Computer Gamer


King's Keep
By Firebird
Spectrum 48K/Plus

 
Published in Computer Gamer #22

King's Keep

The King is a tyrannical ruler oppressing his people in a reign of terror. He is also your father but that doesn't stop him confining you to the castle. The game begins as you try to escape.

Unfortunately, the resulting game looks like a cross between Manic Miner and Spellbound.

Our Manic Prince hero waddles and jumps around the platforms that form the castle searching for useful objects to bribe the game's characters to help you escape.

Picking up objects, examining or using them takes several key presses as you punch up the actions menu then select the required option. In a few years the programmer may develop this into David Jones's Windimation technique (used in Spellbound and Knight Tyme) but I doubt anyone will wait long enough to find out.

Firebird claim to be catching Mastertronic in the budget race but games like this lag far behind the Mastertronic titles they're trying to mimic.