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"The most amazing game ever written in BASIC..." Haha, this game should be interesting, I thought. A coder who isn't shy boasting about his game on the main title screen. Wow, I thought, that's original and probably a first to see when you load up a game.

Generally I have a bad response to BASIC games but the main title got me intrigued. Some really nice catchy tunes play away while a message introduces you to Amnesia.

I must say I am really impressed with the presentation of this game. For a BASIC game it's really well done and having been coded in 1998 - a massive ten years ago - it looks really cool for a CPC game.

Starting the game is easy, but being able to develop an understanding for it may take a little time. It reminds me of Minesweep on the PC. It's a mix of a few styles, there's an eight-by-eight square playing board and on the outside are numbers which represent rows and columns.

You have to match the numbers on the outside of the playing board by filling it with dots, which can be done by using keys - the space bar and arrow keys to move around the board. It starts off simple, but as you get the hang of it the game becomes much harder.

The numbers in the columns and rows are the sequences of the filled dots. If a column has 2, 2 at the start and it's 5 squares wide, then it will be O, O, X, O, O. If a Column has 3, 1, it would be O, O, O, X, O, and so on. The same applies for the rows, so to proceed further you need to match the number sequences on the outside of the board by placing "O"s and "X"s on the board. The "O"s and "X"s are made by using the spacebar or small enter key on the number pad.

The graphics aren't spectacular but there is a nice colour scheme and it suits the game. The board is clear and isn't difficult to see so doesn't detract from playing.

Music-wise the title screen tune is really good but there is nothing in-game, only some beeps. However, it makes a nice bang crash effect of letting you know when a level is completed. It's a brain teaser so not everyone will like it, but it's an easy game to pick up, eventually. There are 20 levels to solve, so it loses some staying power and the instructions would have been great if they were in English.

There is an option to skip levels with money that you earn by beating earlier levels. The coder wrote in his messages at the title screen that there is a file somewhere where you can gain access to more than 20 levels, but I'm not sure where they are or what the coder meant by this.

Graphics look very nice and the sound is okay. But without knowing what you're meant to do you just end up pressing buttons and getting nowhere. It's a shame as it looks like a good game.

Get though level one

Graphics 55%
P. Adequate graphics and colours.

Sound 55%
P. Great music.
N. Limited sound effects.

Grab Factor 50%
N. Instructions in French is a little off-putting.

Staying Power 30%
N. Not a huge game by any means.

Overall 43%
A decent game hindered by the language barrier and potential lack of staying power. One for the patient gamer.