I've been going through my old videos and found this frantic 8-way shooter by legends Hewson. Programmed by Chris Hinsley, who made the awesome Onslaught and Verminator, it features fast visuals whizzing across your screen like lightning. It's crazy and these are all by Nigel Brownjohn who was behind one of my fave platformers, Beyond the Ice Palace. The audio is gorgeous, thanks to the magic of Dave Whittaker.
We are a "custodian" of a massive tomb infested by alien parasites. Obviously, we've gotta clean up this place which means killing everything! The best part is that we look like something from the demoscene [cough] and are equipped with an armed jetpack. Zooming about the place is exciting stuff but the aliens are relentless and the basic mechanics just don't work well together, so it soon becomes a demented slog!
Chris knew how to program the Atari ST but he missed the mark here. There's too much going on with confusing and relentless gameplay. Perhaps I'm wrong? If you're feeling brave, Custodian can run from a floppy or hard drive. Get ready and brace yourself for a rough journey!! Let me know what you think...
Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! ARGHHHH!! Help me, somebody!!
Too much!! Too much!! What's going on? Everything wants me dead... Oh, I died!
I'm digging up another oldie video from my YouTube channel (please subscribe), and this time it's Risky Woods, developed by Dinamic - the ones who gave us a Marine with wiggly legs. This time, we are Rohan, a young knife-wielding chap from a place called The Lost Land, a once-peaceful place protected by Monks.
These monks guarded the wisdom of the Lost Land until Draxos turned up to ruin everything! He brought his legions of evil armies and turned all the monks into statues. Nobody is safe, children are crying, and evil roams the lands. What can we do? Of course, we are going to enter the woods, free the monks, and defeat Draxos. It's gonna be a tough challenge, but come on, kids are crying. It's time to kick some demonic ass!
I know, another silly story for another day in retro gaming land. So, let's play...
Hurry and free all the monks to save the land from the evil Draxos!
Sexy platforming!
Risky Woods is a scrolling platformer that has us leaping across platforms, frantically banging on the fire button to kill everything in sight. Each level is stuffed with enemies who are only too eager to rush onto the screen, but there are lots of bonuses. Just don't forget why you're here; the monks need freeing before you exit.
This game feels like a cross between Ork and Black Tiger. I love how responsive the controls are, and they need to be - many enemies are constantly rushing onto the screen at a frequent pace. It's quite overwhelming, but great fun without ever crushing your spirit. Think Black Lamp and you've got the idea.
Each level is superbly designed and stunning with lush environments, high details, and fancy effects. However, it's the sprites that I love because they are large and superbly animated - just look at those skeletons!! Slain enemies leave behind gold coins to collect for use in the shop to purchase much-needed weapons.
It plays well and looks great. What, you need another screenshot to prove it? Okay...
There's no denying the stunning artwork, which is some of the best I've ever seen.
Aesthetics
Visually, this is a beauty with stunning landscapes, raster backdrops, and superb spooky sprites. The level of artwork is impressive, and I dare anyone to say otherwise. The scrolling is responsive and smooth, but I can’t help wondering why they push the boat out and implement STe support.
Like the visuals, the sonix do not disappoint with great chiptunes by Jose Martin. The sound effects are nice yet nothing remarkable, but they do their job. Yeah, it's the superb music that works wonders.
A gorgeous game like this needs many levels, as this mini-map so kindly displays...
Check out the map that shows your torturous journey through the Lost Lands.
The CryptO'pinion?
My problem with this game is its difficulty. The constant wave of enemies is overwhelming and made worse by the need to crouch down and collect dropped coins during combat, rather than simply walking over them. Also, touching an enemy causes you to drop your entire loot and momentarily lose the ability to fire!
Despite all that, this game is an absolute blast! It’s thrilling, frantic, and incredibly addictive. The joystick controls are fantastic and perfectly complemented by the stunning visuals and impressive special effects. This game truly showcases the capabilities of the STf and is one of the best platformers available.
Pssst, wanna play a game bursting with fun? Then check out Bug Spray, developed by Philip Bishop, which should please gamers with both green fingers and a natural love for killing nasty insects. In fact, it might look familiar if you're old enough to remember the 1983 Speccy original by Ultimate Play The Game?
Sunflowers need protection from hungry pests who nibble at them. To stop this, we use different cans of bug spray, as each type is designed to kill a specific creature. So spraying a bug with the wrong type will only stun them. Sadly, our gardener can only carry one, so it's a rush battling the swarming critters.
Just like Jet Pac, this is like the original, but it isn't an exact replica. It's close and brought back many happy memories for me. The graphics are pretty much ZX Spectrum standards, and the sprites are cute, especially the spiders. Sound effects are adequate, but there is an option for chipmusic which is a better option.
Bug Spray is a blatant rip-off, but it works well. My only criticism is manoeuvring the gardener into the gaps, which is tight. That aside, I've enjoyed what is essentially a fantastic 16-bit conversion of Pssst!
