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From: taylor@limbo.intuitive.com (The Moderator)
Date: Sun, 7 Apr 91 11:49:23 PDT
Subject: Digital Games Review Digest, #23
Reply-To: Digital Games Review <digital-games@dgrd.intuitive.com>
To: Digital Games Review Digest <digital-games@decwrl.dec.com>
X-Mailer: fastmail [version 2.02]

 
                     Digital Games Review Digest, Number 23
 
                             Sunday, April 7th 1991
 
Today's Topics:
 
			Amiga:    F29 Retaliator
           			   Corporation

			NES:          SuperC

			Genesis:  Aero Blasters 
           			   Gain Ground

			Neo-Geo:     Nam-1975 

			GameBoy:     F-1 Race
           			   Bubble Ghost
           			    Side Pocket
         			 Wheel of Fortune

          			   Top Ten Games

[This issue we're happy to run our first Neo*Geo review!  Remember:
 Digital Games Review covers the entire video and computer entertainment
 marketplace, so if you've games for any platform, write some reviews! ]

----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
From: Paul Neil <paul@sari.edinburgh.ac.uk>
Subject: Amiga: F29 Retaliator

F29 Retaliator by Ocean software is the Digital Design teams first
effort to break into the flight simulator field. Set in the near future,
Retaliator has 3 main theatres of operation, namely the Middle East,
Pacific and European battlefields, along with some training exercises
set in the Nevada desert.

Budding Top Guns can select either the Grumman F29 or the Lockheed F22
Advanced Tactical Fighter as their aircraft.

The simulator has a futuristic feel to it, most notably in the cockpit.
This is dominated by an oversized HUD and 3 CRT displays. The
HUD can only be toggled through the targeting symbology for the current
weapons load, and does not support waypoint based navigation. The CRT
displays can be configured with moving map displays, various radar modes,
missile FLIR and TV images together with weapons loadout and system
information.

F29 has possibly the fastest update rate I have seen on an Amiga 500.
This does, however, come at a cost. The scenery detail is poor, and 
important items like roads, rivers, mountains, and targets miraculously 
appear out of the desert/ocean/whatever.
 
For weapons freaks, both Retaliators can be tooled up with an
impressive array of (future) ordinance. The loading of weapons
into the retaliator weapons bay is flawed, tho', and depending
on your weapons load, you could end up with a 220 gal fuel pod
in an outboard bay and a sidewinder on the centreline.
 
The ordinance fit of F29 throws up one of the major problems in the
simulation. Although there are plenty of weapons to choose from ranging
from the AIAAM 196 FireBolt (long range fire and forget air to air)
through ASLAM, MSRAM and CSW (AGM various standoff types), every weapon
requires the pilot to eyeball the target before the weapon will arm
itself. A touch unrealistic.

If you are studying flight mechanics at all, then you should give F29 a
very wide berth indeed. This aspect of the simulation is very poor. Step 
like power increments on the throttle, absolute disregard for the laws of
gravity, and a truly appalling approach and landing model all detract from
the software.
 
Enemy intelligence and tactics are very limited, and so the 100 or so
missions will pose no real problem to the dedicated sim enthusiast.

The software has some major bugs in it. Non-existant tank battallions,
a labourious enrolement procedure, flawed scoring mechanism, and a
disasterous obstacle avoidance system (think flying past a mountain is 
easy - not in F29. If you're too close - boomshanka) are typical examples.
 
DiD are developing F29 II which will have elements of carrier-borne
avaition included. I have seen a demo and it doesn't look too bad (bugs
notwithstanding).
 
Conclusion - F29 is an interesting piece of software. It has an
intangible quality whihc I find attractive, but is seriously flawed in a
number of major simulation areas. It has some pretty good basic ideas,
but DiD have still got a long way to go to catapult (no pun intended)
F29 II into the upper echelons of the flight simulator market.

F29 is not so much a flight simulator, more a sophisticated shoot-em-up.
Die hard flight sim enthusiasts will probably want a copy anyway, but
for the casual aviator, it is probably best to wait until the price
drops to medium or bargain level to fly F29 for yourself.

Rating (1..10) : 4.5 (with some serious reservations).

F29 Retaliator, by Ocean Software, for the Amiga A500

------------------------------
 
From: Lars Bodin <labben@iesd.auc.dk>
Subject: Amiga: Corporation

Corporation is a gigantic arcade-adventure with 3D vector graphic. You
have to explore sixten levels in a large building in order to archive
your goal - finding evidence against Universal Cybernetics Corporation.

In the near future Universal Cybernetics Corporation, UCC, has become the 
fastest growing company in the world and they now control the entire 
robot market. Up until now their technology has only been used for 
peacefull purposes but now UCC want to expand their market by introducing 
some powerfull military robots...

Their current robot technology wasn't good enough for military
purposes so UCC began working with genetic manipulation. They succeded
in creating a true killer machine, but one day one of these creatures
escaped from the laboratory and began killing people who walked to
close to the factory!

Your mission as a ZODIAC agent is to infiltrate the UCC building and find 
some evidence against UCC. This is not as easy as it sounds... The 
building is heavily protected with hi-tech alarm systems and robots!
If you can avoid these and find your way to the secret genetic 
laboratory, you should recover an embryo and escape out again.

To help you with reaching your goal you have a lot of hi-tech gadgets
like infra-red gogles, pocket computer, jet pack, stun bombs,
electronic lock pick etc.  You can also carry a body armour and a
powerfull gun to protect yourself agains enemy robots and guards.

Once inside the building you walk around in a 3D world by controlling 
your character with the mouse. You can jump, crawl, fly (if you are 
carrying the jet-pack or have psionic capabilities) and go in any 
directions. You can also collect diffent gadgets you find in the building 
and operate these. Ex. when you start the game you haven't got security 
access to any level, which means you can't use the elevators. You have to 
find the security computer and manipulate this to update your security 
access. You will also find some holograms, which will help you later on...

The 3D effect in this game is very realistic - it feels like being
there yourself! The graphic is good with smooth scrolling, lots of
details like shadows, rotating cameraes etc. The animations are ok but
could have been better on an Amiga. The intro is also "nice" (turn off
the light and turn up the volume for a "pleasant" surprice!). My only
complaint is that you can't quit from the intro - you have to watch it
to the end.

The sound effects are very nice and _very_ usefull. You can hear if an
enemy robot or guard is running after you or if you are under a gas
attack! If you hear a door opens, you better turn around and check if
it was a guard coming out from a room behind you.

As a special feature you can send your registration card with your 
personal data and a photograph to the game programmers in order to become 
a true ZODIAC agent. You will then receive a character disk with your 
own data and digitalized picture! 

The manual describes every gadget you will find in this game and how
to use it. I just wish it would allso descripe what kind of guards I
should expect to meet and how strong they are (when I got to level L8
I found out that my gun wasn't powerfull enough to kill the large
sentry robots!!!). The manual also contain a chapter about some
"psionic" capabilities and a secret menu - this was some of the fun
part in the game; it took me quite a while before I found this secret
menu in the game.

All in all I can truly recommand this game. It took me a couple of
weeks of intensive playing to beat this game. Only problem is that you
can only play it once because it will be to easy to play the second
time (every guard and gadget will be located at the same spot).

	Sound:         9
	Graphics:      8
	3D Effect:    10
        Animations:    8
	Playability:  10
        Manual:        9
        
	Overall:       9
	
	Corporation by Core Design Lmt, for the Amiga
        Also available for Atari ST and IBM PC
		

------------------------------
 
From: Chris & Mark Runyan <runyan@hpisoe6.cup.hp.com>
Subject: NES: SuperC

Another sequel game, this time to the Contra NES cartridge.  This game
is an excellent sequel game, for it almost seems to take over where
Contra leaves off.  As a matter of fact, both Chris and I believe that
having played Contra is a requirement for understanding SuperC.

This game has the same players from Contra once again facing the alien
villain, Red Falcon.  Only this time, the alien has allies!  For those
who face the game for the first time, surviving even the first few
seconds of the game is impossible.  This is a game where you must
play the game often, to learn when to move and when to dodge and when
to shoot.  The various levels are complex and frustrating until you
learn where it is safe to make a stand and where you have to keep
moving in order to avoid the aliens, explosives, and sniper fire.

Chris (age:  9) really enjoys the challenge of the game.  He does admit
to moments of frustration, with exclamations of "That's impossible to
get through!!!".  Of course, an hour later, he has found the way through
and happily lectures whoever is listening on the proper manner of
defeating a particular trap.  His favorite levels are the first two,
mostly because he knows all the strategies for those levels.  He really
appreciates the fact that each of the six levels he has seen are totally
different including different battle music, giving him something new to
try to deal with.  Often, while he is playing, I'll hear him let out a
long quivering sigh, similar to what he would breath after successfully
jumping out of a swing that went a little higher than he expected.  Yes,
this game has some excitement!

Mark (age:  30) is actually able to get through the game.  Perhaps those
lectures from Chris helped.  Though each time you go through a level it
seems to be the same, there is just enough randomness to keep you
guessing.  Sometimes there are extra soldiers, sometimes a soldier
shoots at you, and sometimes a shell will land in a slightly different
location.  Keeps you watching the screen.  Another good point is the
fact that this can be a cooperative two player game.  You help the other
player, providing cover fire for when there are lots of enemies.  The
first time I tried to play, I lost all three of my lives in seconds, but
it didn't take much practice to learn to survive.  Now I can work with
Chris to get myself all the way up to the sixth (out of eight) level.

If this game has any bad points, it is that you get caught up in it so
much that you find yourself growling in anger when you blunder and lose
your character.  The growls are especially loud when you are trying to
jump out of danger and the jump button doesn't work immediately.  You
get lots of practice with the first few levels, because there is no
password option that allows you to go back to where you were should you
use up your lives and continues.  Of course, this is a shoot-'em-up
style game.  Shoot everything that moves!  If it is your partner, your
bullets don't affect him.  If it isn't your partner, then it isn't
friendly!

So, to sum up, this game is a good old-fashioned, shoot-'em-up arcade
style game, where you get a few lives and a couple of continues for when
you use those up, but, basically, you just keep going until you run out
of lives (don't worry, none of your weapons run out of ammo).  It has
some interesting animation in places, but don't let it distract you too 
much.  The idea is to blast it, not sit there and admire it.

   Graphics:             7         Good representation and unusual creatures
   Sound:                9         Music great; sound cues great
   Fun Level:            8         Fun, once you learn the right moves
   Intuitive Feel:       7         Possible to confuse buttons, but not often
   Documentation:        4         Need Contra manual to understand rules

   Overall:              8         Great fun, especially with a partner

  SuperC, By Konami, Inc., for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

------------------------------
 
From: milton@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Milton W. Kuo)
Subject: Genesis: Aero Blasters 

     Aero Blasters,  originally a coin-op shooting game, has made it
way to the Mega Drive  courtesty  of Kaneko.  In  the  arcades, Aero
Blasters was and still is one of the most challenging shooting games
ever made.   Not only  do the  enemy shoot at you in  Aero Blasters,
they  make suicidal attacks where they try to ram your ship!  Top it
off with really  tough bosses, and  Aero Blasters is one of the most
difficult shooting games available for the Mega Drive.

     With all  of the shooting games  available for the  Mega Drive,
Aero Blasters  does  stand out as one of the best available.  It of-
fers an excellent mix of graphics, sound, and challenge that make it
a shooting  game  worth buying.   However, in the easiest mode, Aero
Blasters  can be  beaten a little bit too quickly.   Nonetheless, by
exercising a little  restraint  through not  setting the game to its
easiest level, Aero Blasters has pretty good play longevity.

     The graphics in  Aero Blasters are  definitely  top notch for a
Mega Drive game.  From the  first level to the last (the sixth), all
of the backgrounds  are well  drawn and the movement of the many (!)
enemy ships is smooth and flicker free.  One of the neatest graphic-
al frills in  Aero Blasters is  actually dying!  Upon getting hit, a
BOOM! is heard and your plane  crashes to the earth leaving behind a
trail of smoke.   Also, like the  arcade  version, Aero Blasters for
the  Mega Drive also  features the "eye-tricks" that attempt to dis-
tract you into crashing.   However, the  most impressive thing about
the graphics are  the number of objects that are one the screen.  In
later levels, the  screen is literally  filled with  enemy ships and
enemy fire yet the game never flickers or slows down.

     Sounds  on  Aero Blasters is another strong point of this game.
Catchy tunes comprise the background music and the explosions really
sound neat.  The music tends to fit well with the theme of the level
you're on.  Level two, the Mechanized Cave, has probably the neatest
music in the game with its funky bass beat.

     One of the  features  Aero Blasters had  in  the  arcades was a
large number of  different weapons  that could be picked up.  All of
the weapons found in the  original can  be found  in the  Mega Drive
version as well.  In addition to add on weapons, the main gun on the
ship can be powered up ten times to produce  devasting results.  The
power ups and the pacing of the game constitute excellent game play.
Game  play is  further enhanced  with a two-player simultaneous mode
where you  and a  friend can  help (or compete against)  each other.
The only faults I can find with the gameplay of Aero Blasters are  a
useless "Buster Flash" attack and the use of the same screen for the
intermissions.

     The "Buster Flash"  is  activated by holding  down a button and
allowing your ship to charge up.  Then by releasing the  energy, you
damage everything on the screen.  The problem is, the "Buster Flash"
does nothing to many of the enemy and while charging up, you tend to
get shot down.   The  problem with the intermission is much more an-
noying.   Kaneko  must have compressed the code or something because
a bothersome delay occurs during the intermission.  It is during the
delay that Kaneko occupies your attention with that one graphic.

     These  minor  shortcomings aside,  however,  Aero Blasters is a
really great game especially  with the  two player option.  Further-
more,  Aero Blasters is  one of the  more challenging shooting games
available  for  the  Mega Drive (they do not call the last level the
"Death Circus" for nothing!)

     Graphics  : 9
     Sound     : 9
     Gameplay  : 8
     "Funness" : 9 (two player simultaneous games are great :-)
     Overall   : 9

Aero Blasters, for the Sega Genesis, from Kaneko  [4 Mbits (512KB) ]

------------------------------
 
From: milton@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu (Milton W. Kuo)
Subject: Genesis: Gain Ground

     Gain Ground is  Sega's rendition of a Gauntlet-style game which
made a brief appearance in the arcades.   Gain Ground is a game with
eight rounds with each round  consisting of ten levels.   Each level
is one screen in size and makes the title very appropriate - to com-
plete this game, one must  "gain ground,"  level by level, screen by
screen, until the final boss is defeated.  Along the way to the fin-
al confrontation, additional companions may be picked up - each with
his or her own methods of attacking.

     The difference in the  methods of  attack among the twenty dif-
ferent characters makes Gain Ground interesting since success in the
game will require a certain amount of strategy in selecting the best
suited player for each level.   Each character has a different speed
rating and weapon.  Weapons range from guns to  boomerangs to spears
and each weapon has with it an associated range and style of attack.
For example, guns  usually have range but  cannot shoot through bar-
riers.   However, by using a character with grenades, enemy warriors
hiding  behind the  barriers can be  destroyed by lobbing a  grenade
over the barrier.   The  necessity of choosing the  proper character
for each round adds an element of strategy to the game which greatly
enhances the game's appeal.  Furthermore, with a two player simulta-
neous option, strategy  as well as  cooperation is necessary to com-
plete Gain Ground.

     Play mechanics is Gain Ground's strongest asset.  However, Sega
did not skimp on the graphics or the  sounds, either.   The graphics
on Gain Ground are sharp and well defined.  The characters, although
small, are  well drawn and  clearly animated.   Through the use of a
quarter-top  view, the characters  are much easier to see than those
one Crackdown which  employed a strictly top view of the characters.
The background music on Gain Ground is also well written.  It does a
great  job of  setting the mood  of the  game and quite a few of the
tunes are very catchy.

     Finally, Gain Ground's eighty levels make for a  long game.  It
is definitely a  game you  will want to play with a friend as it can
get very difficult.   Nonetheless, with so many games out being easy
enough to finish within one day, Gain Ground has the longevity lack-
ing in other games.   Some of the levels  are very difficult and the
bosses at the  tenth level of every  round nicely  balance the game.
The greatest fun in  Gain Ground is working with a friend and devel-
oping a strategy to conquer the levels.   Gain Ground is the funnest
two player action game I've played so far for the Mega Drive.

     With  seemingly nothing  but shooting games  coming out for the
Mega Drive/Genesis, Gain Ground is a very welcome new title.  It of-
fers all  of the  game play, graphics, and sound  which constitute a
great game.  Top it off with a two player  mode and the necessity of
having a game plan, and  Gain Ground is one  of the best, if not the
best, two  player game  available for the Mega Drive.  Highly recom-
mended.

     Graphics  : 7
     Sound     : 7
     Gameplay  : 8
     "Funness" : 8

     Overall   : 8

   Gain Ground, by Sega, for the Sega Genesis [ 4Mbits (512KB) ]

------------------------------
 
From: rock%athens@bellcore.bellcore.com (Scott C. DeFreitas NVC-3H215)
Subject: Neo-Geo: Nam-1975 

Many people may already be familiar with Nam-1975 as one of the original
games released by SNK with the Neo*Geo MVS arcade unit.  Now that the
Neo*Geo home system is available you can enjoy this action packed game
from the comfort of your home and without a pocket full of quarters.

The story begins, as your character explains in excellent digitized
voice, with your return to Natorm city to begin a secret operation to
rescue a lost doctor and his daughter.  The first mission features you
and a friend, if using the two player option, riding up the Yan river
under fire from enemy troops and equipment on the river bank and in the
air.  Game play is an interesting cross between the 'Operation Wolf' and
'Commando' genre of military games.  You overlook your player, which
appears at the bottom of the screen, with a 3/4 overhead perspective as
the screen force scrolls horizontally.  Your character faces into the
screen and is constrained to move only right or left at the bottom of
the screen.  However, a gun sight can be moved freely throughout the
play area for aiming guns and grenades at the various soldiers, tanks,
helicopters and other enemies that will confront your character.  As you
might expect, this makes control of your character interesting.

Normally, as you move the crosshair on the screen your player will
saunter left or right as appropriate to follow it.  However, when firing
continuously your character will stay in one spot and pivot to track the
crosshair with your gun.  In addition, you have the option to take the
defensive when things get a little too hot and heavy.  One of the
buttons on the controller allows you to override crosshair tracking so
that you can make your character run quickly left or right, or even to
cartwheel through enemy fire unscathed!  This feature adds considerably
to the fun and playability of the game; besides being indispensable for
staying alive.

Your character comes under all varieties of enemy fire.  Grenades and
other bombs lobbed at your player can be picked off with some quick
shooting, as in 'Operation Wolf,' but you're just going to have to dodge
everything else.  Your characters default weaponry is a machine gun with
unlimited ammunition and a limited number of grenades.  Special weaponry
and additional grenades can be picked up as they float to the bottom of
the screen upon dispatching certain enemies.  There is an interesting
assortment of special weapons that can be obtained including a flame
thrower, missile launcher, balcan machine gun and cluster bombs.
Generally, excellent sound and graphic effects accompany the use of
special weapons.  Each special weapon may only be used a limited number
of times and is lost if your character dies.

Now don't think that with all this powerful weaponry that this mission
is going to be any kind of cake-walk.  This game is ACTION packed.  Most
of the time you will be frantically dodging screen fulls of enemy
ordinance and quickly lobbing grenades or cutting down enemies with your
machine gun as you come up out of a roll.  This game can give you a nice
adrenaline rush.  The wanton destruction that you must dish is great for
relieving anxiety.

Sound and graphics are generally excellent.  Although the graphics may
not amaze you initially, as you get better, and can afford to actually
take a good look at what is happening around your player, you will begin
to appreciate many of the nice graphic effects.  You can even see the
damage your gun fire does on the ground and buildings in the
backgrounds.

The background music is catchy and appropriate.  It nicely sets you into
the mood of the current battle area.  Heavy use of digitized sound
effects really makes a big difference in this game.  Everything just
sounds so realistic; the explosions, the screams, the jets.  In
addition, the digitized voice is clear, strong and richly toned; much
better than the voice found in many games.

I really enjoy this game.  I wasn't a big fan of military genre games;
however, after this game I would have to say that I am now.  With six
battle areas (i.e.  stages) that progress the games story line to rescue
the doctor and his daughter (there is even an air battle that features
jets and an incredible 4 screen Russian plane that must be destroyed;
truly stunning) one could wish that the game was a little longer.
However, the smooth character control, seamless game play, and intense
action make this a game I keep coming back to.  Highly recommended.

	Sound:			9
	Graphics:		8
	Playability:		9
	Fun:			9

	Overall: 		9

    Nam-1975, for the SNK Neo*Geo Home Video Game System.

------------------------------
 
From: Dave Taylor <taylor@intuitive.com>
Subject: GameBoy: F-1 Race

Slipping on the hood, you pull on your helmet and climb into the
formula car, to be pushed to the starting line.  Australia!  The
first track in a nine track international Grand Prix, and while
most of your opponents aren't as good as you, there are a couple of
racers out today that are the very top of the field.

The starting flag swings down and your foot slams into the floor as
you smoothly shift through gears and get up to 240 kilometers/hour.
Suddenly you realize you're about to slam into the back of the car
ahead and slide to the left, racing past and forcing him off the
road as he hits your slipstream.  Soon you relax and lean forward,
in anticipation of using the turbo jet booster.  Pressing the
button, the car leaps forward, spontaneously hitting 360 KMH and you
almost fly past the next few cars on the track.  After the first lap
it's you and the car you can just barely see on the horizon, the
leader.  You slam left into a turn and realize at the last second
that you've understeered, as you crash into a billboard and spin 
violently off the track.

Fortunately, you breath a deep breath and remember with a bit of a
jolt that it's just a game.  Say that to yourself; it's just a game.
It's just a game...But F-1 Race is one of the best titles to ever
appear on the GameBoy, and is a great example of how fun a GB title
can be.  You're a formula 1 racecar driver and have an international
array of racetracks to try, each tougher and twistier than the last!
Further, the tracks are populated with fast and hostile opponents
that not only can pass you, but even push you off the track if you
aren't careful!  

In addition to the Grand Prix, where you have to be the fastest car
on the track to advance to the next track, there's also a Time Trial
mode, where you can hone your driving skills on the first eight
tracks (the ninth track is only accessible by winning the first
eight races of the Grand Prix).  The cartridge is battery backed up
(hurrah!) and stores the top three times for each of the tracks.

F-1 Race allows you to choose between two different vehicles for
each track, one with slightly better cornering and the other with a
higher top speed.  Both have a turbo jet booster to help fly down
the rare straightaway too.  Since the cart has a battery back up,
you can drive the Grand Prix over as many days or weeks as it takes,
and most of the tracks are darn hard!

The one slight quirk with the game is that when you lose a race, you 
never know how close to winning you were.  It'd be a terrific addition 
if the game indicated by how many seconds the top racer beat you.

This game is also the first GameBoy title to allow up to four
players to connect and play together, racing against each other on
the same track: we'll look at that feature in a future review.  For
now, suffice to say; BUY IT!  This is a terrific cartridge and if 
it's as fun for multiple players as it is for one, it'll be a must
have for all GameBoy owners.

	Graphics:	9
	Sound:		10
	Playability:	10
	Fun Level:	10+

	Overall:	10

F-1 Race, for the Nintendo GameBoy, from Nintendo

------------------------------
 
From: Dave Taylor <taylor@intuitive.com>
Subject: GameBoy: Bubble Ghost

In the vast universe of superheroes and evil badguys, surely there
are few games as improbable as Bubble Ghost, where the hero is a
cute little ghost, and the bad guys are electric fans, pins, candle
flames, and even the walls themselves.  A title that has proven 
surprisingly successful on the PC, Bubble Ghost has been faithfully
translated onto the GameBoy and has 35 screens through which to navigate.

The premise of Bubble Ghost is (ready for this?) you're a little
ghost living in a castle having to blow to navigate a little bubble
through thirty five increasingly tougher, obstacle-filled rooms.  
Surprisingly, the game is actually pretty fun and quite challenging.
The animations, while simple, are very attractive, and solving the
various simple puzzles is fun too.  To avoid the flame, for example,
what do you do?  Well, if your only weapon is your breath... well...

The biggest frustration with this title is that there are a limited
number of continues and no save feature or password.  Some of the
levels are difficult and having to continually solve them each time
you play the game is annoying and unnecessary.  Instead, the game
should have simple level passwords like Dadaelian Opus uses, or,
better yet, should have a battery backup in the cartridge to allow a
player to simply resume at the next room in the castle.

I got through the first five or six rooms the first time I played
the game, but then had to go out, so I shut the game off.  Returning 
and having to get through them all again was tedious, and by the third 
or fourth time I played I was completely turned off.  Then F-1 Race
from Nintendo showed up, and Bubble Ghost has been pushed into the
"nice idea but missing in playability" shelf.

	Graphics:	8
	Sound:		8
	Playability:	5
	Fun Level:	3

	Overall:	5

Bubble Ghost for the Nintendo GameBoy, from FCI 

------------------------------
 
From: Dave Taylor <taylor@intuitive.com>
Subject: GameBoy: Side Pocket

The room's full of smoke as you slam your Budweiser on the bar and
grab the cue.  Finally you've your chance to show the local hustler
that he isn't the best shooter in the world, though with dozens of
gleaming gold chains and polyester slacks, he clearly thinks he's 
damn good.  Nine Ball or Pocket, you ask as you casually chalk up 
and drop a $20 on the side.  For money, I assume?

The hustler glances at you, and smiles to himself.  Another sucker,
he figures, and drops a $20 of his own on you.  Pocket.  And did I
mention that I'm the City Champion?  With the flick of a cigarette
ash and a quick swipe at his oily hair, he flips a coin: call it!

Well, playing pool on the GameBoy might not have the sense of
realism of a smoke filled room full of folk betting on the local boy
and snickering when easy shots are missed, but the game Side Pocket from
Data East has managed to neatly capture much of the feel of pool,
albeit without any actual computer opponents (which is just as well;
a computer opponent would be incredibly hard to beat!).  Instead,
the game offers two basic games, 9-ball and Pocket.  

9-ball is essentially a practice mode for one player, where the goal
is to sink the 9 ball as quickly as possible, while always striking
the lowest numbered ball on the table first.  It's akin to the pool
table in your basement; you practice and brush up on your shots
without the pressure of a real game.

By contrast, Pocket Play pits you against increasingly tougher
criteria for winning, including having a limited number of scratches
available, and having to earn points.  Bonuses are awarded for
sinking balls sequentially, numerically ascending, or by sinking
balls into "bonus" pockets (they've a flashing star when they're
bonus pockets).

Scratches are when you sink the cue ball, don't hit any balls at all
(a so-called "table scratch"), or, in Pocket play, when you don't
sink any balls on a shot.  When you've gotten too many scratches the
game's over.  

Side Pocket is a fun and addicting cartridge, but there are some
major frustrations I had with the game, most notably being that I
was getting 7000+ points for clearing a table in Pocket but not
advancing to the next level, even though the points chart indicates
that 7000 points should put me to World Master ranking.  Also, while
there's a pretty decent emulation of "english" (basically hitting
the cue ball at other than the center, to give it various spins)
there's clearly a random factor thrown in too, so some trivial shots
end up being missed, much to my frustration!

Also, the bonus pockets is a nice idea, but some of the bonuses had
me baffled and weren't explained at all in the poorly done booklet
that came with the game.  Indeed, the only bonus that made sense was
the '2 up' which allowed me more scratches in Pocket play.  

Two player mode, from the description, sounds pretty interesting,
where the limitations on scratches are dropped and each player has,
of all weird things, their own table that they're playing on.  The
twist is that when you sink a ball that pocket is "blocked" on the
other table, and when you clean your table (or completely block 
your opponents table) you've won.

Overall, I'd say that this is a cool cartridge for people who like
to play pool, but a bit, uh, tranquil for everyone else.  And with
the added frustrations and inexplicable rank promotion, maybe a few
bucks at the local pool hall is a better investment after all?

	Graphics:	7
	Sound:		6
	Playability:	9
	Fun Level:	7

	Overall:	7

Side Pocket for the Nintendo GameBoy, from Data East.

------------------------------
 
From: Dave Taylor <taylor@intuitive.com>
Subject: GameBoy: Wheel of Fortune

Imagine Vanna White.  Now imagine her about 16 pixels high on the
GameBoy screen.  Yes, this is a slick version of the popular TV game 
show Wheel of Fortune, including Vanna and Pat Sajak, or at least 
incredible (if tiny!) simulations.  Featuring over 1000 puzzles 
categorized as they are in the TV show, the game has all the fun and 
amusing elements of the real show too, including buying vowels, 
watching Vanna walk back and forth, flipping letters, and even 
guessing the phrase if you think you know it.

You can play by yourself (which is pretty easy, but a good way to
practice), against the computer (which has to be the worlds
stupidest player, but more on that in a second) or against another
player (by passing the GameBoy back and forth).  The premise of
Wheel, for the ten people on the planet that haven't seen the show,
is the game hangman, except instead of playing to avoid hanging
someone -- a pretty cheerless premise -- you get money each time you
successfully guess a letter.  The catch is that you only get to keep
it if you are the one to actually solve the puzzle.

While this game is enjoyable for puzzle fans, and is very well
produced, there are two major nits that make it rather frustrating.  
The first is that the percentage chance of hitting "bankrupt" on 
the wheel is far too high in the game; on the TV show the wheel has 
about 30 spots with only one bankrupt, yet on the GameBoy about 15% 
of the time the player goes bankrupt.  Further, while there is 
theoretically a "miss a turn" spot, I never saw it in dozens of games.

Much more fundamentally wrong with this game is that the programmers
chose to put a time limit in for all actions.  For example, instead
of being able to sit and ponder the puzzle for a few minutes, the
player must decide whether to spin, guess or buy a vowel in 10
seconds.  No decision?  Lose a turn.  While this might be necessary
to keep a TV show hopping, it turns out to be VERY frustrating and
instead of a calm relaxed game where the player can enjoy trying to
outguess the computer, it's rather a frantic race to continually "do
the right thing" each time.

Further, a more sophisticated computer opponent would be nice.  It's
certainly a boost to be able to consistently beat the computer, but
I surmise that my cat could do that in this game!  The computer
strategy appears to be that it selects a random place in the
alphabet to start guessing, and works through linearly, regardless
of what's on the board.  So if it's a profession and "la_yer" is on
the board, it doesn't guess 'w', but instead guesses a 'q' or some
other equally unlikely letter.  One would think that stepping through 
the alphabet based on letter frequency would be a better strategy, 
and much more challenging too.

Even with these constraints, however, Wheel of Fortune is a real
blast to play!  DataTek has done a great job of capturing the various 
facets of the game show and watching Vanna sashay across the screen is 
quite amusing!  (in fact if you guess a letter on the center of the 
screen, she'll sometimes be unsure what side to walk towards and will 
flip back and forth for a few seconds!)

	Graphics:	9
	Sound:		7
	Playability:	5
	Fun Factor:	6

	Overall:	7

Wheel of Fortune, for the Nintendo GameBoy, from GameTek

------------------------------
 
From: erc@radon.berkeley.edu (Eric Ng)
Subject: Top Ten Titles

TOP AND BOTTOM TEN GAMES

Votes  Rank  Title
  14   9.9  Ys Books I And II - CDROM - (TG-16)
   5   9.8  Armor Alley (Mac)
  24   9.7  Military Madness (TG-16)
  21   9.5  Castle Of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (Genesis)
  14   9.4  Dungeon Master (Atari ST)
   5   9.4  Shanghai (Lynx)
   5   9.4  Aero Blasters (TG-16)
  26   9.3  Blazing Lazers (TG-16)
  19   9.3  Devil's Crush (TG-16)
  20   9.2  Turrican (Amiga)

   6   3.7  Rocket Ranger (PC)
   5   3.6  Paperboy (Amiga)
   7   3.6  Deep Blue (TG-16)
  10   3.5  China Warrior (TG-16)
   5   3.2  Hard Drivin' (Genesis)
   6   3.0  Last Battle (Genesis)
   9   2.8  Goldrunner (Amiga)
   5   2.0  Orbiter (Mac)
   5   1.8  Ogre (Mac)
   8   1.0  Gauntlet (Genesis)
 
-------------------------------------
 
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End of Digital Games Review Digest
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