10 Great Games II

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1988

10 Great Games II is the second in a series of three compilation packs from Gremlin for the Amstrad CPC. Games included were: * Death Wish III * Auf Wiedersehen Monty * The Duct * Convoy Raider * Samurai Trilogy * Jack the Nipper II * Basil the Great Mouse Detective * Thing Bounces Back * The Final Matrix * Mask

Grumpy Gumphrey Supersleuth

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1985

Gilbert Gumphrey is a veteran store detective, whose tasks range from the complex to the mundane. They include putting out fires, rescuing children, killing ducks, and getting the boss his afternoon cup of tea. Failure to do any of these successfully can lead to the sack. Grumpy Gumphrey Supersleuth is made up of 39 screens of puzzles. Each room is viewed in forced-perspective 3D, and the perspective of a room is not always the same as the perspective you entered it – however the initial movement into the main space of the room is automated. A task is dictated to you at the base of the screen, with instruction on where to find the objects you need. Watch out for an umbrella, keys and a skateboard among other things. You can hold multiple objects, cycling through them with the 'S' key.

MASK Two Two

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1988

MASK II is a single player side scrolling shoot-em-up and is the second game in the M.A.S.K (Mobile Armored Strike Kommand) series that was based on a TV series / comic / toy license of the mid 1980's. The M.A.S.K organisation is once again battling the bad guys in the form of the criminal V.E.N.O.M. (Vicious Evil Network of Mayhem) organisation in their transformer like vehicles. This game consists of three missions: Mission one is about destroying an oil refinery that V.E.N.O.M. have set up in the middle east as part of their bid to control oil prices. Mission two starts with a tribe in the jungle who worship a fabulous ruby. V.E.N.O.M. have stolen the ruby and are using it in a laser ray gun. It is M.A.S.K.'s job to destroy the laser and to return the ruby to the tribe in the jungle. Mission three sees V.E.N.O.M. holding the president of the P.N.A. hostage and the mission is to rescue him and get him to the summit talks in time to sign a peace treaty. In each mission the player starts by selecting three M.A.S.K. agents. These should be chosen with care as the agents drive different vehicles and completing each mission will require having the right agent and their vehicle at your disposal. Once into the game the player has five lives with which they must complete their mission by driving, flying and hydro-planing across the varied terrain, battling V.E.N.O.M. vehicles, overcoming obstacles, and picking up power-ups along the way.

Rocco

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1985

Our Stallone-inspired hero has four fights to win before becoming champion boxer in this sports game. Cimbel Lin, Ted Matare, Jansen Sino and Fighter Bull must be dealt with in order, with fights getting tougher as you progress. The action is viewed in 3D, from behind your boxer and with a full view of your opponent. A health bar is provided for each player, going from green to red as hits are scored. When the strength goes down to zero, a punch will floor your opponent - either player can be seen hitting the floor when a knockout blow is struck. Three knockouts are required to win a fight.

Super Scramble Simulator

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1989

The game consists in facing straight paths to obstacles in race against time, with only one participant at a time. The screen during the race is divided into three parts: at the top you have the main view of the rider on the track, profile view with horizontal scrolling to the right; in the middle, a view on a smaller scale of the track from above, always with horizontal sliding; below are the on-board instrumentation (tachometer, speedometer, gear) and the time and score indicators. The player can steer, adjust the speed, use the three-speed manual transmission, rear wheel or rear wheel both on the ground and in the air, lower the rider. The steering changes the lateral position of the bike, which is only visible in the plan view. The routes may include various obstacles such as steep slopes, suspended trunks, rivers, parked vehicles, rocky stretches or with bumps, all to be faced with different techniques and speeds. At the beginning the obstacles are all aligned, but as the difficulty increases, the lateral movement of the bike becomes necessary to intercept them. You can suffer time penalty in various ways: missing an obstacle, facing it incorrectly, or falling, which may depend on unsuitable speed to the ground, landing with the wrong wheel, stall. After each mistake, the race is immediately resumed from a point just before, with no damage except for the time penalty; after a certain number of attempts the obstacle is automatically skipped.

Switchblade

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1991

The Fireblade, sacred symbol of the ancient Switchblade clan, has been smashed into 16 pieces by the evil Havoc - but they say that a Hiro can save it, and as Hiro, you must retrieve the 16 pieces and restore your people's pride. The gameplay is platform and ladders based, set both inside and outside. The layout of the territories becomes visible as you progress, and they can contain bonus weapons and secret rooms. Unlike the sequel you start without weaponry, and this is gained directly, rather than you collecting coins and trading them at shop sections. Holding down fire progressively builds up your fighting power.

The Final Matrix

Amstrad CPC - Released - 1987

An impossible mission has fallen into the most improbable hands. Poor Nimrod is sent to rescue a few of his Biopton companions from the hands of the brutal Cratons, who have imprisoned them in a chain of prison planets collectively known as "The Matrix". Nimrod must travel throughout the galaxy, infiltrate each planet where matrix activity is detected and rescue his friends. He may use the objects left at his disposal, such as TV cameras, which provide valuable intel about each complex, the ammo crates, which contain weapons needed to defeat the disruptors and guards, and the building blocks, which can be used as protection or to activate weight sensors. At the same time, he must avoid, if possible, the armed guards, the disruptors, which will block his way, the mines and the black ice. Once Nimrod locates a hostage, he needs to take him to the landing zone and extract him to his spaceship in order to complete the rescue. "The final matrix" is an isometric arcade with adventure elements, such as puzzles and traps. A novelty feature is that every matrix can be entered at any time, following no particular order, which may appeal to casual players.