Sinclair User


Hit Pack Number Two

Author: Jason Baptiste
Publisher: Zeppelin Games
Machine: Spectrum 48K/128K

 
Published in Sinclair User #125

Hit-Pack 2

Zeppelin's second Hit Pack (No.2) allows you to drive without a licence (yippee!), gamble without losing any dosh (yum, yum), play darts without getting kicked out of the pub (hurrah!) and sabotage everything in sight with a big gun space ship (way out dude!) and all without getting into trouble with your mum!

Step into that legalised driving seat with Pro-Go Kart Simulator... guaranteed to drive you around the bend. This game is so ozone friendly that its graphics are almost totally green. Although this is an admirable idea it makes them sore on the eyes and doesn't really help gameplay. A total of five competitors (four computer and one human) battle it out in this fast, tough game. With three tracks to choose from and four bikini clad beauties leading you into the action Go Kart Sim will have you furiously wiggling your gear stick for all ninety nine seconds of each race. Face obstacles such as straw bales and lap boards (eh?) and keep your eyes on the road. It's a good job I eat lots of biscuits 'cos you need to be a bit of a jammy dodger to get around this course!

Sabotage is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up. Warm up by destroying dangerous asteroid formations and then partake in some real action as you engage in combat with some very feeble and many more extremely tough enemy spacecraft before finally reaching frightening bubble of doom spitting end of level guardians.

After this long trip your spacecraft will automatically land and you'll emerge as a space infantryman who has to frolic around a maze and collect all the bubbles in the corridors of confusion while trying to avoid the flocks of dangerous birds which fall throughout the maze, out to destroy your spaceman. Bash me on the head with a can of baked beans if I know why space is filled with mazes, bubbles and birds but you need to complete this section to get onto the next level.

If you have the stomach for it, Jocky Wilson's Darts will amuse you for hours on end with three different dart games games for your delectation. First off there's a tournament game, where you engage in match play against a series of Darts Champions from around the world as well as good old Jocky himself. The next, a head to head involves two players who come face to face in a grudge match and, last of all, there's a 'round the clock' game where each number on the board from one to twenty has to be hit as quickly as possible within a set time limit to achieve a high score. There is also a handy help option to assist newcomers which tells you were to throw your dart next.

Graphics are reasonable and sometimes look realistic but more colour could have been splashed out on the dart board. The odd floating dart control procedure takes some time to get used to and is best done with a joystick.

Take a gamble and play Las Vegas Casino, a game were the stakes can be high or low, but who cares, you won't lose anything unless you get hooked and take up the real thing! Las Vegas Casino gives you the option to play 4 brill gambling games.

In Blackjack two cards are dealt to both you and your opponent then it's up to you to gamble by 'hitting' for another card or 'standing' with what you have. Craps involves throwing two dice and making one of seven types of bet. In Baccarat you bet on the player or dealer (and sit back and let things happen) then, finally, there's Roulette (Big Al's favourite) where you have to select the odds and spin the wheel, betting on which number it will land on when it stops.

Each game gives £250 as stake money and the main aim is to gamble this money and raise it to £50,000. Graphics are not so good and the overall game is certainly not user friendly to any newcomer.

Overall this pack can be a bit of a gamble too. The darts sim is good and the others are all mediocre Nevertheless it has good variety for a £3.99 compilation so if you like the look of it then don't let me hold you back.

Overall Summary

What can I say except that Pro Go-Kart and Jocky Wilson were the most enjoyable games on the pack? The only negative thing about these games is that the graphics were not up to standard and lacked definition and colour variation.

Jason Baptiste

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