a big hit. I hope they have similar success with basketball, as it's a great game. As a rule I'm not a sport simulation person, but I've been playing this one for hours and I can't see myself putting it down until I get a decent score. The only niggle I have with this game is that it's hard to tell which of your four players you are controlling -and you can only change the player you control when you are in possession. Generally, though, I thought the game was exceptionally playable and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys sports simulations.

The only other Basketball game presently on the Spectrum is One on One and that wasn't too hot. Luckily, if you like this type of game, World Series Basketball is very good. The graphics allow you to change the colours of the teams and reminded me of Matchday. The game follows the rules of basketball, but they aren't too tough - you should be able to get into the game easily. Overall this is a good simulation, well presented (although it does crash now and again), but only worth getting if you know you like games of this sort.

What a funny game this is: only four players per side and no referees. I was really looking forward to this after the brilliant World Series Baseball, but I suppose it couldn't be matched. The options page isn't as good as the other Imagine 84 games and the sound is a real let down, but the graphics make up for some of this. I'm not sure that all basketball fans will go for WSB (I didn't to begin with). There's quite a few niggly shortcomings with it which might annoy basketball fans. My advice would be to hang on for a while until Elite release their basketball game and compare the two rather than rushing out and buying this one now.

Dougie: Watch out, the Globe Trotters are about. Keep your feet on the beat and the ball on the bounce!

We can all name sports that haven't translated at all well into computer games, but Basketball's one of the exceptions. As soon as the players come bounding out onto the court you can tell that this game's better than your average offering. All the men are well animated and move smoothly around the screen at a speed that must have the sprite routine working overtime.

You can play Basketball against one of your buddies or against the computer. Bach game lasts six minutes and is divided into two halves of three minutes each (Cor and how else might they be divided? Ed). If the outcome's a draw, you're given another thirty seconds to battle for those baskets.

You'll find controlling the players is a touch tricky at first so it's just as well there's a practice mode for improving your dribbling skills and passing techniques. Once you've got the hang of that, you're in with a good chance of taking the computer to the cleaners. But you'll have to maintain very accurate passing and shooting before you win.

Basketball is not only fun but it's also one of those games you keep coming back to. Net yourself a copy! 8/10

Rick: Done 'emself proud, has Imagine! This is a worthy follow-up to World Series Baseball. 9/10

Ross: Imagine's certainly making a name for itself with this series of sport simulations. What d'you mean it made a name for itself once before! Still, a goodie. 8/10

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

Imagine's seemingly endless trek through the backlist of Konami's coin-op games has finally reached the basketball court.

First impression of World Series Basketball weren't great - small featureless players chasing an equally small ball round a scrolling court. But those were instantly revised once play started - it's a hard game to beat. No matter that you have only four players, the opposing team has the same.

Play starts on the centre line when the ball is tossed into the air. The computer team must have been practising with the Harlem Globetrotters, expertly catching and passing the ball, shooting and tackling with skill. It's hard enough keeping up with them, let alone trying to take the ball away.

Basketball is played according to the rules and the game is as accurate as possible on the Spectrum. Watch out for time penalties. If you hang onto the ball for too long it will be given to the other side. Tackling is difficult, retaining the ball harder still and it takes a while to be able to judge distances and angles when passing. Half time takes place after three minutes when the teams swap ends.

The player handling the ball takes on a different colour from his team mates for recognition purposes. However, that can be confusing, especially with the attribute clash as the colour leaks onto any other players in proximity.

It is also possible to lose your player. If the opposing team takes the ball down to their end of the court, only that half of the court is shown on the screen. If you are not quick enough you will be left behind - literally out of the picture. While you are trying to locate your player the opposing team are scoring several goals. You just can't win.

Imagine
£7.95

This company seems to be specialising in sports simulations at the moment, and seems to prove that specialisation is no bad thing. I used to enjoy playing the old arcade game of Basketball with the roller ball and two players, but this game relegates it to the realms of antiquity.

You can either play against another opponent or against the computer and control a team of four players. The action is fast and you need plenty of practice to win, especially against the computer, even at the lowest of the six skill levels. Luckily a practice mode is provided.

To do well in this game it is not enough to just run with the ball and shoot for the basket, you need to develop the technique of passing to your other players. Control of the players is cleverly done in that the member of your team nearest or actually with the ball is highlighted and under your control. Pressing fire causes him to jump, holding fire causes each player in the team to jump in turn, so when the player you want to control jumps, you release the fire button and control has passed to him.

While the player(s) under control move the computer takes charge of the remainder of the team and tries to move them m an appropriate manner, usually this is very effective although I have seen players imitating headless chickens on occasion.

A challenging, fast, and fairly realistic game.