Amstrad Computer User


Frank N Stein

Publisher: Amsoft
Machine: Amstrad CPC464

 
Published in Amstrad Computer User #9

Frank N Stein

Frank N Stein loads with quite a pleasant title screen, depicting various limbs and parts of the body, each one numbered. The idea of the game is that you play the part of Prof. Frankenstein who must go round his laboratory and pick up the constituent parts of the monster he is attempting to create. These must be acquired in the correct order.

Having assembled the beast, you may then push the plunger to apply the power and go on to the next screen. The format of the game is that old favourite, platforms and, well not exactly, ladders. To go down the screen, one just drops off the end of any of the platforms, To get back up again, you must position yourself over the small springy platforms and then push the 'fire' button, this sends you hurtling back up to the platform above.

My major moan about the game is this particular aspect; unless you are pixel accurate in lining up with the springing platforms, they fail to work. This is made all the more difficult when one of the inevitable nasties is hounding you across the screen. The screens are designed in such a way that there is only one path that can be guaranteed to get you through a screen -finding it, is another matter. With only three lives, it can be a long and tedious process to determine the best way through any particular screen.

As well as the deadly moving sprites, other obstacles may hinder progress; such as light bulbs which hold you in a fixed position for a second or two, allowing the pursuers to catch up with you. Patches of 'ice' are interesting, you tend to slide across them on your bottom. There are some places where you must slide down a pole to go down the screen; this is achieved by lining up with the top of it then pressing the 'fire' button. Once again, it can prove a little difficult to get exactly lined up. The graphics of the game don't really live up to the initial title screen, all characters look a bit too obviously like 8 by 8 UDGs rather than interesting personae. The game uses MODE 1 graphics but provides more than four colours by palette switching on interrupts. The synchronisation of this with frame flyback leaves a little to be desired as the points at which the colours switch are prone to move. All in all, a reasonable little game, but I don't know if I'll be rushing out to spend my hard earned pocket money on it.