I like go-kart racing, but I do not like this game at all! As you might have guessed, you have to race your kart around four tracks and complete a set number of laps before your time runs out. Along the way, there are nine types of collectable bonuses which you can collect and use on your next visit to the pits. You've also got a small amount of nitro to boost your speed on the straights or catch up on your opponents. Any sense of enjoyment quickly disappears as you wince at how slow the game is, and the sound effects are abominable. 'Turbo'? No way!

More information on CPCSOFTS

4

Time for some more racing action across America in a Ferrari F-40. Like Out Run, the game is divided into stages, and you must reach the end of each stage before your time runs out. However, this time there are 16 stages, which are completed sequentially, and your car is now equipped with a turbo booster – but it overheats, so you can't use it often. You can upgrade your car after every four stages as well. If you fail to reach the checkpoint in time, you return to the start of the current stage and lose one of your five credits. This allows you to see quite a lot of the game even on your first go, although this doesn't mean that it's easy to complete. This game is a big improvement compared with the awful Out Run. The graphics are quite good and the scenery varies dramatically as you pass through each stage, and while the scrolling isn't all that fast, it's not sluggish either.

See also: Out Run, Out Run Europa.

More information on CPCSOFTS

8

Turbo the Tortoise
(Hi-Tec/Codemasters, 1992)

The scientist Dr. Mulliner has sent Turbo the Tortoise on a mission through six time zones, to collect some ingredients for one of his latest experiments. This is a very good platform game, with all sorts of enemies, power-ups, chasms, and even hidden platforms which allow you to reach seemingly inaccessible locations. Most enemies can be killed by jumping on them once or twice, although if you find some missiles, you can shoot them instead. Hi-Tec originally released this game on the CPC, but they went bust shortly afterwards, and so Codemasters continued to sell it instead. Turbo is easy to control, and together with the colourful cartoon-style graphics and relatively easy gameplay, this is a thoroughly enjoyable game.

More information on CPCSOFTS

9

Turlogh le Rôdeur
(Cobra Soft, 1987)

Turlogh has been summoned by Ydahaut, king of the land of Thoz. With the aid of his magical sphere, Ydahaut knows of a great threat to the kingdom. The citadel of Nuch'Quaryat is under attack by an army, and if the Kula Kangrih – the sacred tables – are stolen, the dark forces can be commanded and Thoz will fall! This adventure is based on a French cartoon strip, and the game is played like an interactive cartoon as well. Every so often, you must decide which of two options to choose, which affects the course of the game. There is also a lot of combat which is determined by the computer rolling dice for you. However, while the graphics are undoubtedly stunning, combat is much too difficult, which will eventually impede any further progress and lessen your enjoyment of the game.

More information on CPCSOFTS

7

Turrican
(Rainbow Arts, 1990)
Reviewed by Chris Lennard

An evil demon, Morgul, has returned from another dimension to haunt humankind. Your mission is to destroy him. You have to traverse levels filled with mutant hordes, jumping around exploring large areas, shooting enemies with a large arsenal available to you, while picking up various extra weapons along the way, all against the clock. Face some nasty bosses at the end of each stage and sometimes halfway through in order to proceed. Finding secret rooms laden with power-ups is a joy, as is unleashing your awesome special weapons on everything around you. Nothing in the way of music, but some nice sounds nonetheless. As it was converted by Probe, it's a very attractive game and a pleasure to play.

See also: Turrican II.

More information on CPCSOFTS

9

As Ben McGuire of the USS Freedom Forces, you must once more strap on your Turrican Assault Suit to destroy The Machine – a cyborg dictator who threatens galactic peace with his vast army of space mutants – and wreak revenge upon him for killing your fellow crew. Essentially following the same format as before, within a time limit our hero has to steer through more large levels consisting of various worlds with secret bonus-filled rooms and destroy some bad ass bosses at various stages, which as before have to be killed in a particular way. Again, you have a bevy of powerful upgraded weapons to utilise against the marauding aliens that come in all shapes and sizes and from all directions. Superb graphics, nice menu music, good effects and solid fun.

See also: Turrican.

More information on CPCSOFTS

9

In this side-scrolling adventure, you take the role of a brave explorer as you follow in your deceased father's footsteps on a quest to find the legendary Elephants' Graveyard, and lay claim to all that lovely ivory. You start your journey in a desert, and from there, you must find objects to help you in your quest (knife, gun, bullets etc.) while also solving puzzles along the way and fighting many a bad guy, from sword-wielding Arabs to scary zombies. Overall, the game has a nice Indiana Jones feel to it, but it's a tad too hard (you'll be walking along and a bad guy will leap at you with no warning, or a rock will just fall on your head!), and the graphics, while detailed, look like they've been ported straight from the Spectrum. Still, it's quite enjoyable, and there aren't many games like it on the CPC. Worth a blast.

More information on CPCSOFTS

7

Your name is Mohamed, and with your flying carpet, off you must venture, searching for six stone blocks. Placing these in the Valley of the Kings forms a mini-pyramid and will save the Pharaoh's life. Tut's Pyramid is a clone of the CPC classic Sorcery. The graphics are of a similar quality, and enemy sprites move smoothly, following fixed paths. Sound-wise, a pleasant tune plays throughout with some odd effects included. It's easy to play, and with six lives, you see a lot of the game, even though there is a time limit. A decent offering but nothing like the game it tries to be.

More information on CPCSOFTS

7

You're behind the wheels of one of the most powerful cars that money can buy – the Ferrari F40 – and you're racing it through five stages to beat the clock. Watch out for the other cars, though, and the scenery which lines the track! The game seems a bit easy at first – I reached the fourth stage on my first go – but it's not. However, it is extremely fast, which isn't surprising when you see how blocky the graphics are. The sound consists of engine acceleration noises, but there's a nice tune on the title screen.

More information on CPCSOFTS

7

Ulopa Cariken's family once owned a powerful magical amulet, but when he was just two years old, an evil druid called Maldur massacred his family and stole the amulet. It was then broken into 23 pieces which are scattered across the land of Gaspary. Ulopa is now 16 years old, and as Ulopa, you must retrieve all the pieces of the amulet. With 23 levels of platform action, and one piece to collect on each level, it won't be easy. The graphics are fantastic and there is a fairly wide variety of monsters to kill, although it can be difficult to spot them against the very detailed backgrounds. Sound effects are sadly lacking, but this doesn't detract from what is a really rather good platform game.

More information on CPCSOFTS

8