Previous Next

What could be better than playing Revenge Of The Mutant Camels while listening to very loud music in a darkened room? Playing Ancipital while listening to very loud music in a darkened room - that's what.

I've just emerged blinking into the sunlight after a prolonged session with Ancipital - the latest game from computer gaming's answer to Neil from the Young Ones, Jeff Minter.

Jeff has come up with a real winner this time. Anyone who was a bit disappointed with Sheep In Space will be glad to hear that Jeff is back on form with Ancipital.

Well, what is an Ancipital? It's a half man, half-goat creature which you may have seen scuttling about the screen in "Sheep". The Ancipitals have joined forces with us humans to help fight the Zzyaxians - an evil bunch responsible for everything nasty that happens in Minter's cosmology.

You have to help the Ancipital warriors break into a Zzyaxian weapons base armed only with an extremely sketchy map and destroy all the deadly things you find inside.

Once in the base, you'll find that you must open up exits in the walls surrounding each room. You do this by blasting the things you'll find inhabiting the room - more odd creations from Minter's fertile imagination. We won't spoil the fun by letting you know what they are. It'll take some time for you to work out the best ways to open the exits - which is half the fun of the game.

To get into some rooms, blasting is absolutely no good. You have to help your furry Ancipital find the camel keys in order to reach these rooms.

There are also magic goats scattered about which, if collected, give your Ancipital extra added power. Collect five and he can jump up and down on walls to damage them.

The game also features a development of Jeff's ingenious gravity system first seen in "Sheep". Mastering the four-way gravity found inside the Zzyaxian base is quite difficult - but follow the comprehensive instructions found inside the cassette and you should soon have the Ancipital leaping about like a mountain goat.

You'll have to master the jump-turn - a Torville and Dean-type manoeuvre - in order to bounce around inside the rooms without fear of damaging your furry friend.

The graphics are great - well up to Jeff's usual high but quirky standard. The sound is terrific. Jeff has included what he calls a "Phil Collins module" so that every room has its own drum rhythm. Firing sounds in each room are different too.

Overall Ancipital is a game any self-respecting Commodore owner should immediately go out and grab off the shelves - it will keep you intrigued for months. It is well documented - you couldn't really ask for more from a set of instructions - and extremely well presented.

Ancipital sees the Shaggy One back on form.