Nodes of Yesod

Dave: Well, It must be said... this game features the best music on the Spectrum this side of Top Of The Pops (That's not saying much! Ed.) And not only that, but the animation is up to the standard set by Ultimate, and the speech... well, words fail!

OK, you've probably gathered by now that I like this one, so let's get down to the nitty-gritty of the actual game. First off, you're briefed by Commander Smith in an appalling German accent and then it's into the action. Your task is to make your way across the lunar surface, jumping on to a moon-mole as soon as it pops its head out of one of the craters. You then move underground in search of the eight Alchiems that go to make up the great master key.

On your journey under the lunar surface watch out for all sorts of baddies, such as the Liver Birds, a big red fish, an alien pirate and a bouncing Teddy Bear. Of course, if you choose you can transform yourself into a mole and deal with your enemies in a most animalistic fashion. You can jump all over the place, but mind you don't fall too far or else you'll find your space-suit develops leaks in the most unpleasant of places and you'll lose a life.

The action is fast and furious throughout Nodes of Yesod, which is amazing when you consider the quality of the sprites and the flicker-free animation. The game really does pale into insignificance when you see it being played... the way the spaceman bounces off the lunar surfaces is a joy to behold. Some programming person has gone to the most meticulous detail to make sure that everything is just right. This one gets a resounding yesod from me! 5/5 HIT

Ross: Nodes of Yesod may seem like a silly name, but then the game's got some nice humorous touches that make it very friendly. You only have to read the instructions - they're in rhyme - to know that someone's got a healthy sense of humour. 4/5 HIT

Roger: Overall. I'd have to say that it looks like an Underwurlde clone... but then again, I loved Underwurlde. And I love this game too! 5/5 HIT

Spectrum 48K
Odin Computer Graphics
Arcade Adventure
£9.95

This evocatively named game features a home computer breakthrough - the first-ever Spectrum speech with Liverpudlian accent. But don't worry, it's only the introduction.

It bears certain similarities to Ultimate's Underwurlde, not least in the quality of production. You play a spaceman who must descend into the depths of the moon, collect eight alchiems - coloured shapes - and then get to the Monolith. All this to save the universe from some horrendous evil.

One of the game's nicest touches is that you're not alone in your quest. Before you disappear down a lunar pothole you need to catch a mole from its hole. When needed, the little crittur can be activated to chew through walls to new caverns, or to destroy the many creepy crawlies in the moon's depths.

The subterranean playing area has many platforms which you hop around on. Progress is made in a series of athletic somersaults which will often land you at the very bottom of a cave - minus a life.

128 GAMES

And so they came - the first trickle of 128 games. Sinclair cleverly made sure that the software was there, ready for the new machine. But most of the first releases have been expanded versions of existing titles, and we all know, don't we, that bigger doesn't necessarily mean better? After all, it's what you do with it that counts. So here it is - the highly personal, Rachael J Smith guide to those first ten releases.

Odin/Thor
£9.95

Nodes Of Yesod was something of a classic in its 48K version - not because of great sophistication or great complexity but because of its charm and good humour. I mean, any game that has you tunneling through the moon with a rock eating mole has to be something special! I'm not sure if the expanded version has added to the size of the caverns but it really scores in its use of music and sound effects. The tunes are catchy and the 'Burp' of your ill-mannered miner after chewing the green cheese is a nice touch. Newcomers to the Spectrum should certainly have this.

Arc was seen as merely more of the same, with a robot sphere instead of a rodent assistant. Actually it adds a zapping element and the game seems to play rather faster. Still, unless you're a real fan of the original it's hardly a big enough leap for its hero, Rt Hon Charlemagne Fotheringham-Grunes, despite the zero gravity. I found that it kept returning to the opening screen for no apparent reason.

So there they are, ten offerings for the 128. All benefit from having their amplified sound blasted out through the TV, and where the new sound chip has been used to full effect it's like suddenly being able to hear after years of deafness. But while there are things here to appeal to the person who's never owned a Spectrum before, I can't see much point in duplicating a game unless you were a big fan of the original. And that means that we're not yet in a position to say whether the 128 itself is worth buying. We'll have to wait until games that make full use of that extra memory - that do things that can't be achieved in 48K - appear before we all decide to trade in our old machines.