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Independent software developer Jonathan Cauldwell has just released his latest outing for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, Homebrew, which was created for the Videogame Nation exhibition Urbis. The graphics were pixelated by Jarrod Bentley, who also worked on the Speccy classic Crystal Kingdom Dizzy (published by Codemasters in 1992).

This game feels like a production from the early 1980s, in that there isn't a lot to it, and the only thing that changes is that new roamers are introduced as you progress through the game. To accompany this real old-school feel, there is some very apparent colour clash in certain situations and areas of the screen, and no music for 128K (AY-equipped) machines.

You control a manoeuvrable firkin-sized barrel, which can be rotated clockwise or anti-clockwise in steps of 22.5 degrees at a time, in a very reminiscent fashion to Atari's much-copied 1979 arcade hit Asteroids. There is also gravity to contend with, though the downward force isn't quick at all, and as you shoot the creatures that fly and bounce around the screen, they drop fruit which must be collected and placed into the demijohn in the middle of the screen. This then fills up with the pressed liquids from the fruits, and the fermentation process starts. And so begins a new level. A bonus is obtained if you drop a specified amount of a certain seeded plant-growth into the large wine-brewing bottle.

Jonathan has released this game through the World of Spectrum archives (found at www.worldofspectrum.org), along with the fully annotated source code in case you want to learn from one of the masters of Speccy games development. To get hold of this splendid title, head over to tinyurl.com/JonBrew

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Meanwhile, Cronosoft are about to publish another new title from Jonathan: Slubberdegullion. This is a progression on his excellent Cybernoid clone Rough Justice, which was released in Autumn of 2003. Like Homebrew, Slubberdegullion has a similar rotational control mechanic to the armoured vessel that you take control of. The only real difference is that it's more Asteroids-shaped, and gravity has no effect when the forward thrust is applied. There's also three weapons at your disposal (four including the 'Joker', though I'm not sure what this does).

The standard laser cannon fires one round per depress of the fire button, and you have an unlimited supply. You start with 20 bombs, which propel forward a short distance and then arc downwards, and ten balls, which bounce around the screen two at a time (so, in effect, you only start off with five rounds of this weapon). Enemy crafts appear, and there are also cannons, and other such hazards. Some of which will be immune to your lasers, and some of which are totally indestructible.

It's all wrapped up in a flip-screen affair, and as you enter each cavern, you must successfully navigate the screen to the exit, collecting what diamonds and power-ups you uncover or are left behind on obliterating your roaming and static enemies. Because of the rotational controls and more hazardous screens, it feels more like you are steering your ship, and this can be a little difficult to get used to at first.

There is also a very interesting way to restock your arsenal, which makes it necessary to be a little more thoughtful than a typical static screen shoot-'em-up would demand... something that I'll go into detail about next week. Until then, keep an eye on www.cronosoft.co.uk or, if you would like a demo, head over to Jonathan's website at www.tinyurl.com/j-cauldwell

The Commodore 64 programming team Creators have just released a preview of its forthcoming horizontally-scrolling shoot-'em-up Armageddon. This project dates back over a decade, and it's finally been dusted off and work has begun again. Don't expect anything too original in terms of gameplay or story; it's a fairly typical 'one armoured ship against hordes of nasty alien-scum' type affair, but the graphics look really good and the music is quite catchy, making excellent use of the C64's SID chip.

It should be a reasonable blaster, then. You may download the preview from http://noname.c64.org/csdb/release/?id=82044