It doesn't matter whether it's summer or winter, those centipedes continue to infest our computers, wriggling their way down countless TV screens. Bubble Bus has brought out a new version: Exterminator is one of the best I've seen, and includes the most realistic spider ever to make you leap for the nearest dustpan.
Objectives
The aim is simple - if it moves, shoot it; if it doesn't, shoot it anyway, for in this game the laws of nature and logic are suspended.
A new species, a worm with legs, steadily threads its way down through mushroom-like blue cacti. Armed with a spraygun, you puff away at the cacti and worm, scoring points for every hit. When a segment of worm is struck, it turns into a cactus, the rest of it continuing, unperturbed, on its own sweet way.
From time to time, you must defend yourself against a low-swooping eagle, a mosquito diving straight down the screen, and a scorpion. All can be exterminated. A hairy, life-like tarantula crawls across the bottom of the screen - all you can do is keep out of its way and hope that it will go away.
In Play
The black worm and blue cacti appear on a cheerful yellow background. Your spray gun, which is a repeating fire model, is represented by a nozzle confined to the lower portion of the screen. As the worm is hit, it breaks up and before long umpteen little segments are trampling all over the place. To the sound of a harsh honking, a purple eagle appears hovering just above you and swooping. If it makes contact, you lose one of your three nozzles.
A loud hum warns of the imminent descent of a plummeting green mosquito - dodge it or shoot it. Similarly, a white scorpion scampers across high up - bonus points for potting it.
Extra lives are awarded for high scores and the game gets faster as you progress, with the screen changing colour at each new stage. Scores and statistics are printed at the top of the screen, being updated like those electronic train-departure boards. The sound effects are nicely done but if you prefer a quieter game, they can be turned off, and the action can be frozen with the F7 key.
Exterminator has superb animated graphics (the spider and worm are great!), is full of action and uses sound effectively. For quality in all departments, this takes the prize.