Sleuth

I've been searching...

After the jaw-dropping Berzerk, I searched for other variants to see what might be lurking inside the ST's archives. Eventually, I found Sleuth a PD release by Larry Scholz of MajicSoft in 1993. The year is 2525 and man's existence is threatened by evil cybernetic organisms (yup, robots!) Dr Spirit has so kindly butchered and made evil. It's not exactly what you would call an authentic clone (ahem) but the premise is there!

We are Inspector Sleuth and are about to infiltrate the doctor's lair to show these clumps of metal who's in charge! Gone are the randomly generated screens, replaced with a map populated by six different models of the doctor's robots. These range from the Hemroid which is a low-level (wait for it) "pain in the butt" to the Hopperoids with warp technology, so don't get too close. Come on, you must love Larry's humour?

Movement and firing are performed in all eight directions using the joystick. Defend yourself using an armour-piercing gun that features a nuclear charge to incinerate all robots from the inside out. You still need to stay clear of the electrified walls and if you hang about for too long, something freaky appears after a short time to chase you across the screen. Now we're back on the familiar Berzerker ground lol.

So, is it better than Berzerk? Not on your nelly! Sleuth feels like a tacky ripoff with rubbery controls and dodgy graphics. Well, I can imagine that shocks you? Have I just wasted your time writing this mini-review? No. Regardless, Sleuth is a good game in its own right, and it's nice to play something different. You may have noticed I've not mentioned the audio? The chip fx are good but the music...wait and see!

For what it's worth, my 8-year-old daughter loves this shooter. She played several games badly and never understood why the walls killed her. But, she loved it!! I must admit, so did I. Remember, it's not Berzerk so keep an open mind and give it a fair playtest. Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Sleuth can be downloaded over at the legendary Demozoo website.

IGNORE the graphics!! Remember, gameplay counts the most. It always does.

Shoot anything that looks... well... weird. Don't think, just shoot!! Enjoy :D