Crash


The Fury

Author: Phil King
Publisher: Martech
Machine: Spectrum 48K/128K

 
Published in Crash #55

Fury

Fasten your seat belt for a space age demolition derby! The Fury is a futuristic racing game for daring drivers. The race takes place on a looping track called the Rim which floats in space. The Fury itself is a gateway to a strange dimension which, if hit, can transport the car to another part of the track.

The season consists of 25 races of which there are three basic types: a Time Run which is a race against the clock with no weapons allowed; a Killing Race in which the player's aim is to destroy as many Noids (novice drivers) as possible, and a Tag Race where one car carries the 'IT' tag which does constant damage to the car, but can be passed to another car by colliding with it.

You start with the cheapest type of car - the Avenger. This has poor performance and low shield protection. Before each race, the player has the option of buying a new car, but only if he has enough money; this is earned by doing well in races. The cars range from the cheap Avenger to the state of the art, but very expensive, Anome. There are also specialist cars such as the Waster which is good for Killing Races but too slow for other competitions.

Fury

The equipment menu allows the player to purchase fuel and weapons and, when necessary, have his car repaired. Weapons (only to be used in Killing Races) include missiles, machine guns and two types of flame thrower.

During the race a collision with computer-controlled racers will cause damage to the player's car (indicated on a diagram below the main playing area). If you're not driving in an exciting enough fashion (bad for viewing figures), the judges will track your car with a cross hair and destroy it.

Comments

Joysticks: Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair
Graphics: lacking in colour but fairly detailed
Sound: the odd blip with some very low-key crash effects
Options: definable keys

Phil ... 85%

'The instructions to The Fury are very long and detailed, even giving a history of RIM racing. The first thing you realise is the first very high danger level of this sport - you can't help getting blown up! The graphics are pretty bland but the way the perspective of the cars changes as they move up and down the RIM, gives them a sense of solidity. The process of accumulating money to buy better and better cars keeps you interested, as do the options of buying various weapons. I particularly like the missiles which have smoke trailing from them. My only gripe is that the action itself could have been a bit more exciting - perhaps a few track obstacles. However, the game is very absorbing and mixes strategy with arcade action to good effect.'

Mark ... 73%

'Not another race game, I thought but after extensive play, I came to the conclusion that The Fury is entertaining - at least for a while. The presentation is polished. I especially liked the cross hairs used to make your choice on the options screen. Fellow racers, bumping and jostling around the track, are well-defined and do their best to make sure that the player doesn't survive the race in one piece. On later laps Interesting weapons can be added to increase your chances of survival (there's a price on your heed, after all) which adds to the general variety. So stay lucky, and pray that you live long enough to spend that bounty money.'

Nick … 63%

'A space age demolition derby! Well - what will they think of next! The Fury is an excellently presented race game with attractive background graphics but not much lasting appeal. All the cars move smoothly and can look quite impressive when they're equipped with weapons. Gameplay is very difficult at first: cars ramming you and firing at you make it hard to travel in a straight line. Once you've got used to the road hogs, the contest starts to get quite enjoyable. The different races add some variety and with names such as Killer you can guess what to expect from the opposition! The Fury is fun for a while but I don't expect you'll be playing it for long.'

Phil KingMark CaswellNick Roberts

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