Zzap


Daley Thompson's Decathlon
By The Hit Squad
Commodore 64/128

 
Published in Zzap #53

Daley Thompson's Decathlon

What can you be sure of every summer? Warm weather? Definitely not. Salad for tea? Hmm, maybe. Athletics on the telly? You've got it. There they are, all those fitties, running around and putting the rest of us lounge-lizards (well, me) to shame. But why watch it on the telly when you can play it on the... erm, telly? Daley Thompson's Decathlon allows you to do just that.

Become the Lucozade Man himself, as you must compete in one of sport's most gruelling events, the Decathlon. Ten disciplines await your skill, stamina and other professional bits, as you take on the toughest in the Battle of the Giants. Hurl yourself into the Hurdes! Slam into those Sprints! Jostle for position in the Javelin! Find another verb which rhymes with the sport you're attempting! You control DT with a joystick, furiously waggling it from left to right when running, and pressing fire is required to do something such as jump, or throw a discus, etc. Each event has a qualifying time or distance, and your first goal is to beat that amount. Three tries are allowed; fail them all and you lose one of your three lives. Should you beat the qualifier, your next step is to set a world record, by bettering the highest score on display. Do so, and you'll go down in the annals of sporting history (or the high score table, at least).

Daley Thompson's Decathlon is definitely the weakest of the games reviewed this issue, due to the fact that it is *too* old to warrant re-releasing at £2.99. Poor old Daley looks as though he's had one Lucozade too many, appearing bloated and out of training, and just watch his arms when he runs! They spin round his body! Gameplay is fine, albeit a strain on your joystick, with a goodly amount of events. Unfortunately, it's all been done before, better, and at less cost - take a look at Silverbird's Decathlon if you don't believe me.

Sorry, Hit Squad, but you just had one bad penny in an otherwise cheery account. Poor Daley. First he came fourth in the Olympics, now this... Both should retire gracefully.