              Game news.               
                                       
   First out of a mixed bag is Quark.  
This polished two player Xenon clone is
very playable and features attractive  
graphics. The action is fast and varied
with the aliens possessing as much in  
the way of armoury as yourself. After  
the frustration of the key-disk system,
'pioneered' by 4D and now used with new
Oregan games, the attractive music will
play you into the ship selection stage.
Grab a ship dependant on speed, power  
and armour whilst admiring the skeletal
hand which pushes buttons on the screen
for you. Past this and the game starts 
in earnest, but later attempts allow   
you to skip straight to the first level
with F7. First and most prominent are  
the rotary tanks which are a constant  
nuisance and also a supply of power up 
tokens and further goodies such as gun 
droids. Your ship has a limited supply 
of smart bombs which can be useful as  
flames pour from the cracked hull of   
your fighter. (I kid you not) The great
attention to detail mark this game out 
from even classics such as Xenon plus  
a 2 player option make this a winner.  
   Other notable releases recently -   
Dungeon which I will buy in time for a 
third issue. Featuring awesome rotary  
Wolfenstein 3D style graphics but lousy
character sprites, this game fills a   
gaping niche in the Arc market. I hope 
this will be the precursor to The Eye  
of the Beholder on the Arc, because I  
suspect many Arc gamers are the serious
thoughtful types that suit this type of
quest game. (We all played Citadel once
upon a beeb). My only reservation about
this and Stunt Racer (or whatever they 
want to call it) is the huge price.    
Even after shopping around, I fail to  
see how to get this game for less than 
30.50 (from Vantage One). That is a   
bloody liberty if you ask me. Plus you 
will have to endure 4D's 'key-disk'    
protection system which limits hard    
disk installation, slows loading, pumps
up the price and prevents legitimate   
backing up.                            
   Gripes over and time for a quick    
glance at Formula fun. A four player   
split screen overhead racing game from 
Mystery software for the completely    
reasonable price of 14.99. Ring for    
more details on 0603 402819. They will 
also tell you about a four player game 
called Bowladroids.                    
                                       
                                       
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