Previous Next

There's a scale map of central London in Broad St's huge playing area. Only a portion is displayed and scrolls as you move your car about the streets of the capital.

The scenario is based on the disappointing film of the same name, namely that your potentially mega-selling record has been taken and amnesia has set in. You have to rush about looking for your friends, who each can remember fragments of 'No More Lonely Nights'.

The problem is all you friends are wandering around the London Underground. With the aid of your car computer you have to intercept them as they emerge from the tube.

This requires an awful lot of rushing around, usually from one side of London to another. You are given your friends' haunts on the excellently produced instruction sheet. Using this, and regularly updated information on where they've been seen most recently, you must use your intuition to guess where they're going to pop up next.

Should you succeed in recovering the entire tune (this would take a lot of doing), you reach the game's final stage in which you apparently have to assemble the notes correctly in a hectic session in the mixing studio. Unfortunately you have to work out for yourself how to use the mixing desk....

If you don't succeed inside the time limit, the robbers publish the record and you are reduced to busking.

During the game all the information is nicely presented on screen and the streets scroll nicely when you are travelling. The wings hit 'Band On The Run' plays rather drearily throughout - other than that, sound is nonexistent.

The graphics are competent, with a nice screen when you are waiting for a friend outside a tube. If you stand around for too long, a traffic warden will put a clamp on your car!

The control of your car is very tricky, and the map scrolls at a furious rate as you whizz along. It's also very easy to get lost in the maze of streets. Indeed, unless you're familiar with the streets of London, you'll find the game impossible to play alone without the constant use of the pause button and reference to the map. It works better if you have a friend to do the mapping for you.

I didn't find the game particularly good. Although having a large playing area, it will take a lot of getting used to with its maze of streets and roads. Playability is spoiled by the tricky controls of the car. Without clairvoyance, crashing into anything and everything becomes a way of life. Frustration soon overcomes the desire to finish the game.

This was almost a very good game with a marvellous map of London and some in depth analysis of the seven characters. However, where it falls down is that while you are familiarising yourself with the roads and the personalities there is little to reward you for your efforts.

Getting a piece of the music is gratifying, but most people won't have the patience to get really well acquainted with the program. It seems the authors got too wrapped up in their own game to recognise the barrier that such familiarity puts up to the first time player.

A strange blend of strategy, luck, and aforethought, this game. Racing about London in your car proves tricky and takes some getting used to. Collecting the notes is frustrating work, especially when people

aren't quite where you expect them to be. Completing Broadstreet will take considerable amount of time and patience - a lot more than I'm prepared to give in fact.

Presentation 88%
A very nice package with maps and detailed instructions.

Originality 81%
A unique scenario and new game-play elements.

Graphics 74%
Smooth scrolling streets, plus some nice screens.

Hookability 52%
Poor control and high difficulty damage the game feel.

Sound 56%
Only one continuous tune until you find some notes.

Lastability 73%
Plenty of game there once you're into it.

Value For Money 65%
Some very nice features.