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Considering how frequently Spectrum software houses crowd each other with arcade copies, it seems surprising that 'Burger Time' type games are not common. Blaby must take the credit by quite a long mark for their Barmy Burgers, which appeared earlier last year, and is a very good implementation. Ocean have attempted to go a stage further in Mr. Wimpy (which actually uses Wimpy's famous logo on the cover) by releasing a version which has two separate parts.

The first screen, reminiscent of Ultimate's Pssst, has Mr. Wimpy attempting to assemble the ingredients. He must carry a tray from the left of screen over to the right where there are three items to be collected one at a time, a lump of cheese and two indistinguishable ingredients but doubtless things that put the ham in burger. The problems are three manholes (lord knows why) which sail up and down and kill old Wimp off if he touches them, and Waldo the burger thief who steals a tray If he runs into Mr. Wimpy. Waldo is fairly intelligent and tries to home in.

If you manage to get all three Ingredients back across to the left, then you progress to the second screen, which is the more familiar 'Burger Time' format. Here the layers of the four burgers you must make are kept on separate platforms, connected at intervals by ladders. Segments of each layer are made to drop one platform by walking Mr. Wimpy over them. Kitchen nasties chase around dealing death and destruction, although they can be killed off by squashing them under a falling layer of hamburger, or by a squirt of pepper. It gets rid of them for 30 seconds. You only have 3 squirts available unless you pick up the bonus ice-cream or coffee cup, which gives you more chances to shoot. When all four hamburgers are fully assembled at the bottom of the screen, you are promoted to the next level.

Control keys: sensible - S/X up/down, N/M left/right, A = pepper
Joystick: Kempston, AGF, Protek, Sinclair 2
Keyboard play: responsive
Colour: very good
Graphics: excellent
Sound: good tunes, poorer in game
Skill levels: gets harder
each game
Lives: 5
General rating: very good.

'This is a very colourful game with smooth graphics and good synthesised sound. It starts off well with an excellent title screen. Waldo is an absolute menace, pinching your tray, and this part of the game can be frustrating because the thief is too intelligent. Good tunes, a fairly easy game at first, but it gets more difficult at higher levels. I found it tended to lose its addictiveness after 2 to 3 hours of playing though.'

'The graphics are excellent and use of colour very good. I liked the tunes between games, although during the game the sound Is rather poor. The nestles include Sid Sos, Ogy Egg, Sam Spoon and Pam Pickle, and a rotten bunch they are. This is a fun game to play. Very good!'

'The graphics are nicely animated and very well drawn, which makes Mr. Wimpy fun to play. Added to that, I think they've got the levels of frustration about right to make it pretty addictive.'