Your Sinclair


Dizzy Down The Rapids
By Codemasters
Spectrum 48K/128K/+2/+3

 
Published in Your Sinclair #79

Dizzy Down The Rapids

Have the Codies flipped, or what? First they blatantly ripped off Bomb Jack with Super Seymour Saves The Planet, and now they've pirated the ideas behind Toobin'. I thought this sort of blatant rip-off went out of fashion in 1984. Anyway, you play the indestructible ovoid (and his gal Daisy if you've a pal handy) and you have to paddle your way down an endless river. Luckily, you've had the foresight to pack your barrel with a load of apples, as it turns out the river is full of nasties, all hell-bent on having an omelette supper.

The graphics and sound are bright and cheerful, with loads of fluffy effects and squeaky noises respectively. The actual gameplay, I can't quite make up my mind about. I really liked Toobin' - it was spectacularly good fun whizzing along, dodging nasties and scraping through narrow gaps - so logically, I should be flipping over DDTR. You've probably guessed that I'm not, and the embarrassing thing is, I can't quite put my finger on the reason. Perhaps it's something to do with the control method - in Toobin', you rotated your, um, toob. then moved it forwards. In DDTR you simply move in four directions, and sadly this takes the manic urgency out wibbling around the screen. In addition, the whole game seems to move much more slowly than Toobin' - it's really more like Dizzy Down The Municipal Boating Pond.

Dizzy Down The Rapids isn't a bad little game - it's quite fun with two players, and will probably be a smash hit with teeny Dizzy fans. It's just that if you re going to rip off a game, why not do it properly?

Jon Pillar

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