Zenobi Reviews All games in this section are supplied by Zenobi Software and are PC or Amiga emulated Spectrum text adventures. In all cases, the unregistered version of the emulator is supplied with the game. For more details, or to order, contact Zenobi Software, 26 Spotland Tops, Cutgate, Rochdale, Lancs., OL12 7NX. Prices are œ2.99/disk plus 25p P&P. This issue we have reviews of 'The End is Nigh' and 'Dragon Quest'. ------------------------------------------------------------------ THE END IS NIGH - Authors: Jonathan Scott and Stephen Boyd Zenobi Software (Amiga or PC - Spectrum Emulation) Amiga version reviewed by: Philip Richmond This is a Spectrum text adventure written using Gilsoft's Professional Adventure Writer (PAW) and works on all Amigas via the Spectrum Emulator, which is supplied on the disk. The game is a sequel to the authors' previous adventure "The Beginning of the End" in which it was necessary to collect four components for construction of The Machine Of Total Universal Control (!) needed to defeat the villain Sir Basil Hodgkins PhD and stop him taking over the world. In "The End is Nigh" 3 more components must be found to assemble the Machine and thus prevent Basil from wreaking havoc. The game has been split into three parts :- 1) The Victorian Zone 2) The Interstellar Zone 3) The Subterranean Zone In order to enter the second and third parts it is necessary to save data at the end of the first and second respectively. This is to ensure that the player cannot enter the next zone until he/she has finished or completed playing the current zone. It also allows any objects owned by the player to be saved too - as some objects found may be useful in the next part(s)! The game has the familiar PAW look and feel. One difference is that the Location Exits and Score are clearly printed at the top of the screen - quite handy. Game positions can be saved/loaded and there is the usual RAMSAVE facility to help matters. The standard adventure commands are understood as are: TAKE ALL, DROP ALL, EXAMINE ALL. Abbreviations exist for many of the verbs to save your typing finger eg: A (AGAIN) repeats the last command typed. The location descriptions are fairly short and to the point. It is advisable to EXAMINE, SEARCH, LOOK UNDER and LOOK BEHIND everything in order not to miss hidden objects which are vital to solving the game. There are a few Characters you can interact with using the SAY TO command eg: SAY TO ROBOT "FOLLOW ME", and help from one or two of these will be required to make progress. The authors have made good use of colour and brightness attributes to highlight bits of the text, which is nice, and included a few comical quips in descriptions - which shows off their zany sense of humour. In Part 1, set in Victorian London, you must, amongst other things, escape from prison, stop the spirit of Guy Fawkes blowing up the Houses of Parliament, contend with a judo-kicking security officer, and get past the evil Rook on a giant chessboard. In Part 2, set on a large spaceship, you will need to save the ship from a collision, repair a robot, create a clone, find some energy crystals, and navigate a space-pod. In Part 3, set in a strange undersea world, you will meet the sea-god Neptune, an infuriating starfish who wears headphones, a grumpy wet-suit clad historian, and an octopus who works as a 'bouncer' at a nightclub! Some puzzles are fairly-straightforward and experienced adventurers will have no problem with these, whereas there are the odd one or two which are really quite challenging and will require some concerted thought. It is wise to keep all objects and SAVE regularly to be on the safe side. I found the game fun to play, and am well on the way to solving it (I'm about half way through Part 3). No spelling mistakes as far as I could see! The authors have done a good job in coming up with an imaginative plot and storyline. They have taken care to make it a light-hearted romp through time and space, pitched at about the right difficulty level for most. Having said that, there is a certain "oddness" factor in the game. For instance, having successfully crossed the River Thames in Part 1, I suddenly found myself standing in the Houses of Parliament alongside Black Rod who was attempting to gain entrance to an inner chamber. Weird! Also, there were lots of strange inhabitants in basement rooms of the Parliament building itself, such as a giant and a shop assistant. What would they be doing there?? I get the feeling that this was done to intentionally surprise the player, and, gripes aside, it works fairly well - with the writers taking good advantage of the authoring package and demonstrating their PAW know-how. A worthwhile addition to the Zenobi range. ----------------------------------------------------------------- DRAGON QUEST by Jack Lockerby (From Zenobi for PC or Amiga with Emulator) Reviewed by Joan Dunn Give me a game with a fire-breathing Dragon and I'm happy. Now the Dragon in Dragon Quest is called SMAEGOR and he has been disposing of the local inhabitants like fast food. Actually, when I caught up with him I thought he was a damp squib ... but that comes later in the story. Suffice it now to say that he had stolen the King's Staff of Office, which did not please His Majesty and he wanted it back ... pronto! Also the Dragon kept increasing his demand for more and more gold and threatening to make off with all the fair maidens in the land. So something needed to be done. Several brave warriors had gone forth to find and slay the Dragon ... and had never been seen again. Now you were the only one left, the last hope. "Off you go," said the King. "Kill the nasty beastie and bring back my Staff. I promise not to tell the R.S.P.C.A." I'm afraid nobody had any confidence in your return as they waved Goodbye. "That is the last we shall see of him," they said. So you started your journey with one possession, a cloak ... WOT NO SWORD! You made your way North to a small village. At first glance it seemed deserted, but there were several huts and you did meet a traveller on the dusty road. He was very thirsty and begged you to help him. In one of the huts you spoke to the chief. He also wants you to get something he needs and then he will help you. There are a number of useful objects to be picked up in the village and unfortunately I missed an obvious one and was therefore held up with a score of 20% for a while. One of the things I have always liked about Jack Lockerby's games is the way one object leads to another and the solution of a puzzle ... so at least you know the way to travel. North of the village is a desert, but this presents no problems as long as you have kept your eyes open. You need to read and translate all the notices you find, including a map, and this way you are given a great deal of help, even telling you how to dispose of the DRAGON. I did feel this was making everything too easy and you should have been able to solve that problem for yourself. There is also information giving a route across the desert. Soon you come upon another village with several buildings and once you have some coins you can hire a horse to take you further along the way, until finally BINGO ... there is the Dragon! There is Ramsave and Ramload and you can save to tape or disk. The game has the usual commands but don't forget to look under, look behind and look in objects and locations. Also you can Put All Into Rucksack which makes carrying things easier. I liked the clear text blue, yellow and green on black, makes it easy on the eyes. Just one grumble, a few of the messages disappeared before I had finished reading them. The puzzles are logical and the whole adventure user friendly. An ideal game for an inexperienced player, but good fun for anyone. I should have liked a more fierce dragon, a few bursts of flame or even some puffs of smoke. The game really had too many hints ... didn't need to use the little grey cells. - o -