Personal Computer News


Dimension Destructors

Author: Bob Chappell
Publisher: Artic Computing
Machine: Spectrum 48K

 
Published in Personal Computer News #041

Dimension of Death

Three dimensional games seem to be all the rage at the moment. Artic, having already published a very good tank battle program, throw another 3D hat into the ring with Dimension Destructors, an impressive "coming-at-you" space saga.

Objectives

Accustomed as you are to boldly going where no-one has gone before, you are not surprised to see dots appear on your scanner. As your ship hurtles onward, the dots grow larger until they are plainly visible as alien spacecraft, bent on destroying you. Swooping and soaring, they grow ever larger as they rush toward you.

In Play

The opening title and credits roll up and away into the distance in Star Wars fashion, thus getting you into the appropriate mood for battle against insuperable odds. Against a star-filled backdrop, several yellow spots appear, weaving in and out of a white, hollow, centred X, your laser cannon sight. While the aliens are far off, they appear as small wire-frame triangles, swiftly expanding in size as they race toward you.

Dimension Destructors

Firing your cannon sends a burst of laser beams toward the centre of your sight, destroying any enemy craft caught in it. As the enemy get nearer, their dimensions expand realistically and alarmingly. By diving, rising or swinging your sight around, you might be lucky enough to see the enemy go hurtling past, above, below or to one side of you. Make sure you're sitting on the floor when you play this game - on several occasions, I nearly fell off my chair while trying to pull hard to port to evade a rapidly approaching space ship, so realistic is the three-dimensional effect.

Polishing off the yellow pyramids only serves to annoy the aliens. Soon, more traditionally styled space fighters are on their way, together with more pyramids, though these are a different colour to the first lot. If your ship is hit, one of the shields is destroyed; this is manifester by what appears to be, anachronistically, a cracked windscreen (Earth technology at its best).

When all your shields have been hit, your heroism is at an end.

Verdict

Realistic, perspective graphics which make for an exciting space romp. Health warning: wear a seat belt while playing it.

Bob Chappell

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