Zzap


Estra
By Firebird
Commodore 64

 
Published in Zzap #2

Estra | BW | JR | GP | Verdict

Cheap, simple, one-screen collection game

Estra

Everything about this game is simple and bland - graphics are undetailed, uninteresting, and have as much colour as a corpse. Sound isn't much better and aspirin played an increasingly important part after much play.

You must collect 24 pieces of a statue (one at a time) from around the edge of the screen, and bring them back to the centre where they're assembled. The pieces alternate with small deadly dots and care is needed to extract them.

Two different types of guardian float around the screen in an attempt to kill you. The first type is a couple of diamond-shaped thingies that simply bounce around the screen in predictable patterns, but are still difficult to avoid.

Estra

The second is a sort of small blob with a claw that homes in on you every so often - especially if you stay still for too long. Contact with one end kills you, with the other end kills it.

You are given a time limit in which to complete the screen, in the form of energy. This can be replenished, though, by moving into a re-energiser that hangs around on screen.

Occasionally the small dots around the edge of the screen move towards the centre. Should any of them the centre without you intercepting them first, then a life will be lost. Each time one of your five lives is lost, the bonus for completing a screen goes down.

If all of the pieces are assembled, then you receive a bonus depending on the number of lives remaining and move on to a slightly harder version of the same screen. Yawn.

BW

I can't say I was overly impressed by this one-screen game. The graphics are colourful and the idea is a neat one, but it is simple and extremely repetitive. The price tag means you might not feel too aggrieved if you buy it, but even at £2.50 I wouldn't lighten my wallet for it.

JR

This is exactly 51p more than Mastertronic offerings and really doesn't come up to the standards of their latest £1.99 specials. The graphics are basic, so is the game, so is the sound, and why a BBC screenshot on the C64 cover? Buy a Mastertronic and put the change toward the next issue of Zzap!

GP

With cheap games increasing in quantity and quality with each new release, it's a shame to see Estra hit the streets. The single screen of 'action' soon becomes repetitive instead of compulsive, and it's not something I'd want to spend £2.50 on.

Verdict

Presentation 48%
Standard Firebird cassette box. Adequate instructions. Annoying pause on death.

Originality 54%
Simple collect-and-build game with a few new touches.

Graphics 23%
Small, uninteresting characters. Not many of them.

Hookability 48%
Fairly interesting to start with.

Sound 35%
Music at start. Simple effects.

Lastability 26%
Only one screen that soon becomes monotonous to play.

Value For Money 43%
Very ordinary game at a low price.

Overall 40%

GP

Estra | BW | JR | GP | Verdict

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